I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more
Contact Mary
I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more
Contact Mary
November 17, 2023
Oh, good morning and Happy Friday!
Before I start blathering, I’ll cut to the chase and let you know that the Twelve Wreaths for Christmas kit (which also works for the next Stitch Snippet) is now available. Woohoo!
The downloadable PDF project book that goes with the kit is also available. I chatted about both of these in yesterday’s blog post, if you’d like to read more on what they’re all about.
November 16, 2023
It’s hard to believe we are at the mid-point of November and rushing towards the close of 2023, isn’t it?
Anna and I have been working like little fiends… errr, elves… here in the studio for weeks and weeks, with an eye on tomorrow. And at last, tomorrow is here! (Almost.) And we are ready for it! (Almost.)
Tomorrow, a couple things are happening here on Needle ‘n Thread: we are launching a new project e-book (a PDF download), and we are also launching a materials kit that goes along with the e-book. The same materials kit can also be used with the final Stitch Snippet stitch-along of 2023, which will begin here on the blog the week after Thanksgiving.
So, three things with noting: we have a new project e-book coming out, we have a new kit coming out that goes with that project book, and we have a Stitch Snippet coming up that also corresponds with the kit and the project book.
November 13, 2023
I’ve spent the last five days watching an auction for this piece of Very Old Embroidery.
It’s kind of fun, to watch auctions – all the while hoping that you won’t see the price suddenly start to sky rocket.
Now, by “watching an auction,” I don’t mean I sat and stared at the screen for five days. It’s more like remembering, now and then, that I’m watching an auction, and taking a second to pop in and see how things are developing.
This looks to me like an exceptional piece of embroidery, and I’m glad to say I won it for almost a pittance in the scheme of things.
November 9, 2023
Occasionally, I like to share a dose of reality about life in the studio here at Needle ‘n Thread.
I met an online friend for the first time the other day. She declared that she was glad to see I was “normal” because my workspace was a bit of a mess!
I asked what she imagined studio life to be at Needle ‘n Thread. Her response cracked me up.
She imagined some kind of Pinterest-perfect studio, color coordinated, immaculately clean, everything organized in particular nooks and crannies and drawers and shelves and nothing out of place. Every thread, every tool on my work table laid out in order, like a surgeon’s tray. Soft music and silence, birds chirping, the sun shining in the windows and a tea kettle always ready (ok, fine, yes, it is). Matching china for tea at a particular time every day. (!!! I must visit this parallel universe some day !!!)
She went on and on, painting this strange fantasy world that is entirely not Needle ‘n Thread. I just kept laughing as she described the sheer unreality of what she imagined my work life to be.
And I wondered how she came to have these impressions. Surely that’s not what comes across here in my blog posts. But just in case it does…
November 6, 2023
Before I ever launch a Stitch Snippet stitch-along, I have to stitch the thing we’ll be stitching along. Sometimes, as we work through the stitch-along, I’m also stitching the thing. But it’s usually at least the second time, usually involving the improved version from the first prototype.
With the Stitch Snippet that I’m releasing in a couple weeks, something completely different is happening. I’m releasing a new Christmas downloadable PDF with multiple little projects in it this – like Twelve Trees for Christmas or Snowflakes: Twelve Winter Embroidery Projects. For the Stitch Snippet, we’ll actually be working through one of those projects together.
This means that I’ve stitched through at least twelve projects before the Stitch Snippet stitch-along goes live. And actually, I think there are about sixteen samples floating around here right now!
Yep, here at Needle ‘n Thread, the stitching fun never ends! Today, I’ll tell you a little bit about what to expect with the upcoming stitch-along, the kit, and the new downloadable project e-book.
November 2, 2023
Lighting technology has changed a lot over the years.
With the advancements in lighting technology, these are some of changes I’ve noticed in task lighting in the past two decades:
LED task lights have vastly improved in color spectrum and in brightness (kelvins and lumens), making it less necessary to invest in bulbed task lights that require expensive replacements, that are heavier to move, and that generate heat.
The structure of task lights has changed significantly. They are lighter. They have better diffusion screens. Good quality task lights are made out of better materials for longer lasting use, and for better flexibility on the shafts and heads.
Cordless technology has significantly improved, allowing for longer-lasting battery-operated lights that don’t dim as as their life-juice drains. (This is a game changer for those who travel with lighting or who attend workshops and the like.)
October 30, 2023
You can’t embroider without a needle.
Every time I say something like that, I pause and think about it. It sounds so definitive. After all, maybe someone out there does embroider (in the standard way we think of embroidering) without a needle.
Thinking…. Thinking….
But no. I can’t fathom it – not in an efficient, easy, comfortable way, anyway.
So I’ll stand by that statement: you can’t embroider without a needle.
You can get away with stitching without a hoop. You don’t even need scissors, since there are other things that will cut thread. But a needle? It’s pretty essential.
When it comes to needles, there are needles. And then are Needles.
Because I’ve gotten some inquiries about needles lately, it’s a good subject to revisit.
