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Mary Corbet

writer and founder

 

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

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Garden Swirl Stitch-Along 2b: Leaves

 

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Good morning, folks!

Today, we’re going to add the leaves to the Garden Swirl project. If you’re just joining in on this stitch-along adventure, you can find the previous installments of the stitch-along here in the Garden Swirl project index.

If you are a member of the Needle ‘n Thread Community on Patreon, you received today’s information already, in the PDF that was posted last Friday. I can’t cover as much in a blog post as I can in a PDF, so usually the PDFs on Patreon have more information in them and they are a little farther ahead on the project. So don’t worry if you don’t see a post on Patreon today – you already have this information!

Garden Swirl Stitch-Along: Embroidering the Leaves
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Garden Swirl Stitch-Along Project Index – and News

 

To keep things organized and easy for you to find, here’s the Garden Swirl Project Index for the current stitch-along here on Needle ‘n Thread.

I’ll also share some news below about the kits for this project and about the decorative boxes, so if you’re still planning on a kit, a box, or both, please check out the information at the end of this post.

Garden Swirl Stitch-Along Project Index
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Garden Swirl Stitch-Along 2: A Large Flower and the Vine

 

Welcome to part 2 of the stitch-along for Garden Swirl.

If you’re just joining in, you’ll find part 1 – which covers materials, tools, and the design – here.

Next Monday, I’ll be creating a Project Index for Garden Swirl, which will be available under “Tips & Techniques” in the main menu here on Needle ‘n Thread.

Members on Patreon will find today’s information (which also includes embroidering the leaves) already published over on Patreon, with a downloadable PDF.

Today, we’re going to embroider one of the large flowers on the design and we’ll also stitch the vine and all its little offshoots.

Garden Swirl 2: Flower and Vine
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Doodling & Designing: Maniturgium Project

 

Behind all the scurry and hustle for Garden Swirl, I’m spending time designing (more like doodling – but it eventually will lead to a finished design) the maniturgium that I mentioned in this article last week.

I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, an “artist proper.” From conception to execution, I am just not one of those artists who manages, with seeming ease, to produce some beautiful and intricate work of art, in ideal proportions, using pencil, paint, pen…

Instead, I am a doodler, and I manage to pull my doodles together into some kind of design that will work for the embroidery project I’m imagining.

I don’t consider this a negative thing, and I’m not belittling myself. I’m just stating a fact. I have never developed skill for sketching or painting, for bringing an idea to fruition in the correct proportions and balance, to produce a real work of art in the way that an artist, with training (or with innate skill and talent), can do.

I’m pretty decent with stylized doodles, designs, elements, and text, and so that’s pretty much where my approach to design lies.

embroidered maniturgium
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Garden Swirl Stitch-Along 1: Materials and More

 

Aaaaaaand…. we’re off!

It’s time to start the stitch-along series for Garden Swirl, a decorative embroidered insert for a box lid. It’s a sweet little piece – I love the color scheme! – and it’s not too taxing. The results are very pretty, and the whole finished project is quite satisfactory. I think you’ll have fun with it, and I hope you learn a lot along the way.

As we kick off the adventure, I’ll recap below what you can expect with the stitch-along and how it will progress; I’ll share the embroidery pattern with you; and I’ll share my materials list and tools that I used to work the samples.

If you’re following along using the materials kit, you will have everything you need to stitch the project, including the pre-transferred design on your linen. If you’re working from your own materials, feel free to make substitutions, as you wish.

Garden Swirl Stitch-Along
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Trying Out a New Magnifier Light Combo – and some news

 

Quick News: We’ll be starting the Garden Swirl stitch-along this coming Monday, July 28th. My intention was to start tomorrow, but we had unavoidable delays in shipping the kits, so this will give more people more time to get their kits.

On to today’s topic:

A while ago, a kind reader wrote in with a recommendation for a light / magnifier combo unit that she uses and likes. Because I get a lot of questions about magnifiers, I thought Hmmmm… I should get one and try it out!

And so I did.

I don’t always use magnification when I stitch. In fact, I find it easier not to use it – and for most work, I’m ok without a magnifier.

In most circumstances, good lighting is the key to seeing well when stitching. When folks ask me about magnification because they’re struggling to see, my first question is generally, “What kind of light do you use?” Often, the answer is regular household light. Sometimes, it’s an Ott light. So usually, I recommend trying a high Kelvin (up to 6,500K) task light first. A good light will often (though not always) eliminate the perceived need for magnification, and it will help reduce eye strain while you’re stitching.

Rockler Magnifier Light Combo Unit
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Books, Fish, and News

 

Good morning, and welcome to a Late Start on Tuesday!

Here in the studio we’ve been catching up on the kit and box launch for Garden Swirl (which happened this past Friday). We’ve been organizing and sorting and answering your emails, trying to make sure orders are combined as you want, that we’re holding orders for those who want them held, we’re shipping orders for those who want them shipped, and on and on. Oh, the Excitement of Launching a Kit! We love it – but it can get complicated. Thanks for your patience!

On the News Front:

We are restocking Garden Swirl kits as quickly as we can. Give us about two weeks. I’ll let you know when they’re available.

We are re-stocking boxes as quickly as we can. I’ll let you know when we have more available.

And now, on to other topics.

What do books and fish have in common? Why, I’ll tell you!

New Needlework Books to Peruse
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