Sunday, June 10, 2012

Polls and Posts and More

The poll on how Blog readers feel about trunk show and sales postings is officially over!  65 people (52 percent) like such postings while 15 (12 percent) dislike them.  Another 44 folks (35 percent) are indifferent.  The numbers mean I'll continue to post lists of trunk shows and sales on Blog, but perhaps not as often as in the past since I find them tedious to do.  This time of year 1000 folks visit Blog a day, so I only heard from around ten percent of Blog's readers.  I'm hoping this is a representative sample of what visitors think about these sorts of postings I write.

A great many people mentioned that I should ask the shops to help contribute this information.  I get it from their e-newsletters.  I subscribe to any of those I find.  One person pointed out that I mention the same places over and over again while ignoring great classes, trunk shows and sales.  The fact that I work mostly from newsletters means that I don't hear about things shops that don't do newsletters are up to.  You have to realize that time is limited in CH and the number of online shops large.  Many of them have very limited websites that they never update and don't do newsletters.  So I don't know about what any shop that isn't good at publicity is doing.  If I stumble across a shop website that is just an address and a list of designers and threads they carry, I probably will never visit there again.  There is no point wasting time on a shop that doesn't say anything online.  I do try to use various shops' items as Canvas of the Day, particularly when they are on sale, but a great many shops don't even show photographs of their stock on their websites.

One shop emails me when they have something going on.  If you know of wonderful things going on at your local shop and I don't ever mention them, let me know.  I'm at chilly hollow at hot mail dot com and I'll be glad to add this information as long as I'm not overwhelmed by emails.  Again, time in CH is limited and I'd rather talk about other things than good deals, although I know that this sort of information is valuable to a good number of people.  I don't get paid for this so there is a limit as to the amount of effort I can expend on such services.  In other news--

Yesterday there was a new article about Robin King's latest stitch guide on the CH Stitch Guides blog. You can click on the magic carpet photo on the right side of the page or go to this link if you think magic carpet rides are silly.
http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com/2012/06/robin-goes-3d.html

Today is the last day for the 2012 Woodlawn Needlework Exhibit.  I hope anyone in the area who hasn't been makes it there before the show closes for good at 4 p.m. today!  I'm already writing up my annual report of what I saw when I was there but it'll be a couple of weeks before I publish it as I have deadlines to meet this week.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com

Thread, Beautiful Thread

Vicky and I both love Belle Soie silk floss from Crescent Colours. The company started out focused on over dyed cotton flosses for the repo sampler crowd, but about 6-7 years ago added 12 ply silk floss (the same base as Splendor, I think) to their line. The colors are lovely and somewhat different from the cotton floss colors.  At least when I visited Scarlet Thread and compared Crescent Colours silks and cottons I couldn't seem to find the same shades in both threads.  Here's Vicki to talk more about it but I have to say I like this thread and would use more of it if I could get it easily.
http://mostlyneedlepoint.com/06/09/belle-soie-silk/


Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com

TNNA Preview

With the Columbus TNNA show in two weeks, more new things are starting to appear.  Pepita has a new doll canvas that is so charming, her daughter wants it to hang in her room!

NeedlePaint is showing off one of the custom coats of arms they create for customers.  If you are interested in genealogy, this is a Must Have.

Speaking of new things, Kreinik has announced they are selling 49 count silk gauze.  They've always had 18 and 32 count so perhaps they are adding 48 count.  (I suspect "49" is a typo.)
http://yarntree.typepad.com/needlework_news/2012/06/stitch-over-one-for-petite-embroidery.html

Barbara Bergsten is showing off her newest items on her blog.  Click on the publicity sheet for a better look.  Don't you just love that Live a Colorful Life design?
http://createneedlepoint.typepad.com/create_needlepoint/2012/06/new-needlepoint-designs-june-2012.html


Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com

Julie Mar Designs and Hot Wire

The new owner of Julie Mar Designs has incorporated Kreinik's Hot Wire into some of her designs. The Krenik blog has a great photo of a finished floral plus tips for using this metallic thread that has wire in the middle.
http://kreinikthread.blogspot.com/2012/05/easy-way-to-add-dimension-to.html

Follow the link to the Julie Mar website to see more of the Julie Mar designs plus her own new canvases.
http://www.juliemardesigns.com/pc/1004/NEW/Audrey%27s+Haut+Couture


Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com