Sunday, January 22, 2017

Stitching People: Inspiration from the Masters

Chris Tirey Does Lani Ballgown


I don't know about you, but I love stitching people.  So when I noticed these photographs posted on Facebook last month, I wanted to share the fabulous hair and clothing that the masters of needlepoint embellishment are stitching these days.  Starting in alphabetical order, what you see above is Chris Tirey of Nimble Fingers in Houston stitching a Lani ball gown.  The light coverage background, the random placement of sequins for sparkle and the masterful bow all make this a wonderful piece.
http://nimblefingerstx.com/NimblefingersTx.com/Welcome.html

http://www.lanisneedlepoint.com/pd-5e-formal-gown-5.aspx


Lani Stitches her Leopard Evening Coat
Speaking of Lani, Lani herself is a masterful stitcher.  Check out this Leopard Evening Coast stitched by Lani herself with a touch of fur on the collar and hem.  Once again the light coverage background is terrific but what makes this special is the leopard coat's luxury and the fur trim, not to mention the two borders.  This design is new for Fall 2016, by the way.
http://www.lanisneedlepoint.com/ec-1b-leopard-evening-coat.aspx


Kathleen Stitching Santa Using Mark Young's Guide


Mark Young of Labors of Love is also a master of design and stitching.  In the photo above you see Kathleen's stitching Labors of Love's Red Stand Up Santa using Mark's stitch guide.  The beard is a masterpiece of shape and movement and contrasts nicely with Santa's clothing.  This piece is a four-sided tear drop that finishes into a Christmas standup.  You can see all the pieces on the Labors of Love website.
http://www.laborsofloveneedlepoint.com/santas-and-snowmen.html


Madame Pompadour, Stitched From Tony Minieri's Guide
Our last inspirational piece is also a Labors of Love design, stitched using a guide from Tony Minieri.  This is a limited edition canvas titled "Madame Pompadour."  It has magnificent greenery and a background pillar that work perfectly with the dress.  It is exceptionally hard to attach dimensional pieces to a canvas and achieve a balanced look but Tony's student did a terrific job with this.  Labors of Love designs a limited number of canvases with the china faces and hands to be attached when the stitching is finished.  This piece is sold out but you can see other limited edition figures on the Labors of Love website.
http://www.laborsofloveneedlepoint.com/limited-editions.html

By the way, this is the 2017 Limited Edition figure from Labors of Love.  There are only ten.  Place your order now.
https://www.facebook.com/236197349333/photos/a.477851644333.261602.236197349333/10154893875159334/?type=3&theater

Hope you enjoyed seeing what masters of embellished needlepoint canvas can do with the human figure.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 5, 2017 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.