Strategies For Discontinued Threads

I'm not the world's most prolific stitch guide writer (that would be Robin King!) but even I with only a few guides written have had threads I used for models discontinued a month (or even a week) after I published a guide. It's happened to me three times if I remember correctly, and probably has happened more than that but I just don't know it yet.   I have to admit that no stitch guide writer will go back and rewrite a guide with updated threads.  The small amount we are paid for our hours of work doesn't cover our time spent on the original guide, much less a rewrite.  The best you can hope for is that the stitch guide writer or your local shop can recommend something else that will work.  Mary Waldsmith of Owl Stitchery has several great ideas on how to solve this common dilemma.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2016/01/when-threads-are-discontinued.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright February 1, 2016 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The Owl's Favorite Threads

Mary Waldsmith at Owl Stitchery has posted a list of the threads she uses most often.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/12/threads-i-use-lot-part-1.html

It's a fascinating read, and thought-provoking.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/12/threads-i-use-lot-part-2.html

What threads do I use most often?  Splendor silk floss, Gloriana overdyed silk floss, DMC cotton floss, DMC size #8 perle cotton, any Kreinik metallic I can get my hands on,  Petite Silk Lame Braid and Impressions.

How about you?

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 10, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

I Can Barely See Mary for the Pretty Trees UPDATED

Mary Waldsmith of Owl Stitchery just announced more about access to her famous tree designs.   If you belong to ANG, you'll get the Silver Blue Tree chart in the November 2016 issue of Needle Pointers. The Elegant Holiday Tree is available from EGA and local ANG chapters can use it as a program if you make arrangements with Mary.  Mary will be teaching her Mini Checked Pine at EGA's South Central Regional Seminar in Dallas next June.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/10/no-cost-charted-needlepoint.html

Thanks, Mary!  Your trees are beautiful! Counted canvas workers everywhere can go to bed happy tonight, with the new tree and star charts available.

UPDATE:  Mary posted photos of four versions of her tree stitched by John Waddell.  He even added borders to all four.  Amazing!
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2016/09/john-waddell-stitches-my-ang-tree.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright October 16, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Chevron Ribbons!

Mary uses the new chevron pattern ribbon from Kreinik on her blog.  Looks like fun!
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/06/cute-candy-canes-in-kreiniks-new.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 16, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Why You Need to Belong To a Stitching Guild

Mary Waldsmith explains better than I ever could why you need to belong to a stitching guild.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/04/why-join-guild.html

One of the most common questions I hear on Facebook at the Needlepoint Group is whether there's anyone near (fill in the blank city) who'd like to get together and stitch?  The need to hang out with other stitchers is universal.

The American Needlepoint Guild has chapters all over.  If you aren't close to one, they also have a Cyber Chapter available so you can meet online with other stitchers who can't make it to a local meeting.  (Note that ANG is having trouble with their website so be patient if you don't get answers right away.  Their webmaster is trying to fix the issues ASAP.)
http://www.needlepoint.org/membership.php

The Embroiderer's Guild of America also has many chapters including an online one.  Although their focus is broader than needlepoint, they have many needlepointers in their ranks.
https://www.egausa.org/index.php/membership/new-to-ega-start-here

Both organizations have annual seminars and regional meetings as well as local get-togethers.  Both send out inspirational magazines as part of your dues.  Time to sign up and help spread the word about needlepoint and needlework!

Thanks for the reminder, Mary.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright April 30, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Going the Extra Mile: Add a Border

In this blog post Mary Waldsmith shows how she added something special to an Eye Candy Halloween collage--a border!  It really enhanced the canvas, didn't it?  This is something I will have to think about as I stitch No Flying Monkeys....
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/04/adding-border-to-painted-canvas.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright April 21, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

No Flying Monkeys: What's in YOUR Background?

The No Flying Monkeys canvas is a tabula rasa when it comes to the background, isn't it?  The feet are up in the air unsupported, while the lettering floats above.  This means we can do anything we want as long as the stitch is small scale enough that compensation around the letters isn't hard.  Check out what Mary Waldsmith did for her penguins stocking.  I'm going to do something similar, but what?
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/04/adding-background-to-painted-canvas.html

I started to think about what the witch's feet were resting on.  Two possibilities came to mind.  Her legs were propped up on a footstool or her heels rest on a railing or chair rail.  Hummmm....

A chair rail could be broad enough for me to create a decorative band with flying monkeys across it....

Or I could put flying monkeys on a footstool.  The footstool has the added advantage of creating two background areas--one under the legs and one on the wall where the lettering is.  I could do something fancy and larger scale on the footstool and then work a smaller scale pattern on the "wall" around the letters.

I had not put my canvas on stretcher bars yet, so I used one of my stretcher bars to take photos of my canvas showing several positions for a dividing line on the canvas.  Here they are--

The higher bar on the left is where I thought heels would rest on a chair rail on a wall while the lower bar on the right is where I thought the edge of a footstool would be.  I think a footstool space looks better.  But then I consulted a stitching friend who thought the footstool looks better lower down, nearer her calves.  Like this--

Hope you can see this.  I think it is better, although I will put the footstool area up a bit higher, but not as high as in the other two photographs.  Now all I need are two stitches for the two background areas-- one for the footstool and one for the wall, both of which have to look ok with the stripes on the stockings.

Any ideas?

Remember, I am collecting the links as I blog stitch this Point of It All Designs piece and posting them in a tab on the CH Stitch Guides blog.  You can catch up on what you missed by going there--just click on the flying carpet photo to magically be transported to my other blog and then back again.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright April 19, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The Right Stitch

Mary Waldsmith of Owl Stitchery explains just why sometimes tent stitch (and its variations) are the perfect choice. 
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/01/sometimes-tent-stitch-is-right-stitch.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 27, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Fancy Stitches Tour

Mary Waldsmith of Owl Stitchery just visited Fancy Stitches in Cleburne, Texas, and took some shop photos so we could all peek inside.  Thanks, Mary!
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/01/fancy-stitches-needlework-shop-in.html 

I've heard Mary's blue and silver abstract Christmas tree chart will be available at Fancy Stitches shortly.  Stay tuned for that treat!
http://www.fancystitches.com

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 22, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.