A Great Collection of Christmas Ornaments

Stephanie is gradually taking her Christmas decorations down, including this fabulous collection of Nativity ornaments. I love Nativity sets myself so I really enjoyed drooling over hers.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2020/01/i-am-not-embarrassed.html

Steph also collects Santas, particularly Petei Santas.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2020/01/more-christmas-tree-love.html

And she has a lot of other pieces, many of them trip mementos.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2020/02/finally-got-tree-down.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 30, 2020 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The Swan Party Ornament Exchange

Steph's ornament exchange with the SWANS was really great this year!
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2019/12/the-swan-christmas-party-2019.html

Come to think about it, it's great every year.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 7, 2019 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Pears Everywhere!

Stephanie loves pear ornaments and has stitched a lot of them. She posted a few on her blog recently. These are from HeartStrings and Kelly Clark. Melissa Shirley has quite a few pear canvases as well.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2019/05/pears-everywhere.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright May 6, 2019 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The Annual Reveal of the SWANS' Christmas Ornament Exchange

Stephanie's local group, the SWANS, just had their annual Christmas party.  They draw names and exchange ornaments each year, but I have to say each one this year is really wonderful!
https://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2018/12/swan-christmas-party-is-best.html

https://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2018/12/my-swan-party.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 13, 2018 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The SWAN Party Gift Exchange 2016 UPDATED

Every year Stephanie's local stitching guild has a gift exchange. Members draw names and exchange presents, usually Christmas ornaments. This year's set is particularly fun! 
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2016/12/best-party-of-year.html

Merry Christmas, everyone!

UPDATE:  Lucky Steph shows off her SWAN exchange presents.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2016/12/swan-ornaments-given-to-me.html

UPDATE #2:  Steph shows off the ornaments she's stitched and given away to her fellow SWANS.  I think it's nice to have everything in one article so you can admire all the talent in Stephanie's local guild.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2016/12/swan-ornaments-i-have-given.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 12, 2016 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The Petei Show

Stephanie is treating us to a show of Petei characters, mostly Santas. Are they not FAB?!!
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2015/12/petei-extravaganza.html

If you are in love with these --and who isn't?!-- The French Knot in Texas has a huge array of the Santas, most with a stitch guide from Diana Bosworth.
http://www.thefrenchknot.com/x-petei.htm

Of course if you like doing your own thing, check with your favorite shop.  Most have a nice little stock of Petei characters.  Or you can browse Painted Pony's website (they distribute Petei) and choose the canvas or the set that amuses you most, then ask your shop to order for you.
http://www.petei.com/line_list/line_contents.htm

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 31, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Halloween Finishing

Steph shows off the wonderful dimensional Halloween house ornaments from Squiggee...
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2015/10/still-stitching-on-my-secret-santa.html

... while Ada Hayden shows off finished Halloween framing, a cone and her charming pumpkins.
http://eyecandyneedleart.blogspot.com/2015/10/its-spooky-season.html

Happy Spooky Finishing!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright October 24, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

A Quick Review of Amy's Mystery Book Club UPDATED AGAIN

Blog Note:  I've updated this article enough I thought I'd republish it so folks wouldn't miss anything about Amy Bunger's 2015 "club"!
***************************************

Amy Bunger's "club" for 2015 isn't her traditional canvas, it is a series of book chapters called Mysteries of Needlepoint.
http://www.amybunger.com/catalog/item/8713494/10138388.htm

There is also a "workbook" of supplemental puzzles and exercises available to aid you in trying out and remembering each chapter.  This is available from Needle Little More.
http://www.needlelittlemore.com/store/c353/Exclusive_Items.html

Sheena really likes the first chapter of Amy's mystery book club for 2015.  You can read a bit about it here.
http://www.sheenasstitches.com/sun-and-beach-what-a-treat/

UPDATE:  I thought I'd add Steph's quick glimpse of Amy's book chapter here, just to keep everything together for those Googling for more info.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2015/01/sporadic-posting-is-not-to-my-liking.html

UPDATE #2:  I'm adding Sheena's review of the supplemental material you can get from Needle Little More.
http://www.sheenasstitches.com/review-of-mystery-of-needlepoint-casebook/

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright February 23, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Why We Love Petei Santas

If you have ever wondered why folks love Petei's little Santas, Stephanie will demonstrate their charms for you here.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2015/01/petei-wonderland.html

If you want more eye candy, just head over to The French Knot's website and look at their display of Petei Santas.  All these have stitch guides available from Diana Bosworth.  Just ask French Knot to help you with guides.
http://www.thefrenchknot.com/x-petei.htm

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.

Embelishment and Framing at Chaparral

Stephanie lives close enough to Chaparral to visit the shop occasionally. Recently she posted photographs of models she saw there for us all to enjoy. Look at the details--the ribbons used to frame a piece before it goes in a frame, for example. Of the little bits of the stitching like the background behind the lady with a bird and nest on her head. The boxes are slightly different sizes, with the larger ones at the bottom. The rows between the boxes are rectangles, not squares.  Very clever!
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2015/01/in-mood-to-go-to-chaparral.html

There is plenty to see and enjoy here. Thanks for the eye candy, Steph!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 7, 2015 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

The SWAN Christmas Party 2014

Steph's local guild the SWANS has a Christmas ornament exchange each year and each year we eagerly look forward to seeing what delights they have stitched for each other.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/12/best-party-of-year.html

http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/12/more-goodies-from-swan-christmas-party.html

Here are the 2013 ornaments, each more beautiful than the last (and next).  That's a fun way of saying they are all gorgeous!  Enjoy.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/12/swan-christmas-party-is-tomorrow.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 2, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Trims and Finishing at Chaparral

Steph was just visiting Chaparral in Houston and took photos of some of the amazing trims and ribbons and finishing there. First, she choose ribbons for some of her stitching. 
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-ribbonry-at-chaparral.html

http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/11/one-more-ribbon-from-ribbonry.html

Then she just took photos of some of the amazing things she saw there.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/11/other-things-i-saw-at-chaparral.html

If you happen to be in the area, drop by Chaparral for a tour of your own.  If you aren't close enough to do that, click on "Projects," "Finishing," and "Workshops" on the website to see more.
http://www.ndlpt.com

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright November 3, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Feathers and Flowers -- Steph Takes a Class with Laura Taylor

Stephanie has been quite busy taking classes from Laura Taylor at Needle Works in Austin.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/10/read-all-about-it-read-all-about-it.html

The shop offered Melissa Shirley's Halloween Basket as a class one day and canvas embellishment class the second.  Looks like Steph took both classes.  The Indian Brave is from Painted Pony's Southwestern Indian Nativity set.
http://theneedleworks.com/laura-taylor-hill-country-stitching-camp-fall-session-2014/

If you are interested in seeing the full Southwestern Indian Nativity set stitched by Palma Seljan, head here.
http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com/2013/12/a-special-nativity-set.html

Thanks for sharing, Stephanie!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright October 23, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Bird Ideas

Do you have trouble stitching birds? If so, you'll want to ogle what Stephanie is doing courtesy of a Rent Amy Bunger day at Amy's Golden Strand in Memphis.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/09/amy-bunger-is-wonderful.html

Julia Snyder is going to stitch the new Garden Party canvas (design by Vicki Sawyer/Melissa Shirley) in the spring at Enriched Stitch in Connecticut. This canvas is full of birds and inventive ways of stitching them.
http://astheneedleturns.com/garden-party-class-with-julia-snyder/

Finally, Judy has stitched all six of Eye Candy's owls.  Aren't they amazing?!
http://eyecandyneedleart.blogspot.com/2014/09/judys-owls.html

Next time you are paralyzed for ideas, think of what these bird brains have come up with!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright September 27, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Finishing Friday: Kim Does It All

Stephanie shows off finishing by Kim on her blog. The Halloween House is darling but so is the Christmas pear and the physician ornament is just perfect.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/09/adorable-finishing-by-kim.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright September 26, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Finishing Friday: How Does She Find the Time?!

Stephanie shows off KH's  finishing --check out the Bargello tomato!-- and then tells us KH has a family and a full time job.  I think I might hate KH, when I'm not admiring her work, that is.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/08/hope-you-think-it-was-worth-wait.html

By the way, Pocket Full of Stitches and Ridgewood Needlepoint are showing off models from their trunk shows.  The variety of finishing and designs they show is terrific!
http://pocketfullofstitches.blogspot.com/2014/08/a-bradley-trunk-show-models.html

http://ridgewoodneedlepoint.blogspot.com/2014/08/now-thru-labor-day-we-will-be-offering.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright August 14, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Need Ideas for Sky Stitches?

Stephanie shows off a wide range of stitches she and her friends have used for the sky. 
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/06/sky-stitches.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 9, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Victorian Step Stitch

Kirk and Hamilton Candy Cane Dog Stocking

Are you familiar with Victorian Step Stitch? 
http://www.needlepoint.org/StitchOfTheMonth/2012/jun.php

Stephanie has used it for a roof, a field and a sleeve, plus a striped area.  
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-victorian-step.html

Blue Snow

Why did I post a photo of my Candy Cane Dog stocking?  The blue snow under his feet is Victorian Step Stitch.  Very versatile stitch!  And pretty once you get the pattern set up.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright July 2, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

When Basketweave's The One

Stephanie has been struggling to find the right stitch for the background around her Heartstrings Nativity set.   But sometimes plain old tent stitches (basketweave in this case) is just The One.
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/06/boring-blog.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 22, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Flower Ideas

Stephanie continues her series of great ideas for stitches with flower stitches. 
http://stephsstitching.blogspot.com/2014/06/flower-stitches.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 13, 2014 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.