Bling Your Problems Away

My Background Hates Me

After I finished my latest Top Secret project for Leigh Designs to preview at the St. Charles trade show, I turned my attention back to my Dr Who canvas.   When you last saw this canvas, I had finally decided on a background.
http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-second-background-dr-who-part-three.html

Things went downhill from there.  First, I ran out of the tan Trebizond.  A friend came to my rescue with two more spools, but they were slightly lighter than the dyelot I had been using.    I also noticed that the Trebizond in brick stitches allowed some white canvas to peek through.  Then I had trouble at the join between the background and the face of the Doctor.  Then I couldn't find a color to put in the left side background between the rows of blue waves where you see the white canvas peeking through.

Sigh. Sometimes a canvas just hates you.  Fortunately, that's when I get the most creative--when I have a problem child canvas.  Let's tackle the problems in reverse order, ok?

I could not find a color that seemed to work well as tent stitches between the blue wavy background stitch on the left side of the Doctor.  I finally decided I liked the white area that shows so I left it as is.  Please don't tell anyone I have naked canvas here!  LOL

As you can see if you look closely at the photo above, I took out the brick stitches near the left side of the Doctor's face and used tent stitches instead.  I also outlined the jawline a bit with the darkest skin color to help differentiate between the face and the background.  The tan background and pink skin colors are not the same but they are similar in value and sometimes that is enough to make it hard to distinguish between colors.  Did I ever tell you about the time I stitched a background in pale green and pale violet and the two colors disappeared?  This sort of color magic can work against you sometimes but a little outlining solved this issue when I used tent stitches next to the tan and pink areas.  Yes, occasionally you solve one problem and create another.  Told you this background hates me!

The brick stitches not always covering well in Trebizond was an issue.  Also having a distinct line between two dyelots was a problem.  I could have solved both issues by ripping out the entire brick stitch area and restitching it with another thread in brick stitch.  If I'd had a similar shade of tan in Impressions, I would have done just this.  I love the tan color which is perfect for this design but not having a shop near me is certainly a problem.  I finally decided to just live with the canvas "dandruff" which isn't too noticeable except to experienced stitchers.

I am going to hide the dyelot change by applying lots and lots of beads and crystals to the area where one dyelot of Trebizond meets another.

Did you think adding beads to your canvas was just because we are all magpies at heart?!  NO!!  Bling hides a multitude of problems.  Is your stitch a little awkward in places?  Toss beads on top and no one will ever know.  My problem is a little worse that that so I added both beads and some of those new 3mm flat back Swarovski crystal sequins.

Add Bling and What's a Dyelot Between Friends?

Here's how Dr. Who Eleven looks right now.  With the right finishing on the edges of the canvas only you and I will ever know that the background gave me such fits!

Of course I am not advocating stitching less than your best but sometimes we lack the threads, energy, well, or whatever to make a problem area the best it can be.  In those instances, get creative and it is amazing what you can achieve.

Now I am going to turn my attention back to Luna.  Remember Luna?

About Time You Finished ME!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
@ Copyright 2013 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Ladies of the Night

Luna:  Lady of the Night Unfinished

As a special Halloween celebration, I have some of the wonderful Leigh Designs' Ladies of the Night series, all stitched up and ready to inspire us all with ideas for our own Halloween canvases. First of all, I've linked to the unstitched canvases so you can see them all. Leigh always designs a series of eight canvases, which gives plenty of options to choose from.  I'm working on Luna, even though she's been put away for almost a year when family crises got in the way.  I'll be working on her this fall after Christmas stitching is done.  (Note to self:  Stitch FASTER!)
http://www.leighdesigns.com/Grp513x.html

The first finished canvas is of Esme, who wears a beaded gown (Luna's gown is only beaded at the bottom) and has the most marvelous pillar and candle--that candle wax is inspired!  Esme's got smashing jewelry and gorgeous hair.  I suspect if we could see this in person the red curtains in the background would also be beautiful.  The photo isn't quite clear enough for me.  Leona Cole of The Stitch Niche in Mississippi is the stitcher of this masterpiece.  Think she'd let me borrow this for a while to study?  I'll give it back.  Eventually.  Really I will.
http://www.LeighDesigns.com/Mdl5132.html

Daria is the next finished piece.  (I'm listing them in the order they appear on the Leigh website to make you finding a photo of the unstitched canvas a bit easier.)  This has always been a favorite canvas.  I just love the black cat!  Daria wears a gorgeous patterned gown and has the best manicure of the bunch.  I particularly like the couched metallic spiral on the broken pillar and the velvety look of the cat with the jewel eyes.  Daria's ring is simple and I think that enhances the overall look of this piece since it doesn't detract from the cat's eye or the fabulous beaded girdle she wears.  Take a careful look at the background of this piece.  The zigzag pattern is both quiet and dynamic, a wonderful combination!  Sally London of Rainbow Gallery is the creative mind behind this great canvas.
http://www.LeighDesigns.com/Mdl5134.html

Our final vamp vampire is Beth Hendzilik's Remilia.  I was thrilled to see this photograph as the gauzy curtains on either side of the canvas were not shown in earlier versions I've seen.  The curtain tie backs are inspired, as is the little spider hiding in the curtain folds!  That spider was obviously inspired by the web that you can just see glistening on the right side or Remilia.  She wears the most marvelous Russian shawl, which I am told was inspired by the ones the designer SharonG takes to the trade shows.  Wish I could see that shawl better. Maybe I have to borrow this design, too?  Heck, I'll just need all three, please!
http://www.LeighDesigns.com/Mdl5137.html

I think the background is unstitched here.  The hair is just fabulous and the sleeves are fascinating.  My Luna's sleeves are unstitched so I find these particularly interesting in that they are done with such a light touch they are gray, not black like her sisters' outfits.

Beth works for ThreadworX and created a stitch guide for her version which comes with the thread kit from ThreadworX so you have everything you need.  Add canvas and you'll have a Lady of the Night to haunt our dreams as well.
http://www.threadworx.com/productDetails.php?prd_id=1087

It is great fun to study all three ladies and see how the similar elements of black dress with tattered sleeves, the flowing hair and the backgrounds are handled.  Each stitcher has put her unique stamp on the designs with the elements that are different--the spider web, the cat on the pillar and the candle in its skull holder.  Needlepoint is really art in the hands of these master stitchers.

Happy Halloween!


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

Reviewing Nature's Palette

No, I'm not critiquing Mother Nature.  Nature's Palette is a company that produces special colors of needlepoint canvas.  Janet Perry just reviewed their products on her blog.
http://www.nuts-about-needlepoint.com/natures-palette-canvas-product-review

Remember Luna from the Ladies of the Night series (from Leigh Designs)?  She's one of my projects listed on the right side of the page.  Luna is painted on one of Nature's Palette's canvases, the one called Storm Cloud (in the Custom section in the link to their website below).  It's a gray canvas with charcoal speckles and flecks.  Perfect for this moody and atmospheric design!
http://www.naturespalettecanvases.com/Home_Page.html

Counted canvaswork folks should check out the Laura Perin section of their website as they sell a kit for some of her geometric charts done on their canvases.  Anyone looking for a special background color needs to consider Nature's Palette.

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

After Luna

dede's Cat Topiary Garden

I have finished work on Red Geisha (sorry, no pictures until after the Columbus trade show), which means I am now doing the last sections on my Ladies of the Night piece.  Luna's cloak is huge and I'm still working to get that area done before I can pick up the last bit, her sleeves. I have probably more than two weeks' worth of stitching before I finish Luna.

But I am already planning for my next project.  I'm going to be working an 11 1/2 x 13 1/2 inch canvas from dede Odgen which I call the Cat Topiary Garden.
http://www.canvasesbegone.com/5973/dede+Topiary+Garden+needlepoint+hp+18+or+13+ct.html

This is intended to hang on the door of my mother's new apartment.  All her neighbors have floral wreaths on their doors but Mom says they look like funeral wreaths, so I've been hunting for something to stitch for her to put on her door.  This canvas is perfect as it combines her love of gardens with her love of cats.

The reason I'm mentioning this so early is that I picked up Cat Topiary Garden at the Canvases Be Gone website at a good price, and the owner of the business tells me she has several of these same canvases (in both 13 or 18 count--I bought an 18 count version) still in stock.  She got them from dede herself as they are a discontinued design.  So if you want to stitch along with me, get in touch with Canvases Be Gone and get your canvas now before I start mine.

There won't be a stitch guide for Cat Topiary Garden since it is discontinued, so I'll be talking about this canvas here in enough detail you'll be able to stitch with me whether you got the 13 or 18 count version.  I plan to use light coverage stitches, tulle, beads, and perhaps old Czech glass buttons as I create a door hanging that'll make Mom proud.  I'll also talk about how I finish this piece so you can follow along there in case you want a wall or door hanging as well.

So if you are interested in stitching with me, get your canvas now before I am ready to start.  Full disclosure:  I know Dale who owns Canvases Be Gone but I didn't know she had multiple copies of this design until after I ordered mine.

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

Let's Talk Hair Some More

I planned to reveal Red Geisha's hair this weekend but I ran out of one of the threads I'm using and my replacement skein won't be here until next week, so I am going to be working on Luna's cloak instead. (Remember Luna from the Ladies of the Night series?  I've got miles of cloak lining to stitch for her.)  You'll have to wait another week or so to see the geisha's wig.  Sorry!

So why don't we talk about needlepoint hair in general?  Do you have a favorite hair treatment you use over and over again?  Do you have a link to an online photo of great hair you want to send me?  Are you working on a canvas right now (or plan to work on one) with hair that has you stumped?  Tell All!

Use the comments section below this article to send links, to ask questions about hair, to brag, to show off great needlepointed hair, anything you like.  It just has to be about stitching hair.  If the Comments don't work for you, not to worry.  You can email me directly at chilly hollow athotmail dotcom and I'll post your comments here for you.  Let me start with a link to a couple of great hair treatments--

A smooth Grecian style, probably satin stitches over padding.  This was stitched by Amy Bunger and I think she has a stitch guide written for it.
http://www.needlepoint.org/WhatIs/2001/ebony.php

This is masterful hair, stitched by Mary Santosstefano under Susan Portra's direction.  I think it is stem stitches in silk, carefully laid with very close attention to how hair actually flows.
http://www.needlepoint.org/WhatIs/2001/the_bird_lady.php

This hair is totally unrealistic but beautifully braided and perfect for this design.  The stitch guide for this piece was written by David McCaskill and the piece was stitched by Brenda Ramsdell.
http://www.needlepoint.org/WhatIs/2007/images/505np-21.jpg

Only a tiny bit of hair shows here but it was very carefully planned to complement the fancy fur trimmed hat.  Stitched by Pam Pabst.
http://www.needlepoint.org/WhatIs/2005/images/4003P.jpg

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

Luna: Too Busy?

Cloak Lining

I've been stitching the cloak lining for Luna and run into a problem.  It's too busy!  Look at the pattern under her right arm.  It simply has too much movement for what needs to be textured but quiet.

Look at Either Side of Her Hair

So lately I've been searching for a replacement stitch.  I think this is the one but I'm not 100% satisfied....

It is very easy to fall in love with a stitch and not realize until you actually use it that it is not right for your current piece.  That's the situation I'm in.

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

The Other Bird

The second bird is now beaded.  My final step will be to work the legs and see if I need to add a bead to the center of the tent stitched eyes of each.

Once that is done I'll probably return to working the lining of Luna's cloak.  I got a little distracted there!  (Beads do that to me.  Do they do that to you?)




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

Luna's Birds

Ladies of the Night:  Luna (from Leigh Designs)

The moment I started looking at my Ladies of the Night piece, I wanted to bead the birds.  I don't know why the idea of beading them popped into my head, but it did.

The birds look very Art Deco-ish to me.  I think of Rockefeller Center when I look at the bird on Luna's arm and of The Maltese Falcon statue when I look at the bird perched on the tombstone. In other words, I think of rather stylized and glossy birds.  Stylized and glossy equals beads to me!

For those who haven't seen Rockefeller Center or who aren't familiar with the iconic Maltese Falcon of movie fame, here are links--
http://toddlandryphotography.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/rockefeller.jpg

http://www.magazineusa.com/images_st2/ny_city/rockefeller_center1.jpg

http://archive.liveauctioneers.com/archive4/guernseys_auction/15124/0279_1_lg.jpg

http://images.bizrate.com/resize?sq=348&uid=1955189036

Isn't it odd how something reminds us of something totally different?

I decided I would use brick stitch to bead the birds.  I've started on the top bird, turning the canvas on its side and doing brick stitch in vertical rows instead of the more normal horizontal rows as this is easier for me. Most of us are used to doing brick stitch over two threads.  To bead using brick stitch, just come up as usual, put a bead on the needle, and go down as usual.  The bead nestles between the two threads nicely.  You will see some of the thread you are attaching the bead with but that's ok.

Here's what the bird looks like totally beaded.  It looks much better in person than the photographs as my camera doesn't pick up the sheen of the faceted beads.

I've started beading the vertically oriented bird but haven't gotten very far.

If you need diagrams to understand what I've done, check out Robin King's tutorial of what she calls Beaded Brick on the Needlepoint Study Hall blog.
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2010/04/beading-pumpkin-balloon.html

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

Luna's Statement Jewelry

Luna's Ring and Broach

After tackling Luna's hood and the cloak draped over her shoulders, it was time for a little treat--I stitched her jewelry!  What you see above is the Before photo.

And here is the After.  I had planned to put a silver cross from the Potomac Beading Company on top of the broach setting but silly me-a silver cross on top of silver filagree, even with the bits of purple in the filagree, disappeared.

Plan B was to plop a square crystal sequin on top of the broach setting and hold it down with a lilac bead.  I think it looks great, especially in person.

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

Creating Dimension with Threads and Stitches

Who's In Front?

Most folks would take a look at the Ladies of the Night series and want to stitch them because they are glamorous and spooky, but that wasn't really the main reason I was eager to stitch Luna--I wanted to stitch her to learn how to stitch adjacent black areas so they were distinct from each other.  To do this I am using texture (i.e., mixing metallic threads with silks and wools) and dimension (i.e., making some parts of the canvas look raised and others look flat through my stitch choices).

Take a look at Luna's hood and hair.  I wanted the fur trim to stand out a bit from her hair while the back of the hood should recede more than the hair and fur trim.  This is how things look in real life and this canvas is realistic enough that I want to mimic that look.

Her bangs (or fringe if you speak British English) should be a bit puffier than the smooth sides of her long hair.  The cloak over her shoulders should be a bit more prominent than the long black dress underneath.

I stitched French knots with wool for the fur trim, used Petite Very Velvet in tent stitches for the back of the hood and the shoulders, and choose long stitches in a mix of wool and metallics for the hair.  The bangs (or fringe) are stitched in stem stitch using Baby Alpaca (from & More) to make them look puffy and slightly raised.  The Petite Very Velvet used on the hood and shoulders was considered for the long gown but it looked too heavy and crowded, so I used it only for the exterior of the cloak and stitched the gown in Impressions (a silk/wool blend) in tent stitches instead.  I took advantage of the heavier look of PVV on the cloak after I realized it was too much for the entire long gown.

The next challenge is to make the raven perched on her elbow stand out without overwhelming the canvas.

Wish me luck!

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

Shoulder Pads and Japanese Quilting

Luna from Leigh Designs' Ladies of the Night Series

I hoped to have both of Luna's shoulders done this morning but I didn't finish the purple folds on the right side last night.  The shoulders are both painted with gray and purple shading but I am stitching all the crease lines in purple.  I thought two colors for the fold lines was a bit much considering what I was doing with this design so I am only using a dark purple on the black cloak.  (I may use a bit of gray thread in back stitching to differentiate the different black areas at the end. Or I may not.)  You'll see I haven't done the bangs or her jewelry yet, either.  That fun stuff has to wait until I have both shoulders and bangs finished.

In other news, Barbara mentioned this Flickr album full of Japanese quilts from the 2011 Tokyo quilt show.  (Navigate using the arrow at the right of the little thumbnail photos.) The colors are amazing.  Shows like this help me pick colors for geometric pieces.  I choose a piece I particularly like and pull colors from it.  It is sort of like picking a skein of Watercolours that appeals and then going with the colors incorporated in the overdyed cotton skein, but the range of colors shown at the quilt show is much greater than the 200-250 that Caron uses currently.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/22514067@N00/5393169351/in/set-72157625919155444/

Thanks for the tip, Barbara!

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

Settling in With Morning Eye Candy

Janet Perry alerted me to a new design by Debbie Rowley (DebBee's Designs) called Eight Pansy Portraits.  It's a charted study of eight different flowers in different shades.  You can see good photos in the second link and read about the chart booklet in Janet's review.
http://www.nuts-about-needlepoint.com/pansy-portraits-product-review

http://stores.intuitwebsites.com/ScarletThread/-strse-2912/charted-needlepoint,-canvaswork,-Debbie/Detail.bok

Speaking of eye candy, you will want to see Vicky De Angelis' interpretation of the SharonG canvas called Cat Walk.  The framing is spectacular to match Vicky's stunning stitching.
http://mostlyneedlepoint.com/02/25/off-to-see-the-wizard/

I haven't been idle.  I've finished Luna's hair except for her bangs and the hood of her cloak and it's fur trim is done.  I am doing the easy stitching instead of the harder cloak lining as this has been a busy week with not much energy for stitching at night.

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

Odds and Ends and Bangs

Last night I worked on Luna's hair and started the cloak trim. Although the purple Empress wool from Pure Palette I have is too heavy for the cloak lining, it makes beautiful tiny French knots as you see in the photos.

You probably won't see Luna again until I finish the cloak trim, lining and her hair.  I need to cut down on the number of redundant photos I post here, so we'll talk about other things until I am able to show you these items finished.  

Speaking of other things, Judy Harper continues very ill.  Apparently her family has turned off any eBook purchases on her Elegant Whimsies website but the website and her two blogs are still there for now.  It distresses me to know Judy is seriously ill since we carried on a lively correspondence and a running debate over just how much embellishment is too much on a canvas.  Judy always argued for restraint although she was a big believer in beading a canvas using the "use skip tent stitch then fill in the empty holes with beads" approach.  Here's Judy's Blogger profile which says what Judy is in just two sentences.  Keep those good wishes coming!

http://www.blogger.com/profile/00301188397987608400

If you are curious about the tiny colored sequins that Needlepoint Tool Time has in stock, Tisha has posted a bit more information about them as well as listing shops that stock them.

http://stitchplaywithneedlepointtooltime.blogspot.com/2011/02/details-about-micro-sequins.html

ABS Designs has posted all of the Nutcracker Ballet ornament series that Anne blog stitched here so we can see the set together.

http://thecapestitcher.blogspot.com/2011/02/nutcracker-series-reprise.html

http://thecapestitcher.blogspot.com/2011/02/nutcracker-series-part-two.html

Rittenhouse has posted an interesting article about NP portraits on their website.  It's a good read with plenty of eye candy illustrations.

http://rittenhouseneedlepoint.blogspot.com/2011/02/portraits-in-needlepoint.html

If animal portraits are more your style, check out the dog and wolf examples from Barbara Russell at Nimble Needle's blog. (Feb. 22 and 23, 2011 if you are late to the party.)

http://thenimbleneedle.blogspot.com/

Are you a NP book collector?  If so, you'll want to take a peek at the books PFOS profiles on their blog.  Many are Julia Snyder's but not all.

http://pocketfullofstitches.blogspot.com/2011/02/interesting-books.html

Finally, these are for bargain hunters.  Ruth Schmuff has a Groupon (Groupon is a group coupon) deal going. 

http://www.notyourgrandmothersneedlepoint.com/2011/02/groupon-coupon-for-bedecked-and.html

Amy Bunger is doing a sale of the week for each Friday-Sunday.  Keep an eye out tomorrow to see the limited sale items for this weekend.

http://www.amybunger.com/online_3day_special.html

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

Fixing Luna's Hair

Luna Unstitched

Today's Blog posting starts off with a photograph of my Ladies of the Night canvas untouched because I want you to see how her hair was painted before you see how I stitched it.

I'd planned to stitch her cloak lining next but realized I had better figure out if the lining stitch played nice with her hair and I got carried away last night.    This is her head.  I'm not finished yet but I needed to get both sides of her hair stitched before I did the bangs.  Look at the unstitched gray area in this photo and then at the full photo at the top of this article.  I've skipped the gray shading in this close up head shot.

Here you see black and gray areas stitched except for that gray spot at her neck.  I'm using two threads--a black silk/wool blend and a silk/metallic blend.  The color is way off on this photograph so you can see as much of the texture change in her hair as possible.  In person it is quite visible, even under night lights, but the camera doesn't pick up the sheen of silk or the sparkle of metallics well.

I don't always necessarily follow the painted areas when I stitch a painted canvas.  I wanted to use a stitch that didn't follow the gentle curves of the gray waves so I had to adjust where the highlighted areas (i.e., the gray) fell so my stitches would fit.

Here is the bottom of the canvas showing how the hair and the cloak lining stitches work together.  Another unstitched gray area is at the top of this photo just under her hand.

I'll finish the hair tonight before I work further on the cloak lining stitches.

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

Unavoidable Delay

I had planned to test hair stitches on Sunday so I'd know that what I wanted to use there would work with the cloak lining stitches before I spent too much more time stitching the lining.  It would be a shame to finish the lining and then discover the hair stitches didn't look good with them.  Since I already know as many swear words as I need to, it's best to test everything in this area before committing to anything.  Besides, I don't like ripping out!

Unfortunately, the power was out for three hours on Sunday and all my stitching plans went out the window as it was a very overcast day.  By the time the power came back on, I was worn out from running up and down the stairs to tend to the wood fire (no electricity equals no heat) and by keeping a close eye on the kerosene and propane lamps so that Watson the Rambunctious and Curious Puppy didn't knock them over and start a fire.

But Mother Nature, after having knocked down trees and power lines with high winds over the weekend, is planning stitch time for tomorrow since she will dump 4-6 inches of snow in Chilly Hollow overnight.  So today I'll run around and prepare by restocking the bottled water we used yesterday (puppies drink a LOT of water!) and getting sunflower seed.  I'm running low and dare not run out.  I've seen Hitchcock's The Birds....

Today I recover from one weather event and prepare for the next weather event.  Tomorrow I stitch!

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

Luna's Mysterious Cloak

Cloak Stitches

I inadvertently misled you yesterday about which of the stitches I tested I am probably going to use on Luna's cloak lining.  I posted the photo with two of the three stitches upright but one was on its side as that's the easiest way to stitch it.  And that's the stitch that looks like the best choice for Luna's cloak lining. The stitch I have been working on is the June 2009 stitch from Tony Mineiri.  It's called Henderson Variant.  In the photo above I worked a line on the diagonal which is how it is diagrammed but in yesterday's test stitching, I was working it with the diagram and canvas turned on their sides.
http://www.needlepoint.org/StitchOfTheMonth/2009/jun.php

More Rows

Here is how Henderson Variant looks in two shades of purple.  The next step is to stitch some of the hair and see how it looks with the HV stitch.  You may notice another line of thicker thread in the upper left.  I tested Empress wool (from Pure Palette) there but it is a little too heavy a look for the cloak lining.  I may use it on the outside of the cloak, however.

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

A Luna Mystery

Cloak Stitches?

Last night I did some test stitching, trying out threads and colors and stitches that I will use for the inside of Luna's cloak.  I'm not going to tell you which stitch I choose, I'm going to let you try and figure that out yourself.  Above are three of the four stitches I thought might work.   In the photo above I'm using various weights of Planet Earth's 6 Ply Silk.

All the stitches I tried out are Tony Minieri's from his Stitch of the Month project for 2009.  What you see above are (from left to right) June, September and July  I ran out of time before looking at March, so it isn't shown above.
http://www.needlepoint.org/Stitch.php

Which one would you use for the cloak's lining and why?

There's a new blog on my Blog List this morning.  Vicky DeAngelis, who is a superb stitcher, has started posting about her work.  You are going to have fun watching what she does with her stitching and with her blog.
http://mostlyneedlepoint.com/02/19/rainbow-birds/

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

Trunk Shows, Manicures and Other Things

If you are a fan of SharonG's painted canvases, you'll want to mark your calendars as AP Needle Arts/Thistle Needleworks is having a SharonG trunk show from February 19-March 5.  Things are 20% off.  Have a nice browse here--
http://store.apneedlearts.com/shgstrshstfe.html

I've updated yesterday's posting with a photo of Luna's face and manicure since I finished stitching her fingers.  I am adding the photo here, too, in case you don't have time to go back to yesterday's posting.  I can still see the white highlight on her lip (the Frosty Rays didn't cover 100%) so I will play around with outlining the lips with a ply of matching red silk to see if that looks better.  I see a missing stitch near her left hand on the gown as well.  After those cosmetic fixes, it will be time to test drive stitches for the inner lining of her cloak.  I have several in mind and threads to use for them but it will take some audition stitching to know what will actually work.  Stay tuned.

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

Luna: From Fingertips to Lips UPDATED

Ladies of the Night:  Luna in Close Up

Last night was spent thinking about, stitching, ripping out, and finally restitching Luna's fingers and lips. In the photo above notice her mouth is slightly open.  It has a white highlight on her lower lip and you can see black background between the lips because her mouth is open.  (Is Luna like me in that she never stops talking?  LOL)

Her very long fingernails are the same shade of red as her lipstick, so I decided I wanted to use a shiny and slightly metallic thread for both areas.  But what stitches?  I decided the lips should be in either tent stitches or in long laid stitches and that the fingers and fingernails could be done in bullions, in wrapped long lengths of perle cotton, or in tent stitches.  Then I remembered DMC's new memory thread which is wire wrapped in floss.  Could I use it inside a length of Flair for fingernails?

Luna's Hands 

I visited my stash and pulled the right deep crimson colors in Kreinik, in Frosty Rays, and in silk and got our my little bit of red DMC memory thread.  Then I did some test stitching to see what thread/stitch combo gave me the look I wanted.

In the second photo above you see that I tent stitched Luna's hands to the base of her fingers.  The long lengths of thread are there to show you were I stopped stitching.  My original thought was to use padded fingers or bullions for fingers and fingernails but I ran into the same problem with either stitch--how do you transition from the flesh color to the red fingernails?  I decided it was impossible to do with bullions or memory thread inserted into Flair and have them look ok but I could lay down a length of perle cotton and wrap it with two colors of floss to make fingers and painted nails.

While I thought, I absentmindedly tent stitched the fingernails with my Frosty Rays to see if that color was ok and to my great surprise, the fingernails looked great!  Is it possible that the answer to a good manicure is tent stitching?

In this case, I think it is.  Look at the photos again and notice that the red and pink colors of her fingers and fingernails stand out nicely against the black tent stitched background.  That means tent stitches in those colors will also stand out.  Now look at her elaborate ring.  Using bullions for fingers might mean the ring would be overshadowed by 3-D fingers sticking up from the canvas. That would look horrible.  And how was I going to make the fingernail tips taper using wrapped cotton perle?  The base of the fingers would need a lot more wraps which might raise that area so much it looked odd.

These are all things you have to consider when stitching a painted canvas--does it look right next to the stitching you've already done or the stitching you still have to do?  I've had fabulous ideas that just weren't right for the canvas I was working on that I had to abandon.  But abandon them I did.  Otherwise I'd risk turning out a canvas that was dominated by one thing that did nothing to enhance the entire design.

After the fingers were under control, it was time to stitch those lips.  I tried my fingernail Frosty Rays in tent stitches first, covering only the red painted areas and ignoring the white lip highlight and the black background seen through the open mouth.  The Frosty Rays didn't look quite right (too metallic?) and the mouth looked odd with the black and white areas unstitched.  I didn't think they would look good stitched in black and white later, either.  So out came the lip stitches and I thought things over.  My second attempt used my Frosty Rays again except this time I pulled the metallic thread out of the center of Frosty Rays.  For those who haven't seen Frosty Rays in person, it is just Flair with a length of metallic thread down the center of this Barbie doll panty hose-looking thread.  This website has good close up photos of Frosty Rays, including the color I used "Midnight Red" #Y318, so you can see how Frosty Rays is made.
http://www.stitcherstreasures.com/mainpages/fiber_content/rg_frosty_rays.htm

Without the metallic core thread, my Frosty Rays was a little less metallic but still had a bit of shine so it looked like lipstick.  I stitched the entire mouth area in red tent stitches, whether it was painted red, black or white.   This looked much better!

With all this ripping out, I ran out of time and didn't get Luna's fingers below her fingernails all tent stitched, so there is no photo of the finished area yet.  I'll stitch her fingers later today, take a photo, then update this article so you can see the finished look.  I may or may not put the white highlight or the black line back on top of the red mouth stitches, but that's a decision for today in the sunlight when I can see whether they make a difference.  Stay tuned!

UPDATE:  Luna has fingers as well as fingernails and lips.

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

Luna Reappears

Ladies of the Night:  Luna

Remember Luna?  She is a Leigh Designs piece from the Ladies of the Night series.  Luna has seven sisters, each "more beautiful than the next" as the fairy tale says.  You can see the entire family of canvases here.
http://www.leighdesigns.com/Grp513x.html

Remilla has been stitched by Beth of ThreadworX and a stitch guide/thread kit is available from ThreadworX if you want to stitch her the way Beth did.
http://www.threadworx.com/productDetails.php?prd_id=1087

When I put Luna away due to a family emergency, I had just finished beading the bottom of her long gown.  To refresh your memory, the tree, moon and clouds, tombstones and the ground and grass at Luna's feet have all been stitched.  Luna's face and arms have been stitched down to her fingers as well.  That means I still have to tackle Luna's cloak, sleeves, her hair, her fingers, jewelry, and the two ravens.  In other words, she is about half done.

If you want to refresh your memories of Luna to date, just use the search box at the top left of this page.  Enter Luna and all the previous blog articles should come up.

While I re-read my progress on Luna, fans of the 17th Century Reproduction Embroidered Jacket featured on the Thistle Threads blog that is currently on display at Winterthur will be pleased to hear the museum has posted a description of the jacket's manufacture on their website.  It's a PDF file and you can read it by clicking here--it's an amazing piece of work when you read through all the steps that had to happen to bring the jacket to life.
http://www.winterthur.org/pdfs/Plimoth-Jacket.pdf

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