Learn about Thread Painting with Lisa: The Movie

Lisa Kessler of BeStitched has posted a video about thread painting on the shop's Instagram account.  She'll show you examples of canvases that would work will with thread painting techniques and how you can tell, show off stitched examples of the technique, and generally help you understand how she works animals and flowers in thread painting (also called needle painting).

https://www.instagram.com/p/DFL-XUtScJ2/?inf_contact_key=4e0bd587f6d74ac74d0fac68c33ac274

In case the video disappears, Lisa says you can use overdyed thread in needle painting, it works on both 13 and 18 count canvas, if you use thinner threads (silk and cotton floss, Bella Lusso) it won't bulk up, you can come up at the outside edge or the inside edge--this usually doesn't matter, the thread length doesn't matter that much but you should not have all the threads the same length as that looks artificial, you can mix strand able and non-strandable threads, and more.  

BeStitched's "Wild About Animals" Club that Lisa mentioned is an easy way to dip your toe into thread painting.  You'll have to ask the shop if you can buy just one of the designs instead of choosing three, six or eight of them.

https://bestitchedneedlepointshop.com/products/wild-about-these-animals-club

If you need more information on this topic, I've written a thread painting tutorial which you can find here-

https://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com/p/needle-painting-on-needlepoint-canvas.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow

Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com

and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com

© Copyright January 26, 2025 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Learn Long and Short Shading

Trish Burr has made a series of video tutorials to help folks learn long and short shading, sometimes called needle painting here in the U.S.   She also has a video on padded satin stitch, which you may also find useful.
https://trishburr.com/tutorials/

Thank you, Trish!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright December 14, 2016 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Tanja Proves My Point

This morning I got an email from Berlin Embroidery about Tanja Berlin's latest needle painting cyberclass--the red fox.   The class starts in February and lasts roughly two months.  If you are interested in learning to create realistic animals with just DMC cotton floss in long and short stitches, this is the class for you.
http://www.berlinembroidery.com/onlineclasses.htm

See?  Told you this was the Year of the Fox!

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

Tips on Long and Short

This little article has great tips on how to do long and short stitch.   Long and short is a crewel embroidery technique that is absolutely beautiful when well done.  (On needlepoint canvas, I use a sharp needle to put a stitch right through a thread of the underlying canvas if necessary.)  Believe me, I am going to study this religiously!
http://www.theunbrokenthread.com/blog/2012/12/21/acorn-long-and-short-shaded-leaves/

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

Long and Short Plunging

If you do any needle painting (which is basically using long and short stitches to create realistic plants and animals) you have to figure out whether to plunge your needle down into the previous row of threads OR bring your needle up from the back through the previous row of threads.  I know folks like Tony Minieri tell students to come up from the back, but why is that better?  Is it better?  It is things like this that keep me awake at night.  (Hey, it's better than worrying about ill health, roof leaks, the mortgage or any of a zillion other worries we adults have on our plates, right?)

Mary Corbet decided to explore the question and has come up with the answer--It Depends!  To see what she discovered and figure out what is best for your project, visit her site.
http://www.needlenthread.com/2012/02/split-stitch-direction.html




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

Trish's Tips for Better Needle Painting

Whether you call it long and short stitch, needle painting, random long and short, or any other term, Trish Burr has mastered the art of using threads to create realistic plants and animals, particularly birds. She's posted ten tips to help folks do smoother shading in this style on her blog. If you use this technique or want to, you should check Trish's tips out.
http://trishburr.com/2011/10/25/smoother-shading/


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

Longer and Shorter: Tips on Stitching Long and Short Stitch

Anyone who is intimidated by long and short stitch or who isn't happy with how their current attempts look will find Kathy's tips very useful the next time they are shading using this wonderful stitch.
http://www.theunbrokenthread.com/blog/2011/09/23/long-and-short-shading-going-deep-into-the-stitch/

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

Trish Burr's New Book

Trish Burr's new book on needlepainting is out.  Why is this of interest to needlepointers?  Because the needlepainting technique Trish has mastered is perfect for fur, feathers and hair.
http://trishburr.com/2011/08/05/new-book-is-here/

Peggi and I've been talking about this technique, also called random long and short stitch.  How easily you pick up this stitch depends on your mindset.  Folks used to diagrammed stitches or who shy away from the word "random" have more trouble than those who just automatically draw lines with their needle and thread.

I think it is easier to start using this technique on hair than on animals because we all are used to combing our own hair.  We know where parts go, how hair turns under, where bangs naturally fall, etc.  If you don't have a dog or cat under your roof to examine, the way fur grows on their faces and backs and paws is harder to understand.  Start with a canvas of a person with straight hair to practice this technique.  Or better yet, draw an oval on scrap canvas and give it hair, a beard, mustache, etc.

I also suggest that folks use 1-2 plies of DMC cotton floss to practice this technique.  If you use only 1 or 2 plies, it takes a lot longer but you can easily bury a mistake under another layer of floss.

It's also a good idea to make a copy of the area you are going to use this technique on and pencil in guidelines that show how the hair will fall. Erase and redo the lines until you are happy with the look, then copy the lines on your canvas.  Once you have guidelines in, all you have to do is put more thread between the guidelines that slant the same way.

Of course a book like Trish's will help.  She even sells projects and a DVD of her techniques, which is great for visual learners.
http://trishburr.com/shop/

All this will help, but practice is the real way to master this technique.

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