Let The Sales Begin!

Traditionally the late summer and early fall bring not only changing seasons (at least in the U.S.) but sales at the needlepoint shops.  I think the sales are starting.  I just found a sale on Kelmscott Designs' needle minder magnet cameos and was able to pick up the rest of my initials at a good price.  You may prefer other designs on the three pages of choices in the link below.  The newest Adam and Eve cameo design is not on sale but everything else seems to be.
https://www.stitchingbitsandbobs.com/cgi-bin/Store/pageread.cgi?KelmscottDesignsNeedleMinder&0

I also just received a note from Lani that her canvases and stitch guides are on sale.  Here are the canvases.  The guides are $50 instead of $75 each and the painted canvases are 20% off.
http://www.lanisneedlepoint.com/lanidesigns.aspx

If your shop or favorite designer is doing a sale, let us know in the comments section please.  By the way, the illustration for this blog entry is Shopping Cat by Ruth Schmuff.   This canvas is on sale at the link below (although it is special order and won't be immediately shipped out).
http://www.stitchtherapyneedlepoint.com/feature.php?id=11566&title=Shopping%20Cat&itemtype=hand%20painted%20canvases

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow

Rabbit Geisha on Background (with Tassels)

I'm happy to announce that I've finished the background!  All those split pavilions are done.  Now I can turn to the fun details to finish this Brenda Stofft canvas.

I've started the blue tassels.  You'll remember that they were painted to be dark green but I've switched to the navy I used on the sleeves and shawl collar.  I rummaged around my stash yesterday and picked out more shades of pink and green for the two ribbons, have selected some bead colors that might work, and I have a pretty good idea about what I will do for the fan the geisha holds.  So even though I feel as though I've not made much progress, I have. 

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow

Canvas of the Day: Snow Faerie

Today's Canvas of the Day is a Christmas ornament by Sandra Gilmore called Snow Faerie.  As you can see, this is a stitch painted piece that would be very easy to do in all tent stitches and you could use specialty threads for her very nicely.  So that's what I am going to recommend in my stitch ideas--all tent stitches!
http://store.apneedlearts.com/snowfaerie.html

I would do her face first in all silks, choosing a medium blue for her eyes and a deep red for her lips very carefully to match the canvas.  If you choose a floss type thread instead of a perle type, try using just four plies and make the stitches (either half cross, continental or basketweave) as smooth and even as you can.  Stitch her golden curls and the dark navy shadows after the face is done.  I recommend a beautiful silk/wool blend for the hair and shadows.  Those threads will contrast with the silk in the skin, eyes and lips yet give you a subtle shine.  I would use the same brand of thread for the little bit of blue background visible on the left side.

The rest of the canvas is either snowflakes or the girl's white hood.  Pick whatever soft and fuzzy wool that is available to you for the white hood.  I would use Cashmere myself.  The snowflakes should be pastel metallics.  I think that Silk Lame Braid would look nice if you can match the color but personally I would use Petite Treasure Braid for a slightly more metallic bling.  If you can't get either thread, browse the Kreinik line of metallics for a color match.

Once the entire piece is stitched, take a soft brush (a new toothbrush will do) and very carefully brush the white hood to make things a bit fuzzier.  Be very careful not to brush any other areas of the canvas, however!  The thread should plump up nicely. Don't worry if it covers the snowflakes or her face a bit.  You can always trim a bit of the fuzz with your scissors.

This canvas comes with a stitch guide and finishing ideas.  You are always free to follow what the professional says instead....

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow

Managing Transitions Part Three

The last thing I want to mention in this discussion on handling the transition between two very different stitches on a painted canvas is compensation.  Both Pat and I thought that I'd not stitched the compensating stitches just under the Rabbit Geisha's nose as we were going by the photograph.  In Real Life, the stitches are there, just very very small because of the compensation.  I solved this issue by overstitched the tiny compensatory stitch but I could have just made the regular stitch a tad longer.  I generally don't extend a stitch to cover one more thread as I find it breaks up the rhythm of the stitch and looks odd.  However, you may find extending a stitch a bit does work for you.

Compensation is a tough topic and a problem for many stitchers.  I almost always try to start a new stitch I'm unfamiliar with at the widest point on a canvas so that I have plenty of practice doing it before I get to the edge of the stitch area and have to compensate.

Tony Minieri wrote an article about compensation that was published in four parts in Needle Pointers magazine in the mid-1990s.  ANG has put this on their website and you can read it in the link below.  I would urge anyone who has trouble compensating to read it.  Tony breaks stitches down into various types (straight, diagonal, etc.) and then explains for each type how to compensate it on a diagonal, straight line, oblique line or curved line.  It's helpful information and once you understand the stitch you are working with, will tell you exactly how to compensate it to the best effect.
http://www.needlepoint.org/Archives.php

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow

Managing Transitions Part Two

Because I've been thinking so much lately about managing transitions between various stitches on the Rabbit Geisha, I pulled out photographs of a project I stitched several years ago that had the same transitional issues but for a different reason.

The image above is my version of Shorebird Designs' small peacock M274.  This is a 5x7 design on 18 count canvas.  You can find it on Katie Molineaux's website by using the Katie's Search function on the left side of the page.  By the way, I urge you to look at the Stitched By Customers' Section. Amazing stitching there!
http://shorebirdstudio.com/

The reason I'm using this design to talk about transitions is that it was all done in light coverage stitches.  The background and leaves are one ply of silk.  I stitched those first and then was faced with the issue of choosing stitches for the bird that didn't look too heavy next to the almost not there background.

Here is a close-up of the design to help you understand what I did.  First, I decided to use plyable threads so I could cut down on bulk when I stitched the bird.  The tent stitches on the bird's face are two plies of either silk or overdyed cotton flosses.  The tiny bullions on the top of his head were done with one ply of overdyed or solid colored silks.  The French knots on the peacock's topknot were all in two plies.  I think I mixed in the thin metallic thread Accentuate occasionally here to add a bit of shine.  The upright brick stitches on the body were all carefully laid silks using two plies, with one strand of Accentuate laid on top in places to add sparkle.

Overall, reducing the number of plies on this piece worked well to integrate the bird with its background.  Of course this piece used either slanting or straight stitches, which made the blending of background and image easier.  I would have had more trouble is this piece included compound stitches made up of many layers like the fancy stitches on the Rabbit Geisha's kimono top.

I hope this gives you some strategies for managing the transitions between the foreground and background stitches on your painted canvases. I'd love to hear other strategies folks use in the Comments!  I am certain I don't know all the ways to get around this problem.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow