Picking the Winners

Speaking of Jolly Red, the company ran a contest in December, asking customers to send in a photo of their piece, either finished or just started.  Then they asked local shop owners in their small Somerset, England town to pull names out of a hat.  You can read all about it here.
https://www.jollyred.co.uk/service-and-a-smile-in-langport/

The contestants are in a photo album on Jolly Red's Facebook page if you want to take a look.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/mrsjollyred/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1618260248199818

It's a fun way to learn a bit about the tastes of your customers and showcase your town!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright  January 15, 2017 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

This Week's Fiber Talk Podcast is Orna Willis UPDATED

This week's Fiber Talk podcast is an interview with Orna Willis.
http://wetalkfiber.com/2017/02/05/fiber-talk-with-orna-willis/

Orna designs amazing colorful geometric designs.
https://adornbyorna.com

If you are curious about the fiber selection combos Gary mentions in the podcast, you can see them on Orna's blog...
http://ornadesign.blogspot.com

...or at her Etsy shop.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/ADORNBYORNA/items

UPDATE:  We Talk Fiber did a second interview with Orna, just as fun as the first!
http://wetalkfiber.com/2017/12/10/fiber-talk-orna-willis/

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright February 5, 2017 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Shades of White

Karen at Nimble Needle shows off Kreinik's whites, listing both the new whites and the olds.  She also has words of wisdom about picking and substituting colors and choosing the right size of Kreinik for your canvas.  (Although take the "right size" with a grain of salt since stitch tensions vary.  We all have our favorite Kreinik size for our preferred canvas size.)
http://nimbleneedlenj.com/7-shade-of-kreinik-whites/

Those who want to see more photos can refer to my posting about them here--
https://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com/2016/12/the-newest-kreinik-colors.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 5, 2017 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

How to Use Darning Stitches in Backgrounds UPDATED

Needlepoint For Fun's newest newsletter is about darning stitches for backgrounds.  The article shows off a simple darning pattern the shop created for a canvas, recommends two books of darning patterns for your backgrounds and gives tips for creating successful backgrounds with these stitches.
http://www.needlepoint-for-fun.com/needlepoint-darning-pattern-a-question-mark.htm

UPDATE:  Read the comments for further darning book recommendations.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 13, 2017 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Konya Prayer Rug Free Chart

Fans of silk gauze miniature rugs will be thrilled with Natalia Frank's free rug chart for 40 count silk gauze.
http://www.dollhouseneedlepoint.com/free-patterns

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright January 3, 2017 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.