Cha's Wings and K's Flowers

Cha's wings are done!  I hope you like how they turned out.  The two wings are quite different. The right one is more realistic but the left one is smoother and probably will look more like the tail feathers once I get them stitched.  I have lots of background still to do.  Once I finished the wings last night I spent an hour and a half working background and only got five rows done.  I won't be finished by the end of July but I won't go far into August, either, before it is time for another quilt block on my Stars piece.

Kaffe Fassett's Fire Flowers

In other needlepoint news, my email box got a notice from Ehrman that their 2011 catalog was available online.  Here's the link. This year these traditional designs (often on 10-12 count and almost always kitted with wools) are particularly strong in floral patterns.  Above is Kaffe Fassett's Fire Flowers (chosen because I love his mastery of color and pattern but also because the colors are similar to those in Cha-Cha), but there are a great many others you will want to see, particularly if you are a fan of Beth Russell's William Morris-inspired designs.
http://www.ehrmantapestry.com/newprod.cfm?Currency=1


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

More Feathers, More Ripping?

Yesterday was full of errands and chores so I didn't get as much wing stitched as I had hoped but I still have a photo to share of Cha's right wing.  I am not happy with the lowest orange line of feathers since I've decided longer looks better but they will be easy to remove and restitch.  It is just hard to do long straight stitches on a curved wing. I'm going to leave the orange tips of the feathers until last and probably do very short Japanese ribbon stitches there as I did on the other wing.  Regardless, this is progress that isn't tent stitches so I am happy!

In other news, Linda's posted a quick review (with photos) of Ruth Schmuff's new books.  These are the hard copy form of her Stitch Encyclopedias that originally were just on CDs.
http://nystitchingsisters.blogspot.com/2010/07/my-new-favorite-books.html

Janet Perry's done a review of the new Painter's Palette threads.
http://www.nuts-about-needlepoint.com/painters-palette-thread-review

Needlepoint.com has a contest going on their blog.  The price is a $25 gift certificate.  Once you enter, click on one of the header items (Naturally I choose Sale--LOL) and then look on the left side of the page.  Click on Needlepoint U to see their online classes, clearly labeled as to difficulty level, complete with a Yahoo Group to help you with questions and problems.
http://www.needlepoint.com/blog/?p=556

If your wallet is empty these days, how about a free elementary embroidery book posted online?  Mary Corbet has the details and a link to the book which-- although old-- has great tips for those doing needle painting of flowers, for example.
http://www.needlenthread.com/2010/07/elementary-embroidery-online-book-free.html

My final link this morning is for sampler lovers.  The Museum of Fine Art in Boston is looking for help finding samplers similar to one in their collection.  Tricia of Thistle Threads suggested they harness the power of the Internet to find sampler lovers who might recognize the motifs on this sampler as occurring other places.  So go and help the museum out, ok?
http://thistle-threads.com.mytempweb.com/blog/index.php/2010/07/distributed-sampler-intelligence/

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

Counted Canvaswork (Good and Bad) UPDATED

I've collected a few little tidbits for my friends who love working from charts.  First up, Scarlet Thread has photos of the newest Laura J. Perin chart which is called One Long Panel for obvious reasons.   I'm posting this for the Spinster Stitcher in particular who reads Blog and is a collector of Perin pieces.  Click on the photo for a better view.    Sara Leigh promises to post photos of all the threads for each colorway shortly in case you want to see the possibilities Laura has listed for you.
http://stitchything.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-from-laura-j-perin-one-long-panel.html

UPDATE:  Laura Perin has added great photos of this new design to her blog.
http://two-handedstitcher.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-design.html

UPDATE #2:  Sara Leigh has posted photos of the various colorways available for this piece. You can buy thread kits for each color from her shop.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLSZO15Ui5Dl3Y-ed6cMDNQ32-FTewa1THn-ekfX9IxyE3gmllkD_C2wgPnvDCenvKt-y38tOr2PqJMXcDkwiGHG5xi-ao06VVtwuQGhYeN-COnJmnxkGUR4OSCmq2NBNPJzG9kA4XJqM/s1600/LJP1LongPanelBlog.jpg

I also found a free download of a beautiful traditional sampler which some of you may be interested in, particularly if you are trapped at home due to the really hot weather.
http://needleprint.blogspot.com/2010/07/free-download-steve-rousseaus.html

The last thing is just plain sickening.  Ever wonder how much money chart copying thieves are stealing from designers?
http://mymarkdesigns.wordpress.com/2010/07/26/do-the-math-2/

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

Feathers Which Have to Be Ripped Out

With the weather improving (high today is only going to be 94) I have started working on Cha's right wing.  Unfortunately, I don't like how the orange sherbet line looks and will be ripping it out tonight to replace it with a smoother version.  But you can get the general idea in the above photo.  I'm not sure about the tiny orange stitches at the tip of the top red feather, either....

I hope to get the wing half done tonight.  Stitching with silk ribbon goes quite fast once you figure out the angles and stitches you want to work with.

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

An Answer to the Mystery? UPDATED

Pocket Full of Stitches is closed today but I may have figured out what one of their new monthly clubs is going to be...

Halloweenies from Renaissance Designs!
http://www.pfos.com/PocketFullofStitches_RenaissanceHalloweenies.HTM

Decide for yourself.  Compare the snippets of canvas they showed on their blog over the weekend to the canvases in the link above. What do you think?  It is possible that the second series is the Kelly Clark pears squares that I've seen other places.  But somehow the second "clue" doesn't look like these designs....
http://pocketfullofstitches.blogspot.com/2010/07/sneak-peek-of-new-clubs.html

UPDATE:  PFOS has revealed All.  I was half right.
http://pocketfullofstitches.blogspot.com/2010/07/more-detailed-look-at-2011-clubsenjoy.html

While in search of more clubs, I found In Stitches Atlanta has a limited edition Nutcracker music box set for sale. These are quite unusual and a great present for the right stitcher.  If that stitcher is you, bookmark the page and then print it out to stick on your refrigerator with BUY ME prominently written on top and the shop phone number circled. Just saying!
http://www.institchesatlanta.com/

In Stitches Atlanta is a newer shop with an expanding presence in the NP online world.  Its owners also own Labors of Love which designed the music box set above.  They are bringing in terrific teachers for their shop and I expect great things from them in the next decade.
http://www.laborsofloveneedlepoint.com/gallery.php

By the way, the canvas above is Labors of Love's Pandora.  Wouldn't she make a wonderful box top lid, especially with a fancy Greek Key pattern border?  Pandora's Box, you know.  LOL
http://www.laborsofloveneedlepoint.com/products.php?product=299

I'm off to stitch even more of Cha's background before someone throws a shoe at me.  Hugs to all!

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