Easter March part 2

I'm finishing up the Easter March--this is a photo of the flowering shrub at the lower right of the canvas.

In each 4 x 4 flower I tried: 1) 4 size 14 beads, 2) 2 x 2 Cross Stitches, 3) 2 x 2 Upright Crosses and 4) Smyrna crosses (not shown).

The beads would have driven my class nuts and I don't think the effort was at all worth the effect

The Cross Stitches would have overwhelmed the shrubbery; the Smyrna crosses were even more overwhelming.

The winner was Upright Crosses. Another option would have been a single size 11 bead placed in the center hole.

Time to write the stitch guide!

Christmas March Epilogue

Earlier I tried to add the final touch to the Christmas March by using hot fix Swarowski crystals for the stars. Trying to get those small (2mm) critters to work with the recommended tip did not work at all. The crystals kept getting jammed into the tip and the round end of the hot tip left a circular dent in the threads. After more than a few choice words, I gave up and added beads as the final idea in my stitch guide.

And yet I couldn’t bring myself to bead the stars on my canvas. After some time, I decided to try the crystals one more time.

The solution was to use the spatula-shaped tip and the index finger from my left hand. After heating the tip, I used my small tip tweezers to place the tiny crystal in place. With the hot tip pressing down on the crystal from the top, I used my left index finger to push up from below. This kept the tip from leaving an imprint because my finger made the crystal the highest point on the canvas. I held the hot tip down until I felt the heat on my skin. Another hint: once the glue has started to melt, pick up the tip to make sure placement is perfect. If not, use the tweezers to move it to the right spot and then press down until you can feel the heat.

And the stars sparkled in the night sky….

Non-Tacky Solutions for Holding Beads

Alice Borge gave this tip for holding your beads while you stitch with them. Start with a 20% off coupon from Bed, Bath & Beyond. Buy their hotel blanket and cut it into a rectangular shape. Pour your beads onto one side and bead away. When you are ready to take a break, just roll up the rectangle like a jewelry roll and tie with a ribbon or thread. No sticky beads!

To make Tacky Bob Just Plain Bob, cover one side of the inside with paper. If you want to make it special, choose a scrapbook paper to coordinate with the exterior design. I don’t know if the hotel blanket material will work because I haven’t seen/bought it yet, but take a fabric that will hold beads (not felt) and cut it to fit the other side of Tacky Bob. The sticky side will hold the fabric and the fabric will hold the beads.

Bead-utiful! (sorry, youngest daughter has begun family punning competitions...)

Bird and Worm canvas by Zecca

I so love taking classes from Robin King—her models are inspiring, her stitch guides are as close to perfect as humanly possible and she is just plain delightful to be with.  The beauty of her stitch guides is that even if it is 2 in the morning, you have such precise photos and directions that it’s like having Robin right there explain.

When I first saw the class canvas, I gave a little start because the canvas was so small compared to my mental image from the class promotion photo.  It didn’t take long to realize that Robin had packed that little whimsical canvas with lots and lots of fun stitches and threads.  The result is a doable project in bright cheery colors and enough different stitch and thread combinations that the project will stitch up like magic.

Easter is coming!

It's a beautiful, sunny, warm day on the island.  With nothing to do but cook and stitch without guilt, it's a perfect day.

I'm working on the leader of the Easter March, the Easter Bunny.  I'm using Silk & Ivory and an encroaching Gobelin over 4 for his fur.  I tried Silk & Ivory for his arm to bring it to the forefront, and ordered Trio for his body.  The Trio was not nearly as white as the Silk & Ivory, so I ended up not using the Trio.  The fatter thread has been just fine for the areas that are stitched in Basketweave and I can sculpt the fur to add dimension.

If I had been thinking ahead, I would have stitched his body first and fluffed it up with my nap brush.  Now I am using a combination of the nap brush and Judy's Boo Boo Stick to bring up the nap.   A credit card or store loyalty card is perfect for protecting the areas stitched around his body from the brushes.

My next fix will be to redo the lower part of the basket--it needs to come out from the canvas.  Since my first attempt is never going to rip out, I'll be working over it.  Now, back to "work".

Christmas March completed!

My Christmas March is finished, except for the stars and the extra rows outside the design.

Here are a few things that changed in the process of teaching the class.

1.  Kreinik drastically changed the color of the #8 braid I was using. Luckily, my class was able to trade with each other so no one had to rip out any stitches.
2,  After seeing how much my polar bear picked fibers and fur out of thin air when stitched with Petite Very Velvet in white, a couple of stitchers switched to Vineyard Silk for the bear.  Much better.  Note to dogs:  stop shedding.
3.  For the wheels, one of the stitchers left the blocks until last.  This allowed her to anchor a thread in the center of the wheel, letting it hang free on the front of the canvas.  She used the thread to show the right direction for the random long and short stitches, rotating it as she stitched.  Much easier than trying to imagine the proper direction.
4.  I had originally stitched the base as a modified rice done entirely in Burmilana.  To beef it up a bit, we added Kreinik #16 for the underlying cross stitches.  That also left a bit of sparkle at the corners and center of each block.  Will I go back and back stitch mine to make it better?  What are the odds?
5.  One of the stitchers went to four ply for the sky, instead of my 3 ply because she is having the canvas made into a pillow. 

Keep stitching and stay warm.

Needlepoint Decorating

I played hooky from the shop yesterday and a wonderful time touring 4 homes in our historic district. They were all beautifully decorated for the holiday season, but one house in particular stood out for me and my fellow needlepoint addicts.

The owner of the home had stitched quite a collection of needlepoint ornaments and she displayed them in imaginative ways.  Ornaments were hung from cabinet knobs, door handles and hung on the side of lampshades.  I’ve also seen wreaths and garlands that were adorned with needlepoint ornaments.  Whether you have a huge collection of needlepoint ornaments that more than fill a tree or you have just begun your collection, you can spread holiday cheer throughout your home.

Happy Holidays, Michele