New beading tool from Elizabeth Turner

Love to bead, but hate having to wrangle with the slippery little escape artists?  I know I vacuum loads of beads and sequins from my sprawling workspace (I get the 1/2 of the couch that our dog Morgan doesn't claim).

ET has a new Needle Buddy--a small box with a (just right) tacky surface inside.  The box attaches to your canvas with a magnet, so it your beads are right where you need them.  I slipped one in my purse to use tonight--can't wait!

More fun with Sandy Arthur

My second winter market class was taught by Sandy Arthur and sponsored by Sundance Designs and others.

The coolest technique used on the Heart canvas was a pulled thread stitch.  We've all seen the section on pulled threads at the back of the needlepoint "Bible" written by Jo Ippolito Christensen, but I for one, have never used any of the stitches.  I'm not sure where I will use that technique again, but I am delighted to have put my toe into the M.N.A. (Master of Needlepoint Art) section of Jo's book.  (One of the best things about classes is being exposed to new things and opening your mind to new possibilities.  Duh.)

More of my favorite things...ironed Sparkles with added bling provided by Sundance beads and sequins; many wonderful border stitches, ruching and ruffled River Silks.  I see this canvas as a stand-up with feet for Valentine's glamor.

Sandy used Painter's Thread Ribbon Floss Cotton and Painter's Thread Pearl Cotton size 12 in the kit.  Good news about Painter's Thread--Threadnuts is distributing the entire diverse line of Painter's Threads and they are all in stock.  Hooray!

Next up--Susan Portra's "Vintage Bird Cage" hinged box by DJ Designs. 

My first class at winter market

I signed up for "The Sweetest Tree" because I really wanted the chance to take a class from Sandy Arthur (and because I love any class that Sundance sponsors).  Sandy is an ANG certified Senior Master Teacher and the author of the wonderful series of needlepoint books "Shapes of Needlepoint".

You have to love a teacher who starts a class by saying "If you don't enjoy this class, it's your fault."  And then the fun began....

My new favorite thing is stitching the stem stitch with beads.  Following a stitch guide from Melissa Shirley, I have successfully used beads in the Jessica stitch.  Now, armed with the stem and Jessica stitches using beads, I am going to look at my many books ad search for other ways to add beads to a stitch.

Other favorite things I learned in class today:
1)  Those small twisted beading needles make excellent needle threaders.
2)  A pincushion under the canvas holds your needle while you re-thread it for the drizzle stitch.
3)  Start the first row of your darning stitch in the center of the canvas, with enough thread coming out toward the two sides to stitch the row completely.  Stitch the pattern toward the left edge first.  Then go back to the center and take the right length of the thread and stitch the right side of the pattern.  This can alleviate the need for many swear words.  (Clear as mud?  I'll be demonstrating in my shop for our Friday stitch-in.)

My next class is also with Sandy--the canvas is a Sundance heart canvas and she promises to use beads, sequins, ribbons and Sparkles, oh my!

"Bling, Glitz & Glamour for Needlepoint"

I've been threatening for years to teach a class devoted to beading and embellishment.

I recently took the time to read my autographed copy of June McKnight's book about needlepoint bling.  And guess what?  June has already written the class for me.

The book has loads of color photos and diagrams,  cool stitches that incorporate beads, sequins, embellishments, rhinestones and more.  I learned more than a couple of new things, always good.  I definitely recommend this for stitchers who have or want to go beyond just needlepoint.

We have a few of these in stock now!

Thanksgiving march begins

I love creating stitch guides for Ashley Dillon's marches.  It's like dressing up little dolls in costume.

This little Indian girl has a beaded outfit and headband and is carrying a bowl of late summer corn.

May heritage ornament by Kelly Clark

This is the May Heritage ornament from Kelly Clark--it's for my husband and self-proclaimed web lackey Chris. I'm trying to decide what to have monogrammed on the back to make it really special. At the rate I am finishing these, I'm going to need another tree next year.

Happy New Year!

March heritage ornament by Kelly Clark

I'm stitching these gorgeous ornaments by Kelly Clark at a rapid clip. I love the stitch guides, but I have added my own twist to them. Instead of using beads, I am adding Swarowski crystals in the appropriate gemstone color to each canvas. Bling!

Happy Holidays!

Kelly Clark witch hats

We have Kelly Clark's trunk show in the shop and I am treating myself to the six witches' hats and the stitch guide created for them. I have started with the Pumpkin hat, adding a few of my touches to the piece. I am adding the large flat beads to the hat brim, as suggested in the guide. Because the stitch is a full coverage stitch, I am leaving the center stitch open to allow me to place the beads properly. I had a great time looking for beads and such on the Fusion Beads website (www.fusionbeads.com). They lured me in with a 20% off weekend sale and I stocked up on all things that glitter, especially in Halloween and Christmas colors. And the stash just continues to grow....

Mile High Kitty

I'm working on 3 large projects and I needed a quick, fun piece to fit in my "scheduled" stitching. This pretty witch and cat kept me entertained.

The sky is one strand of Impressions in the Irish stitch with Swarovski hot fix crystals for the stars. (That's not a red crystal, its a clear one caught in the sunlight.)

I used the Neon Rays + white glow in the dark thread for the ghosts and Kreinik glow in the dark for the green in the cat's eyes.

The witch's hair is Petite Fluffy Fleece, couched down with one strand of Splendor.

I love the witch's necklace. I used a product that is new to me--the clear beading thread from The Collection. I have always used Prisms and Sundance beading thread, but I'm open to anything that makes beading easier. The Collection thread was easy to thread through the needle eye and easy to knot. It behaved very well and I will definitely use it again (and again).

I ran the thread (doubled through the needle, knotted and anchored) through Sundance size 11 real metal beads. Once I had the right number of beads for the necklace I sank the needle at the other end of the necklace. I then came back up and tied down/anchored the necklace every few beads. Finally, I came up a third time and ran the needle and thread through the center of the entire string of beads. Voila! Bling!

Noah's Peacocks from Kelly Clark

I spent my Sunday afternoon working on my second pair of animals for Kelly Clark's Ark, Noah's Peacocks.  (I had to do something while I watched the Cubs lose to the Pirates.)

As I usually do, I started by Googling photos of peacocks and peahens to see what effect I needed to create.  Since the animals are small pieces, I can go all out on the main characters.

Most of my time was spent beading, using four different colors of Sundance beads.  I am working on a beading class, so I tried a few different threads and techniques to stitch the beads.

For the threads, I tried Splendor in lime green to intensify the color of the lime green beads, one strand doubled through a beading needle.  I also used YLI invisible thread, also doubled through a beading needle.  For other pieces, I have used Sundance beading thread.  The net:  they all have their place.  Using a silk thread (or a colored beading thread) allows you to manipulate the color of the beads you are using.   (From what I have read and heard in classes, silk is preferred over cotton floss.)  The advantage of a clear beading thread is that it can be used for all colors of beads, obviating the need for a different color thread for each bead.  Some say the nylon threads stretch over time, but I have not experienced that.  However, if I were stitching a piece that would get a lot of use, like a purse, I would use beading thread, like that offered by Sundance.  I love using beading thread when I can because it is so easy to use (nylon thread can drive you nuts).

On the peacocks, I used the "lasso" technique, I went through some beads twice, and I went through some beads only once.  I have come to agree with the experts at Sundance that the "lasso" technique is seldom required.  Its purpose is to keep the eye of the bead from showing and further secure a bead.  However, even if I went through a bead only once, if I used a tight tension and adjusted the bead angle with my needle, the beads stayed in the proper position.  Also according to the Sundance experts, if you are concerned about truly anchoring a bead, going through it twice is more effective than using the "lasso" technique.  I also stitched some of the tail "eyes" by anchoring the first bead, a middle bead and an end bead by going through them twice; the rest were only stitched to the canvas with one pass-through.  Basically, you should use the technique that makes you most comfortable with the end results.

If you are truly worried about losing a bead from a finished piece, you should stitch under the bead with the appropriate colored thread before beading.  I'm not that paranoid...yet.