We’re having a bit of a crisis in the art glass industry. Bullseye Glass has had to suspend most of their production due to a cease and desist order by the governor of the state of Portland regarding the usage of heavy minerals in their production. Uroboros has also suspended some of their production. They are both in Portland, OR. Part of the fallout of this is that Spectrum Glass, based in Washington State will be ending production and going out of business later this year. Uroboros produces a lot of glass for Spectrum. They have been manufacturing art glass for decades but now the local government is up in arms regarding soil, and air tests around the areas of their factories. Bullseye has been very active in equipping their factory with the necessary filters that will be required. You can check out the players in this nightmare us glass artists are witnessing by going to Bullseye’s web site as well as Uroboros and Spectrum. Also, this link can lead you to what you can do to let the government know that you stand by the art glass industry. The trickle down effect on this will be catastrophic if we don’t all band together in support of the affected companies. Thank you.
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Cross Stitch Patterns for Ramadan
Ramadan is a time of fasting, prayer and religious reflection, and adding some Ramadan cross stitch to the mix is sure to help you reflect on the season. Check out these Ramadan cross stitch patterns to stitch before or during the month.
Lanterns are a common symbol of Ramadan (probably because the fast is broken at night, so you need some festive light), and lanterns decorate this Ramadan cross stitch pattern from Dizzy Digital Craft Co. The pattern is 173 by 173 stitches, which comes out to 12.36 inches of 31.39 cm square on 14 count fabric. It uses seven colors.
Or you can just stitch some really colorful, dramatic lanterns for Ramadan that you can use to decorate the house all year. This design from Sawanita uses 25 colors to make the lanterns look like they are glowing. If you want to stitch it on 14 count fabric it will come out toe about 15 by 19.46 inches, or 38.1 by 49.9 cm, as the stitch count is 286 by 201. I love the blue fabric used in the sample but you could also use white or cream.
This crescent moon and star design from Tatreez HubRana gives Ramadan cross stitch a folk are twist, with the design being made out of motifs inspired by the classic Moon of Bethlehem design. It’s perfect to stitch up and hang in a 12-inch hoop, as the design is about 10.7 inches (21.2 cm) tall.
This set of Ramadan cards to cross stitch from World of Cross Stitching includes some for Ramadan and some for Eid (which is the end of Ramadan). Designed by Perry Abdel-Hadi, there are six charts in all and they are all 80 by 80 stitches. That’s 5.75 inches or 14.5 cm square.
Or you can stitch up a Ramadan bookmark to remind you of the season while you read. This design is from Povitrulya Handmade and includes lanterns and a moon as well as the words Ramadan Mubarak. The pattern uses eight colors and measures 30 by 99 stitches. It’s meant to be worked on 16 count fabric for a finished measurement of 5.1 by 7.9 inches, or 13 by 20 cm.