This beautiful desktop calendar for August, featuring the embroidery of SharonB, is a free download from Pin Tangle blog. Go get it.
Tutorial: Buttonhole bars
Sarah Whittle shows us how to stitch detached buttonhole bars, the perfect stitch for creating lacy spiderwebs. See the tute.
“Embroideread” with Checkout Girl
Oooooo! Look what Melissa Crowe (Checkout Girl) is up to: She’s sponsoring a contest that combines her two great creative loves — embroidery and poetry. She invites us to embroider a poem and submit a photo to a … Read More...
Publish your CS designs on CrafTown
CrafTown.com publishes readers’ original craft designs, and right now they’re especially interested in “beefing up” their cross-stitch offerings. Although it’s not a paying gig, I’ve heard through the grapevine that the site gets 600,000 to 800,000 hits a month, which … Read More...
Oops! Pardon my French
I received a sweet note from reader Sivani, gently pointing out an inaccuracy in credit for a design. I’ve been posting links to the French blog plaisirdecreer, which has been sharing a beautiful blackwork sampler in instalments. Sivani … Read More...
Variegation adds life
Laura Wasilowski of Artfabrik blog recommends using variegated thread to add life to hand stitching. She says,
… Read More...Changes in color value or hue make the surface more active and tantalize the eye. I’m making small quilts and I want to
Tutorial and exemplar: Triple chain stitch
This week’s TAST challenge is triple chain stitch. (See the tute on SharonB‘s Pin Tangle blog.) Shirley of Shirley’s Twisted Threads wasted no time in trying this one out. Within 24 hours after the challenge was … Read More...
Tutorial: Zig-zag coral stitch
Kim of big B shares her latest adventure with 100 stitches through a tutorial on zig-zag coral stitch. See the tute.
Cross-stitch for newbies
If you’re itching to try cross-stitch embroidery, Connie G. Barwick will get you started right. Connie is the cross-stitch editor at About.com, and she offers a series of tutorials designed especially for beginners: Stitch Your First Cross Stitch, How … Read More...
Six new stitch tutes from Sarah Whittle
Sarah Whittle has several great new tutorials for us:
(1) Bullion Knots
(2) Bullion Knot Roses
(3) Buttonhole Stitch
(4) Buttonhole Flowers
(5) Algerian Eye Stitch
(6) Knotted Blanket Stitch
Giveaway: Lucky Little Pigs
These Lucky Little Pigs are the newest machine-embroidery collection from Anja Rieger Design. The patterns will be available on Anja’s website beginning Thursday, July 29. In the meantime, you could win these six samples, embroidered on washable felt and … Read More...
Free charts: Cross-stitch
A fishy discount for you
Ellie of Bustle and Sew is offering her blog readers a discount on this charming fish pattern. She says,
… Read More...I’m very pleased with them – they were great fun to make and look really effective hanging in a bunch –
Golden spirograph art
Ruth O’Leary has completed her modern goldwork series, Spirograph, and the embroideries are stunning. See Ruth’s latest post about this work. And be sure to scroll back through her blog to enjoy the entire series of posts.
A comparison of silks
Kathy of The Unbroken Thread continues her exploration of embroidery fibers. Her latest post compares four types of silk thread. Get the details.
More on redwork from Penny
Don’t miss the second instalment of Penny Nickels‘ review of redwork over on MrXStitch. One of my favorite needle artists, Bascom Hogue, is featured. And there’s lots more to see and learn. Go to Penny’s post.
Tutorials: Basic stitches
Sarah Whittle has posted a couple of excellent basic-stitch tutorials recently. If you’re a beginner or you could use a little brush up, check them out.
Inspiration: Roxy Creations
These adorable hair clips were made by Sarah of Roxy Creations. I can’t believe how much felt applique and embroidery she managed to squeeze onto such tiny canvases! See more on Sarah’s blog post.
Office supplies or embroidery tools?
Mary Corbet of Needle ‘n’ Thread blog tested an unconventional tool for transferring embroidery designs. See her blog post. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Tutorial: Slipped detached chain stitch
This week’s TAST challenge is slipped detached chain stitch. SharonB (Pin Tangle) says,
Slipped detached chain is often called tulip stitch and is one of those easy quick stitches that lends itself to variation.
The images above show … Read More...