I’m about to get back on my torch and make more “raku” glass beads. They are one of my best sellers and the color range that comes from this rod of glass is awesome. So I went looking around the internets looking for information to share with all of you about this glass and found some from none other than Lori Greenberg, the former Glass Arts Editor over here at Craft Gossip. So check out what she says about it…and then check out what Dawn Scannel says over at Lampwork etc…I personally think it’s best when it has been frosted with etching solution, but that’s just me…and most of my customers that buy these little beauties. I do know this about “raku” glass, it’s got silver in it and that’s what helps to make the magic happen. Playing with Bullseye’s french vanilla and silver foil you can get some of the same colors coming out. So it appears a bit of sulphur and a bit of silver and ta da…magic. Who knew chemistry could be so much fun!
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Christmas Ornament Cross Stitch Patterns
The other day I shared some cross stitch patterns with ornaments on them, so this time around I wanted to share cross stitch patterns that you can use as ornaments. It would be fun to do a whole tree in your craft room with cross stitch ornaments, or just add a few to your tree or give them as gifts.
These little quilt inspired cross stitch patterns from Flamingo Toes look like ornaments and fit in 3-inch hoops, which are perfect for hanging on the tree or using to decorate a gift. I love the pastel colors on these but you can use more traditional Christmas colors if you like.
This cute Christmas tree from Lagodargetoshop uses a single color and fits in a 4-inch hoop, but you could make it smaller if you wanted by trimming the last ornaments and gifts from the sides, or just stitch the tree without any other embellishments. Either way it’s a cute addition to your holiday tree.
Stitched Modern has a super cute collection of retro Christmas ornament cross stitch patterns from designer Gera. This is a printed pattern that will be shipped to you. Each pattern is about 40 by 56 stitches, or 2.9 by 4 inches/7.4 by 10 cm on 14 count fabric. To work the whole set you’ll need 20 colors of floss.
These snowflake ornaments from Our Little Handmade Home are each about 2.5 inches/6.4 cm when stitched on 14 count fabric, and they use a single color of floss. They are pretty in red but you could also do white on a blue or black background, or whatever suits your other Christmas tree decorations!
From the description it sounds like this set of vintage style cross stitch characters is presented as one large chart, but the photo from Sampler Antique Stitch shows each of them stitched up as their own little ornament, so it gets included here. You’ll find Santa and snowmen in different poses in this cute collection.