Just How Open is Open?

February 18, 2018 whimsicalstitch

Today's stitch is a great variation of Reverse Basketweave. I recall when I was first encouraged to use this for a window on a small Halloween house. It makes me giggle to think about how nervous I was. I was convinced that it was too open to be a window. I was wrong.

Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com's Pinterest account. Visit pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday for a library of all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams. — Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com's Pinterest account. Visit pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday for a library of all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com's Instagram account. Visit instagram.com/whimsicalstitch to see a library of stitched samples for select #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams. — Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com's Instagram account. Visit instagram.com/whimsicalstitch to see a library of stitched samples for select #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

As with most window stitches, I recommend a single strand metallic such as Petite Silk Lame (for 13-mesh) or Kreinik Metallics Very Fine Braid (#4) (for 18-mesh).

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 61 guides are currently available, with 13 new Stitch Concepts just added! Click here to see the newest guides and click here to see the entire collection.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Enjoy!

Ooh Tall La La!

February 14, 2018 whimsicalstitch

Today's stitch is a whole lot easier than last week's...and much more pink. Somehow pink makes so many things better.

The stitch is a very straightforward Parisian Variation. Instead of the traditional over-4 and over-2 rows, I added height to it by changing the over-4 to over-6.

The stitched sample uses Rainbow Gallery Cashmere and Silk Lame.

This stitch would be great for any number of areas that you want to add a little something-something to, yet don't want to go nuts. The over-6 stitch adds height to this stitch, making it great for walls, tree trunks, pants, chimneys...all kinds of essential needlepoint-y things.

Don't overlook flipping it 90 degrees and stitching it on the horizontal axis. That would work really well for wide fields, sand, or distant mountains.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy!

Confession Time

February 7, 2018 whimsicalstitch

Today is a blog in two parts. First, I'm offering up a fun Scallop Stitch with four(!) different and fun options for filling. The second part spends a little extra time on one of the fillings.

The stitch is a scallop stitch over three rows. The topmost points of the scallops in subsequent rows are centered along the lowest point of the row above, creating small shell-shaped spaces in between the horizontal columns of scallops.

There are four ideas to fill the empty space (from top to bottom): Eyelet Stitch (turquoise lines on diagram, purple thread in diagram), Traditional Leaf Stitch (light gray lines on diagram, blue thread in diagram), Shell Stitch (yellow lines on diagram, white thread in diagram), Oblique Tied Stitch (aqua lines on diagram, purple thread in diagram). Feel free to mix and match the scallops and filling stitch to your heart's desire. The stitched sample uses Gloriana Florimell (yellow thread), Kreinik 1/16" ribbon, Kreinik Medium Braid (#16) (purple thread), and Gloriana Princess Perle (white thread).

Personally, I like the idea of the Eyelet or Oblique Tied Stitch as a single filling. Each offers a smidge of open work and lightness to the overall stitch. Conversely, I like the combination of the Traditional Leaf and Shell Stitch on alternating horizontal rows. They are very similar in shape (but not exactly the same!) and I like the alternating directions the two fillings offer. This is all a matter of personal taste! Mix and match to your delight.

Now it's time for my confession. This is the first time I've included an eyelet stitch on my blog. My confession is they make me nervous. Today, this changes.

Eyelet stitches are adorable and I appreciate what they can add to a piece, as the added element of a larger hole draws the eye in a unique way. And therein lies my fear...that the larger holes I create will not be identical sizes and chaos reigns. (I have enough chaos with my new kitten.)

Here's how I navigated this for the eyelet stitch above. A tapered laying tool is critical, as it provides more control over the size of the final hole.

Use a tapered laying tool as a guide for consistent eyelet hole sizes.  Final knotted ribbon on laying tool.  Just make sure it's tight! — Use a tapered laying tool as a guide for consistent eyelet hole sizes. Final knotted ribbon on laying tool. Just make sure it's tight!

Insert the laying tool in the hole from the front of the canvas and gently push it down until the hole is the desired size. Don't remove the laying tool yet. Tie a wide piece of a stash thread (e.g., silk ribbon) where the laying tool meets the canvas on the front, creating a guide for future holes.

Tie the thread tight, pull the laying tool out of the hole, and complete the knot by tying it again, making sure is tight. Move across the canvas, creating holes as needed. Revisit any outlier holes and repeat the process if required to make the hole larger. (I recommend silk ribbon because it is not a slippery thread and will, if tied tightly, stay still on the laying tool.)

Sometimes, you might make a hole a little too large (compared to other eyelet holes). To make that hole smaller, use the eye end of a size 22 needle to push the canvas threads back into place. Put the needle in the immediately adjacent hole, and gently push the needle against the canvas thread, helping nudge the thread back into place. You may need to do this on all four sides of the hole. It may take a couple pushes, so be patient. You can push them back and start over again or just push in a bit to get it to the desired size. Use your judgment.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 60 guides are currently available, with 12 new Stitch Concepts just added! Click here to see the newest guides and click here to see the entire collection.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy!

Baby Leaves!

February 4, 2018 whimsicalstitch

I love finding new (to me) small stitches as it is always good to expand your repertoire beyond your traditional small stitches. I continue to be amazed at how many small space stitches are out there. Today's is especially cute!

I love a good leaf stitch and today's is a perfect one for a small space. It's offers generous coverage and is just plain cute.

The diagram is colored to offer clarity on the steps. Personally, I would stitch the diamonds first (dark gray lines) and add the leaves afterwards (light gray lines). As always, thread selection truly depends on the look you are going for.

Clearly, this stitch would make a great tree or shrub. A single overdyed floss or silk would be lovely (for the entire stitch). If the area has room for more personality, consider using two different shades of a single color. The stitched sample uses three plies of Soie D'Alger on 18-mesh. Adding one more ply certainly wouldn't hurt.

The diamonds around the small leaves extend its appeal beyond greenery. If this isn't going to be foliage, for goodness sake, have fun with dramatic color and finish combinations. Frankly, it would make an adorable coat or a floor covering. For the coat, I think a combo of Very Velvet plus a deep Kreinik Metallic or Entice would be gorgeous. For a lighter look, try silk perle (Rainbow Gallery Elegance or Subtlety, or Gloriana Princess Perle) for the diamond and a Petite Silk Lame for the inside.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 60 guides are currently available, with 12 new Stitch Concepts just added! Click here to see the newest guides and click here to see the entire collection.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Enjoy!

Santa Came in January!

January 31, 2018 whimsicalstitch

With all the holidays this month, it was a so fun to receive an email giving me a gift. My new friend, Amy Poore, sent me today's stitch and stitched sample. It's adorable!

I've seen versions of this stitch around and really like what Amy did with it. It's a fun mix of diagonal and straight stitches, with some alternating directions thrown in for good measure.

Amy used a single color of Pepper Pot for this stitch as a background on one of her new pieces and it's adorable. I recommend stitching it in horizontal columns to keep the straight lines wrapped crisply around the edges. Don't obsess with dragging threads as needed as it is a pretty full coverage stitch. This stitch is great for anything you need to add texture and height to, such as pants, a chimney, a tree trunk...you get the idea.

I've seen versions of this on the horizontal and it's equally charming. It makes a great ground cover, open field, or even clouds.

Threads are dictated by the area of course. But, I do have a hankering to see this done with threads in two different finishes (one for the straight lines and one for the diagonal lines). I have seen this stitch as a ground cover in the combo of an overdyed and solid thread. It was gorgeous.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 60 guides are currently available, with 12 new Stitch Concepts just added! Click here to see the newest guides and click here to see the entire collection.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy!

Christmas in January

January 24, 2018 whimsicalstitch

Come on, you knew today had to be Christmas, since we've celebrated almost every other fall holiday the past couple weeks.

Today's small stitch is a really cute darning stitch, a technique I love. Unlike most of my go-to darning stitches, this one is on the diagonal. And it's great. I need to do this more.

As a reminder, darning stitches are similar to running stitches, where you begin at one edge and weave your way up and down across to the opposite edge, whether that is on the horizontal, vertical or, like today, diagonal axis. Unlike traditional stitches with a crisp, wrapped edge, darning stitches are much smoother across their respective path.

Darning stitches are great for areas that you want to soften a bit, or want to have some of the beautiful painting show through. I (over)use darning stitches for floors and walls, skies, sand, or tree trunks, to name just a few. Today's stitch is illustrated as a background for Mile High Santa.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 60 guides are currently available, with 12 new Stitch Concepts just added! Click here to see the newest guides and click here to see the entire collection.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy!

Thanksgiving in January

January 17, 2018 whimsicalstitch

Last week was Halloween so, of course, this week is Thanksgiving, right?

Today's stitch comes from an apron on a vintage Melissa Shirley Thanksgiving stand-up. It's a wonderful balance of open, interesting, and sweet.

Click on image to see on pinterest.com.  Visit pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday for a library of all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams. — Click on image to see on pinterest.com. Visit pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday for a library of all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

Click on image to see on instagram.com.  Visit instagram.com/whimsicalstitch to see a library of stitched samples for select #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams. — Click on image to see on instagram.com. Visit instagram.com/whimsicalstitch to see a library of stitched samples for select #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

I recommend adding the gray lines first. Fill the smaller diamond with a single Upright Cross, followed by four Upright Crosses in the larger diamond. The stitched sample uses DMC Perle Cotton #8 with Shimmer Ribbon as the accent thread (on 18-mesh).

I love the mix of thread finishes in the stitched sample. The single hue makes for a classic look. Along these lines, I see this stitch (and single hue combo) as perfect for a shirt, field of grass or dirt, tablecloth, clouds, maybe even water. It strikes the right balance between open and full coverage stitches, allowing the shading to play a role in your final stitched piece.

Mixing colors and finishes would make this a great stitch for more dramatic clothing such as a coat or dress. I imagine the gray lines with a rich red velvet, the group of four Upright Crosses in a deep red metallic, and the single Upright Cross in a gold or silver metallic. Try it for a roof or basket with Rainbow Linen for the diagonal lines, Straw Silk for the single Upright Cross, and an overdyed Perle Cotton for the group of four Upright Crosses. Just a few thought-starters for you!

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 48 guides are currently available and more will be announced later this week, so stay tuned!

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Enjoy!

Halloween in January

January 10, 2018 whimsicalstitch

The blog posts for the remainder of the month unveil a secret about me. I've been negligent in returning my Christmas decorations...okay, some Halloween decorations as well...to storage. The good news for me is I didn't have to scrounge for stitched samples. The good news for you is today is Halloween!

Today's stitch is illustrated as a background for a vintage Melissa Shirley Halloween ornament.

It is very simple. The core stitch element is five straight stitches six rows high (on the vertical). After the core elements are complete, add an accent thread across the top in the middle on the horizontal axis. Voila! Perfect background, floor, wallpaper, basket, dress...even a large window!

The stitched sample uses DMC Perle Cotton #8 with Shimmer Ribbon as the accent thread (on 18-mesh).

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 48 guides are currently available and more are in the works. I will be posting about 15 new Stitch Concepts later this month, so stay tuned!

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Enjoy! And happy, happy 2018!

Sometimes Being Right Isn't Everything

January 7, 2018 whimsicalstitch

And that's because today's stitch comes from another mistake! The diagram below was my first attempt at diagramming this adorable window stitch, it wasn't quite right. It wasn't right because it didn't match the stitched sample, but it's still a cute stitch on its own merits. So meet the Patterned Cross Stitch's cousin, the Patterned Cross Stitch!

My counsel for this version is the same as the cousin. Use it to help an area recede, such as a sky or a horizon behind a beautiful landscape, or to let how the canvas is painted standout. The pink area of this canvas was so cute that I didn't want to overdo it. It's also a foolproof way to highlight shading in a small area. A stitch like this is always top of mind for water or windows. I recommend using lightweight threads with a stitch this gentle. For example, the stitched sample uses Trebizond Silk on 18-mesh. Depending on what you are stitching, consider Petite Silk Lame, Silk Straw, 2-3 strands of your favorite silk floss or wool.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 48 guides are currently available and more are in the works!

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Enjoy!

Or Not

January 3, 2018 whimsicalstitch

Welcome to a new year of #whimsicalwednesdays! Let's kick off the year with open stitches, sparkly threads, and beads, shall we?

Let's start with the first stitch. The stitch is connected octagons with all sides over two rows. While I am aware the primary shape is the octagon, I see the diamonds first, hence the name.

This version would be great for nature, especially areas that don't need a heavy stitch. Think water, sky, clouds. It's a wonderful way to show off the canvas painting. The stitched sample uses Sparkle! Braid for a sky on 18-mesh.

Make it the "Or Not" version by adding an Upright Tied Cross in the center and a bead inside the diamond. It's really something, especially when you mix threads and add beads. A stitcher friend shared a wonderful sample with me.

Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com on Pinterest.  Visit pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday for a library of all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams. — Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com on Pinterest. Visit pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday for a library of all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com's Instagram account. Visit instagram.com/whimsicalstitch for a library of stitched samples for select #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams. — Click on image to see on whimsicalstitch.com's Instagram account. Visit instagram.com/whimsicalstitch for a library of stitched samples for select #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

The first stitched sample uses Kreinik Metallics Medium Braid for the diamonds, Rachel for the Upright Tied Cross, and a Sundance Bead. It's exquisite and inspiring. She is using it for a large flower petal. It would be great for clothing, especially dresses or dramatic coats. Replace the bead with an Upright Cross and change the focus to matte threads, such as Pepper Pot, Gloriana Silk Floss, or even Straw Silk, and you would have fantastic greenery.

The second stitched sample is an illustration of thread weights. The sample includes Soie D'Alger and a Sundance Bead. The octagons are two plies of Soie D'Alger and the Upright Tied Cross is a single strand of the same Soie D'Alger. I love the lightness of it. And the shading shines through beautifully.

These stitch diagrams, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here.

Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides and stitch concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster. 48 guides are currently available and more are in the works. I will be posting about 15 new Stitch Concepts later this month, so stay tuned!

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Enjoy! And happy, happy 2018!

#whimsicalwednesday blog