Pretty as a Peach

Today's stitch is a denser variation of the Elongated X's I shared with you last September.   

Just as the original post, this stitch is up six rows and over two.  Tying down the X's with three horizontal stitches over two rows is a way to brighten it up for the peach that inspired this post.

As you can see, thread weights play a huge role in the openness of this denser stitch.  I used size 8 DMC Pearl Cotton and size 8 Kreinik Metallics, resulting in an almost full coverage stitch looking barely there.  And, for certain artists, this is the way to stitch.  There is some beautiful shading out there.  There are times I feel guilty covering it up.  

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster.  31 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

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

Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Banana?

One of the WORST knock-knock jokes ever.  But, it was the first thing that came into my head as I plotted this post.  Because, um, today's stitch comes from an orange on one of my Melissa Shirley fruit pillows.  

For those of you whom open work makes you itch, this may be a stitch for you.  It is very, very close to full coverage.  The choice of lighter weight threads reinforce the open look.  Here's the stitch.

It's a 3X3 diamond with a Smyrna Cross in the diamond intersections and a Tied Upright Cross in the diamond centers.  

Thread weights are critical for the open effect of this stitch.  The stitched sample on Instagram drives home my point.

In the Instagram sample, the dark gray lines are a size 5 Pearl Cotton, the aqua lines are a size 8 Kreinik Metallics, and the turquoise lines are Frosty Rays.  If you are #teamfullcoverage, consider a heavier Pearl Cotton or even a single strand silk such as Vineyard Silk or Pepper Pot for the dark gray lines.  Increase the weight of the Kreinik Metallic to a size 12 or size 16 and I think you might be just as happy with this stitch.

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster.  31 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

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

My Favorite Technique

#teamopenstitches

February focuses on open stitches from pillows on display in my front window for 15+ years as well as a stitch I accidentally created by not transferring a diagram correctly.  (Seriously.)

A little background.  When I returned to the world of needlepoint, I was #teamfullcoverage for several years. I could not get my head around what I called "naked canvas."  Oh, how wrong I was.  Without a doubt, it took some coaxing and hand-holding.  Here I am, twenty-some years later, I can't imagine a single piece of needlepoint I've stitched, or am stitching, without the dreaded...I mean gorgeous...naked canvas.  It's about balance, focus areas, and symmetry.  

I begin with the Pomegranate Stitch.  I have no other name for it.  This is because the stitch is comprised of several small stitches that create a gorgeous pattern and I used it on a pomegranate.  Makes sense, right?

The first diagram is the first group of stitches that would be fine just as they are, especially with a piece with gorgeous shading.

But, no.  I needed more stitches, so I added an Upright Cross (the light gray lines) inside the small diamonds.

Was that the end?  Of course not.  More oblique layered crosses were added.  And some tiny Mosaic stitches.

The stitched sample on Instagram reflects the final diagram.  I included all three steps because I wanted to make a point.  Any of these three combinations work as a group of stitches.  Truth be told, if I re-stitched this piece today, I would stitch it with the middle diagram so I could have more naked canvas.

It's all a matter of taste and your desired coverage level.  What is universal, regardless of which diagram you prefer, is the threads.  When doing open work, it's important to integrate thread weight into the equation.  Generally speaking, I choose lighter weight threads as a secondary way to let the shading show through.  Case in point, I used size 5 pearl cotton and size 12 Kreinik Metallics Tapestry Braid on 13-mesh for the pomegranate.  I would even use size 8 pearl cotton and size 8 Kreinik Metallics on 13-mesh to make a point.  It works, I promise.  And, as with all things needlepoint, it is all a matter of taste.  So, experiment to find what works for you.

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster.  30 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

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

Just the Beginning

I was desperately seeking an open, lightweight background for an upcoming stitch guide series (for a group of adorable standups...more to come soon, I promise!)

Today is an example of Pinterest (or any stitch book or stitched piece) providing the catalyst for a stitch.   This pin was the beginning of something wonderful.  I expanded it beyond the original diagram because I needed the additional space for the snowflakes (Smyrna Crosses).  

2017 Pavilion Flower Variation.jpg

The stitched sample on Instagram goes for a lighter touch, using only two plies of Splendor for the flowers (on 18-mesh).  If you want fuller coverage, use four plies of any strandable silk or cotton floss on 18-mesh and six strands on 13-mesh.  A laying tool is critical here to keep the individual strands flat and untangled.  

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, and Patience Brewster.  30 guides are currently available, including two new guides from Patience (here and here), and more are in the pipeline.  My events page includes teaching events at stores I will be visiting over the next few months.  More events are in the works and the events page will always include the latest available information.

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

Sweet Stalks

Today's post is another riff on the influence of embroidery in needlepoint.  Common embroidery techniques used in needlepoint include the stem stitch, the back stitch, and French Knots.  I've had a lot of fun trying to recreate some of the more unique embroidery stitches as needlepoint.  Today's stitch is a perfect example.  First, this is the original pin that helped me create the stitch below.

Stalk Stitch.jpg

I thought it was important to make these stalks look as natural as possible, so I offset the middle column by one row (on the vertical) so the stalks wouldn't be even.  With the lazy daisy loop (the black lines), it was also possible to make this stitch follow a curved line.  

You can see that curved line in the lower left hand corner of the stitched sample on Instagram.  I used a single color of Vineyard Silk in the stitched sample.  The painting of the canvas enhanced the stitch as well.  (I can always find an argument for open stitches.)

It would be a lot of fun to do the loops in a different color to make the "flower" part of this stitch pop.  Another idea is to add French Knots in some of the open spaces for a different version of a flower.  Have fun with it.

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 for seasonal Melissa Shirley designs.  28 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

Enjoy!

Love at First Sight

This stitch stumbled into my Pinterest feed and I knew immediately I had to include it in something.  Anything.  I love how it appears to be full coverage, yet some open canvas sneaks through.  I love the right amount of open canvas to let the beautiful shading shine through.

The only change I made was to do a single thread for the long diagonal base stitch (the black line on the diagram).  

Sequence:  1. Gray lines  2. Black lines  3. Aqua lines

Sequence:  1. Gray lines  2. Black lines  3. Aqua lines

The stitched sample combines Planet Earth Silk Opal, Very Velvet, and Kreinik Metallics Tapestry Braid (#12).

While I didn't do it in my experiment, I am obsessed with the idea of using Very Velvet for the aqua lines.  I think that little pop of texture and surprising finish would be a fun touch, especially for clothing.

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs and Zecca Designs.  28 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.  

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

New Year...New Source

Happy New Year!  I hope your new year brings you everything you wish for.  And I certainly hope you continue to wish for needlepoint stitches because that is what I'm here for (other than keeping the cats housed, warm, and fed).

The month of January will be dedicated to stitches and techniques I discovered on Pinterest.  This does not mean these stitches don't exist elsewhere; it's simply I discovered them (and their corresponding source website or blog) on Pinterest.  And, for that, thank you to all who knowingly or unknowingly contributed to my library.

I must acknowledge the complicating factors with Pinterest, specifically permissions.  I make every effort to repost all things needlepoint from websites or blogs, meaning they can be linked to the original source.  I prefer to post items with the responsible party (or site) clearly marked in the photo.  This allows me to give credit where credit is due, whether that is Sheena's Sweet Stitches, Robin King, or the Needle Works (three of the most common diagram sources I stumble across in Pinterest-land).

I will not pin photos of pages from stitch diagram books, as that is an outright copyright violation.  (So, stop it!)  I can't figure out where photos of hand-drawn stitch diagrams fall on this spectrum, so I try to avoid pinning them altogether.  I re-pin photographs of stitched objects because, technically, they are in the public domain once anyone posts a photograph of their work in progress on a social media site.  I view them as stitched samples in stores...great inspirations and sometimes mysterious because they don't come with a detailed diagram.  The bottom line?  I try to learn as much as I can while respecting the original teachers.  With all of these caveats aside, let's get back to Pinterest inspiration.  

Embroidery on Pinterest has been a huge inspiration for me.  It aligns with my fondness for stumpwork and helps me broaden my own style.  

Stumpwork is an embroidery style where elements are raised from the surface of the canvas to form a 3-dimensional effect.   I knew I wanted the leaves to pop with a small accent on Sprung, but also wanted to make it easy for students of all skill levels.  Here's the original pin that provided the inspiration.  The black leaf was the catalyst for the leaves on Sprung. Here is how it worked (from the actual whimsicalstitch.com stitch guide).

And here is a close up of the end result.

Sprung is now one of my personal favorites...for several reasons.  It challenged me to stretch my style, it makes me smile when I look at it, and it's adorable.

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs and Zecca Designs.  28 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

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

Quadfecta

I've been a little obsessed with Star Octagon lately.  Today's post is a perfect example of why and it's a quadfecta of a post. What a great way to close out #whimsicalwednesday for the year.

Let's start with the base stitch.  I expanded Star Octagon by a couple of rows all the way around.  What makes this stitch so infinitely fascinating to me is a. its neutral direction and b. the countless ways to fill the centers. 

Frankly, this stitch is perfect on its own.  It mimics diamonds yet adds a little extra jazz to them.  This would make a great floor, sky, coat...you get the idea.

Once you start filling the centers, it changes everything.  You can go elegant with a contrasting accent and a bead.

You could also fill that 2X2 center space with a Smyrna Cross, a 2X2 Mosaic stitch, French Knots, or four beads.  I like the idea of the single bead (as illustrated) with an oversized bead, say a size 8 or size 6 bead on 13-mesh, or a size 11 on 18-mesh.  A Tila bead could be a truly unique approach.

The next idea integrates tied crosses.

The tied crosses add a slight elevation.  This would be great for a cushion, clothing, or even a cloud.  If you wanted to go really nuts, add a bead over the tied crosses over two rows on the vertical, crossing over the center intersection.  

The last idea offers a unique twist for a completely filled center.  I just used this stitch for a background of a Melissa Shirley Poinsettia Cat.  

I'm hoping you will overlook the lack of stitched samples with the offer of four stitch diagrams this week!  

Speaking of stitch diagrams, 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 for Melissa Shirley Designs and Zecca Designs.  28 guides are currently available, including the newest Tea by the Sea, and more are in the pipeline.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch!  Enjoy and happy new year!

Magical Milanese

I've never chatted about Milanese before, so why not start with a large, dramatic Milanese stitch?

Milanese stitches are diagonal stitches, typically in groups of four with each stitch one row wider than the previous.  The resulting element looks like a triangle or an arrowhead.  Today's stitch idea blows this up into a group of six stitches for each triangle.

Let's start with the diagram.

The triangles are in diagonal columns.  Every row of an individual triangle aligns with a specific row in the triangle on either side (going in the opposite direction).  I use the "total" to determine which stitch (of the triangle) is in the next diagonal column of triangles.  In the above example, the total is seven (7).  The sixes match to the ones; the fives match to the twos; the fours match to the threes.  The "total" counting method helps me easily add subsequent columns and is a real help when adding compensation stitches.  Honestly, it keeps me sane.  I recommend stitching the triangles first and return to add the accent stitches (the aqua lines).

The stitched sample on Instagram takes this concept one step further by alternating finishes for the diagonal columns of triangles.

The diagram below is the exact same as above, but I changed the color of alternating columns to align it with the stitched sample for clarity.

 

Since Milanese is a dramatic stitch that stands out, I think it calls for substantial, full coverage threads.  The stitched sample uses Very Velvet and Frosty Rays.  Both of those threads add a certain puff to the stitched sample.  Confetti or Rachelette would be a fun alternative for the Frosty Rays.  Right now, I am pondering how fun it could be to use Gloriana's Chenille for the triangles (on 13-mesh). 

Other substantial threads, albeit with less puff, are Silk & Ivory, Planet Earth Wool, Planet Earth Silk, or Kreinik Metallics (size 12 or 16).  Fyre Werks and Flair are great metallic threads to consider as well.  While they may appear lighter weight, they are great threads as they lie flat and wide.  They make great accent threads.

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs and Zecca Designs.  28 guides are currently available, including the newest Tea by the Sea, and more are in the pipeline.

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

Ride the Wave

Today's stitch is made for combining colors and finishes.  It's also an example of what skipping a row (or rows) does to expand the opportunities of a stitch.

I named the stitch Diagonal Waves.

The stitched samples on Instagram illustrates my point.

The stitched sample uses Very Velvet (gray lines), Kreinik Metallics Medium Braid (#16) (aqua lines), and Fyre Werks (black lines).  I love the green accents in the middle of all the pink...and in the middle of a diagonal sequence.  To me, this is what makes this stitch so special.

This stitch is best for an area you want to draw attention to.  Thread choices for an attention grabbing stitch include any full coverage threads and, more importantly, contrasting colors.  I'm intentionally broad here because virtually any thread can be full coverage depending on ply count (for floss) and mesh count.

This stitch could be more subtle with lighter weight threads and elimination of a contrasting color.  Change the aqua lines to gray lines and it would make a fabulous water stitch because of the waves.  It could also be a beautiful sky.  

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 for Melissa Shirley Designs and Zecca Designs.  28 guides are currently available, including the newest Tea by the Sea, and more are in the pipeline.  I'm hoping to have some definitive news to share about projects in the pipeline very soon!

Enjoy!