Back in October, my ANG Main Line Stitchers chapter started From Dusk to Dawn by Textured Treasures (you can find them on Facebook). The full design is 12 motifs done on 18 count canvas. But, they also sell the instructions in batches of three done on 28-count on Quaker Cloth and four motifs individually (count unknown). I think I am working on 28-count Cashel linen or Laguna.
In December, I added the outer border but didn’t feel it was blog worthy!
Well, I decided to get back to it for my Saturday Stitch-in project today. So, I had to stitch some difficult areas over the last couple of days. Kristen has given us some good tips for the motifs. The Mexican Stitch in the corners of the center motif and the raised Chevron Stitch were very challenging stitches. The Mexican Stitch would make a good background.
I color matched my overdyed thread in the first two motifs so, I will have to color match in the third! I still have a few beads to add. In the left motif, I used the largest yellow section of the overdyed thread for the diamond Rhodes and the darker colors for the Algerian Star eyelets.
I’m going to focus on this piece until it’s done!
Filed under: ANG Main Line Stitchers Chapter, Expressions in NeedleArt, Fiber on a Whim, From Dawn to Dusk, General comments, Needlepoint Shops, Threads
Last Saturday I went to Expressions in Needle Art in Canandaigua, NY. Lori has a wonderful collection of threads and yarns for stitchers and knitters. Lots of counted instructions and painted canvases.
First, I got talking with the 5 ladies from Endicott/Endwell, NY who had arrived almost the same time as I did. They were with the EGA B.C. Stitchers chapter. And, they will be stitching my Overdyed Spools in January! That was fun to find out. We exchanged information and I look forward to hearing from them next year.
Then, we got to exploring the store. I found an overdyed cotton thread by Fiber on a Whim. Pretty but I did resist them.
I don’t consider the 2 booklets that I picked up as “Books in My Library” because they are more project oriented. That is especially true for Vienna Hearts by Sue Lentz Needlework (1998/1999). I have a piece of interconnected hearts that I need to redo and write up. These are much larger than mine and I liked the patterns Sue choose.
The other booklet, That’s Not Needlepoint (It’s Inspired Art Created with Your Needle) is by dede Ogden (2011) which are now represented by Fleur de Paris, Inc. It’s not intended to be complete charts or diagrams to finish various painted canvases but to offer suggestions for types of elements found in seascapes. The first canvas discussed is Seahorse Spyglass 18073 and is still available (and so is a stitch guide by Tony Minieri). Other canvases discussed are still available from a variety of sources including Undersea Fish 1373, Glass Aquarium Tropicals Green Fish 18015, Glass Aquarium Tropicals Blue Fish 18034, Undersea Garden 1378, Seahorse Pillow 18056, and Enchanted Mermaid Dream 18050. The Casalgudi stitch is a new one and quite interesting. I’ve read the section several times in the past week to understand it. The center of the Orchid (which I have been putting off because I haven’t found the right stitch) may be why this stitch is calling to me. I’ll give it a try. The Railway Stitch makes a good background stitch. Sue has an interesting Bead Cup Stitch and shows how to expand an overlapping cross stitch to fit fluctuations in the width of seaweed.
The store walls had a bunch of stitched samples. I spotted the Textured Treasures design, From Dusk to Dawn, that we are stitching at ANG Main Line Stitchers chapter. I’m doing a group of three too but it will be a different three designs and in a different colorway than displayed.
In fact, that was the piece I had taken on the road to stitch. The outer boders of straight Gobelin stitches were easy.
The other piece that my ANG Main Line Stitchers chapter is starting is From Dusk to Dawn by Textured Treasures (you can find them on Facebook). The full design is 12 motifs done on 18 count canvas. But, they also sell the instructions in batches of three done on 28-count on Quaker Cloth and four motifs individually (count unknown). I’m working on some sort of linen.
I bought them in batches of three because I have too much to do to commit to the larger design. I’ve selected my own colors – fall colors – my favorite season!
I’ll wait to stitch the centers until the others get to the motifs that I want to stitch. In the meantime, I will stitch the outer areas.
What happens when Christmas meets From Dawn to Dusk by Karen E. Dudzinski from Textured Treasures? This cute ornament! It is Motif 1-1 which I agreed to stitch to show how the various motifs would look if stitched individually for ornaments. This is one of three projects that ANG Main Line Stitchers will be stitching over the 2022-2023 year.
I had Needle Necessities 153 Razzle Dazzle Red for the Satin Stitch Leaf and a roll of 1/16 silver metallic ribbon for the Plaited Upright Cross and center leaf vein in my stash. The red flosses from dark to light are 814, 816, and 321.
Instead of the 11/0 beads, I used 15/0 Miyuki beads and Sundance silver sequins BDS-SQ214 which I have plenty to share if anyone is interested. I think they will sparkle better.
Other threads were DMC Floss Blanc, DMC #8 Perle white, DMC #5 Perle 321 red, and Kreinik #8 Braid 001 silver.
It took me about 6 hours to stitch this (spread over several days). I kept track to get a sense for how long it would take members to stitch a motif if we do one a month.
I stitched Access Commodities Metallic Soft Twist Trim Cord (Size 16) on with Sulky Invisible thread (fine 0.004) which was quite a challenge to see! But, it worked better than a matching silver thread because I had to go into the Ultrasuede backing & kind of deeper into the front to cinch the two sides tight. The cording Size 32 might be better although this is fine. It was way easier and quicker than using the Palestrina stitch for the edging. For this ornament, I used one layer of Skirtex, a stiff interfacing, that I had left over from a name tag kit obtained from Marilyn when we volunteered for ANG Distance Learning together. We made coordinating name tags for the 2014 ANG Seminar in Chicago. I had forgotten where I’d gotten Skirtex from, searched on my blog, and found out where I’d gotten from. I keep following Marilyn around ANG! She is excellent to work with and very knowledgeable.
My finishing is not perfect but looks very good. The first photo revealed a piece of invisible thread that had gotten caught on an edge but I was able to bury it. So, it was all done & ready for our August ANG Main Line Stitchers meeting this past Monday.
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