Well, nightmare is too strong. However, pulling out beads you stitch through twice is not easy.
I was trying to get full coverage with the beads. But the 8/0 seed beads were too big for clusters of 5 even on 14 count. And, it looked messy.
So, in the May/June 2021 issue of Needle Pointers, Marilyn Owen had written an excellent article on various beading techniques in needlepoint. I thought I would try beaded basketweave with the same 8/0 beads (still on 14 count). But, as Marilyn said, that stitch is only good in small areas because it gets quite cramped. So, once that happened, out they came – again and I switched to 11/0 seed beads. Finally, it wasn’t too cramped. For a self-proclaimed non-expert, Marilyn was spot on.
I wanted full coverage and it is covered! I estimate that there is about 800 beads on that one flower. I used the beaded basketweave method which employs a cross-stitch to attach the beads following the grain of the canvas to turn beads causing the vertical canvas thread to raise the beads above the adjacent horizontally placed beads. It did take some time too but I got through it ok.
Once the beads were done, the center diamond waffle got lost. So, I had stitch over it a second time. Much better.
Considering that the first flower required that many beads, I knew that I would not have enough to cover the entire second pink flower. So, I had to go in another direction. The Partial Eyelet with Crosses is from Needlepoint Dictionary of Stitches by Susan Sturgeon Roberts. I used 3 shades of pink Sparkle Rays (SR26, SR58, and SR57) to create shading. I filled in with a Raibow Gallery thread from a 6-thread card, maybe 24 Karats, possibly a discontinued color. I wanted to tie in the pink beads so I put one in each eyelet center.
As I had hoped, one project is done before I leave for Seminar where I will be starting two new ones. It’s a small one at 4″ square. Probably going to frame it. We’ll see.
Filed under: Busy Lizzy, Floral Fantasy, Needlepoint Shops, Other People's Pieces, Threads, Threads and Beads
I finally joined Cleo of Busy Lizzy for one of her First Tuesday sessions at her shop behind her house. It’s not large but Cleo has a good selection of painted canvases, threads, and miscellany including books. The table and chairs still allow enough room to walk around looking at everything. Eight of us fit comfortably around the table. Lively conversation made the time fly and before I knew it, it was 2:30 pm which was 30 minutes past the time I was planning to leave (just over an hour to and from Chadds Ford for me). Two others from ANG Main Line Stitchers, Gloriann and Stacie, were there. My travel SMASTA (tool case) was a smash hit! A very enjoyable day.
I found one book there that I couldn’t find anywhere online!! But, that will be the topic of another post.
The piece I’m working on is a small (4″ square) 14 count canvas with designer initials of BTB or BT8. I have no idea where I got it from but it looked like an easy piece to stitch at a Stitch-in. If anyone recognizes the designer, please leave a comment. I named it Floral Fantasy for lack of the proper title.
I selected basketweave for the white flower outlines, a 4×4 Norwich Stitch for the white center of the red flower, and 2 upright waffle stitches for the white center of the pink flowers using ThreadworX Expressions (200, white). These areas were finished the day before.
The green is Boucle (170) done with Checkerboard Cross which are alternating cross stitches and upright crosses each over 2 canvas threads. I wanted a random looking grassy texture. I began this area to make sure the thread worked. Since it is 14 count, the Boucle works ok. I finished this today and found out Pepper Pot Silk would not cover on 14 count at least for the stitch I wanted to use.
It was a perfect time to try the new thread Line at Cleo’s that I haven’t seen anywhere else. It is from Gloriana Threads and is Duchess Silk, a hand-dyed thread. Some colors have more subtle changes in the skein. I had brought along another canvas and selected other skeins of Duchess Silk but that too will be the subject of another post.
This Rose Violet (232) has more variations than many of the other colors in the line. You can see I got the upper right corner started using the stitch, Pointing Fingers. There is nice variation of color. It’s taking some time to “see” the pattern and compensation isn’t easy yet. Hopefully, I’ll get it once I start stitching in the larger area.
Also in the upper right corner are 2 small clusters of 5 beads each. I have accumulated (mostly from Trish who was unloading her stash before moving south) a slew of beads including a large tube of pink beads that are calling to me, “Use us!” I don’t know what kind they are so I hope I have enough for both pink flowers. If not, then I will improvise. The differences in texture are pleasing me most about this piece. I have no idea what to do with it when I finish it. Any suggestions?
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