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Archive for the ‘Needlepoint’ Category

Needlepoint Finishing and Wedding Pillow Design

My friends Bob and Irene got married this summer, and I decided that since we love our ring bearer pillow so much, I’d have to make them one!   (You click the following link see our wedding ring bearer pillow.)

Their Custom NeedlePoint Wedding Pillow

Not only was this a fun project to design, but it also was a great opportunity for us to test out our new needlepoint finisher and our pillow finisher.  I’ve used them 5 times so far, as can be seen on the cat needlepoint post and in our newsletter, but this time the stitcher got away from the tent stitches and she decided what stitches she thought would look best.

Designing the pillow was relatively simple, I used Bob and Irene’s wedding invitation for my design inspiration, and made some alterations in photoshop.  You can see I even used their invitation for matching the colors.

We used a burgundy velveteen backing for the pillow, and the contrast looks great.  My only regret on this project, is that I think I should have made the pillow 12 x 12 rather than 8 x 8.  It does not cost much extra to put a ‘frame’ around the needlepoint, and I think fills out better on a sofa.

If you have a project that you don’t have time for, we can make it for you.  Our prices start at $2 per inch for stitching, $50 for custom needlepoint kits, $60 for pillow finishing, or $160 for a complete custom ring bearer pillow.

You can visit our personalized needlepoint shop online at www.needlepaint.com

Needlepoint Finishing Close Up Picture - Click to Enlarge

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint, Pillows

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Silk Sails – Sailboat Needlepoint

Over the weekend NeedlePaint attended the TNNA Winter Show in Phoenix.  This tradeshow is one of the largest events for needlepoint stores each year.

I was lucky enough to be across from River Silks, silk ribbon for needlepoint and embroidery.  The ladies there were quite busy, but as the afternoon hours extended and the traffic drew down, we got to chatting.  They gave me a piece of canvas and some silk.  Once I started playing with the silk ribbon, I loved it!  It really is easy to use, and the coverage looks great.

Quickly I came up with a fun idea to work on during the slower times.  There was a sailboat custom needlepoint canvas on display, which I took down, and decided to make silk sails.

The silk ribbon is flowing with the wind

Just to do the creative stitchers that have used River Silk some justice, I’m going to include some amazing pictures of needlepoint that has been done using silk.

Roadside designed by Anne Cram, stitched by Lynn K. Bayer

Electric Zebra from Julia’s Needleworks

These and many more River Silks needlepoint kits can be ordered through your local needlepoint retailer or through NeedlePaint.com!  Also, if you want to have your own custom needlepoint kits matched with silk from River Silks, we can do that, too!

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint

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NeedlePaint Creates a Custom Shop for Personalized Needlepoint Ring Bearer Pillow Kits

We just created a personalized needlepoint shop for wedding ring bearer pillows needlepoint kits.  These ring bearer pillow designs allow crafters to adjust names and colors and even add their own designs to make that special day just a little more special.

If you are new to needlepoint, or very experienced, you will find making a ring bearer pillow to be a treat.  The small size and easy to follow designs mean that you can finish your project in less than a month!  If you are not crafty, don’t worry, we also have stitchers here who can have your pillow ready in as little as six weeks.  Personalized needlepoint ring bearer canvases start at only $49 and finished needlepoint pillows start at $160.

Don’t miss your chance to make an unforgettable wedding gift, that not only will be used during the wedding, but also will be cherished in the newlyweds home for a lifetime.

The Ring Bearer Pillow Shop Has Launched with over 20 Personalizable Designs

 

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint

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A War and Peace Needlepoint Christmas Stocking

Three weeks before Christmas, my daughter-in-law finally finished the needlepoint design for her daughter’s (my grand-daughter’s) needlepoint Christmas stocking.  So, I put the canvas on my Victorian stretcher frame, began leafing through my favorite needlepoint books ( The Needlepoint Book by Jo Ippolito Christensen and A Pageant of Pattern for Needlepoint Canvas by Sherlee Lantz), and began stitching like mad.

Zoe's Personalized Needlepoint Stocking - BEAUTIFUL!!! (Click on Photo to Enlarge)

Well, not that fast! I took some time to picking out the stitches while I downloaded from my local public library the audio recording of War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy by Blackstone Audio, Inc. Downloadable audio books which can be listened to on your computer, MP3 player, or iPod has allowed me to combine creative stitchery and literature and learning.

War and Peace was 60 hours and 42 minutes long and I finished listening to Tolstoy a couple hours before I finished the stocking. Thus, I have termed the project the Ware and Peace Stocking. Similarly, an afghan which I knitted for a wedding present became The Children’s Book Afghan and I sent a copy the book by A.S. Byatt as an additional gift. Both books are long and dense. I found them much more enjoyable as audio presentations as I stitched away than they would have been had I read the written words. I remember that the first time I read War and Peace in 1968, it took me the entire summer!

Coming soon details of some of the unusual stitches I used on my Ware and Peace Stocking.

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint

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Baseball Player Needlepoint Kits

Zainab Al-Chalabi recently created this beautiful needlepoint kit of a Evan Longoria.  Her exquisite stitching and framing capture a great memory in Florida baseball.

Evan Longoria in Needlepoint

A few things I want to mention.  #1.  The picture is cropped very close so the details of the face and body show up really well.  #2.  The colors on the face had very good lighting.  This can be adjusted, if you are uploading a portrait to make a needlepoint canvas and having trouble, feel free to email us and we will adjust the colors on your image in Photoshop.

Currently, we are working on a portrait of a customers grandchild that is a portrait from their sports team.  It looks like another fantastic project!

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint

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Scroll Frames for your Needlepoint Project

Tired of or frustrated by having to stretch your needlepoint canvas back into shape after you have finished needlepointing? That was always the part I disliked the most about a needlepoint project. Years ago I found a Victorian needlepoint/embroidery frame in an antique wholesale warehouse in San Francisco while I was looking for dining room chairs. No one was too sure what it was or what to do with it. I did! It was going to make my life much easier when I made the needlepoint seats for the chairs I purchased at the same time. The frame was itself a work or art, and I have used it constantly.


The only problem is that t it is not portable. So when I travelled I had to leave my needlepoint at home a take my knitting along. Then in 2001, security decided that one could not take knitting needles on the airplane. I had two trips to Europe planned and needed handiwork to take with me. Enter the Frank A. Edmunds Split Rail Scroll Frames which are also available at many retail stores. They come in varying sizes and don’t require that you attach extra fabric to fit a specific size. I do, however, usually sew a piece of fabric to the top and bottom to give better tension to my canvas as I tighten it.


Frank A. Edmunds has many other frame products which might also be of interest. They have the new Handi Clamp Scoll Frame which I am tempted to try, but my old ones are still in working order.

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How to NeedlePoint, Needlepoint

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Needlepoint Christmas Ornament Photos!

Peggy has finished all of her quick stitch needlepoint ornaments, and while you may have seen some of them already, there are more great pictures in this post!

In case you want to learn about how to make the personalized needlepoint ornaments you can click the links below:

How to make a Quick Stitch Needlepoint Ornament

Using Quick Stitches

The Four Hour Needlepoint Ornament

Also, if you want to see the whole needlepoint canvas design, they are all available on our personalized needlepoint shop as needlepoint kits or needlepoint canvases.

Candy Cane and Christmas Trees

Santa's Sleigh

Penguin Needlepoint Ornament

Green Snowflake Ornament

Personalized Train

Personalized Christmas Ornament

Santa's Airplane

Flying Christmas Angel

Blue Snowflake Personalized Needlepoint Ornament

The whole collection of Needlepoint Ornaments!

 

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How to NeedlePoint, NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint

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Lovely Needlepoint Pillows

These two lovely needlepoint pillows were emailed to by Hala Alfi last week.  The pillows are very well stitched and they are a great way to display your talent!

Marine Crest Needlepoint Pillow

Marine Crest Needlepoint Pillow

Cute Dog Needlepoint Pillow

Cute Dog Needlepoint Pillow

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint, Pillows

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The Four Hour Needlepoint Ornament

With less than a month to do to Christmas, I was getting challenged to finish my goal of 9 personalized needlepoint ornaments. I needed to cut dramatically the time it took to needlepoint the ornaments. Could I do one in 4 hours?

Looking at the needlepoint design choices, I selected the Snowflake Design — not too complex and only 3 colors, but there is a lot of background. If I were to meet my 4-hour goal, I had to come up with something even quicker than the open work I did on Santa in his sleigh .

To the drawing board — the custom needlepoint canvas has a rich dark green background so why cover it up? Add red running stitches in alternating columns of over 3 rows and under one. It looked great and added a new dimensions to the otherwise plain background.

And, canvas on stretcher, I headed off to my flight from Denver to Boston — 3.5 hours. When I landed in Boston, I had finished all but 2 square inches of the background. It only took me another 15 minutes to finish up when I got time at my destination and then another 20 minutes to sew it onto the green fabric stuff it and tie it up. Success!!!

As you can see, I used the same technique on the blue snowflake ornament with light blue on the dark blue background.

Thanksgiving is not here and I am done with the ornament!!

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How to NeedlePoint, NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint

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Christmas Needlepoint Cat Pillow Finishing

Hightail and Tagger

Hightail and Tagger Christmas Needlepoint Cat Pillow

We just got a pillow back from our needlepoint finisher, and I have to share the pictures of it!

Helen Dixon stitched this pillow using a custom needlepoint kit she purchased on NeedlePaint.com.  She mailed us back the mostly finished canvas and requested the black velvet frame and backing, with red velvet piping, and it looks amazing!

Just in time, this needlepoint Christmas pillow still look sophisticated.  The needlepoint pillow is 12 x 12 inches.  If you are interested in having your needlepoint kit turned into a pillow, please feel free to contact us, our prices are great, and our pillow finisher has over 30 years of experience!

Cool Needlepoint Cat Pillow for Christms

Close Up, the Needlepoint Cat Pillow, Just In Time for Christmas!

All NeedlePaint.com customers get a discounted rate, and if they let us know that they may want to have us finish the pillow for them, we will include a return label with their shipment so they can mail us back the canvas after they have done the stitching.  (We do also offer needlework finishing if needed, in this case we finished the cats).

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NeedlePaint Inspiration, Needlepoint, Pillows

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