Christmas in January

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.

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.

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!

Mistake? What Mistake?

I was at a needlepoint store recently while a customer was turning in her project for finishing.  (Note:  the first rush of new threads for a new project and turning in that same projects are the two best parts of needlepoint, IMHO.)  The customer shared with me that her snow stitch was a mistake.  It was supposed to be all darning and ended up darning and backstitch.  If this is a mistake, I want to be wrong.  I think it's adorable.

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.

The stitched sample includes Kreinik Metallics Tapestry Braid (size 12) and Flair (on 13-mesh) for an open look on snow, allowing the beautiful canvas painting to show through.   As with many darning stitches, this would work really well for most architectural elements, such as a roof, wall, floor, or outdoor hardscape. For the sturdier elements, such as a roof, have fun with matte threads.  Rainbow Linen, Petite Very Velvet, single strand silks (e.g., Pepper Pot, Vineyard Silk), or single strand wools would all work well.  A lot of fun combinations can be made with those threads too.  :)  

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. 47 guides are currently available, including the brand new Still Life with Shells,  Decisions, Decisions, Passion Flowers and Royal Peeps.

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

Darn Snow

Virtually any darning stitch can work for snow.  I favor straight darning stitches and today's stitch is a recent favorite.  (Here is a refresher on darning stitches.)

The gaps in the row with stitches over three rows are a great opportunity to show off any shading.  Remember to always start from the far side of any row. The diagram starts on the left side.  

While neither stitched sample on Instagram is snow, they are ground covers and are great examples of how this stitch works.  The first is a dirt path on a J. Mahalay piece. The second is the sand from Melissa Shirley's Beach House.

5-3 Darning Stitch with ThreadWorx wool (on 18-mesh) for today's snow stitch on whimsicalstitch.com/whimsicalwednesdays blog post. #whimsicalwednesday #needlepoint #whimsicalstitch #stitchdiagrams #letitsnow #threadworx #home #love

52 Likes, 0 Comments - whimsicalstitch.com (@whimsicalstitch) on Instagram: "5-3 Darning Stitch with ThreadWorx wool (on 18-mesh) for today's snow stitch on..."

5-3 Darning Stitch with DMC Pearl Cotton #8 (on 13-mesh) for today's snow stitch on whimsicalstitch.com/whimsicalwednesdays blog post. #whimsicalwednesday #needlepoint #whimsicalstitch #stitchdiagrams #letitsnow #dmcthreads #home #love

32 Likes, 0 Comments - whimsicalstitch.com (@whimsicalstitch) on Instagram: "5-3 Darning Stitch with DMC Pearl Cotton #8 (on 13-mesh) for today's snow stitch on..."

This stitch diagram, along with other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board (dedicated to whimsicalstitch.com stitch diagrams).  

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.  27 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

Enjoy!

A Darning TBT

I can't count how many times I've used this stitch since the original post.  Snow, windows, ground cover.  It's fantastic.

Today's TBT features the Darning stitch.

A diagram for this stitch, along with other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on Pinterest.com.   

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

If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides for seasonal Melissa Shirley designs.  25 guides are currently available, including three new Debbie Mumm Santa guides, and more are in the pipeline.

Enjoy!