Dot Dot Dot

Yes, the title is dot, dot, dot.  As in Dotted Swiss.

As you know, I am a huge advocate of Plain Needlepoint in every piece.  It provides balance and a place for the eye to rest.  The stitched sample for this stitch is a perfect example of this philosophy.  It's Melissa Shirley's Vintage Pears with a stitch guide by Beverly Churchfield.  The pears are gorgeous.  If you want to do an exquisite version of that canvas, I strongly encourage you to get Bev's stitch guide.

The background is a Dotted Swiss variation to allow the pears to shine as they are truly extraordinary.  That said, I did add a little sparkle to the background as well.

I used DMC Floss and Crystal Braid with similar color values.  And I love 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 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!

#swisssunday

Today's #smallspacesunday stitch is a quiet and easy stitch.  It utilizes the easiest and smallest stitch of all, Plain Needlepoint.  You can also use a Cross Stitch to add effect.  (I discussed the Cross Stitch a couple weeks ago.)

Dotted Swiss is really lovely and classy.  I've used versions of it for backgrounds, small spaces, and clothing.  It brings a tiny little pop to a traditional stitch. The diagram below includes a Cross Stitch variant.

Needless to say, the pop is defined by the color contrast between the two threads.  There are two stitched samples for this stitch on whimsicalstitch.com's Instagram account.  The first is a sail on a sailboat where I used a blue metallic as the base thread and a white floss as the accent.  The second example is a tone on tone background, using all Plain Needlepoint (and a slightly different Dotted Swiss pattern).  Another idea is to use a lightweight matte thread like Elegance or Pearl #8 with a Very Velvet as the cross stitch accent.  That would add a surprising pop of texture.

The fact that this stitch can be used for a background or the smallest of items on a canvas demonstrates its uniqueness.

This stitch diagram, along with other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on www.pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday.  

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

Enjoy!