Greet Your Day with Color!

March 4, 2020 whimsicalstitch

There is nothing quite like waking up to a blog post with two fun and bright colors. Oh, and a brand new stitch.

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 is a curtain from my new Stitch Concept for Whimsy Stork (from Colors of Praise). It uses two plies of Needlepoint Inc. Silk (black lines) and Petite Silk Lame (turquoise lines).

I selected this stitch for a curtain due to its overt diagonal direction for a curtain. It will make a wonderful body of water with a lightweight Sparkle Braid (black lines) and an overdyed Kreinik Metallic (turquoise lines). I’m looking forward to seeing it as a large tree trunk with Rainbow Linen and Gloriana’s Lorikeet. You may want to consider adding another row or two in between the diagonal trios for a more open look.

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 has a book for you! Mary’s Whimsical Stitches is a contemporary how-to collection of more than 250 stitches for stitchers regardless of skill level. The book includes updated and sequenced diagrams from this blog, all-new stitches, and a chapter on the basics of needlepoint. For more information, visit here.

whimsicalstitch.com also sells Stitch Guides and Stitch Concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, Sandra Gilmore, Purple Palm, Maggie, and Penny MacLeod, and many more. 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! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

A Note about Diagrams
I use color in diagrams to make them as clear as possible. The primary function of different colored lines is to illustrate a stitch sequence. For example, layering of colors demonstrates you add them in that order. They can also provide ideas on how to integrate additional threads (one line for each color). Or, you can use the same thread for all color lines. That's where I encourage you to use your imagination for the space you are stitching!

Is it Spring Yet?

February 19, 2020 whimsicalstitch

It’s pink! It’s a flower! It must be Spring!

Thank you to my friends at Aristeia Needlepoint for today’s stitch inspiration and stitched sample. It’s from a glorious Melissa Shirley needlepoint purse that Wendy Harwood stitched. It uses Crystal Braid and a size 6 bead on 13-mesh. The oversized bead and the openness of the stitch make this area stand out.

This stitch clearly draws attention to an area, regardless of bead size. With a smaller bead and Petite Silk Lame, I think this stitch would make a fascinating cloud or water, say on a Purple Palm beach project. I’m looking forward to using this on a dress with Soie Cristale and a seed bead. Also consider using a Hex or cube bead for something truly different.

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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

A Note about Diagrams
I use color in diagrams to make them as clear as possible. The primary function of different colored lines is to illustrate a stitch sequence. For example, the layering of colors demonstrates you add them in that order. They can also provide ideas on how to integrate additional threads (one line for each color). Or, you can use the same thread for all color lines. That's where I encourage you to use your imagination for the space you are stitching!

Seek and Ye Shall Find

February 12, 2020 whimsicalstitch

Today’s stitch comes from my stash of unfinished needlepoint. I love this stitch and I love this piece and…I have no clue if and when I’m going to finish it. While that’s not a perfect trifecta, I am thrilled I have this stitch to share with you.

The stitch is vertical columns of diamonds with DMC Perle Cotton #8 (black lines) and Flair (gray lines) covered with size 8 Kreinik Metallic (yellow lines) on 18-mesh. I used it for a background on a grid of a variety of fruit. I love integrating splashes of color into solid colored backgrounds. It is such an easy way to tie an entire piece together.

This stitch will make great clothing. Imagine it as a cute skirt with Soie D’Alger (black lines) and Entice (gray lines) covered with Flair (yellow lines). Alternatively, use it for pants with a Petite Very Velvet (black lines) and Fyre Werks (gray lines) covered with Silk Lame (yellow lines). It would also be perfect for a tall narrow vase with Petite Silk Lame (black lines) and Elegance (gray lines) covered with a lightweight Kreinik Metallic (yellow lines).

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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

Right in Front of Me the Entire Time

February 5, 2020 whimsicalstitch

Today’s stitch is from FOWS (friend of whimsicalstitch.com) Ruth Schmuff. When I first saw this stitch, it was a literal head slap moment (aka a swear word). I have to confess to the swear word because there was a witness. Possibly witnesses…I’ll never say.

The straight lines are a darning stitch. A darning stitch is stitched as a running stitch resulting in smooth edges between stitches (instead of crisp wrapped edges). A stitched sample of a generic darning stitch is here.

The stitched sample for today’s uses Petite Silk Lame (black lines) and one ply of Needlepoint Inc Silk (aqua lines). Since the Needlepoint Inc Silk is such a light touch, I zoomed in on today’s stitched sample to help illustrate this. For a photo with more context, visit here. (And, for the full kit, visit here.)

My head slap moment was the Cross Stitch covering the darning stitch. It’s such a cute touch on top of an already interesting stitch. By using a lightweight thread, the darning stitch is still obvious to me. Truth be told, you could stitch the pairs of straight stitches as traditional wrapped pairs. But I do love how the smooth edges of the darning pairs flow into the Oblique Cross Stitches.

It is highly likely* upcoming Stitch Concepts will include this stitch on floors or roofs (with Elegance for the black lines and Petite Silk Lame for the aqua lines). Vineyard Silk (black lines) coupled with Fyre Werks (aqua lines) will make great clothing. As I stare at the stitched sample, I want to play with this for water with Petite Silk Lame and Bijoux.

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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

* Highly likely? Hah! Try a certainty.

Let's Fly!

January 29, 2020 whimsicalstitch

Today’s stitch is just what we all need to get through the winter doldrums, whether they be snow, rain, wind, or just plain cold. It’s bright green and it includes beads! Works for me!

Today’s stitch just might be a student’s work in progress from Walking in the Rain, the latest addition to my Stitch Guide Library. The stitched sample uses Rachelette (black lines), Gloriana Silk Floss (aqua lines), and Sundance Beads (yellow circle with black lines).

I would love to see this as a fruit tree with an overdyed wool (black lines), solid silk floss (aqua lines), and a bead the color of the fruit on said tree. I might play with it very soon for a small-ish body of choppy water with lightweight metallics, such as Petite Silk Lame, Bijoux, and an appropriately colored bead. I think this would be an adorable tiled roof by eliminating the bead and moving the stitches up one row (so the top center of a repeated element shares a hold with the bottom center of the repeated element immediately above). For the tile, I would use two related shades of silk floss or silk floss (black lines) with a Petite Silk Lame (aqua lines).

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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

A Note about Diagrams
I use color in diagrams to make them as clear as possible. The primary function of different colored lines is to illustrate a stitch sequence. For example, the layering of colors demonstrates you add them in that order. They can also provide ideas on how to integrate additional threads (one line for each color). Or, you can use the same thread for all color lines. That's where I encourage you to use your imagination for the space you are stitching!

It's a Three-Fer!

January 22, 2020 whimsicalstitch

I had a lot of fun with a recent Stitch Concept (that will be posted on the web site very soon) because I was bound and determined to find unique things to do in the too many to count bands and borders (wide and not always very tall) that wasn’t a Satin Stitch. I think I did better than all right.

Starting clockwise from upper left, we have a border six rows tall (Large Diamond Composite), seven rows tall (Split Offset Stripes), and three rows tall (Herringbone over 3), and the ubiquitous stitched samples. The stitched samples are (from the top) over six, seven, and three rows (at the bottom). The over six sample uses Petite Silk Lame (black lines) and Needlepoint Inc Silk Floss (aqua liens). The center stitched sample uses two shades of Petite Sparkle Rays. The bottom stitched sample uses Neon Rays. (All are from the same project on 18-mesh).

All of these stitches are scaleable, though the diamond stitch will work best on borders with an even-numbered height. The student was really happy with the Neon Rays for the Herringbone because it was so smooth and filled the area well. My personal favorite was the offset stripes. It mimicked the canvas painting (always a win) but what I really liked about it was the contrasting colors. I would do this again the minute an opportunity presents itself.

These stitch diagrams, 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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

Cold Weather Requires Full Coverage

January 15, 2020 whimsicalstitch

It’s a bleak 30-45 seconds between waking up and getting the heat turned on these days, even here in So. Cal. So I think I need to extend my streak of full coverage stitches so I can get warm over here.

This is an oldie but goodie and from long before #whimsicalwednesday was a twinkle in my eye. This is so from so long ago, hashtags were still pound signs. And for those of you with a keen eye, Santa is NOT flying. He is part of a tree skirt from our friend Melissa Shirley. Since I stitched the background in same stitch in every panel, some of the Santas look wonky if you don’t look at them as part of the whole skirt. (And I would do it that way all over again.)

The stitched sample uses Very Velvet (black lines), Frosty Rays (yellow lines), size 8 Kreinik Metallic (gray lines), and size 16 Kreinik Metallic (turquoise lines) on 13-mesh. Clearly, it’s a great stitch for clothing. You can lighten it up with silk floss (black lines), Flair (yellow lines), Petite Silk Lame (gray lines), and a Kreinik Metallic (turquoise lines) for trees or a roof. I love the diagonal stitch across the top of the smaller Scotch squares. I think that is a really elegant touch. The stitch sequence is black lines followed by yellow lines. Cover the yellow lines with the gray line and cover the gray lines with the turquoise lines. Someday I would like to see a bead for the turquoise lines. I think that would be a darling doll dress.

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, Sandra Gilmore, Purple Palm, Maggie, and Penny MacLeod, and many more. 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! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

More Full Coverage Proof

January 8, 2020 whimsicalstitch

Today’s stitch was a fun challenge for me. It’s so easy to say fun in hindsight! (And, yes! I do have full coverage stitches in my repertoire…two weeks in a row!)

Truth be told, I was a little panicked. I was creating a guide for the first Emma Williams canvas, such a pretty piece with beautiful colors and shading. The pink and brown roof was beautifully painted but my go-to of an open stitch was out of the cards (for lots of reasons). So, I knew two things. I wanted a full coverage stitch that included soft shapes (no squares or rectangles) and the respective amount of pink and brown (as painted). I started playing with beetle shapes (examples are here and here) but wanted something a tiny bit smaller and a tiny bit different. Enter the addition of the Upright Cross between the brown “crowns.” Voila!

The stitched sample uses ThreadWorx overdyed cotton floss (black lines), Splendor (turquoise lines), and Flair (gray lines) on 13-mesh. It’s a great stitch for clothing with Soie D’Alger (black lines), Flair (turquoise lines), and a Kreinik Metallic (gray lines). I would love to see it as a tree with the threads from the sample in a slightly different pattern. Use the solid floss for the black lines, the overdyed floss for the turquoise lines, and keep the Flair. A fun variation would be to replace the Upright Cross with a single bead over two rows.

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.

IIf 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, Sandra Gilmore, Purple Palm, Maggie, and Penny MacLeod, and many more. 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! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

Thanks, Hank!

January 1, 2020 whimsicalstitch

And a very happy new year and new decade to us! I hope you had (or are still having) a wonderful holiday break. Let’s ease into the new year with a little pink.

There is a very good reason why the ornament in the photo is in my hand and not on my Christmas tree. Her name is Hank and she is an adorable demon. Her holiday adventures begin here (be sure to swipe to see the video) and include repeatedly climbing up the center of the Christmas tree (prompting its removal after six days), sneaking out the front door and exploring for over an hour before I realized she was outside (she’s an indoor cat), and breaking a brand new toy from her Aunt Gina within a couple hours of non-stop play. Did I mention she is an adorable demon?

But you’re here for the stitch. Oops…sorry about that. Today’s stitch reminds me of the Crown Stitch, a favorite stitch of mine, that I don’t use as often as I would like because of its sheer size. So this is a perfect solution! The stitched sample is a vintage Melissa Shirley ornament and uses four plies pink Splendor (black lines) and Crystal Braid (yellow lines) on 18-mesh.

It’s a great all-purpose stitch that works well for backgrounds (as illustrated), clothing, water, sky, or outdoor spaces. Instead of a contrasting element within a horizontal row (as illustrated), consider making each row a single color. Use two colors and/or thread finishes in alternating rows for interesting clothing. Thread ideas include Vineyard Silk and an overdyed wool for pants. Consider leaving an empty row in between columns for water with a lightweight metallic such as ThreadWorx Metallics or Kreinik Metallics.

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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

Cattywampus

December 18, 2019 whimsicalstitch

Today’s stitch pops up in my Pinterest feed on a fairly regular basis. The offset pattern in the repeated element (over 2-3-4-3-2 rows) is definitely outside my traditional comfort zone, which is most likely why I put off sharing it with you, but I’m pleasantly surprised at how much I’m loving the wide repeated element. And the cattywampus Smyrna Cross in the center will definitely be making a repeat visit in a future stitch.

The stitched sample is me playing with Elegance (gray lines), red Petite Silk Lame (black lines), and blue Petite Silk Lame (turquoise lines). I love the color possibilities of this stitch, which is why I stitched the sample the way I did. I hope it gives you a great jumping-off point for ideas for your own work.

In my mind, the most obvious use for this is clothing. You can make it rugged with a matte group of heavier threads such as Petite Very Velvet (gray lines), an overdyed wool (black lines), and Pepper Pot Silk (turquoise lines). For a dress or shirt, I would use 3-4 plies of Soie D'Alger (gray lines), a size 8 Kreinik Metallic (black lines), and Flair (turquoise lines). What I really want to use this on is a snowman with Flair (gray lines), a size 8 Kreinik Metallic (black lines) and Fyre Werks (turquoise lines) to pull it all together.

If you need more or aren’t a fan of a ton of open space, consider adding an Upright Cross or some beads in the center of the open space.

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.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

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