and heal their wounds…

Take one darling, darling, darling canvas by a great canvas designer Kirk & Hamilton, a cleverly written stitch guide written by Ruth Dilts and Joan Lohr using great threads along with perfectly selected stitches and fabulous finishing by Funda…and what do you get?

You get this! Can I please tell you how much I love, love…love this? Did I say love? This was a class that I took at the TNNA market in June and actually finished it. A first time maybe ever that I finished my class piece from market.

Thank you too for Funda for finishing this in time so that I can enjoy it for this holiday season. It has nestled into my decorating on the coffeee table which is front and center before me so that I can enjoy it while I stitch. Thank you Funda, you are the best!

My holiday countdown is in full force. I leave for points east all too soon. The million dollar question is…

Now I ask for just enough to make it really feel like Christmas and not when I am flying to NY or coming back here to the cats. Is that too much to hope for? My gifts are wrapped, packages mailed, cards addressed and sent out and this last week will be for stitching and stitching and more stitching. Ooh I need to wrap and mail a couple more packages yet that head out to California destinations and a few more cards.

Did I tell you that my last few nights of stitching was taken up with some reverse stitching and then and then 3 hours and 37 minutes of restitching what I had taken out! I even braved the heavy rain storms to go and buy some more thread too.

My Santa suitcase is out as I add my unwraped gifts to this. AlleyCat is thinking that this is a great spot to curl up and take a power nap. and until next time…keep on stitching

December 12th of any year is National Poinsettia Day. It celebrates the beautiful plant we’ve come to assocaite with Christmas.

A Sandra Gilmore canvas named Carol holding a poinsettia. I started this years ago in a Cook up class with Amy Bunger as we worked through needleweaving the poinsettia leaves and other wonderful ideas. Needless to say that it is still a work in progress!

A beautiful canvas by Leigh Designs of a poinsettia. In Mexico it is known as “La Flor de la Nochebuena” or flower of the Holy Night or Christmas Eve. Use of the plant to celebrate Christmas in Mexico dates back to the 17th century. As the legend is told a young girl had nothing to honor to baby Jesus in a procession. An angel tells her that any gift given with love will suffice. She gathers weeds by the roadside to place around the manger which miraculously transform into the beautiful red star flower we know as a poinsettia.

Actually the poinsettia can be traced back farther than that to the Aztecs. The flower produced a red dye and the sap was know to control fevers. Montezuma had poinsettias delivered to him to what is now known as Mexico City.

December 12th was designated as National Poinsettia day as it marked the passing of Joel Poinsett, an American botanist, physician and minister to Mexico who in 1828 sent cuttings of the plant that he discovered in Southern Mexico to his home in Charlestion South Carolina.

This beautiful Santa is by Lee Designs of Colonial Needle. This would be a wonderful stocking for that special someone in your life! December 12th also honors Paul Ecke, a southern California native who is considered the father of the poinsettia industry. It was Paul’s discovery of technque to propogate poinsettia’s that has turned it into a multi million dollar business!

A Terry Enfield poinsettia ornament that I stitched many years ago along with a Swarovski poinsettia plant. The latter was a special gift to me when I won the 1rst annual Christmas award at the ANG Exhibit which that year was in Indian Wells, California.

A beautiful tree created of poinsettias at one of our Southern California malls. If you notice the escalator behind it, you can realize the size of it all!

How about a poinsettia magent? I am stitching one of the NeedleDeeva Christmas Cupcakes and the magnet really puts me in the holday spirit!

The kids are working very hard supervising me. and until next time…keep on stitching

Finished! I should have been stitching something that I should have been stitching… but I just had to finish this up. Not that it will go off to the finishers like NOW for this years decorating, I just wanted to stitch something that I could totally loose myself in.

You know sort of like comfort food? well I liken this to comfort food stitching. A little beading, a little tent stitch and one of my favorite go to stitches. Elongated cross stitch which leaves an empty canvas thread where you can either add a bead, a French knot or another cross stitch. The latter is what I did. I love, love, love this stitch…did I say love? as it is so easy to compensate and works around the smallest hard to get into spots.

A funny thing happened on the way to finish the beading on that crown. Thank you very much Meredith! You know I am trying to bead in the new style that she taught us where you begin your beading stitch by starting in the lower right and completing it to the upper left. Well the left hand side of the crown went well and then I sort of fell into my beading zen and the right hand side of the crown needed to be restitched 3 times before I got it right. Well it all had to look the same way!

While we are still Keeping Calm, I came across this on Facebook yesterday. I think this one is just perfect especially at this time of the year! I thank Ada of Eye Candy fame for posting this. I am looking forward to being home with my family is less than 2 weeks where my sister and I will go on a cookie baking extravaganza. I can’t wait!

For the next few days I will be burying my nose in my Mac again as I finish up yet a few more stitch guides, some Christmas package wrapping, Christmas cards need to be finished up and wow am I behind on that! Of course I will get some stitching time in… somewhere and somehow! and very important trip to Verizon is in  my future as it looks my cell phone needs help. It has locked up and I can’t do a thing with it. Where is the command + option + escape function when I need it?

AlleyCat and I having a little play time yesterday! and until next time…keep on stitching

Well I do! and I must admit that I am allot calmer these days now that I work out of my home. I used to be very volatile when I was in the restaurant business, but now not so much. I would liken myself to Mt. Vesuvius…blow up, let some steam off and then I was calm again!

My sister in black cats, Meredith texted this to me a few weeks ago…or maybe longer than that? where does the time go? I was pretty thrilled with myself as I was able to figure it out how to email it to myself and save it as a JPEG for a future use on the blog. I am always learning stuff along the way in the technology highway. Some stuff I get right away and some stuff not so. Some questions never get asked as I don’t want to seem that out of it.

A dear friend encouraged me to start blogging a few year ago and I am so glad that I did! It sure has become a big part of my life and I can’t imagine what it would be like without you. I know allot of you are like me…read the blogs but don’t leave comments very often. But I know that you are there! Can you believe that it has been almost 2 years? I thank all of you who read teh blog and especially when you leave me a few words.

Thank you to Christopher who designed the original layout of the blog just sort of based on my love for black cats. He came up with the background color which I love, love., love….did I say love? The name mostlyneedlpoint I sort of just stumbled across while creating my business cards. Thank you for getting me started Christopher and for restoring things when we got hacked…and hacked more than once! Now we have moved to a different server under the capable hands of Laura.

I get to share my stitching life with you and lately many of my special Christmas decorations! Remember that I was lamenting that there were no new feline ornaments that I added to my tree for this year? well look at what I came across! The little white kitty that is purr~fectly dressed in a royal kimono as she raises her hand as the maneki neko. They are the welcoming cats of Japan and the significance of the right paw or the left paw raised differs with time and place.

She hangs her paws next to needlepoint ornaments of Santa Kitty by IGC, a cat by Amanda Lawford and a few ornaments that I have collected along the way either as a gift or something I bought.

A quilted ornament that I bought while in the Amish country this summer hangs by itself. It is next to my tree of Melissa Shirley Candy Canes.

I also get to share my stitching experiences and escapades of my feline roommates as Cindy called them earlier in the week.

Sylvester is down for the count as I go back to stitching on the NeedleDeeva cupcakes. I am trying to get as many as can to get them finished for TNNA. Market is kind of late this year, so whatever I can finish before I head to NY for Christmas will be sent off to the finishers!

and until next time…keep on stitching

Figgy pudding is as much a part of Christmas holiday traditions as turkey and dressing. Now you are thinking…what is she nuts or what? Well I am sure that you have probably sang this at least a million and one times…”Now bring us some figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer!” which was popularized by one of the chorus lines in the Christmas carol “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.” I have seen it written as “now bring us some figgy pudding” and also oh “bring us some figgy pudding.” Whatever…

Thanks to Sally from Rainbow Gallery and my emergency 911 call for more Neon Rays Plus NP22, I was able to finish my Keep Calm ornament! I am absolutely thrilled with the way it came out.

Meredith suggested the background stitch for me. At first I wasn’t going to do it as I was thinking…well this and that. yes Meredith I did question that choice of stitch. Not sure why, but I did. Please forgive me for that! I am glad that I stuck with it and worked through my second guessing of “is the right background stitch” or “is this going to work out” I love, love, love… did I say love it? I will admit that the compensating stitches around some of the letters caused me to use a few bad words…so I stitched it backwards by putting in the 2 filler stitches with the Neon Rays Plus first and then stitched the rest of it. Worked like a dream!

Researching Keep Calm on Wikipedia…

“Keep Calm and Carry On was a propaganda poster produced by the British government in 1939 during the beginning of the Second World War, intended to raise the morale of the British public in the event of a Nazi invasion of the UK. It had only limited distribution with no public display, and thus was little known. The poster was rediscovered in 2000 and has been re-issued by a number of private companies and used as the decorative theme for a range of products. It was believed there were only two known surviving examples of the poster outside government archives until a collection of 15 originals was brought in to the Antiques Roadshow in 2012 by the daughter of an ex-Royal Observer Corps member.

In 2000, a copy of the “Keep Calm and Carry On” poster was rediscovered in Barter Books, a second-hand bookshop in Alnwick, Northumberland. Since Crown Copyright expires on artistic works created by the British government after 50 years, the image is now in the public domain. The store’s owners, Stuart and Mary Manley, were thus able to reprint copies at customers’ requests, as did others, inside and outside Britain. It has inspired ranges of clothing, mugs, doormats, baby clothes and other merchandise from various vendors, as well as a book of motivational quotations.”

Lucky for us that the Keep Calm is copyright free! It has definitely developed into a life of its own as I see it on T-shirts, calendars, cocktail napkins and all sorts of combinations on needlepoint canvases. When I was shopping at the Baltimore TNNA Market back in September, I asked the designers of the Keep Calm canvases if they thought of doing ornaments? Well this is one of the first ones from the drawing board!

I started out stitching the sleigh in the new beading style that Meredith is teaching. I am used to beading in the regular basketweave style…but no more! Meredith teaches for the best drop dead results it is to stitch in the reverse tent stitch style, meaning that your first stitch starts at the bottom right and runs to the top left or from Florida to Washington. The anchoring stitch runs from California to New York, so that you are actually making a cross stitch with each bead.

Looking at my close up picture, I think that I might have beaded in the wrong direction  a few times. Well you know old habits die hard! I am better now as I have had a little more practice.

Someone was asking about this stitch…so here it is! I used 3 strands Splendor for the cashmere stitch. Neon Rays Plus NP22 for the little filler stitches.

Some more of my stitched ornaments! Including one of the ort filled ornaments made for me by Millie of the Royal Palm ANG Chapter of Miami. I have been saving orts for her, but it may be hard parting with them now. I have been working with Halloween colors lately including glow in the dark threads. Maybe I should keep those just for Halloween!

My kitty tree! I haven’t found a new addition for it yet this year, nor did I stitch any kitty ornaments. Christmas is not here yet, so I haven’t given up hope that I won’t find one.

Guess who? well that would be AlleyCat of course! and until next time…keep on stitching

It’s been a wonderfully stitchy week! What can I say? I finished stitching more than a few pieces this week, lots of finishing came back to my hot little hands and then that phone call… your framing is ready! These girls that do my framing are amazing and I never ever rush them. I know that brillance takes time and if I need to wait a month or two, so be it!

So I realized it was time for my monthly Los Angeles Saturday routine. I like doing this on Saturday as the freeway traffic can be minimal. Note I said can be, as there are no guarantees! I usually try to get on the road by 7:15-7:30 for the 2 hour plus drive and start my day out with breakfast at Julienne’s. I made it from door to door in less than 2 hours, which is wonderful time! Ran into a dear friend with her husband joined by a table full of her sisters. It was great meeting them!

Breakfast was delish as always and there are a few wonderful gift shops across the street that I just had to check out, but nothing was talking to me and my credit card thanked me.

Next stop is a A Stitch in Time…you know where the sold out and on a waiting list Fab Four class will be held next year for a little stash enhancement. A few threads for yet a NEW NeedleDeeva project that is on the drawing board and a new canvas for moi and…what was I thinking?

Of course the letters will be beaded and I will select some wonderful composite stitches with silks and Kreinik for the red and white stripes for this canvas by & more. Well this will be for next year’s sticthing!

Onto the frame shop to pick up my framing. I just love it! So I present to you Cat’s Night Out, canvas by Sharon G and framing by Andrea at New Creations Picture Framing in Pasadena, CA. It was funny as when we were designing the framing and looking through piles and piles of mat boards, I am saying well I really don’t want anything too dark…and what do I gravitate to right away? This purple suede mat that I thought was purr~fect! We both fell in love with this frame and thinking that the squares in the frame mimic the Scotch stitches in this piece.

Andrea asked for some of my Kreinik that was predominately used in the piece and she stitched it through the mat and added the brads that replicate the beaded circles. My framing in hand I was on the road.

Next stop was San Gabriel bead Company to look for some size 15 beads, delicas and Swarovski crystals. I was looking for some 0 or 00 beading thread as Meredith suggested, but they didn’t have any in white. Found some other beads and all too soon it was time to head home. A little Starbucks stop for iced tea and back on the freeway. Absoluteluy no traffic!

Got home early enough to relax abit and then stitch the night away while watching It’s A Wonderful Life. Yes it was an absolutely purr~fect stitchy day.

Can you find the black cat in this picture? and until next time…keep on stitching

I guess that I started quite a conversation of “What do I do with all these orts?” yesterday on Facebook! Actually a stitching friend commented that she never thought of that… and I believe that needlepoint is all about sharing all of these wonderful ideas.

Many stitchers had the same thoughts as they posted their comments on my Facebook page. Some thought to leave them for the birds, and others said no! Meredith just thought that the cats got into a pile of my threads.

Now I can’t take credit for making these ort ornaments. I had the wonderful opportunity of teaching for the Royal Palm Chapter of The American Needlepoint Guild in Miami earlier this year. While spending time with this amazing group of women, I found out that Millie collects everybodys orts all year long and then turns them into gifts for the members every year at Christmas.

I kindly (or was it pitifully) asked Millie if I should join their chapter so I might recieve one of these ort ornaments? Well she answered me “well I will just send you one!” My package arrived last week and I was blown away by their generousity when there was not 1, but 3 ornaments lovingly made and packaged for me. Thank you so much!

I will remember fondly my wonderful time I spent with you every time I look at these ornaments! Thank you so much. Thank you!

Can you believe that there are only 22 shopping days left before Christmas? Where has this year gone? My house is ready to welcome the holidays in, most of my shopping is done…don’t hate me please as I do have to pack and ship mostly everything so I need that earlier start. I just need to work on my Christmas Cards and wrap. I love, love, love…did I say love to wrap?

AlleyCat is ready to lend a helping paw with the wrapping! and until next time…keep on stitching