A sweet (non-caloric) gift for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is just around the corner.

You've got just enough time to whip up this almost mono-color, but sweet little Cupid for your Significant Other.

Prefer more color? Be creative, and add it, yourself!

I captured the free graphic (MC900304923) offered by Microsoft (thanks!), imported it into the marvie program StitchPainter, and turned it into a design for your personal, non-commercial stitching pleasure.

Enjoy!

Can YOU see your shadow?

I have adored Groundhog's Day ever since I saw the Bill Murray film. He's such a delight, and infused that comedy with real meaning.

In honor of the day, here's...
More...... ...a sweet little groundhog, easy to stitch, which I created for your personal non-commercial stitching pleasure by capturing the free Microsoft graphic (MC900301420), and then importing it into the marvelous StitchPainter program.

Because the original graphic was so simple (that's a hint for you, if you want to try your hand at designing your own stitching projects, especially if you're new to it), I didn't even have to tweak the results at all.

Enjoy!

Happy New Year 2013!

May the new year bring you serenity and joy.

Happy New Year 2013!

(Thank you, Microsoft, for your free clipart #MC90059275, that I uploaded into StitchPainter to create this design for stitchers' personal non-commercial enjoyment.)

Let's celebrate!

The old year, a hard one for many, is ending, and the new one--offering hope and a clean slate--is about to start.

Let's celebrate with an image that you can use throughout the year for your joyous occasions!

(Thank you, Microsoft, for the free clipart image that I uploaded into StitchPainter for stitchers' personal non-commercial stitching fun!)

A door monster from via Brera to scare away the bad spirits for 2013

Whew! That was quite a stretch of intense, but intensely satisfying, work, wasn't it?

Here's a scary door Gorgon monster from...More...... ...via Brera in Milan to frighten away the bad spirits from your Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year.

It would make a great rectangular pillow, or--if you're ambitious and ready to confront it in all its unaltered glory--a chair back, or fire screen. (As usual, if you find the design too complex, print it, use a felt-tipped pen to outline the main areas, and use only 3 or 4 hues to achieve a great effect. It's easy, and will help you realize how you, too, can do your own designs...it's so much more fun!)

I uploaded the image, which I snapped only a few days ago, into Stitchpainter. A bit of fussing with the positioning and size, and voila'!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to you all! Enjoy!

Bayeux (Non-) Tapestry

Hello! Still running with work, here, do hope to spend more time with you, soon. In the meantime, this article on the so-called Bayeux Tapestry caught my eye, and I thought it would interest you, too.

Eh?...More...... Just in case you've not heard of it, it's not even a (woven) tapestry. It's really an enormous embroidered account of the Norman (i.e., northern French) conquest of England in 1066.

Recent studies not just of the front, but more importantly of the back--where it's possible to disentangle the Gordian knot about what was done first and, to a certain extent, by whom--have convinced the examining scholars that it was done, not by nuns as previously thought, but by professionals.

The stitches are exactly the same that we still use, today.

Cool!

Want to read the article? Go here.

Bye for now!

For whomever you voted

For whomever you voted, whereever you voted and whenever you voted...

Thanks for voting.

Best and warm wishes for the next four years.

A cushion for your naps

Hello! I think about you often, and keep trying to cut a snippet of time out of my hectic schedule to whip something up for you. This morning I succeeded!...More...... Here's a pattern for a cushion based on an architectural decoration I snapped in via Coni Zugna in Milan. It shouldn't be too complicated, but if you'd like it even more simple, print it out, take your Sharpie, and trace around the three (or four) basic areas of light, medium and dark.

To create this I imported my photo directly into Stitch Painter. If you have the program, you can print at this point, but to share it with you, I transformed it into a BMP, and uploaded it for your personal non-commercial stitching pleasure.

Enjoy!

P.S., We're coming up on the T-Day and Christmas season...if you didn't needlepoint my designs last year, search through this web site to find them easily (see the labels), and try them this year!

Back-to-school bookish apple and worm

I miss working on my needlepoint, so, despite the mountains of work waiting for me even on a Sunday, I couldn't resist whipping up this back-to-school pattern for you. Thanks to the Microsoft free clip art, I found this cute apple and worm (MC900438366) to which I added the glasses for a fall touch for your personal non-commercial stitching pleasure.

Enjoy!

Contemplating a new project...

Back from the holidays, and contemplating a new project. It will be a gift.

How about you?

In the meantime, here's a question mark pattern for your personal non-commercial stitching pleasure that I created with StitchPainter out of an image I found on the Solarfeeds.com web site. Always like to give credit where credit is due!