Swimming with the fishes, part III

The evening newscaster just proclaimed "Today is the beginning of the Romney/Obama political campaign."  And here I thought the talking heads started that 7 months ago!  One of my Canadian customers said Monday that she didn't want to appear rude, but it did seem to be dragging on quite a bit.  All I think about is the money that is being spent on campaign ads that could be spent on feeding the poor or installing new programs in schools.  Of course, if the wife of just one of the candidates had been photographed doing needlepoint, I might be more tolerant!  

As evidence that the season is speeding past, Needle Nicely had its yearly employees luncheon at the Ocean Grill again today.  Poor Adele, who lives an hour South, got lost on her way from the shop and got to tour the greater suburban Vero Beach area.  As I was walking into the restaurant, I thought about pictures.  Then my cellphone rang and I had to try to lead Adele back in the right direction.  Our waitress was not amused!  We all had a wonderfully chatty time, though, and the food was delicious.

I managed quite a bit of stitching this week because of the Masters'.  I was so interested in Bubba's shots and performance that I could hardly take a stitch. 

I almost finished "greenie" during all that golf viewing.  I'm still looking at the seaweed.  I think I have the stitch I'll use, but I'm putting it off until after I finish the fish.  I rarely do the continental stitch and I've been surprised at how slowly it stitches on the fins. 

I guesstimate that I'm about 50% done.  I'm impatient to finish because I have already selected my next 3 projects! 

Go Milton, Fl, golfers

Sunday was a really marvelous Easter  I don't want to offend anyone, but my husband (a former alter boy) and myself spent the afternoon glued to the television watching the Masters'.  Bubba was my first choice and Rory was my 2nd.  I've been trying to remember how many years ago I found out about Boo, Bubba, and Heath.  They are 3 golfers from Milton, Fl, in the back of beyond in the Panhandle of Florida.  Boo was my favorite and he won several tournaments and was on the Ryder Cup several years ago.  Heath won one of the Fed Ex cup end of the year tournaments and did quite well 2 years ago.  And now Bubba has won the Masters'.  What are the statistical odds that 3 young men on a high school golf team in the back of beyond
 would eventually make the PGA tour and also win tournaments? 

The really wonderful thing was I had 3 people come in yesterday to talk with me about my favorite golfer, Bubba, and how wonderful it was that he had won the Masters'.  They thought I was a little weird, a needlepoint shop owner raving about 3 young golfers, but they thought I was brilliant yesterday after Bubba won a major.

If the shoe fits...session 2

Well, I learned something this week.  The new L metallics from Kreinik are called Holographic.  And they do have that iridescence that goes with holograms, so the name seems apt.  I'm sure Kreinik will be thrilled I approve of their product name.

I didn't accomplish much shop stitching this week, primarily because many people came in for last minute help before heading North.  I marked missed stitches for a Christmas stocking and canvas for a Pischke Pocket.  Missed stitches produce a mixed reaction--gratitude that I'm taking the time to do it, but irritation that I find so many.  It is a pain to go back and fill in an odd stitch here and an odd stitch there.  Then I twisted the yarn cording that I'll use next week when I make the pocket and attach it to the Pischke tote.  Someone ought to do a survey on how many needlepointers don't like to sew to finish their projects.  In my experience, it's quite a large number.  

I'm making myself stitch the background before I do the confetti on this canvas.  That way I don't have to be careful about ending the thread for each piece, but can run from piece to piece of the same color, just catching the back of my work so the loose threads don't pucker or get in my way.  I have the metallic threads in use run to the border on the right so they're out of the way, on the front of the canvas (on the back, they act like children who get into trouble when you can't keep your eye on them!).  The stitches I'm using for the confetti are Smyrna crosses and  modified raised Maltese Crosses. 

Swimming with the fishes, Part II

I'm trying to think what went on this week that caused me to get so little stitching accomplished on this project.  Although I try to remind myself that "pinkie" fish is larger than the first fish I stitched.  Size does matter when it comes to amount of stitching time needed.  Part of it was spending more time surfing blogs for reports on the Dallas needlework market that was this past weekend.  I'm always surprised at how much time has passed while I click and read and browse websites. 

And to keep you up-dated on the trials and tribulations of small business ownership.  I bought Needle Nicely from Trubey 14 years ago in 1998.  I didn't buy her corporation but set up my own.  That is back information.  The first week of March my local bank was taken over by  PNC bank, making them the 3rd bank I have dealt with as the owner of "dba" Needle Nicely.  I had to tell my credit card processor my new bank account number so things would be recorded correctly.  They were doing daily deposits of credit card transactions in my bank account--but had the wrong corporation on their processing account.  In the past month I have filled out three different sets of "official" papers, talked to 4 unhelpful and 2 helpful people at Firstdata, and had a gentleman call and come by for an "inspection", primarily to take photographs of Needle Nicely's physical plant to verify that it is indeed a brick-and-mortar business.  These are the same people who, at the flick of a button, can ascertain exactly how much money Needle Nicely has handled in credit card transactions for every day of the past 14 years.  And no, they haven't asked me to fill out a questionnaire concerning my opinion of the transition.  I'm grateful that the problem has been resolved and I can now, once again, accept debit as well as credit cards.  But they have me forever (or until they are bought out), because I'm not going to willingly endure that process with another company!

If the shoe fits...

I'm not usually a fan of Halloween canvases, but this one appeals to me.  Perhaps it's because of the shoe collection residing in my closet.  This canvas is by Treglown Designs on 13mesh canvas and is stitch-painted so it's a dream to stitch.  As is my wont, I started in the upper right doing the basketweave using slime green silk 'n ivory.  I plan to keep working from the top right, but also plan in the next week to jump down to the bottom right-hand section so I can do background and then get started on the "dots" or bubbles. 

But I had to reward myself by stitching the first shoe.  It was such fun to do the alternating Scotch stitch using silk lame braid 18.  Even though it's intended for 18mesh, it covers well on 13.  Then using the new L metallics from Kreinik, I stitched the stars.  If you look closely, you can see where I added a French knot to the center of the star to fill the blank area.  I looked on the Kreinik website but couldn't find what they call the L series of metallics.  I think of them as lacquer because they are so shiny.  I don't like the black one, though.  It has a greenish tint rather than a black shine.  Kreinik has also added some new golds--here I'm using 3270 which has a red tinge.  I also especially like the 3280 which is more irridescent. 

Swimming with the fishes

First, I want to show a few of the Strictly Christmas stockings I received today.  

These angels are, well, angelic-looking and offer lots of opportunities to use different stitches with different fibers.  

This is a great "adult" stocking,  Not everyone wants Santa on the mantle.  However, for those who do, I have these two examples.

As usual, blogger refuses to put them side-by-side, but you get the idea.  Karen really does a superb job on conveying the spirit of Christmas in her designs.

My new stitching project is another great idea that didn't succeed commercially.  Trubey designed these fish for a 2-sided tote on 13-mesh canvas.  The cost of finishing purses is a huge factor in the success or failure of canvases expressly designed as purses.  However, my fish will look just as good as a pillow, says Mary Agnes optimistically.

This is the canvas as painted and below, you can see the progress I have made this week.  I'm stitching the canvas in a combination of silk 'n ivory and DMC perle cotton.  The background is done in the Giant diagonal mosaic.  The fish are all going to be done in the same stitches, with continental for the fins, basketweave for the "faces" and satin stitch for the scales.  I'm still pondering what stitch I will use for the seaweed.  Maybe I'll have decided by next Wednesday.

Poinciana tree, phase 3

Before I show you the updates on my poinciana tree canvas, I want to show photographs of some late arriving Christmas stocking canvases.  The first two photographs are designs by Ziggy of Walker St Designs.

There are so many stitch possibilities for this combination of geometric shapes.  Add some metallics and it could turn from simple to quite sophisticated, and fun to stitch.

This stocking comes with stitch and fiber suggestions.

I'm trying to figure out the new blogger.  It certainly makes it difficult to arrange photographs and descriptions

in a reasonably artistic way.  I think that last jog to the left doesn't add anything.  Hmm.  I feel like I'm playing a game of keep the blog writer guessing!

This is a canvas from Alice Peterson.  It's hard to find something for an a more mature recipient (I originally said older, but a friend was just told by her doctor that some things just happen when "you're older".  She was not amused.)  And I hit the computer's internal mouse and managed to scramble my description and eliminate my photograph.  So I'll insert it again.

Another canvas from Alice Peterson is this beauty:

And for those golfing aficianados, this colorful entry from, I think, Associated Talents.  I need to check on that because the designer code said Melissa Shirley.  Since I'm the date entry operator, how could I have made a mistake?  And may those who are thinking of opening a shop, please note that among my many duties are:  data entry operator, mail clerk, complaint department (both in and out), and more I'll list in another post.

And now to show the photograph that will answer Anne's question of several blog entries ago concerning the poinciana tree trunk. I stitched it in the chain stitch using watercolors from Caron.  I like to do the chain stitch after all of the surrounding stitches so it can lay over the other stitches.  That way no canvas peeks through.

You can see by looking at this photograph that I haven't done the branches up in the tree canopy.  I'm waiting to fit them in around the completed French knots.  In the next photograph, you can see where I am inserting some red-orange French knots.  I had originally selected red-orange as one of the original colors for the blossoms and then I didn't notice it when I started stitching.  So I have started squeezing it in between already completed French knots.

And I wanted to show a closeup of the satin stitch used in the green plant on the right side.  I need to remember to ask Trubey what its name is--it reminds me of a larger version of a succulent plant that is a houseplant, but I can't remember the name. 

Everyday I try to stitch 15 or 20 minutes--French knots often seem unending.  I goofed with this canvas since I'm usually much better about stitching a slow feature a little along while I'm doing other features, but before I finish everything else.  Sigh!  I will show the finished product, someday soon, I hope.