Needle Delights Originals

I'm finishing up gift wrapping today and packing to leave tomorrow. I'll be spending Christmas week in North Carolina and hoping for a white and not too wet Christmas. There's only a small chance of snow but I remain ever hopeful! I'm packing my computer to keep up with the Mystery class registrations - the deadline is December 31st so if you want to suggest as a gift for someone, there's still time! And because I can, I'll show you another small piece of  Starstruck! Here's the link to the info in case you want to forward it to someone :) https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/46618682/SNS_Starstruck%20Mystery%20Announcement2014.pdf   While the laundry's going, I'm thinking about stitching and quilting projects to take - I'm sure I'll end up with at least 10 things. It's so much harder to decide what projects to take than what clothes to take! I'm sure you can all relate... Happy Holidays!! Kathy

 I'm so excited to officially be able to announce a new teaching piece! It is only available as an American Needlepoint Guild Correspondence Course.  Inspired by the incredible work of Jean Hilton, Spirit of Jean is the result of my admiration and respect for the great contribution she made to the needlepoint world. In using many of the stitches she created, this design is my tribute to her and I felt her spirit as I stitched it. Several colorways are available ( http://www.needlepoint.org/CorrClasses/classes/spirit-of-jean.php ). One of the great things about an ANG Correspondence Course is the ability to send your work to the instructor for a critique (it comes back to you!). You don't have to send it but it's a wonderful educational opportunity. You have to be a member of ANG to take the course - you can take it as an individual or your Chapter may elect to take it as a Group. You don't have to have a local ANG Chapter to be a member. I personally d...

Time's flying quickly and it'll be Christmas before we know it. I went to two Christmas parties Saturday and have three this weekend, then I'm done. I personally call this time of the year my "quilting season" as I spend a lot more time than usual with my sewing machine and less time stitching. I saw this great quilt at the retreat I went to last month and just had to make it for myself. I finished the top and now will quilt it myself on the machine - it's called Midnight Stars and was so fun to make. It was like instant gratification - quick and done! I must make more small quilts! Here's my Midnight Stars (can't remember the name of the designer) - it makes me happy to just look at it! I then pulled out blocks for a larger quilt I last worked on four years ago - I've sewed all the rows and now have to finish sewing the rows together. I'm committed to getting some quilt UFOs done - I have too many! I know I'm in good company! He...

I'm offering a flash sale for Cyber Monday! All patterns are 20% off. Selected kits are available at 25% off as listed below. Sale prices last until midnight (central time) Monday, December 1st. Email me at kathy at needledelights dot com to place your order and let me know if you'd like to pay by Paypal or credit card.  A limited number of each kit listed is available and sales are on a first come, first serve basis. Cyber Monday Sales Quanity Reg Price Sale Price Available Appalachia 73 54.75    3 Autumn Logs 95 71.25    1 BlackJack 95 71.25    2 Bora Bora 109 81.75    2 Brilliant Color 186 139.50    1 Burst of Stars 149 111.75    1 Calypso Squares 115 86.25    2 Cherry Cordial 61 45.75    1 Galaxy 137 102.75    2 Lavender Fie...

First, Thanksgiving cooking was a great success and hosting it at my home was really fun. That said, I have a whole new appreciation for how much work it is. I was so grateful one of my friends insisted on doing all the dishes afterwards!  I was inspired by the black borders someone used in Colorwaves and posted on Facebook. I started a new design a few weeks ago and thought I'd get to work on it but alas, when I opened my project bag, my ring of silks was not there. I worked on it in my mom's car and am hoping she will find it when she gets home - she was here in Florida and they brought my dad's car from North Carolina so there was no looking for it yesterday! I know what I'm missing so can easily keep going but I won't know for sure if I need more than one skein of any of the colors. Can you say frustrating?!  The beginning of it is above...not sure how many rows around there will be and am mulling about possible names for it - suggestions welcome! This desi...

Registration is underway for my new Mystery Project. This class is being offered through Shining Needle Society and you can get all the details at https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/46618682/SNS_Starstruck%20Mystery%20Announcement2014.pdf . I've completely finished stitching it and have such a hard time not showing it to everyone! I took it to my quilting retreat last week and proudly showed it off to my friends there - some of them may be lured over to the dark side as they expressed an interest in the class! Here's a sneak peek... I've got to get to work - Thanksgiving is at my house tomorrow! Wish me luck cooking a turkey by myself for the first time ever! My mom is here but she's now allowed to come into the kitchen until I've got the turkey in the oven! I've made several attempts in the past but she always takes over while I happily step aside! Happy Thanksgiving! Kathy

when I'm having fun and creating new designs! I've been super busy the last few months working on all kinds of secret projects. I'm almost done stitching a large Mystery design that will soon be available as an online class. This is my fifth Mystery design (you can see the others  here) and I think it's my favorite! I used colors I personally love (turquoises, purples, and limes) to stitch my original and have created additional colorways so there's something for everyone. I'm also working on a couple of new teaching pieces and I always have a new Color Delights on stretcher bars for times when I have to sit and wait somewhere. At the printer now is Ripple Rotation 2 - here's how it started...with this small design. I used an "Earthtone" palette of overdyed Vineyard Silks from ThreadworX. Although I love love the bright colors, this is a great time of year to stitch with these "warm" colors. Here's how I stitched it and wrot...

I'm almost done unpacking from my epic trip up north and still trying to catch up with all that happened in the two plus weeks I was gone. That accompanied by many breaks to pet cats who nudge me and jump in my lap constantly no matter what I'm doing, and wanting to have time to write about EVERYTHING fun on my trip has delayed the blog post I wanted to write so I decided to break it into chunks over the next few days! First, market was great fun - seems like it was ages ago! I had missed a couple of markets so it was wonderful to see old friends and catch up with my designer and shopowner friends. I was also lucky to have a non-stitching (GASP!) friend who lives close to St Charles to help me with my booth - we had a blast just hanging out together and she commented that she'd seen a whole different side of me. She lived in Pensacola when I was starting to design and as an artist, she viewed the evolution of my design work and it made for some very interesting conversati...

I'm excited to announce the creation of a new series and show you the first offering. After I finished designing and stitching Colorwaves, I was inspired to create more "waves of color" but on a smaller scale. Thus, ... ripples, which are just small waves. So I stitched this...   and then this....   and then played with them a little and came up with this design which will be released August 15th ...  Ripple Rotation 1 I also played around with cutting and pasting the different sections to see what other rotations of the same design would look like and here's what happened... You could create any of my experimental designs just by rotating fourths of the design - how fun is that?? I've created Ripple Rotation 2 - a completely different set of patterns in a completely different color scheme and have more drawings of ripples ready to play with! Watch for more in this series soon! The last pattern I'll be releasing at market in a couple...

I've been getting ready for my big summer trip - I'm heading to the midwest next month. First I'll be attending the TNNA Needlework tradeshow in St Charles, Missouri and then am heading to Chicago for the ANG National Seminar. I'm taking a class with Orna Willis and looking forward to being with someone who has great color sense! I'll also be participating at Expo Night. I'm looking for a couple of people who have experience in such events who would be willing to help me - contact me privately if you are interested.  Before I go to Seminar, I'll be teaching August 22-23 at Tomorrow's Heirlooms. You can get more details on their Facebook page here . I'm really having fun working on the piece and wish I could show you part of it but alas, it's a Mystery! I haven't done a Mystery class for the last two years and I'm happy to be designing another - I look forward to being able to share it and eventually publish it. I will be releasing six...

The last two thread orders arrived today for my Sudoku class. I'll be making kits the rest of the week! I'm hoping to get it all in the mail by next Monday. There will a few kits left over if you missed registration and are still interested in the class. Just send me an email kathy at needledelights.com I had the best time at the EGA Region Seminar in Baton Rouge last week! Our class and students were great and got a lot of stitching done. It's always so much fun to see how all the different colorways look. It was also a pleasure to hang out with a few other teachers, get to know them a little better and laugh until our sides hurt! The tour to the Rosedown and Oakley plantations was interesting and informative. It's amazing that their "luxuries" are so primitive compared to what we take for granted today.  I'm off to play with thread - wish I was stitching instead of putting it into bags! Until next time. Kathy

Today is the deadline for registering for my Sudoku Delight class. If you don't know about it, read my previous post for more details and a photo of the stitched design. Registration numbers have been phenomenal - a lot of people like Sudoku! With the release of Colorwaves making a big splash, taking class registrations, and starting some new designs, I've been busy!  I've also been preparing to leave next week for the South Central Region Seminar in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I'm teaching with my mother, which is always a fun time! Come say hello at Merchandise Night if you're in the area - you can visit the Seminar and see the exhibit and shop at the Boutique, bookstore, and Merchandise Night even if you're not attending Seminar or even a member of EGA. You can get more info and the seminar schedule at here . I'm looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new people. Since I work from home, mostly alone, I always relish the opportunity to be among pe...

It's official - registration is open for my Sudoku Delight class. It's going to be fun! See more info and how to register at https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/46618682/SudokuDelight-2014.pdf I had a great time selecting alternate colorways for this design. Most of them are based on Rainbow Gallery's Bravo which I've not used a lot. Some of the colors I'd never seen before in person prior to getting these to select from and you know how my heart speeds up at the sight of new Watercolours (my normal overdye)! Getting these cards of "new" Bravo was pretty exciting for me and the bonus of selecting these alternate colorways is that I now have some great palettes for future designs. I'm certain I'll be choosing one to use for my next design - it's hard to decide which one to use first (there are several I LOVE!) so I can understand why people are having a hard time deciding which to select for class. Of course, like people already have, you ...

After 26.81 inches of rainfall in 36 hours earlier this week, we're drying out and enjoying a sunny weekend in Pensacola. Although there is a lot of damage around the county from the flooding, I am fortunate to not have suffered any damage to my house or neighborhood. I did have a shallow lake in my backyard which is now gone. There is a lot of damage to many roads (45 closed) and I've not been able to go anywhere the last few days without having to take detours. That'll probably be true for many months to come. Not being able to leave the house for a few days gave me some extra stitching time this week (luckily my power was only out in the middle of the night during the worst of the rainfall). I finished up this fun project I'm calling Soduko Delight. It'll be offered as a class through Shining Needle. Next up is picking out alternate colorways - one of my favorite things to do! Membership in the Shining Needle Society is free and you can join anytime. Le...

I'm happy to announce I've finished my big Summer Release - Colorwaves! I put the last stitch in a couple of days ago! I still have to finish writing instructions before it goes to print but the official Release Date is May 21st. This is one of the most fun pieces I've designed and I'm actually kind of missing stitching on it! I used a lot of textures (21 cards of Rainbow Gallery plus some Watercolours, and a few other threads; mucho variety!).  Pre-orders  are now being accepted - this helps me know quantities to order and if you want one of the first shipments, order asap.  Shops may send me an email through the website to place pre-orders or request a supply list.  Kathy

Congratulations to Maxine C. who won a ribbon at Woodlawn with Duality - she took this as a class from me and Jeanette Rees (my mom!) at a Retreat we hosted a couple of years ago. We're actually teaching this in June at the South Central EGA Region Seminar in Baton Rouge.

I woke up feeling cold this morning. What wacky weather everyone seems to be having. I couldn't believe I pulled a long sleeve shirt over my head this morning and still have it on this afternoon. I thought summer was imminent but I guess we have a few more days of cool weather.  I'm plugging away at stitching the borders on Colorwaves - I finally settled on cross stitches with white stranded floss. I don't know what I was thinking when I thought I'd get these done in an evening or two - I've done multiple stitching sessions and am only halfway through. Now my goal is to be done by the end of the month as I'm working on a few other things in between to break up the monotony of the rows of white. Borders aren't my favorite thing to stitch!  Our local quilt guild had its bi-annual show this past weekend. As a member of the committee, I'm happy to have the event be finished. I thoroughly enjoyed the show and spending time with a few special friends. ...