A Guide to Robin King's Stitch Guides

Besides working on stitch guides for Amy Bunger, Robin King teaches at Amy's shop and also has started branching out to do stitch guides for other designers' canvases.  You may also know that Robin works behind the scenes producing Amy Bunger's How You Do That? series on DVDs.  She also designs and maintains websites in her spare time!  Recently Robin updated the Needlepoint Study Hall blog with a list of her available commerical and custom stitch guides by designer.  This is a work in progress and isn't complete yet but it worth bookmarking and keeping an eye on.
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/p/stitch-guides-by-robin-king.html

Robin wears both her webmaster and her stitch guide writer hats for Needle Deeva.  She's created the famous Creepy Creatures monthly club for Needle Deeva that will be in the shops starting this fall and is teaching a new Creep that I call Bones that isn't part of the club at Ruth Schmuff's shop this fall.  She will also teach one of the original Creeps at the TNNA show in August to shop owners.
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2011/06/creepy-characters-group-photos.html

http://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/visitingTeachers.php

Here's a shop review of the Creepy Creatures set.
http://www.needlepoint.com/blog/?p=875

Here's the Needle Deeva website, with a listing of all the stitch guides available from folks like Robin, Debbie Bowers, Vicky DeAngelis, and Cynthia Thomas.  Remember, Robin didn't just write some of the guides--she also created this part of the Needle Deeva's website.  Talented lady!
http://www.needledeeva.com/stitch_guides.html

You can get the Kelly Clark Katt Z. Witch canvas with Robin's stitch guide included from the Amy Bunger website if your local shop doesn't have it.  I saw this canvas and Robin's guide at Waste Knot recently.  You won't believe the wonderful touches Robin adds to the canvas to make it even better than the original.  But that's what stitch guides are for.  They make for a fabulous collaboration between the canvas designer, the stitch guide writer and the stitcher!
http://www.amybunger.com/catalog/item/6292564/7740392.htm

If you are a fan of Robin's guides, keep a careful eye on Amy Bunger's website.  There's a section for custom stitch guides there that is updated periodically.  There you'll find many of the guides by Robin (and Amy, too).  They can only be purchased if you buy either the canvas or the thread kit from Amy's shop.  Details and clickable thumbnails of the custom guide canvases below.
http://www.amybunger.com/custom_stitch_guides.html

Robin's finished Debbie Mumm's Harvest Fairy.  This canvas is distributed by Melissa Shirley.  Robin will be one of the featured stitch guide writers on Melissa's website once the new stitch guide writer Hall of Fame is finished.
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2010/11/harvest-fairy-update.html

You can see the Harvest Fairy and the Zecca Bird and Worm canvases Robin created guides for finished in the December 2010 e-newsletter from Amy Bunger's shop.
http://www.amybunger.com/f/Amy_s_e-newsletter_December_2010.pdf

Melissa Shirley has added a profile of Robin to her website as well as a list of all the guides Robin has written for MSD canvases.
http://melissashirleydesigns.com/galcol/index.cgi?index=1311746466_17148&col=158

Cynthia Thomas Stitch Guides UPDATED AGAIN

Cynthia Thomas writes a great many stitch guides for Melissa Shirley designs.  Search on Melissa Shirley to read about them here in an earlier article.  There is a link about a new stitch guide series for cute old fashioned Halloween pails from EyeCandy Needleart here.
http://www.notyourgrandmothersneedlepoint.com/2010/06/trick-or-treat.html

Melissa Shirley's website has a profile for Cynthia.
http://melissashirleydesigns.com/galcol/index.cgi?index=1311779095_10303&col=158

Cynthia has stitched the seasonal tree ornament set by Rebecca Wood.  A slide show on the Rebecca Wood home page shows these off beautifully!  (I don't know if this is still available as this profile was written in 2011 and websites change.)
http://www.rebeccawooddesigns.com/

By the way, Cynthia has a blog  You can follow the adventures of The Hill Country Stitcher here but Cynthia's not maintaining the blog any more.  Still, it's a good place to see some her older models.
http://hillcountrystitcher.blogspot.com/

Her first book is out, too.  You can get a glimpse of the techniques covered in Noses, Roses and other Fun Stuff here.
http://pocketfullofstitches.blogspot.com/2013/04/destination-dallas.html

UPDATE:  Cynthia is starting to post photos of all her stitch guide models on her Facebook page.  It will take a while for her to post all her guides as she is asking the designers for permission to use their photos, but you can always message Cynthia and ask if she has a guide for the canvas you are interested in.
https://www.facebook.com/cynthia.thomas.7355

Melissa Shirley Stitch Guides

Please note this article was written in 2011.  For the latest information on guides for Melissa Shirley's designs (and those of artists she represents), check her website.

Melissa Shirley makes it easy to see if a stitch guide is available for her canvases by listing them all on her website.  There is a brand new section for guides from shops, as well as a brief bio of many of the folks who write stitch guides for Melissa Shirley Designs. (To read the bios, click on the thumbnail photos, not the name under them.)  If you have a Facebook account, Melissa often adds new guide photos to her Melissa Shirley Designs FB page before they make it to her website.
http://melissashirleydesigns.com/galcol/?col=123

Melissa Shirley also has photo albums for her stitch guides on her Melissa Shirley Designs Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=np.83209418.1277706333&type=1

Please note that there are free stitch guides for her Shimmery Snowy Angel and the Yellow Apple Purse on this page.
http://www.melissashirleydesigns.com/galcol/?col=123

Melissa Shirley herself explains how she stitched her Brown Tiger Butterfly purse (1363-A for 18 count and 1363-2A for 13 count) on my blog.  Here's the direct link.
http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com/2010/02/february-canvas-of-month-melissa.html

Melissa Shirley guides are available from the following stitch guide writers:
Amy Bunger
Carolyn Hedge Baird
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=np.88299826.1277706333&type=1
Beverly Churchfield (Aristeia)
http://www.aristeianeedlepoint.com/SGuides.html

Wendy Harwood (Aristeia)
http://www.aristeianeedlepoint.com/SGuides.html

Gina Liuzzi (A Stitch in Time)
Tony Minieri and Cynthia Thomas
Janet Perry and Holly McGuinnes
    (Napa Needlepoint and Golden Touch Crafts)
Nancy Reeves (Old World Designs)*
     *Two of Nancy Reeves' guides are on DVD, not printed out in hardcover.
Needle Orts Inc. (Debbie Bowers and Dennis Masellis)
River Silks
Ruth Schmuff
Lynne Segill (Wellesley Needlepoint)
Laurie Weldon (Chandail) - Pink Ribbon Candy
Terry Christopher (2 the Point Needlepoint)
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/fbx/?set=a.10150231516604252.362281.370199729251

Laura Taylor (Aristeia)
http://www.aristeianeedlepoint.com/SGuides.html

http://needlepointwithlaurataylor.com

Cynthia Thomas (Needle Artisan)
http://www.sandygrossman-morris.com/index_files/StitchersFinishers.htm

Many of the stitch guide writers or shops listed above have websites. I'll write separate articles about each as time permits.

Needle Orts (owned by Debbie Bowers and visited often by Dennis Masellis) is in Florida.  Here's the website.
http://www.needleorts.com/

Announcing House of Koi Stitch Guide

I have finished a custom stitch guide for House of Koi (Leigh Designs) and am posting it here for sale per the agreement with the gentleman who originally requested the guide.  He asked for something subtle and elegant, that would draw the viewer in to see more and more detail as they looked.  I hope I met his expectations!  It's a wonderful piece, especially the water and the gold trim on the building.  If you are interested in this stitch guide, email me at sgfromchnp@gmail.com.  Wholesale pricing is available for shops of course.

This is one of a series of fantasy pagodas by Leigh Designs.  I also have done a stitch guide for Temple of 1000 Cranes. You can see the entire series on the Leigh Designs website.  All are magnificent and beautiful and dream-like, aren't they?
http://www.leighdesigns.com/Grp714x.html