Frozen Spheres (Frank Lloyd Wright and Nancy Yeldell)

James has finished Frozen Spheres, from Frank Lloyd Wright, using Nancy Yeldell's stitch guide.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/NeedlepointNation/permalink/3476435389100261/

I think the chart for Frozen Spheres is distributed by Heartland House.  Contact Nancy via Old Town Needlework.

Kimberly Stitch Guides: A Review

"My Castle, My Dragon"

I've long admired Kimberly Smith's wonderful charts, so when she started creating painted canvases for Ruth Schmuff, I was thrilled!  Then when Kimberly started creating stitch guides for some of her creations, it was the icing on the cake.  (And I LOVE cake)

If you aren't familiar with Kimberly's work, check out her painted canvases here.
http://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/Products/?category=260

Some of her charts are still available here, but keep an eye out on eBay for others.
http://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/Products/?category=13

Now that I've whetted your appetite, Kimberly kindly sent me the PDF version of the stitch guide for her "My Castle, My Dragon" for review.  This is going to be a class taught by Kimberly herself at The Black Sheep in Orlando, Florida in June, by the way.
http://www.theblacksheepshop.com/module/class.htm?classId=135845

Since some of Kimberly's designs include a stitch guide (to date Emma's Pillow, Flying Jewels, A Portion of My Garden, Dream Fragment, Austintatious Peacock, and her Bisconu series all have guides included in the purchase price) I thought you'd like to know what her guide for a fairly large and complex piece is like.  (If one of Kimberly's canvases with a stitch guide catches your eye, check out her blog to see the finished model.)
http://akimberlydesign.blogspot.com

The painted canvas of Dragon itself is a foot long and seven inches high on eighteen count canvas.
http://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/Dragon/

The Dragon stitch guide is twelve pages long plus the cover page with a good photo of the finished piece, a materials list, and a "treasure map" which shows the whole canvas with various sections numbered so you know that Area A is the dragon's snout and Area 17 is the middle tower of the castle.

As you can see from the photo above, this is a pretty elaborate piece.  The stitch diagrams show you exactly how to attach the crystal sequins for the castle's garden, how to work each unusual stitch (there are 44 diagrams included and 22 closeup photos not including the map and cover page photo), and tells you the best order to work the various sections.  This is not a beginner's canvas but a really determined beginner could probably work the design with help and determination. The instructions are that good!

The guide itself has the materials list on the second page.  Shops like to have the materials list at the end so they can put guides in plastic bags and the list can face out on the back for shoppers to refer to without getting the pages dirty taking them out of the bag. That isn't the case here.  (NOTE:  Kimberly says the materials list is on the back side facing out in the real life version.  The PDF file has moved it around!)  The only other minor quibble I have with the materials list is that the thread company name isn't set off in any way from the list of thread colors so I found it hard to know if "Kreinik" belonged to the thread numbers above or below it.  Enlarging the PDF file really helped here.

Being able to enlarge the PDF file helped me with the diagrams, too.  They are in various colors, so if you are color blind, you might have trouble with some of the diagrams.  The more elaborate stitches are numbered but the diagrams for common stitches are not.   In some cases a closeup photo has lines drawn on it to help you stitch that area, which is a very nice touch!  The guide itself really reflects Kimberly's personality (she tells you that the dragon is called Hurrumph, for example) without being too chatty.    The instructions are minimal but there are a lot of photos to help, so that although the guide, for example, doesn't tell you which shade of yellow to use for what step for the sun, the photo makes it perfectly clear which goes where.  All in all, this is a great guide for a great design.  It has everything you need clearly explained so you can stitch a fairly complex piece along with Kimberly.

A New Voice from Owl Stitchery UPDATED AGAIN

Mary's Christmas Tree

There's a new stitch guide writer in town--Mary Waldesmith of Owl Stitchery. Newly retired, Mary has started a website and blog featuring her guides.  Visit her website to contact Mary about writing a guide for your canvas.
http://owlstitchery.com

Visit Mary's blog to see the guides she's done. The featured canvas is the new Holiday House from Needle Deeva that I posted about yesterday under the TNNA news tab, but Mary's also stitched the Fall Hearts series from Needle Deeva.  Use the tabs at the top of the page for the eye candy.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com

By the way, Mary also teaches Zentangle. Her abstract silver and gold Christmas tree design (pictured above) will be available to EGA members soon.  Keep your fingers crossed that ANG also uses this as a chapter project!
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/02/ega-petite-project-my-tree-is-now-ega.html

UPDATE:  Mary is creating a guide for Needle Deeva's Holiday House stocking.  Just in case you want more Holiday House than just the smaller piece she's guided.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/01/needledeeva-christmas-stocking-with.html

UPDATE #2:  Mary's added photos of models she's stitched and created stitch guides for to her blog.  Click on either Owls or Stitched Canvases to see them all.
http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/01/stitched-canvases-owls-and-others.html

UPDATE #3:  Needle Deeva's distributor posted photos of the hearts Mary stitched for them.  They are just back from the finisher.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10102999569131378&set=gm.804778166266010&type=1&theater

http://owlstitchery.blogspot.com/2015/02/needledeeva-fall-hearts-finished.html

UPDATE #4:  Mary's Needle Deeva Holiday House is back from the finisher.  It makes a wonderful pillow!
http://pocketfullofstitches.blogspot.com/2015/02/finishing.html

Artist at Work (with Dragonflies) UPDATED

Kimberly is working on her newest painted canvas which is called "Flying Jewels" and will have a beautiful intricate border and a string art dragonfly in the corner.  The second link shows the full canvas she's stitching.
http://akimberlydesign.blogspot.com/2014/05/beginnings.html

http://akimberlydesign.blogspot.com/2014/09/stitch-by-stitch.html

http://akimberlydesign.blogspot.com/2013/10/and-away-we-go.html

UPDATE:  Kimberly taught this at Bedecked and Beaddazzled which will make the kit available if you ask.
http://www.notyourgrandmothersneedlepoint.com/2014/11/its-all-about-big-bug.html

Kimberly started out as a counted thread designer and illustrator.  She is now creating painted canvases which she stitches herself so that the stitch guide has her amazing counted work.  She is the only designer I know who is combining painted canvases with counted work--the best of both worlds!

Ruth Schmuff distributes Kimberly's work so watch for the final piece on the Bedecked and Beaddazzled website.
https://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/Products/?category=260

Kimberly Does Painted Canvases--And Guides!

Kimberly Crum was well known for her wonderful counted canvaswork designs but the industry changed some, painted canvases became The Thing, and Kimberly became Kimberly Smith.  Time marches on, you know!

But yesterday Ruth Schmuff announced that she and Kimberly have created a new partnership.  Kimberly is going to do painted canvas designs and Ruth is going to distribute them.
http://www.notyourgrandmothersneedlepoint.com/2013/12/shes-baaaaack.html

AND Kimberly is doing stitch guides for the canvases!  What could be better!!?!  (The guides aren't quite ready yet but soon, very soon....)
http://akimberlydesign.blogspot.com/2013/12/finally-secret-is-out.html

Here is Kimberly's space on Ruth's website.  Keep an eye on this as new designs are added.
http://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/--b-1.asp?category=260

There's nothing else quite like Kimberly's whimsical and colorful small pieces.  I can't wait to see more!

Another Laura Perin Stitch Guide Finished

Laura Perin has finished her second stitch guide, this time for Sandra Gilmore/Once in a Blue Moon's Statue of Liberty.  It's a lovely piece, not too fancy or difficult, but a perfect interpretation of Liberty in all her majesty and glory.  Congratulations, Laura!  What's next?  A third Sandra Gilmore?
http://two-handedstitcher.blogspot.com/2013/08/its-time-to-celebrate.html

UPDATE:  This is Andrea's version, also stitched using Laura's guide.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/NeedlepointNation/permalink/6105026062907834/

By the way, any shop can order Laura's stitch guides from her distributor Fleur de Paris.
http://www.fleurdeparis.com

Laura Perin's First Stitch Guide UPDATED

Laura Peri's First Stitch Guide

Laura Perin who is one of the most prolific charted designers working today, has crossed over to the Dark Side!  She has created her first stitch guide for a painted canvas!  The stitch guide you see above is for Sandra Gilmore's Hydrangeas.  Isn't it lovely?  A second Sandra Gilmore/Once in a Blue Moon guide is underway.
http://www.laurajperindesigns.net/ljp-stitch-guides.html

Shops can buy Laura's guides from Fleur de Paris who are the distributors of Sandra Gilmore's canvases.  Congratulations, Laura!  We can't wait to see what you do with your next painted canvas!

UPDATE:   Laura explains how this all evolved.
http://two-handedstitcher.blogspot.com/2013/08/hydrangea.html

UPDATE #2:  Laura has finished her second stitch guide, this time for Sandra Gilmore's Statue of Liberty.
http://two-handedstitcher.blogspot.com/2013/08/its-time-to-celebrate.html

UPDATE #3:  Laura is working on a Sandra Gilmore/Once in a Blue Moon nutcracker.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=647698181938061&set=gm.582704528473376&type=1&relevant_count=1&ref=nf

Warning: Thieves Steal Stitch Guides Too

I stumbled across this message from a cross stitch designer in my daily blog readings.  It points out just how much money is lost to thieves who copy and distribute charts among their friends.
http://mymarkdesigns.wordpress.com/2010/07/26/do-the-math-2/

This is happening with stitch guides, too.  Recently Cynthia Thomas posted a message to the ANG email list stating she'd found someone selling multiple xerox copies of her stitch guides on eBay.  Many painted canvas designers have had their designs copied and sold on eBay as well.  I know of a company that copied the designs of at least five well known painted canvas designers and was selling them on eBay until the lawyers caught up with them.

I've also seen prominent painted canvas designers use images that they don't have copyright permission to use.  Folks like J. R. Rawlings and the Disney Corporation come down on copyright violations like a ton of bricks but many other folks don't pursue thieves to such an extent.  Don't buy anything you think might be copied, ok?  If a thief can't sell what he or she has stolen, there's no incentive to steal again.

If you buy a guide (or anything else) on eBay and it seems to be a copy, let the designer or author and eBay know.   If someone is selling multiple copies of something, try to figure out if they are the original author or artist selling off old stock or a copyist trying to steal other folks' work.