New Barbara Bergsten Stitch Guides (Free!)

Barbara Bergsten has added new free stitch guides to her website.
http://createneedlepoint.typepad.com/create_needlepoint/2013/06/new-stitch-guides-from-barbara-bergsten-needlepoint-designs.html

Most of the new guides are for new designs.  Here's the direct link if you have one of these beauties and want to print out Barbara's guide for it.
http://www.barbarabergstendesigns.com/stitch_guides.htm

New from Sharon Quick

Sharon Quick has just completed stitching one of Lani's fairy dolls.  Sharon created a wonderful version of Tasha.  Here is the full series, unstitched.
http://www.lanisneedlepoint.com/dolls.aspx

Sharon posted a photograph on Facebook.   Here's the link.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=542459089152048&set=gm.488436487900181&type=1&theater

Interested in the stitch guide?  Email Sharon at bg4458 @earthlink.net for the details.  She's started posting images of canvases which she has done guides for on her Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/sharon.quick.792?fref=nf

The iPad and Associated Talents Stitch Guides

Associated Talents just mentioned a new feature of their Stitch Guides page on Facebook.  If you use iPads and open a guide, there will be an option to save a guide as an iBook.  Neat!
http://atneedlepoint.com/CanvasLookup.asp?Category=Guides&SubCategory&Query=ViewAll

This also works for iPhones and the iPod Touch if you happen to own them instead of an iPad.  Many thanks to Donn Lynch for the heads up on this new feature.

Zecca Dips a Toe Into Stitch Guides

Zecca has a new website!  The update includes a page of five stitch guides available for their canvases. Robin King tells me that Karen Hennessy stitched and wrote the guides for "4 Birds", Cynthia Thomas stitched and wrote the guide for "5 Fishes" and Robin King stitched and wrote the guides for "Lotus Squared", "Thistle" and "Early Bird."  Thanks for the clarification, Robin!
http://zecca.net/stitch-guides-thread-lists/

These aren't the only guides for Zecca canvases available (Robin has done three guides that I know about) but these are on the designer website.

Robin King herself worked on Thistle,
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-thistle-by-zecca-ze-178-part-2.html

on Lotus Squared, and...
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2012/06/have-teaching-manual-will-travel.html

...on the Bird and Worm canvas.
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2011/01/tnna-market-report-day-one.html

Halloween Stitch Guides

I've been thinking about Halloween designs lately since I plan to finish up my stitch guide for the Ladies of the Night series for Leigh Designs shortly.  Apparently Halloween is in the air--Robin King has written an article listing all the Halloween stitch guides she has in her collection of guides for sale.  If you are need a guide for a Halloween project for the summer so you'll be ready when the ghosts and goblins begin to gather, here's the place to start looking--
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2013/05/halloween-stitch-guides-by-robin-king.html

Robin has guides for Halloween canvases from Artists Collection, Brenda Stofft, Kelly Clark, Leigh Designs. Maggie, Melissa Shirley, Needle Deeva, Renaissance Designs, Shelly Tribbey, and Susan Roberts/Tapestry Tent.  In other words, all the spooky stitching you could ever want!

Bedecked and Beadazzled Guide to Stitch Guides

Ruth Schmuff has updated her shop website with a page devoted to stitch guides available from her store.  The newest guides are at the top of the page.  Classics are down lower.  Please note that some guides are for past mystery classes that Ruth has done in her teacher role, some are designer club guides, and some are for canvases that Ruth distributes in her painted canvas distributor role.  In other words, some guides are available at other shops and some are exclusive to Ruth.  Some listings are for the painted canvas with the guide included.  Some are just for the guide or for one month's installment in a club.  Click on the thumbnail portrait of anything you find interesting to get the details.
http://www.bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/Stitchguides-a21/

LOVE (Threads)

Robin King is stitching the perfect canvas to celebrate Mother's Day--Raymond Crawford's LOVE.
http://needlepointstudyhall.blogspot.com/2013/05/love-by-raymond-crawford-ho-207.html

This piece is a threadaholic's delight!  Robin used a different palette of threads for each letter and I bet she uses a lot of other stitches, too.  Robin has issued a challenge to readers of her blog--she posted a stitch diagram she is using somewhere in the design.  Guess which thread and area she put it in and win a prize!

Truly anyone who stitches one of Robin's guides has won a prize anyway but it is fun to try and decide just where Robin put the Triple Windows stitch.