My Mother's Garden
Threads Used: Hand Dyed Fibers Silk Floss, chart includes a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linen Magnolia, 40ct
My first design was released as a freebie. It was a sampler I designed as a gift to my mother, and after a lot of poking and prodding from some stitchy friends, I bundled the whole thing up, including my blog posts about it from an old blog which is now gone, and pdf'd it. Vikki Clayton was kind enough to host the file for me. :) Click here to download the chart. Please remember this was my first attempt at any kind of charting, and to be honest, it was really only meant for me to stitch from, so there are probably tons of errors that I corrected while stitching, but never updated in the chart. Someday when I have time (LMAO) I'll rechart the whole thing properly and re-release it as a proper chart, though still free of course. I stitched mine on Lakeside Linen in Magnolia, 40 ct, but you can use any count you want. Unfortunately, many of the colours I used in my own stitching were limited edition colours, some created specifically for this project, but as I always say, with a chart like this, you're limited only by your imagination - use whatever you love! Many of the colours only use a small amount, so it would be a great project for leftovers.
Celtic Garden
Threads Used: Hand Dyed Fibers, chart includes a DMC conversion
Fabric Used: Sassy's Fabbys Golden Promise, 40ct
My first "official" design, after much more poking and prodding from stitchy friends, is Celtic Garden. This is the first chart in the Celtic series of four designs (for now). The series is meant to represent my favourite things in nature, the things that inspire me and bring me peace. Flowers are a true favourite of mine, and someday when I own my own home, I will have gardens to rival my needlework designs, I'm sure. For now, all of my gardening is done with needle and thread. The design is stitched in a combination of cross stitch and specialty stitches, using Hand Dyed Fibers threads, on Sassy's Fabrics Golden Promise linen. I generally stitch on high counts of fabric, I'm blessed with good eyes (though I do wear glasses) and I really love the delicate look of the little tiny stitches, so my model is done on 40 ct, however, you could use any count you're comfortable with, as long as it is suitable for over 2 work for the specialty stitches. Aida won't work here, you'll want evenweave or linen. I have included a DMC conversion for those who don't like silk, and somewhere on my blog there is also a conversion to NPI that I did upon request from a needlework shop who stocked NPI.
Celtic Wings
Threads Used: Hand Dyed Fibers, with a DMC conversion included
Fabric Used: Sassy's Fabbys Frosted Cafe, 40ct
Beads Used: Swarovski Crystal 5754 Butterflies, 6mm, Crystal AB (4)
Next in the Celtic Series is Celtic Wings. Yes, there are flowers in this one too, but the winged creatures I chose to reprent in this design are most commonly found in gardens, so I had to give them some flowers to play with. :) The two main aspects of the design are the butterflies and dragonflies - my two favourite insects. Butterflies are a favourite because of their colourful beauty and their delicacy. Dragonflies on the other hand have a very special meaning for me. For several years, I worked as a landscaper, mostly for large industrial companies along the lake. My main function? Riding a tractor all day cutting grass. Many of the areas I used to cut, were around manicured ponds and man made creeks, and were infested with dragonflies. They kept me company many long, hot afternoons alighting on my shoulders, my steering wheel, heck I think I even came home with a few on my hard hat. This design is also charted for Hand Dyed Fibers in silk and silk chenille (for the little bumblebees), and includes a DMC conversion. The model was stitched on Sassy's Fabrics Frosted Cafe linen, again in 40ct. And again, you could stitch it on any count linen or evenweave you like. It contains several specialty stitches, but the bulk of it is cross stitch.
Celtic Leaves
Threads Used: Gloriana and Belle Soie silks, DMC conversion included
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct
The third design in the Celtic series is Celtic Leaves. Living in Canada, autumn is a very colourful time of year. With the rains, the grass is at it's lushest and greenest, and the trees explode into a multitude of oranges, yellows and reds. This design was a labour of love - the materials for it kept getting lost in the post, and I was fighting against a deadline, so it made for many nights of stitching into the wee hours, and I managed to stitch it in a couple of weeks. It is stitched in five colours of Gloriana and 3 colours of Belle Soie, on 40 count Magnolia from Lakeside Linen. Any count will work, but again, you'd need to use a linen or evenweave fabric as this one is predominantly specialty stitches. The knotwork is about the only thing that is pure cross stitch. The chart includes a DMC conversion, though I have to admit, this was difficult to convert. There just aren't very close matches in the DMC palette, and the knotwork is done in three very heavily overdyed colours. I did my best to pick what I thought would work, but it really isn't at all close for these three colours. I have since done conversions to overdyed cottons and other brands of silk for people which are much better than the DMC, but I know a lot of stitches like to have that.
Easter Flowers
Threads Used: Gloriana Silk Floss, with conversions to both HDF and DMC
Fabric Used: Sassy's Fabbys Hayfields, 40ct
Easter Flowers is a little piece that I designed because I simply fell head over heels in love with a colour of floss and had to find a use for it. Gloriana's Laura's Garden is a beautiful overdyed thread, in a rainbow of pastel shades. The design uses a total of nine colours of Gloriana Silk thread, and was stitched on 40 ct Hayfields by Sassy's Fabrics, but could be stitched on any count of evenweave or linen. I would really love to see this stitched on black someday! it is a mix of cross stitch and specialty stitches to make up the patterns on the eggs. I had so much fun with this piece, the colours of thread are really spectacular, and of course I did the model stitching towards the end of winter, when I was craving spring colours. I don't normally do a lot of holiday stitching, apart from a few Christmas presents I've stitched as gifts, but the idea of Easter Eggs just popped into my head one day and I knew it would be a great way to incorporate my want of spring colours and my need to use Laura's Garden. :)
Hearts Entwined
Threads Used: Gloriana Silk Floss and Princess Perle Petite, NPI Silk Floss with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Light Examplar, 36ct.
Hearts Entwined features hearts, hearts and more hearts. Each section explores different specialty stitches, textures and effects. The chart includes a section on customizing the design to use as a wedding or anniversary sampler. I had a lot of fun with this piece, playing with lots of different stitches, though I have to admit, drawing all of those diagrams took a very long time. The design is stitched in 2 colours of NPI silk floss, 1 colour of Gloriana Silk Floss and one colour of Gloriana Princess Perle Petite. I have included a DMC conversion with the chart, however I have to stress that the colours, though somewhat close are not exact - conversions rarely are. I stitched mine on 36 count, but you could use any count of linen or evenweave you want. I hope you like eyelets, you'll stitch a lot of them on this design!
Design Size: 237w x 237h
Threads Used: Gloriana Silk Floss with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct.
Forget Me Not is the first in a series of nine geometric floral designs. As indicated by the title, this design features the forget me not - and uses 3 colours of Gloriana Silk Floss. I have included a DMC conversion, though of course, it is not exact. With a design of this nature though, I always encourage stitchers to experiment with different hand dyed threads and find a colour scheme you love! Because the design contains only cross stitch, it is suitable for any type of fabric you like.
Design Size: 237w x 237h
Threads Used: Gloriana Silk Floss with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct
Daffodil is the second design in the geometric floral series. The design uses 2 colours of Gloriana Silk Floss, and though I have added a conversion to DMC, I urge people to pick colours that speak to you. There are so many wonderful threads out there, I picked the two I loved, you should do the same! The design is all full cross stitches, so any type of fabric is suitable.
Forget Me Not
Threads Used: Gloriana Silk Floss with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct.
Forget Me Not is the first in a series of nine geometric floral designs. As indicated by the title, this design features the forget me not - and uses 3 colours of Gloriana Silk Floss. I have included a DMC conversion, though of course, it is not exact. With a design of this nature though, I always encourage stitchers to experiment with different hand dyed threads and find a colour scheme you love! Because the design contains only cross stitch, it is suitable for any type of fabric you like.
Daffodil
Design Size: 237w x 237h
Threads Used: Gloriana Silk Floss with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct
Daffodil is the second design in the geometric floral series. The design uses 2 colours of Gloriana Silk Floss, and though I have added a conversion to DMC, I urge people to pick colours that speak to you. There are so many wonderful threads out there, I picked the two I loved, you should do the same! The design is all full cross stitches, so any type of fabric is suitable.
Daisy
Design Size: 237w x 237h
Threads Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct
Daisy is the third design in the geometric floral series. The design uses 3 colours of Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk floss. I've added a DMC conversion, but it's not exact - there just isn't a green that's close, especially with the wide shade range in the variegated I used. As always, use what you like best!! This design is entirely cross stitch, so it's suitable for any type of fabric.
Tulip
Design Size: 237w x 237h
Threads Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct
Tulip is the fourth design in the geometric floral series, and is featured in the March/April 2012 issue of Just CrossStitch Magazine, photo courtesy of same. The design uses two colours of Crescent Colours Belle Soie Silks floss. The design is entirely stitched in cross stitch, so you can use any type of fabric you like.
Rose
Design Size: 237w x 237h
Threads Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie with a conversion to DMC
Fabric Used: Lakeside Linens Magnolia, 40ct
Rose is the fifth design in the geometric floral series. It uses two shades of Crescent Colours Belle Soie silks, and includes a conversion to DMC. As always conversions are never exact. The design is stitched entirely in cross stitch, so you don't have to use linen, you could use any fabric of your choice!
Antique Lace
Design Size: 441w x 309h
Threads Used: Hand Dyed Fibers silks and ribbons with a conversion to DMC
Other Materials Used: SJ Designs 2mm Ivory Pearls
Other Materials Used: SJ Designs 2mm Ivory Pearls
Fabric Used: Zweigart Ruby Wine Belfast linen
Antique Lace is a design that has been about two years in the making. The original idea for it came from an antique filet crochet table centrepiece with the basket of roses motif. Later, when researching ideas for the lace bands, I came across the same motif in a collection of designs from antique samplers. Whether the motif originated in cross stitch or crochet I have been unable to find, but I was intrigued at the cross over between the two styles of needlework. The “lace” bands were designed to mimic different styles of lace, inspired by antique cross stitch designs, crochet designs, and lace trims and edgings.
Antique Lace Band Sampler
Design Size: 201w x 585h
Threads Used: Gloriana Florimell, Luminescence, Princess Perle Petite, 4 mm Silk Ribbon
Other Materials Used: SJ Designs 2mm Ivory Pearls
Other Materials Used: SJ Designs 2mm Ivory Pearls
Fabric Used: Weeks Dye Works 35ct Almond Bar
As with any design, some people love it, some people don't. I knew there would be people who loved the flower centrepiece on the original version of Antique Lace, and others who didn't. This design is for all those who didn't like it. ;)
My Mother's Garden 2
Design Size: 121w x 469h
Threads Used: Carrie's Creations Silk Floss
Fabric Used: Sassy's Fabbys Crescent Cream linen, 32ct (as shown), Weeks Dye Works Parchment (sampler colourway).
This design was originally published in The Gift of Stitching Magazine in 2011, but now is available as a chart. The chart includes two different colourways, one in bright floral colours as shown, the second in a more muted, aged look. Both use Carrie's Creations Silk Floss and as always a DMC conversion is given. The design is entirely cross stitch, however because some is over one and some is over two, linen or plainweave fabric is necessary.
A Northern Christmas Expression
Design Size: Stitched area is 175w x 105h - this includes the space left around each square for cutting and assembly.
Threads Used: Gloriana Florimell, Rainbow Gallery Petite Treasure Braid
Beads Used: Delica 11/0
Other Materials: Buttons for top and bottom, model uses JABC 4415L Large Peppermint. Also ribbon, trim or cording to make the hanger.
Fabric Used: Zweigart Belfast Linen in White - 32ct.
This design was featured in The Gift Of Stitching November 2011 Ornament Issue, photo courtesy of same. For this design I wanted something different. I'm not a finisher, so it had to be something fairly simple to assemble. The design is surprisingly easy to put together, with loads of different ways you could embellish! I included a conversion to DMC, Kreinik and Mill Hill.
Lots more to come, the fourth and final Celtic, more flower designs, more monochromes, more band samplers... let's just say MORE. :)
