Fab Finishing Alert! Isn’t my black eyed Susan purse fantastic! Now all I need is for the sun to come out…

Happy Stitching,
Susan

Stitch now for a stylish summer! For the whole month of May, all in-stock belt and purse canvases are 20% off. You will be the envy of all your friends in your snappy needlepoint belt. Your girlfriends will be dying to know more about your stitched purse. You will be THE trendsetter this summer!

Ladies, start your engines (or at least point your needles)!

Happy stitching,
Susan

If you are an out of town On Point reader, email me what belt/purse you would like and I’ll see if I can find an in-stock canvas.

Keep calm and carry on: that’s my best advice when faced with a stitching conundrum. For instance, I am stitching this Black-Eyed Susan to be appliqued onto a Queen Bea Studio purse. I thought it would look really sharp and be perfect for summer. So I thought about what to do with the background…I wanted some punch! I started with a rainbow of colors for the stripes (see bottom)…thought it looked chaotic and jumpy…moved to classic black and white stripes. I like it…it will go with all my cute summer outfits. I’m also still considering the yellow stitch: basket weave or diagonal mosaic.

Always evaluate your stitching…do NOT finish the whole thing and then realize a stitch or a color doesn’t work. Keep calm and ASSESS, then carry on.

PS Don’t tell my 9th grade geometry teacher, Mrs. Bynoe, about that pathetic circle I drew. She could draw a perfect circle free-hand. Impressive.

Lastly, I love the Keep Calm and Carry On expression…check out these canvases from Unique NZ Designs that riff on wonderful British humour (English spelling in honor of Will & Kate).

Happy stitching!
Susan

Silvia Termes, a dear friend and loyal Point of It All customer, recently passed away unexpectedly. Silvia, who was quite a character, liked to be called The Termite, a play on her Cuban last name. Silvia was a truly exceptional stitcher…these pictures hardly do justice to her exquisite work. Decorative stitches, extra embellishments, beads galore…she was so, so talented. I really miss Silvia as does everyone at The Point of It All. Enjoy pouring over these three pieces, finished posthumously… we all can learn so much from The Termite.

Happy stitching,
Susan

UPDATE! UPDATE!!

Silvia’s work received several awards at the Woodlawn Plantation Needlework Show! Details about the show are available here. The show is on view through the 31st. It’s well worth the drive…it’s so exciting to see what other stitchers are doing!

Well another icy blast has hit Washington, DC…I just got out my lady-sized shovel and saw to the front steps of The Point of It All. Come on, stitchers, it’s cozy inside the shop…we’ve got fresh coffee and hot chocolate and plenty of wonderful canvases! A perfect day for needlepoint if you ask me.

This will be a quick post today (since I need to shovel more). Check out this FABULOUS geometric purse from Mindy!

And here’s a close up

I did some decorative stitches…I was going to add little seed beads but I ran out of gas on this project. I love how all the stitches work together to create an interesting pattern but not one that is too overwhelming. Sometimes, I think, stitchers put in too many stitchers and the effect is chaotic. I am a basket weave girl at heart but I do try to branch out every once in a while.

Check out Mindy’s canvases by clicking here. Actually when I just went to the website, none of her canvases was showing up but I am inserting this link anyway…hopefully her site will work again soon.

Happy stitching and stay warm,
Susan

We are in full Christmas mode! Get in the holiday spirit by bringing out all your Christmas needlepoint! We just stitched this darling Patchwork Santa from Julia’s Needleworks. Julia also makes a Mrs. Claus…

This would be a great piece for decorative stitches, too. We added real buttons for his coat, which are super cute.

Chris and I have decorated our house and I am so excited to see our stockings hanging. It’s always such a treat when I get them out. Ours are from Sandra Gilmore (see her canvases by clicking here) and Buster’s is a custom designed one.

Merry Christmas and happy stitching,

Susan

Embarrassing fact #1: I collect rubber duckies. So I was really excited when I saw this canvas from JL Canvas Company. She creates hand-painted canvases paired with blown glass ornaments. Really fun. I hope she will add more pictures to her website soon.

I decided to frame the ducky and hang it with my collection. Also note the Maggie Co. canvas hanging nearby…it has a small rubber ducky in the tub.

Who says the bathroom is off limits for needlepoint?! I think it’s a new frontier!

Happy stitching!
Susan

Please excuse the horrible quality of these photos…both pieces are hung up high and I had trouble getting a good angle for the photographs. Also, I must have had too much wine!

I covet needlepoint purses…it’s an addiction really. Point of It All employee Laurie Bloch stitched this marvelous satchel. In full disclosure mode, I have to confess that I did not call her when it arrived from the finisher…I held onto it and just admired it for a few days. But I did NOT actually wear it out of the shop, so that’s a positive!

The canvas is from L’Esprit de France. They have such unusual canvases….pieces that are unlike any other artist’s. Take a minute to explore the website! They have pillows, shoes (drool, drool, I love shoes), luggage straps, desk sets, and so much  more!

Considering how much I love purses, no one will be surprised that I have stitched the leopard print, the tartan, and part of the zebra striped purses. I also made Chris a watch from L’Esprit.

Happy stitching,
Susan

My husband made an outrageous claim the other day: “Honey, we have enough pillows.” My response, “Oh sweetie, we have only just begun!”

But I take his point (in theory): there is such a thing as too many pillows. But that certainly doesn’t mean too many needlepoint pieces. I’ve already written about my love of needlepoint shoes, purses, and cuffs but what about needlepoint foot stools and tuffets and chairs?!

Take the example of the wonderful “Leo the Dog” foot stool stitched by customer Audrey Shannon. Her son brought me the actual foot stool and then Audrey and I had Leo painted by the Point of It All’s most fabulous artist, Deborah. (If you can dream it; she can paint it!)

Check out my mother’s fabulous tuffet from artist Trubey. Here’s a link to Trubey’s work. She also does full size chairs, if you can imagine that!

Or consider a child’s director’s chair from Patti Mann or Associated Talents.

The possibilities are limitless!

Happy stitching!
Susan