Pulled Thread Techniques

There is a pulled thread discussion group at stitchinfingers at ning. The moderator, Lorilei Terry Halley, has a great tutorial and teaching piece. I have asked to link to it from here, however I believe you need to join ning and stitchin fingers to access the information. No big deal, no cost and a great resource. Besides Take A Stitch Tuesday is there now. Anyway, it's a great segue to this picture. This is one of four hearts that is the center of a very old Shepherds Bush piece called Winter Hearts. There are a few pulled thread techniques in it, the one I remember is upright Greek cross.
I will update the How Do I Stitch entry if I get permission.
Yeah! Pulled Thread Tutorial
Thank you Lorilei

Tools of the Trade

The feel of a really good pair of scissors

Snipping through linen,

Cool in your hand,

Crisp in their movement,

Pleasant to the eyes.

"Who made this wonderful tool?" I think.

A craftsman, like me, working with silver, steel, heat.

What harsh material to become -

Scissors sublime.

Only to be lost in the depths of the couch.

What's your theme?

I notice that people have favorite subjects (chickens), styles (quaker), colors and themes. Besides my sewing smalls preferences, I like the color blue and peacocks, among other things. So this is a set of smalls that happen to go with Gingher scissors and a Kelmscott needle keep. They are by Textile Heritage. I hope you enjoy.

Tantelizing!

The first couple of months in the new year always bring some new designs. I'm still "lusting" after a few from a year ago (2008) but I digress.
This is from Reflets de Soie, probably available from European Cross Stitch.
Le Marquoir de Madeline

Yummy!

If you have a moment, wander over to Drawn Thread and check out Morning Glory and Moonlight Garden.

Charting Your Own Course

If you like to branch out on your own, you will need some charting tools.

You may be modifying something (from the public domain of course) for a sewing small you have in mind. You may want to create a family heirloom sampler. Or you may want to convert a photograph (not copyrighted by someone else of course). Here are some resources you can use to make your own designs.

Plain Graph Paper
Graphtablet downloadable program to make your own graph paper, customized major and minor divisions and colors - free
Cyberstitchers customized PDF graph paper maker - can be used to overlay a pdf image, too.
Online graph paper generator (creates PDF) Incompetech
Sova with bold line every 10 (pdf download)
Grids and instructions for making charts from images from JPF
Cross Stitch graph paper in 9 through 14 count sizes

Online Photo Conversion
X-Stitch online tool to convert a picture to a chart (limited to 500 x 500 pixel size)
Layden with Stitches tutorials and tips for photos to cross stitch

Online Text Charting Tools
Stitchpoint has several fonts
X Stitch Info text charting tool
Convert names and captions to Celtic typestyle

Download Software
Stitch Shop Pro (free)
Another version
Stitch Shop is digitizing software, not to create from scratch.

Pixel Hobby to convert images to charts
Cross Stitch Studio (Ursaware) also for the most part digitizing software, however, you can create from scratch
Stitches - for Mac OS X, primarily scan and photo to chart software.

KG Stitch - a cross stitch design software (and picture conversion) that is free.
Cross Magic
Stitch Crafts Gold (hasn't been updated in a long time, still has a trial version)

Stitch Craft (not to be confused wit Stitch Crafts) has 3 versions for 2009, home, designer and publisher. Cross, quarter, bargello, photo to chart, various back stitches - but no specialty stitches.

Jane Greenoffs Designer Gold from The Cross Stitch Guild (UK) is good. The price is excellent and you can also get the software with a guild membership. The package contains a CD-ROM with videos showing you how to do various stitches. If you want to extend your skills to specialty stitches, this is a good bargain. I have used this software to publish charts (together with Acrobat and MS Office).

PC Stitch, new version October 2008
PC Stitch Pattern Viewer (free)

Stitch R-XP from ILSoft - Vista compatible (not free)

Pattern Maker - this is the best software for designing from scratch at an affordable hobby price in my opinion. It has specialty stitches and page layout tools also. (has trial version and a free viewer)

January 1, 2009, a good start for the new year

Great Beginning
First Finish 2009

Started and finished today. This is a gift for a friend. Since I will be presenting it Monday, I am ahead of schedule, too! This is a Mill Hill kit, called something like Victorian beaded pin. Looks pretty modern to me.

10 French Things You Need to Know

Many of the best mysteries, SALs, and tutorials are on French blogs (at least in my opinion). So I thought I would provide some French word translations than may help you navigate the blogs.

Words to Look For:
brode = embroider
broderie = embroidery
pointe de croix = cross stitch
clique: click
ici: here
(click here = clique ici)
(clique sur la image = click on the picture)
lien = link
telechargement = download
gratuite: free
grille = chart
pas-a-pas = step by step

Ten more things:
abecdedaire = sampler or primer
bourse = a particular kind of purse or bag that gathers at the top
biscornu = basically slang now, biscornu is an adjective that means quirky, twisted, weird.
A more complete term for the thing is “coussin (cushion) or coussinet (little cushion) biscornu.”
It's an adjective, so there is no plural.
boites = box
cartonnage = cardboard, or a generic carrier or envelope
etui = case (or kit), typically small
marquoir = marker, sampler
panier = basket
serviettes = towels
toile and tissue = fabric

Here are some more translations

Getting from A to B - conversions and math

Fabric Calculator
An important note when you are calculating how much fabric: Remember what you are counting, threads per inch or stitches per inch. What do I mean? With evenweave and linen, you are often stitching over two threads. That means you need twice as much if you are counting threads which is how fabric is defined, instead of stitches which is what your chart describes.

Also remember that you need a margin on each side of your stitching, usually 3 inches for framing. Once you have determined the size of your pattern given the thread count of your fabric, add six inches to each dimension to get the three inch border. If you decide to use something different for your margin, make sure you write a note to remind yourself before you start stitching three inches down and three inches over.

Stitching The Night Away fabric calculator, you enter the particulars, it calculates the fabric size.
Project Calculator - you give the project dimensions in stitches, it determines size for various thread counts from AAN.
Cyber Stitchers online floss conversions, fabric calculator and free graph paper:
Yarntree's fabric calculator
Stitches to Inches chart (pdf to download and take with you) from yiotas-xstitch

Fabric to Fabric
Descriptions and thread counts for many brands of fabric (oslo and ariosa for example) at Nordic Needle
Fabric Descriptions, sizes, and DMC equivalents at 123 Stitch
Kathy Dyer Fabric name, description and manufacturer

Fiber Conversion
The issue with this information is more than just accuracy, which ultimately is a matter of individual judgement. Fiber manufacturers change, add and delete colors all the time. So you may be looking for a substitution for an old DMC color no longer made, or for thread no longer manufactured.

Speaking of fiber conversion, how about making perle cotton out of floss? No really! Linda Kay

Kathy Dyer has the most comprehensive list of resources, however the currency is often dependent on someone else's contribution. After all, these pages have been online for a very long time. Cameo Rose also has a lot of information. Some of the pages have not been updated in years, however. You may need to check multiple resources to find the particular conversion you are looking for.

Find Stitch has an extensive list of resources for thread conversion as well as color charts for DMC, Anchor, Madeira and JP Coates. Find Stitch

My suggestion if you are using something other than the original threads, take all of them together and place on a sheet of white paper under good light, and make sure they go with each other. Then take the whole set and spread it out on your fabric, making sure you don't have something clashing there. It's your project, so you are the person who needs to be happy with the colors.

Cameo Rose's links to all kinds of conversion tools for silk, beads, yarn, fabric, cotton including Weeks and GAST
Kathy Dyer's FAQ page with conversion charts and explanations of DMC color changes over the last decade or so. She also has Mill Hill to DMC and Anchor, the old JP Coates colors, and color descriptions for Kreinik metallics
DMC to Mill Hill at Wichelt
Designer Forum Links for fiber conversions
AAN guide to various floss organized by color family with color swatches
Fiber Images tables for DMC to Anchor, Coates, Madeira and Anchor to DMC
Fiber (and bead) conversion database for floss (cotton, silk, rayon), flower thread, needlepoint yarn

Willow Fabrics:
DMC to Anchor by number with color description
DMC Light Effects to Kreinik braid by color (with some old DMC colors too)
DMC to Soie D'Alger silk
Also see Cyber Stitches above.