It's not often that we bring you things that aren't directly cross stitch related but sometimes we see things that are so irresistible, we just can't... resist!
Case in hand with these cute printable thread bobbins from Mollie Johanson's blog, Wild Olive. Why not pop over and download some for yourself? They would be perfect for storing all your leftover lengths of thread.
That's not all you'll find on her blog though, there's lots of really cute embroidery patterns that have been lovingly designed by Mollie herself that you can download too. What a clever girl...
Psst! Seen a great blog lately? Let us know and you might see it here next week...
Joanna Lopianowski-Roberts is clearly a very dedicated lady.
We
all know the art of cross stitching isn’t exactly a speedy craft, but whilst we
think spending over 100 hours on a project is quite an achievement that’s nothing compared to this.
Taking
its intricate detailing one section at a time, Joanna worked this huge masterpiece
over nine years whilst traveling across America and Canada working at software
consultant completing most of the work in hotel rooms.
French Knots - you either love them or you hate them!
And Fourteen Countess seems to love them! Although we're pretty sure she'll have had enough of them after this project.
She's created this amazing monogram letter entirely out of French Knots and we have to say, we're really very impressed. Not only with the finished piece but with the amount of patience she must have.
Coordinating her letter 'B' with the pattern on the material had given this a stunning 3D finish that we're all quite jealous of... do you think if we ask nicely she'll stitch us one?
The Papered Parlour - FREE workshops to celebrate 4th July!
Set up in 2009 by two young visual artists, The Papered Parlour is a new independent craft venue in London that’s taking handmade craft
to the next level and getting the whole neighborhood involved...
Tucked down an alley in the heart of Clapham, their space is
decked out just like a parlour. A home from home where they run workshops,
host performances and put on exhibitions… and this Sunday they’re holding lots
of FREE workshops to celebrate the 4th July in frivolous crafty style!
Look at all the free workshops on offer…
AMERICAN STYLE QUILTING WITH CASSANDRA ELLIS
Come learn a new skill and lend a hand in creating a
beautiful handmade quilt that will be donated to their local church just across
the way…
ANDY WARHOLESQUE SCREENPRINTING WITH THE PARLOUR GIRLS
Drawing inspiration from America’s finest printmaker, the
parlour girls will guide you through the basics of DIY screenprinting. Bring
your own t-shirts, tote bags and fabric and you can revamp your wardrobe too!
ROTHKO FOR KIDS
Bring out your child’s inner abstract expressionist as they
keep your little ones occupied with Rothko inspired painting.
And what’s more - there’s music and food to keep your ears and
bellies happy too. Serving up a traditional 4th July spread, the genuine North
American Parlour girls will have their red, white and blueberry cakes, hot apple pie
and cold lemonade at the ready... sounds delicious!
So, if you live near London town why not get yourself down there,
learn some new crafting techniques and make some new friends too?
After all, it won't cost you a dime.
Wednesday June 30, 2010
LAM Designs - website review
We first stumbled across LAM Designs on Etsy when we saw a fabulous cross stitch clock design but now we've discovered she has a blog and a website to her name too... and they're really rather nice.
So nice in fact, we thought that the crafty Laura Mason was worth a mention here on our website for you lot to see. Creating embroidered gifts and unusual textile pieces, her love of fabrics buttons and ribbons really shine through. After attending the Royal School of Needlework her passion for tea also emerged and you'll see reference to this in many of her fun designs.
What's especially humbling about Laura's work is that it's all made in her spare time, in her little house in Surrey! They're gorgeously finished off, ooze country-cottage styling and to be honest we know you'd pay an absolute fortune for gifts like these on the high street. We think her work is cute and colourful just like her website, so take a look and be inspired.
Psst! Take a look at this cute interview with Laura in the Spring edition of UK Handmade too...
Seen a great website lately? Let us know and you might see it here next week...
Wednesday June 16, 2010
Hunkydory Home - website review
When Alison Ellerbrook couldn’t find anything bright and funky on the high street for her home she decided to fill the gap online, which is exactly how Hunkydory Homewas born and my-oh-my do we love it! We just can't stop looking at all the cool things on the site for inspiration. (I think it might actually start to hinder our work today if we don't watch it...)
Alison started the business back in 2005 selling her own lampshades and cushions but now her collection of gorgeous quirky things reflect the design-led trends we know and love today.
What's better is that it even includes a few stitchy things, which obviously we just had to bring to your attention. Not only does she stock the popular Miso Funky kits but there's also these gloriously British industrial style kits (below) for the more outrageous stitcher who fancies something a bit quirky. With a little help from her husband Karl, Hunkydory Home aims to provide something 'a bit different for peoples homes or as gorgeous gifts' and their handmade cushions and lampshades means they totally appreciate what it means to craft something from scratch. They are our sort of people!
It's definitely worth a sneaky look on your lunch break, you're guaranteed to find something you like. In fact, we struggled to find anything we didn't...
Thursday May 27, 2010
Oh, beehave! - guest blog post from Clara Grant
Will
you just take a look at what I’ve found?! A crisp clean and cute little site
bursting with inspirational goodness. All the way from Soho, New York, The Purl is an artisan business ran by a fabric and craft obsessed family. Just our kind
of people!
The Purl Bee is their online craft journal, where the masterminds behind the Soho shop share their knowledge and ideas on knitting, stitching, sewing and patchwork. Their pretty little things are well explained and simple, making them accessible even to the least dextrous of crafters. If you're looking for ideas then be warned, this site will spoil you for choice.
Whatever
the occasion, there’s a fun project at hand. From dinner decorations and felted
Christmas trees to baby bloomers, towels and sweet accessories such as little boy’s ties
or even yarmulkes.
I
do believe I have found my happy place and I'm aching to get my scissors
and thread out and give my house a spring revamp. Ikea who?
Yesterday,
the lovely Clara Grant joined us in the CrossStitcher office as part of a work
experience placement.
She's just finishing her 3rd year at the
university here in Bath and we thought we'd give her the fun task of
finding us a fresh and funky website full of inspiration to review for
our blog.
This was what she came up with... pretty good huh?
Friday May 07, 2010
Design vs. Dishware
This designer conscious duo at Circa Ceramics, Andy Witt and Nancy Pizarros have
done us stitchers proud with a few crafty designs in their porcelain portfolio
over on etsy.com.
The pair began designing and making a line of tableware and accessories back in 1999 with a emphasis on functionality, colour and fun.
They specialise in the shape, design and printed motifs that can be mixed and matched since everything is made from scratch from porcelain clay. The motifs are fired onto the porcelain, no baked, which means there's no way they're going to rub off in the dishwasher! We're really pleased to see that amongst the trendy bicycle and record player motifs there's a few craft related prints such as a sewing machine and ball of wool to pay homage to the age of handmade.
It's completely free to use, all you need is your subscriber number to log in. Here you can gain exclusive access to competitions and special discounts on your favourite products and FREE charts for you to download and enjoy - on us!
The Crafts Circle are has been designed to help you enjoy your hobby even more and so we advise you regularly check back to avoid missing out on discounts that could save you a bundle on your stitching stash!
It's a collaboration between your favourite magazines: CrossStitcher, Simply Knitting, Cross Stitch Collection, Papercraft Inspirations and The Knitter, so if your looking to broaden your crafty horizon there's bound to be something that takes your fancy...
The Crafts Circle is only available to subscribers. If you don't like missing out (nobody does, do they?) and you'd like to subscribe to CrossStitcher click here for more information!
Tuesday April 27, 2010
Challenge us! - Dachshund charts
You will have noticed on our facebook page this week,
we’ve been asking you to ‘challenge us!’ to find that perfect chart you’ve been
looking for.
Our first reader to get the CrossStitcher treatment is
Desarée Michelle Brisson from Londonwho said she's been looking for some Dachshunds charts to
stitch for her mum and we knew straight away the perfect site to find them...
WYE Needlecraft
has a fabulous selection of dog
charts in all sorts of breeds from Beagles and Chihuahuas to Labradors
to Dachshunds! What’s even better is that there’s even a huge Hoffman
American stock of charts and patterns to search in too, so you're bound to find what you're looking for.
Look at this bunch of adorable Dachshunds, aren't they sweet? (Click the images to see more) There's a great selection of Dachshunds of all shapes and colour so it's perfect if you're looking for one to match your own little pooch!
Seen a great site lately that's helped you find your perfect chart, let us know and you might see it here next week! Plus, don't forget to log onto our facebook page and twitter feed to get all the latest updates before anyone else...
Wednesday April 14, 2010
An online emporium of haberdashery treats!
There's no better feeling than the one you get when you stumble unexpectedly across a shop that's full of all your favourite things... and if you really like sewing, stitching and craft then you're going to love Ray Stitch.
Described as a Haberdashery Boutique this new site really doe feel like you're in a quaint little sewing shop delving your fingers into woven baskets of cute buttons, stylish ribbons and colourful yarns - only it's online!
Their well stocked online emporium has definitely got our creative juices flowing and their gallery offers lots of inspiration for all sorts of stitchy projects. There's a news page to keep you up-to-date with their latest finds and events too, which is handy to make sure you get your mitts on all the latest fabric designs. It's definitely worth a visit if you love all things crafty... which we do!
Seen a great website lately? Let us know and you might see it here next week!
Thursday April 08, 2010
Blog review - Materialistic
Kelly Fletcher describes her blog Materialisticas a "blog about stitching" and as simple as it sounds - she's spot on but that's exactly why we like it. It's really refreshing to see someone so enthused about simply stitching and learning new techniques to use everyday.
For example after getting fed up of not having a mouse mat for her computer she set about designing and making a simple mat herself - with a few stitched motifs for decoration of course! It's the simplicity of her work and genuine love of stitching that really shows through on her blog. She's got a lovely website too where you can see more of her work and download some of her designs for free.
But, it's not just stitching she's interested in. Kelly likes quilting, knitting and crochet to name just a few of her other favourite techniques so it's clear to see she's not scared of experimenting! There aren't that many images on her blog but it's worth a visit to see how she manages to cram so many varying stitches into her subtle, understated designs. They're actually rather sweet. PS: Read a great blog lately? Let us know and you might see it here...
Wednesday March 03, 2010
Pearl & Earl launches sister site Granny Knits!
Don't you just love it when you find websites full of fun and inspiration? Well, that's exactly what happened when we found Peal & Earl back in 2008. But, at the end of 2009 they launched sister siteGranny Knits, a site that's full of contemporary crafting goodness and retro charm - just how we like it!
With Pearl & Earl already an established online brand selling British home & clothing collections inspired
by things with nostalgic charm and character, it's great to see the same enthusiasm of pattern, colour and humour evident on their new site. Granny Knits features a extensive range of crafted products that may one day become your very own homemade heirloom.
With modern tapestry, embroidery, and cross stitch charts available... it's bound to inspire seasoned crafters beginners alike. But, if you're feeling adventurous there's even a good selection of wool yarns, canvas, fabric and trims so you can create your very own homemade heirloom. There's no doubting both of these sites are full of character and colourful designs that are band on trend with the retro chic look that's currently adorning our favourite home magazines.
But, that's not all. Like all good crafts businesses, their work is still in very much in progress and they're currently busy creating an extended range of
knitting, crochet, cloth, embroidery and contemporary paper craft
kits for us to get our hands too!
We think this is definitely a space worth watching...
PS: Seen a great website or blog lately? Let us know!
Thursday February 04, 2010
Introducing . . . The Crafts Circle!
We’re
really excited to be able to tell you all about our new Crafts Circle site,
a fabulous brand new subscriber only area we know you’ll love!
Crafts
Circle is a new access-all-areas treat for our loyal subscribers, designed by
the same people that bring you your favourite craft magazines. We’ll be
offering special monthly treats such as giveaways, free charts and discount
codes to help you enjoy your hobby even more.
What
do you get?
Exclusive
competitions and giveaways
Discount
codes for your favourite online stores
Access
to manage your subscription online
Regular
news updates on shows and products
Gossip
and information on the latest craft shows
Papercraft,
knitting and cross stitch themed giveaways
To log on to Crafts Circle you simply need your subscriber number, the magazine
to which you subscribe and your surname.
If
you’re not currently a subscriber but want to have CrossStitcher magazine
delivered directly to your door each month (sound perfect?) then click here
for more information.
PS: Let us know what you think, and keep checking back - we don't want you to miss our on any of the freebies and competitions we've got planned for the future!
Tuesday January 19, 2010
Fine art cross stitch designs from Scarlet Quince - website review
If you're into fine art you'll know exactly who we're talking about when we mention names such as John William Waterhouse, Edmund Blair-Leighton and Claude Monet.
You might not be able to afford an original piece of art (who can!) but with the help of Scarlet Quince you can easily pay homage to some of their exquisite pieces.
Working from the originals Scarlet Quince have a fabulous variety of detailed charts available to download. Plus, with purely whole cross stitch used in their designs it's easy enough for beginners but still produces a stunning end result.
This easy to navigate site means it's easy to find your favourite painting just by searching via the artist and in no time you'll be on your way to creating your very own stunning piece of fine art.
For any budding artist out there, we think it's well worth a visit. Plus, it's a great place to get inspiration for your next BIG project!
PS: Seen a great website lately? Let us know and you might see it here next week!
