Oh boy! I'm doing a Happy Dance! The Gardener's Alphabet is up and running on my website. I'm so excited to see it published.
Each letter is a separate pattern, 10-11 pages, and sold separately.
Please take a look! It is the first pattern on the (new) Counted Needlepoint page.
I hope you will find a letter or two that you like! They are fun to stitch and are great stash busters! Except for the background, you don't need a whole skein of hardly any of the colors.
I started Lahaina Breezes, by Laura Perin, several months ago as something different to work on that didn't require a lot of me. Well, it is still going on, but I have accomplished quite a lot.
However, it has sometimes required more of me than I wanted! Don't they always?
Initially, I wanted to get started right away, so I tried to use threads from stash. I was mostly successful. I changed some threads, but nothing especially earth shattering. I used FyreWerks instead of Ribbon Floss. I had to buy a couple of skeins of pearl cotton. I changed one of the Watercolours. Once I got going, I decided I do not care for the flowers and the feathers in this design. Soooooo, I redesigned those sections. Here's what it looks like right now:
Purrfect Spring is finished. The final pieces were the top part of the wall and the window sill. I'm glad to have this done. I don't know what I'll do with it, but for now it will just go in the Finished pile.
Now I have 2 months to decide if I want to do the Stitching Games again next year! I'm leaning towards NOT. While it is a good way to get something done, I don't really like having to jump around stitching from the clues. I prefer a more orderly style.
Yup, I'm gonna rant. Don't know if I've ever done that before here, but now's the time.
As most of you know, I sell my designs on my website. Each design has two prices shown, one for the pdf version delivered via email, and one for the printed version shipped via USPS. Printed has to be more: paper, ink, plastic bag, hello?
I recently received an order and PayPal payment for a Bargello Techniques book and 2 of my patterns. I carefully checked to make sure the amount paid was for the pdf version of the patterns (the book has to be mailed as it is too big to email). I emailed the customer with the two patterns attached and told her I would be mailing the book via Priority Mail (she had paid for the shipping).
A couple of days later, I received an email reply asking if I could send the patterns with the book because she didn't have a printer or Adobe. Ok, right off I thought, no printer? And no Adobe? Adobe is a free download and is used for all sorts of things. Hmmmm.
Well, I emailed her again right away pointing out that in order to send the patterns with the book there would be a balance due for the printed versions plus a little bit additional shipping and sent her a PayPal invoice to make payment easy. I also suggested that perhaps she had a friend who could print them for her.
A WEEK later, she emailed me with "What balance due? I already paid for the patterns."
I explained again and requested payment, again. Well, we were getting ready to go on a short trip, so a few days later I sent her a PayPal reminder with a note to that effect. Nada.
I decided to go ahead and send the book and the patterns, hoping that she would send the additional funds. Nada.
So, OK, $5 isn't much. It's the principle of the thing! Yes, this is the first negative experience I've had selling my patterns online. I'm very sorry there had to be even one.
Thanks for listening. I feel better now.
Back in the 80s I used to do charting for Needlepoint News. One of the big projects I did was Jim Williams' Gardener's Alphabet Rug. All 26 letters, each with a flower starting with that letter. Each was a square of a rug.
Recently, I got in touch with Williams and he gave me permission to redo the charts on the computer, color coded to DMC (instead of Paternayan), for 18-count, and to offer the designs for sale on my website. Each letter will be a separate pattern. (I'm not doing it as a rug.) This is counted, so it is suitable for cross stitch as well as needlepoint.
Well, this turned out to be quite a big job, but it is nearly finished. I have an army of stitchers piloting for me and I hope to have all of the letters ready and up on my website by the end of October. When they are ready, I'll announce it here on blog.
This H is one that I did on 20-count canvas with DMC floss and a few stitches of Kreinik.
