Erica's Stitches

I made my first pattern based on a scanned photo with the help of software.  This hardy columbine was burned to the ground, quickly grew back and was flowering within a month. The first step was to crop the photograph and brighten the colors.  After importing into  PC Stitch , I spent hours tweaking the number of stitches and colors trying to come up with a stitchable pattern.   The software couldn't deal with the center of the flower (the yellow part) at all and I had to manually fix it.  Except for the yellow, the colors all came from the software and they are perfect.  Every shade of purple I have was used. With too few colors it was an unrecognizable blob and with too many colors the pattern was impossible.  I ended up manually reducing the colors until I thought I could handle stitching it.  I was tempted to give up, but I loved how the pattern was turning out so I kept at it. I think that there are still too many color cha...

Good news - I'm ready for Valentine's Day - next year.  I didn't quite get done in time. For a simple finishing I turned it into a card. First, I made a fringe by trimming to 3/8 inch from the stitched border and removing all but the last thread.  This can make a mess. Next, I took a heavy white thread and sewed it down on a piece of card stock. The running stitches between the stitched border and the remaining thread are nearly invisible. All that's left is to turn it over and sign it. On to the next project!

Here's my Christmas ornament for this year. I wanted it to have a house so I started with my house.  The front of the house is rather boring, so I used the side view.  And I changed the proportions.   And changed the color (a green house with a green tree in front of it just won't work).  Speaking of a tree, I had to add a better looking one.  I wanted snowflakes around the house, but nothing I tried looked right.  So, I added a simple border and then extended it.  All the sudden I had circles where I could add eyelets and I had snowflakes.  I originally planned on eyelets along the top.  But, once I started stitching I squeezed in an eyelet anywhere I could. That means that there are partial eyelets along the edge of the house that required some compensating. I also had some negative space around the circles with room for 5 letters. I used P-E-A-C-E and squeezed the year into another negative space. ...

After I finished my Harvest Biscornu I wasn't quite happy with the fall colors and was thinking spring. So, I actually stitched another one - this time with spring colors. Now the biscornu is brighter and more colorful - just what I was looking for.  It's also slightly bigger.   Hmmm, and I thought both fabrics were 28 count.  I must start labelling them better and test the count before stitching. Luckily the spring biscornu doesn't have to fit in a specific basket. I always seem to end a post with something else I'd like to do.  But this time I think I've had enough of this pattern and I'm no ready to run off and try it again.

Just as fall as arriving I've finished my harvest biscornu.  I didn't mean to be seasonal but this was the next project in my queue. I've been wanting to fill my sewing basket for a while and these were the colors it needed. These were the colors I decided upon originally and they go perfectly in my basket.  But, while I was stitching, the colors didn't feel right to me even though they are all over right now. As soon as I finished I pulled out some white fabric and lighter brighter colors and have started another one.  I guess I'm not ready for fall and winter and am looking forward to spring already. This pattern is for sale at Patternsonline .

It was time to come up with a new design and I didn't have any ideas.  So, I asked a friend for an idea.  Her response was "something patriotic". I started thinking of fireworks, picnics and parades.  But, nothing I could see in a sampler.  So, I went with my favorite subject, flowers; stitching them in red, white and blue. I have a hanging basket on the patio overflowing with red, white and blue flowers and the combination looks great together.  At the greenhouse, there were many to choose from.  Red geraniums or salvia.  Blue petunias or lobelia.  White petunias and verbena.  All were beautiful. My sampler uses imaginary flowers. Now, I'm thinking of making more bouquets for different seasons.  Maybe a Harvest Bouquet or a Spring Bouquet.  Hmmm, I'll see what happens ... This pattern is for sale on patternsonline.com .

I recently posted a pincushion with an alphabet going around the edge .  Next, I tried one with a design flowing across the edge and over the top. I think of the design as a ribbon of color.  But, what to put in the center? My first tries were all ripped out.  None of the cross stitch designs worked. Next, I tried pulled thread. This didn't get ripped out.  Still, I tried again with the double running stitch and I like that the best. Bright and bold or more subdued I like this pincushion and would love to make more in many different colorways. What colors would you use?  This pattern is for sale at patternsonline .

If you were going to come up with your own pincushion, what would it look like? I imagined one where a design went all around the edges, in this case an alphabet. It wasn't too difficult.  First, I calculated how many stitches I needed to go around the pincushion.  Then I made up an alphabet that was too large to fit and then started eliminating stitches until it fit.  Notice the A is only 3 stitches wide but the B is 5 stitches.  So, some letters are really small and others are big. I didn't want the top to be completely covered with stitches.  After all, you have to have a place to stick the pins. So, I ended up with a simple X pattern enhanced with the some beads.  I've used something similar in ornaments.  No matter what colors I've used it always looks good when completed. Like the pincushion?  The pattern is for sale at www.patternsonline.com . I came up with my own way of putting this pincushion tog...

I finished round 2 of Christmas Ornaments getting to use a lot of different threads . They are simple squares - scraps of leftover linen - backed with felt. I enjoy playing with different color combinations.  Some are subtle. And others are bolder.  All with the same pattern. Don't ask me which ones I like best. Next, I'm going to give most of them away.  And then start round 3.  Finish up some ornaments that I didn't finish last year. Like the pattern?  It's  for sale at patternsonline.com.

Wild roses are blooming!  Just in time for the reveal of my latest design inspired by the wild roses. It's a Blossom sewing kit. This design started out as experimentation .  I was thinking of a pink and white bracelet made of seed beads using the square stitch.  Don't ask why - that's an even longer story.  My eyes are not as agreeable to beading so I tried it as a cross stitch design, reversing the colors to see which I liked better. One day I was looking at the scrap and decided it would fit on a tin.  All the sudden it became an official project.  I made up a leaf pattern that fit between the rows of flowers and repeated the two main motifs to become a scissors fob and a mini pincushion. I did bring the seed beads along.  It's much easier to stitch them to cloth then to stitch them together.  A little twisted cord and a lot of glue and I have a travel sewing kit. Everything fits perfectly in the tin with some extra room ...

I was taking pictures outside because the light is better.  I stopped and came back and was struck at how absurd the card lay propped up next to some dead plants. Up close, it looks better. Here it is even closer. The big stitch is a Smyrna Cross (or Double Cross) and it's my new favorite stitch.  It is a cross stitch with and upright cross stitch on top of it. It's done here with DMC Color Variations thread and I love the subtle color changes.  I also love the texture that the stitch brings to the finished piece.  I am imagining a landscape done mostly in Cross Stitch with the Smyrna Cross, and possibly other stitches, used to give it more dimension.  I wonder if I'll ever get around to it. The Smyrna Heart pattern is for sale at Patterns Online.

Here's my latest design. It seems like I've been working on this all year long.  I've been planning having it done every weekend since Thanksgiving but things kept getting in the way. The main design is four squares.  Each one has a slightly different border and a slightly different center. I decided I needed an outer border around the squares.  Typically, I'll figure out how long the border needs to be and break it up into sections.  For example, a border of 70 stitches will have 10 repeats of a 7 stitch design or 7 repeats of a 10 stitch design. In this case, I wasn't in a math mood.  So, I played around with a design on graph paper until I had a repeat that I liked.  I centered it over the design and repeated it past the edges on two sides.  Where the designs met I simply erased stitches and added others until I came up with something I liked.  This time, the plan worked out well.  I like how the chain turns the corner. This is...

Bonus ornaments!  I found these 2 small stitched snowflakes.  I did them a few years ago while I was testing various color combinations for snowflakes.  In the shuffle of other projects they were set aside. I definitely like the one with the dark blue touches.  But the white was is nice too. I charted the top ornament and the pattern is for sale on patternsonline .

This is what I've been stitching on for so long.  It is finally done!  And the pattern is for sale on patternsonline . I like stitching pumpkins and have wanted to do a bigger design with them for a long time. It was inspired by all the rows of pumpkins that I've carved over the years. These are Ohio pumpkins so have to be at least 20 years old. And these are Colorado pumpkins and are probably only 10 years old.  I can still see the resemblance. Instead of filling the pumpkins in with lots of stitching that would take more time than I have I decided to turn the design into a maze.  There's no specific starting or ending place but you can wander across the design through stitched paths.  But beware, there are also lots of dead ends. That's it!  I'm done with fall now and ready to go back to summer.  Except I need to get back to Christmas ornaments.

Here's my latest pattern available at patternsonline .  It's called the Striped Pumpkin and was done back at the same time as the Striped Mountain Scene and the Striped Snowman . I've been waiting for Halloween to get closer before releasing it.  It's beginning to act a little like fall so the time is right. I started with only an outline and filled it in like a coloring book starting with the face.  I collected 7 oranges and 7 greens to fill in the pumpkin and background.  The colors were alternated in my usual random style. However, adding stripes does add complexity.  I'm tempted to stitch it again with only one orange, green, brown and black.  First I'll have to finish the other Halloween design I'm working on.  I'm stitching as fast as I can and hope to have it done in a few more weeks.

Here's my latest cross-stitch design available on patternsonline . I have 4 of these 3x3 inch frames and I need to get them filled.  I decided to stitch various flowers from my garden and picked blue flax for the first flower. As you can see the stems and leaves are very delicate and they have a blueish-purple flower. This is Linum Lewissi named for Meriwether Lewis of Lewis and Clark fame. Linen, the fabric I often stitch on is made from Linum Usitatissumum.  Blue flax must have similar characteristics because my wildflower guide states that the American Indians did twist the stems into fishing lines. It is very difficult to photograph flax on a windy day.  But, I discovered that they make great shadows. On my to-do list is to play with some of the shadow photos on Photoshop.  If I can get a pleasing arrangement I may try a feature of my cross-stitch software that I haven't used yet.  I can upload a photo and have it automaticall...

It's almost the end of June and the penstemons are fading.  Most of them have now gone to seed. However, I was finally able to stitch a penstemon! One of my drawings was easily turned into a cross-stich chart with only cross-stitches - no half stitches or outlines.  But, for the word "penstemon" I had to use both cross-stitches and backstitches - otherwise the word would not have fit. The design was sized to fit in a specific frame .  But, if the word "penstemon" is left off, it will fit in a standard 4 x 6 frame.  The color of the word "penstemon" was also determined by the  frame.  Why not try to coordinate?  The other colors were harder to choose because penstemons come in so many colors. I finally used purples - the same color as the penstemons in my yard.  However, penstemons come in many other colors:  white, yellow, orange, pink and red, to name a few. I used 3 different purples for the flower an...

It seems like I've been working on this for months and it is finally done! This biscornu was a complete accident.  I was trying to design something else and the end result looked more like a coneflower than what I was trying to design, especially when I changed the color to bright pink. I love coneflowers and you can probably tell that based on the picture which is currently at the top of this blog.  Every year I scatter more seed and a few more coneflowers grow in my garden. As often happens, in this design I combine my love of flowers with my love of quilts. I've just finished going through my copy of "1000 Great Quilt Blocks" and didn't see this one.  If I pieced it, it would be a Log Cabin or a Cornerstone variation.  Like Log Cabin, the blocks can be arranged in many different patterns (and I had fun experimenting). One side of the biscornu has the quilt blocks in the center and the coneflowers on the outside.  On the flip side, the coneflowers ar...