Marcy’s Musings

Hi, there! Congratulations to Dianna Salciccioli, winner of Gayle’s FreshFiction “cozy, romantic February prize pack.” Dianna won an autographed copy of Dead Pan and a sterling silver locket.

As you can see, Gayle made good on her promise to do more redwork. She started this pillowcase on Super Bowl Sunday. Hey, you have to do something between commercials, right? (Kidding!) Now if she can just find time to do the other one….

Artist Spotlight: Peter Fasolino 

I’m introducing you to Peter because he did some wonderful drawings which Gayle turned into cross-stitch patterns for The Quick and The Thread. Peter is a talented artist and also something of a noir detective film buff, so he and Gayle got along great. Peter was gracious enough to prepare these drawings this past weekend when he was snowed in.

Thank you, Peter!

Just look at my precious Angus! Isn’t this a terrific rendering?

Look for the cross-stitch patterns for these coming soon in The Quick and The Thread!

Check out my cover!

Don’t you love it?! I do. I’m really thrilled. Gayle told her editor she wanted to hug the artist. So she (a/k/a Amanda Lee) and I have something else to be thankful for tomorrow.

I’m keeping this newsletter short and sweet since tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day. I hope all of you have a wonderful, blessed day.

Welcome to Sew Deadly!

Sew Deadly is the new blog newsletter from Marcy Singer, heroine of the embroidery mystery series. This blog will go up every other Wednesday, and we’ll talk about embroidery projects, sites, shops, products, my books and whatever else you want to talk about. If you  have a project you’d like to showcase, please let Gayle know at gayle@gayletrent.com.

Project Showcase

As you may or may not recall, a few weeks ago we took a look at Gayle’s valiant efforts on the angel she was hoping would be the topper for the family’s Christmas tree this year. Well, believe it or not, she has it finished!

Here is the finished needlework on the canvas prior to Gayle cutting it out and putting the backing on. Says Gayle, “I was so afraid I’d ruin it when I cut the canvas, I wanted a picture so I’d at least have something to show for all my hard work!”

But, as you can see below, she was not only able to cut out the angel, she was able to put the backing on it, trim it with beaded lace and turn it into a tree topper.

Okay, so it’s not on the tree yet, but it will be. Hey, it’s not even Halloween yet!

Once again, if you have a project you’d like to showcase, please let us know at gayle@gayletrent.com.

Gayle’s angel was done in tent stitches and also incorporated French knots and Hungarian stitching. Gayle was unfamiliar with Hungarian stitching, so she pretty much had to “wing” it. Pun intended! Still, she was really pleased with how it turned out.

Site Spotlight: Designs by Sick

Designs by Sick allows you to buy embroidery sets or individual designs. Best of all, the site has an alphabetical subject search option where you can find exactly what you’re looking for. Designs by Sick aren’t “sick” designs, so don’t be afraid to check it out! They have some adorable things.

Hey, there! Gayle is really coming along with her angel tree-topper. You’ll really be surprised when you see it next. Gayle is waffling between letting you take a peek and waiting until she gets it finished. She’s leaning toward making you wait.

In the meantime, check out Sharon Boggon’s online Dictionary of Stitches for Hand Embroidery and Needlework. Sharon has all kinds of stitches listed, complete with how-to links. She even has tips for left-handers. (That means you, Retta. Retta is Gayle’s mom!)

Marcy here. Not much progress to report on Gayle’s tree-topper this week, so I went in search of something else to talk about.

I found it here at Sublime Stitching. Their tagline is “This ain’t your gramma’s embroidery!” Check out the Roaring Twenties’ patterns. My other faves are the Bon Voyage, Dress Up and Sexy Librarians.

The genius behind the site is Jenny Hart. Jenny introduced embroidery patterns with pinups, tattoos and robots on her self-made website in 2001, and Sublime Stitching sparked a new revolution in embroidery design. Since then, she has won awards for her internationally published books on embroidery.

Hmmm….maybe I should write a book someday. You think?

Hi, Marcy here. I’m sorry I’ve neglected to post for a couple weeks. Things have been hectic. Anyway, I want to update you on Gayle’s Christmas tree topper angel. Here is what the finished project is supposed to look like:

Pretty, right?

Here is what Gayle has so far:

So, she’s getting there. She only started the project this past week, and she has three needles going.

Stay tuned….

Paper? Embroidery? Those two just don’t seem to go together, do they? And, yet, paper embroidery is a hot form of embroidery being used on greeting cards and in scrapbooking. Think string art you used to do as a child with yarn and construction paper evolved into a classier version.

Check out these links telling you more about paper embroidery and providing you with free patterns if you’re interested in trying it yourself.

http://www.mcuniverse.com/Paper-Embroidery-Faden-Grafik.1786.0.html

http://www.needlepointers.com/ShowArticles.aspx?NavID=1577

http://www.creativepapercrafts.com/products/paperembroidery.aspx

Have you ever done any paper embroidery? If so, please leave me a comment below and tell me more about it!

Have you ever seen the magazine A Needle Pulling Thread? I recently came across a copy at my local Books-A-Million. It’s dubbed “the magazine promoting Canadian needle arts,” and it has some fascinating stuff.

This particular issue features Celtic gift boxes (fibre art), Swedish weaving, cross stitch, rug hooking, silk ribbon embroidery, knitting, quilting and Gerdany Ukrainian Beadwork. Various designers are spotlighted, and they tell readers about their work, their inspirations and their techniques.

The issue I bought also has a reproduction of a schoolgirl sampler stitched by Mary Keillor in 1837. Mary stitched the piece when she was nine years old. The sampler is displayed at New Brunswick’s Keillor House Museum and was reproduced by Sheila F. Horsman. Ms. Horsman goes on to explain that Mary Keillor’s sampler is typical of those used to educate girls during the 1700s to mid-1800s. The samplers were used to teach the girls a variety of embroidery stitches, their alphabet, numbers and a verse. This particular sampler has a version of the Golden Rule with the sampler saying, “Do as you would wish to be done by.”

Hey, there! Marcy here. Wednesdays are my allotted post days. So, here I am!

If you don’t know me, I’m the . . . ahem . . . fictional heroine of the new cozy mystery series Gayle is writing under the pseudonym Amanda Lee. I live on the Oregon Coast and run my own little embroidery shop. My best friends run the coffee shop next door and make me low-fat vanilla lattes with cinnamon. Yum.

Anyway, I’m here to tell you, Christmas is only about five months away. I know, I know. Who wants to be thinking about Christmas when it’s like 85 degrees outside, right? But, you don’t want it creeping up on you without your having time to get all your ornaments and gifts stitched.

In fact, Gayle is hoping to make a new angel Christmas tree topper before Christmas. Of ‘09. Yeah, I’ll have to see it to believe it myself. (Of course, I’d better watch who I’m talking about, or who knows what she’ll have me do in my next book!)

But, if you’re ready to knock out a few early Christmas gifts and save yourself the hassel this fall, check out these terrific free embroidery designs. So download some designs, and get to stitching!

And if you’d like to make something for me, I absolutely love handstitched ornaments of snowmen, angels, dogs . . . .

How do you like the new website? Personally, I love it. I wanted to take a moment and let you know what I’ll be doing with this blog.

Of course, I’ll be updating you on current releases, contests, giveaways and other fun things. I’ll also be letting you know about workshops and appearances.

Since my characters dabble in cake decorating and embroidery, they will be guest posting. Daphne Martin from Murder Takes the Cake will post about baking, cake decorating, candy making and other things sweet and fattening. She might occasionally talk about what’s happening in Southwest Virginia. Marcy Singer from the embroidery mystery series will blog about embroidery techniques, sewing, home decor and life on the Oregon Coast.

I’ll also be posting articles pertaining to writing and publishing. See my Coaching page for more information about The Writer’s Planner, and contact me if you’d like to know about one-on-one coaching, e-classes or teleseminars. Twice a month, I’ll be hosting an author from the Virtual Book Tour; and I’ll provide you with a link so you can check out my guest post on another member’s blog.

Thank you for joining me!