Becki has outdone herself with this beautiful piece by Leigh.

Everything about this piece is stunning!  She was quite a challenge.  Becki and I spent a lot of time hemming and hawing about her.

The background on this piece is amazing!  I love how she captured the lighting and movement throughout the piece.  When I tell you this piece was a doozy I’m not kidding!

I wish I could edit the pictures to show how the ribbon on the hat glows.  Let’s just say there’s a lot of very fine threads used on this piece.  If you know Becki at all . . .you shouldn’t expect anything more than two strands of thread.  Light  . . .airy . . .delicate . . .that’s her touch.

And those lips!  Ooh la la!

Becki will be teaching this piece at our retreat in April, Needlepoint in New England.  You can read all the details here!

I’ll be honest with you . . .I had no idea how to stitch this piece.  Becki pulled another masterpiece out of her hat!

Me! Me! Me!

Who doesn’t love cookies?  My son and I made cookies this afternoon.  Nothing fancy. . . just those little break and bake ones.  It’s cookies all around today.  My gingerbread man came back from the finisher this morning.

He’s just too cute!  I love the candy cane the finisher attached to the end of the hanger.

This cutie pie is from Leigh’s new series.  I know I told you all about them last week so I won’t bore you with the details again.  Just thought y’all would like to see him.

Our first round of orders sold out, but we have more coming.  Click here to pop over to the blog from earlier in the month to see all of his little friends.

I think this group of guys could use some girlfriends.  Hint . . .hint . . .Leigh!

I was out shopping and running errands all morning. I’m not sure what they’re giving away at Costco, Trader Joe’s and Old Navy, but I never found the free stuff. The stores were packed! I guess everyone is getting in the holiday spirit.

Speaking of which, I finished up the first of the Christmas Diner canvases in our new club over the weekend. It’s just too cute . . .if I don’t say so myself. LOL!

It’s a quick stitch, being only 5 x 5.

He has the sweetest little face. And the holly leaves make his outfit. Those will only be available during the club.

It’s hard to see from the picture, but the snowballs are puffed up.

The club starts in late January. But here’s the catch. . .you must sign up by November 15th (two days away) to be in the first shipment.

So treat yourself to a little holiday cheer. You cansign up online or by calling the shop. 203-210-5107

Mary Susan just finished up her piece that she will be teaching at our retreat, Needlepoint in New England, April 27-29, 2018.

She did a beautiful job, tackling a lot of challenges in the piece.  She not only tackled them . . .she CRUSHED them!

You’ll learn a ton in this class.  Raised fishbone. . .shaped Buttonhole . . .a new beading technique . . .and so much more.  I love the dark green leaves.  I can’t reveal all her secrets, but all I can say about those leaves is that it’s a technique I’ve never thought of.  Pretty hard to come up with something new.

Don’t worry if you’ve never worked with silk ribbon.  This technique is super easy.  Working with ribbon is different than working with a thread . . .but not necessarily harder.  Just different.  I’ll just say that silk ribbon pairs very well with a glass of Chardonnay.  LOL!

I wish needlepoint photographed better.  No matter what I do with a photo editing program it never does the stitching justice.  This jar is entirely beaded.  And boy does is shine and shimmer!  Mary Susan loves her beading!  But don’t let that scare you off.  This technique is much faster than regular beading.

The little bee is so adorable.  This piece is so beautifully stitched.  So sweet  . . .so fabulous.

I hope you can join us at our retreat.  You can call the shop to sign up or click here to sign up online.

203-210-5107

You know how much we love Melissa Prince’s movie coasters.  Now she has travel coasters!  We just received the entire set in the shop the other day.  I can’t wait to get a needle into these!  What a prefect way to commemorate a memorable trip you’ve taken.

Here are my favorites.

Alaska

Florida (this one cracks me up)

New England

New York

When I get a chance I’ll be stitching them up!

They measure 4 x 4 on 18 mesh.  A prefect size and a quick and easy project.  Perfect for this busy time of year.  And they don’t have to be made into a coaster if that isn’t your thing.  You can frame them . . .make a pillow . . .insert it into a box . . .or make a stand up.  We’ve finished this size canvas so many different ways.

I wonder if she’ll have some new ones for the January show.

I’m so excited to introduce our newest club, exclusive to The Enriched Stitch!

      These little cuties are 5 x 5 on 18 mesh canvas.  The club starts in January 2018.  You must sign up by November 15th to be included in the first shipment so we can get the canvases ordered.  The stitch guides are included in the kit with canvas and threads.  We haven’t totally finished stitching the series yet, so we’re not quite sure what the price of the threads will be.  But really . . .who cares?  They’re so stinkin’ cute!  Each canvas is $90 and includes the stitch guide.

The stitch guides are by yours truly, Suzie Vallerie and ANG teacher Nancy Taylor.

Here’s how it works.  You’ll be shipped the first canvas and stitch guide and the complete thread kit for all four canvases in January.  Then, you will receive one canvas and the stitch guide for the next three months.

You can sign up online or by calling the shop, in which case the deposit is for 1 canvas.   The deposit will be applied to the final canvas shipment.

I’ll post pictures as we get them stitched up.  You know they’re going to be even cuter!  We have some special little embellishments planned.  I was thinking that I would finish two of them as pillows with some really fun trim and another would be a standup and the last one could be inserted in a box.  So many possibilities!

I hope you join in the fun!

203-210-5107

Some of the most fun days we’ve ever had at the shop was when Amanda Lawford stopped by the shop with her magic suitcases filled with canvases.  What a treat to be able to see almost the entire line all at once.

This Saturday, November 11th, Amanda will be spending the day at the shop.  So stop by and meet her.  It’s so fascinating to talk to the designers about their pieces and find out the back story behind them.  With Amanda, there’s a story behind every one of her babies.

As a special treat to our customers, all the in stock Amanda Lawford and DC Designs canvases will be 20% off that day only!

If you can’t make it to the shop, give us a call or shoot us an email if there’s something you find that tickles your fancy.  There’s something for everyone in this vast line.

Check out her website to see the full line.  Well. . .almost the full line.  I’m working on getting the newest designs from Dallas on there.  If you missed them, here they are.

I hope you can stop by.  It’s gonna be a fun day!

World Traveler Santa 

20 inches on 18 mesh

30 inches on 13 or 18 mesh

NYC at Nite

4 x 6 on 18 mesh or 5 x 8 on 13 mesh

November 1st is a big day in the needlepoint world.  Leigh releases her “November Surprise.”  I would always look forward to see what she’s up to.  But now that Leigh has invited me to be part of her “Secret Stitchers” I get a sneak peek way before.

This series as adorable!  It was so hard to pick which one was my favorite.

Stitch guide by yours truly . . .Suzie Vallerie

Stitch guide by Pat Miller

Stitch guide by Carolyn Taggart

Stitch guide by Pat Miller

     Stitch guide by Carolyn Taggart

Stitch guide by Sharon Quick

Stitch guide by Sandy Arthur

Stitch guide by Sharon Quick

All of these cuties measure 4 x 5 on 18 mesh red canvas.  Each canvas is $95 and the stitch guides are $15 each.  Order one or order them all!  We can kit them up for you with all the fun threads and goodies that are in the different stitch guides.  How adorable would this series be displayed on a large wreath with some really fun plaid ribbon?  I’d love to have that hanging in my house next Christmas!

Give the shop a call to place an order.  203-210-5107.  I hope I ordered enough of these little guys this morning.  My guess is probably not.  I might have to give up my set!