👑KingSophiesWorld👑

 

Here is Sophie King's store, take a peek!

I realized recently that I have not given a shout-out to my fellow needle-pointers since the inception of this blog. The Instagram account pictured above is of an embroidery artist that I have followed for at least a year. Her work that caught my eye early on was that of some roses that she stitched through. The idea to use a needle and yarn on anything other than a mesh of some kind is so beautiful to me. What really touched me is my own experience with needlework and the natural world. When I was a small child, I remember being in summer camp in Los Angeles, and bored one day. So I took to the fallen leaves and sticks on the ground. I would use the 'sharp' end of a fallen twig and weave it through a leaf that was green enough to not crumple when I did so. I remember thinking I was a genius for coming up with this on my own! 

I enjoy following Sophie King's account (click the link!) as a reminder that an idea is not always your own. Sometimes someone in a different part of the world is thinking the very same thing. 

I will say that I very much appreciate Sophie using fake plants for this project. Besides this also being an easy way to prolong the life of this piece of art, it's also eco-friendly, which is never a bad thing. : )

Please remember when looking at Sophie's store that these prices absolutely reflect the work going into creating a handmade needlework piece. I have experience with selling my needlepoint work for much less than it is worth, and the artist part of me would feel the pang of basically giving away what hours of work should amount to. I don't know if Sophie has experience with underselling her work, but I am proud of her for realizing her money worth!

A Bathroom Mirror Selfie, For You & Me 🤳🏽

     My passion for needlepoint has taken me in many directions. There are times when I have even made needlepoint creations without a pattern! This is an example of me using a pattern, but with my OWN interpretation.

The young man pictured here is my ex-boyfriend. 

This is Dave.

    Labels are of course a limited view of any human being, but perhaps this label serves a purpose. Let’s call said boyfriend, “Dave”. When we were still an item, I wished to create an image of Dave that is particular to my artistry. Funny enough, the picture that I believed to be the most stunning and beautiful of Dave was a selfie he took just for me, of him trying on a suit for a wedding. This is when I also thought to look for selfies of myself, as sort of a “couples portraits” endeavor. When we broke up around a month after I started this project, I decided that I would finish both portraits because the idea was born and I felt I had to bring it to its fruition. Not that it matters, but Dave is fine with this.

    I consider myself an experienced needlepoint artist, but it is quite a feat to replicate a photograph in needlepoint form without a computer-generated pattern. For such a pattern, I used the website pic2pat. I used this website before for the portrait of my mother, and even for my portrait of Beyoncé, but did not actually use the intended pattern. 

Needlepoint portrait of my Mommy.

Needlepoint portrait of Beyoncé.

    I simply referenced the created color image, and painstakingly stitched each tiny color that I could see.

    This time around, I decided that the image would be easier to accomplish and more complete, if I actually followed the given template! Pic2pat gives one the option to basically decide how large and detailed to make the entire pattern. As you can imagine, the more detailed the pattern, the more closely it resembles the original image. Though this means a larger pattern, and takes more time to complete. The final pattern that I decided on was something of a compromise between the size of the pattern and how much time I was willing to spend on it!

First portrait still coming together...

First portrait is finally on my wall!

Hey Look! It’s me and me!

    Now when I said that I used my OWN interpretation, I am referring to the type of pattern I am using. The website pic2pat is for cross-stitch patterns. A pattern for needlepoint on plastic canvas is really no different, so this is not a problem. My only concern was using a mesh with smaller holes so that my finished creation was not HUMONGOUS! So rather than my usual 7-mesh, I went with a 10-mesh.

    Now, this pattern is large enough that I had to use several pieces of mesh in total, to stitch together into the full image. Lucky for me, I suppose, both of these finished portraits are the exact same size.

    Here are some sample images of a pattern generated by the website. Again this is NOT a pattern from the portraits that I talked about, but from a different project. 

To make my yarn colors easy to remember, I made a separate chart with the EXACT yarn color taped to each symbol.

 This is the order that each “pattern page” must be connected to form the entire image.

          

Just look at all those symbols! On a pattern, I have to keep up with every single one, consistently.

                Now finally, here is what my dining room looks like after both portraits are complete.

A Cottage For My Sniffles 🏠

 

             When I decided to make this tissue box cover, designed by needlepoint contest favorite, Angela K. Arickx, it was purely out of an admiration for the unique pattern. I have come across many "cottage house" needlepoint on plastic canvas patterns, but somehow this one has a spectacular realism to it. I am also very much a sucker for tissue that looks like smoke coming from a chimney!

             I did not have a recipient in mind for this needlepoint project, and I still don't. I love to come home and see this little house; it reminds that beautiful things like this can be created in any quiet corner of the world.

          I think that the hardest part of this project was putting the smaller roofs (gables) on the top. I know from my experience of making tiny houses that you don't want those lopsided! 

To Fan the Flames of Beauty 🌬️

      This stunningly gorgeous handbag was designed by Debbie Tabor. She has once again out-done herself with needlepoint designs! I first saw this design many moons before I actually began completing it myself. This purse really fueled my decision to purchase the plastic canvas "Totes" book in which it is featured. In case you are unclear, this image is of a woman covering her face with a Victorian-era fan. You can decide for yourself why she is doing this.

       I very much enjoyed making this purse. The inverted sides and bottom are really just little pieces that are stitched together. I went online and bought the ribbon and flowers to complete the look of the purse. I think the most challenging part of this creating process was picking out the colors for the woman's face. There are so many colors there!

        I made the eyebrows a bit bolder than suggested, just to give a more striking look. I, of course, reinforced the handles with an extra piece of mesh. This purse is nothing if not sturdy!

      Like all of my current purses, I made sure to line this one quite pristine. Here we have a white, costume silk that I think blends quite well with the look of the purse.

          I don't know about you, but I think that this handbag can go well with anything. What do you think?

The Cat Locator 🐈

         I was recently commissioned to create a needlepoint door hanger. One of the most adorable designs I have the pattern to is this "kitty locator" that was originally designed by Debbie Tabor. You can check out this pattern book from the link! This confection comes from a needlepoint pattern book of kitty-appreciation-themed boxes and picture frames and even a scratching post. I don't trust the scratching post just because I dislike the idea of creating something beautiful for my cat, just for her to gradually destroy it!

     I was very excited to kick start this project. But just like many crafting experiences, I discovered an extreme inaccuracy in the project pattern, only after cutting out the mesh pieces and picking out the yarn! It turns out that the pattern for one side of this two-sided door hanger was completely reversed, so i had the makeshift that side, as I went along. I am very grateful to have had years of experience doing needlepoint on plastic canvas, because I figured out the problem and solution quite deftly. In the end, I have this beautiful piece that I shipped off to my commissioner, just yesterday!

      Of course, my absolute FAVORITE part of this design is the "backside". It has just enough realism to get the point across, but is not so realistic as to nauseate the onlooker. The tail feature of this piece shows us how beauty and function can be the same. I must say, it can be a plus to know when the kitty is "in" and the kitty is "out"....of the room.