Fall Needleroll - Heart in Hand

Design: Fall Needleroll from Fall Fobs chart

Designer: Heart in Hand

Threads: DMC as charted

Fabric: 28 count evenweave

I stitched this for Gaby over on the Hooked on Exchanges blog. It seems like most of my stitching these days is for exchanges, I've lost my mojo for 'selfish stitching' but it is so much fun to give - and to receive - to friends all over the world.

I think I will have to stitch this piece for myself though - I loved the colours and the style. I stitched it in the DMC that the chart called for, but I did alter the colour of one of the pumpkins. I think my favourite part though was the specialty stitch band at the bottom - the combination of colours and textures looks great!

I finished off the needleroll with a little acorn charm, and some organza ribbon. This picture shows a little flash glare:

Antique Hearts Needleroll - Shepherd's Bush

Design: Antique Hearts Needleroll

Designer: Shepherd's Bush

Threads: DMC - mostly as charted, beads, lace, ribbon and charm from stash

Fabric: 28 count evenweave, bone

I really like the Shepherd's Bush needlerolls  - and if anyone has charts from these needing a new home, I might be interested in buying or trading! I find them a good way to explore specialty stitches without getting too bogged down in a big project - and they do look attractive in a basket with other smalls.

This was a bit of a 'stash buster' project, as I used decorative pieces from my hoards of such things. I do seem to acquire pretties, and then not use them...

The big task with these needlerolls is the construction - I use a French seam, and I stitch and hem all by hand, it seems to take almost as long as the embroidery itself!

Fall Needleroll from Lucy

Design: Autumn

Designer: Helga Mandl

Stitched over one by Lucy

I struggled to get a good picture of this because it's a needleroll stitched over one and is pretty small - the design goes all the way round, so you're just going to have to guess how gorgeous it is! It was an exchange I received from one of the lovely people over on Hooked on Exchanges recently.

Lucy's stitching is beautiful and I don't believe it's her first needleroll finish :o) I don't have the patience - or the eyesight - to do a complete project 'over one' - so this is especially nice to have.

It's now on my cabinet with my other autumn/Halloween goodies - thank you again, Lucy!

Christmas Ornament Exchange

Design: Joy Needleroll
Designer: Jeannette Douglas Designs
Threads: DMC (own choice)

Fabric: white evenweave

This is the needleroll I sent all the way to New Zealand to Margaret. Margaret does such beautiful work, I was rather nervous about my half of the exchange - I wanted something a little 'more' than just cross stitch and this mini needleroll seemed to fit the bill, as it has a number of other stitches in it.

The design is from a JCS ornament issue (2002?) but if you don't recognise it, it is because I radically changed the colour scheme!

Oh, and I don't think the pictures are playing nice today, so apologies if you have to crick your neck!

Needleroll - Cathy Bussi

Design: Needleroll (from an old edition of Needlecraft magazine, sometime in 2000)
Designer: Cathy Bussi
Threads: DMC
Fabric: 28 count evenweave, bone

I stitched this piece for the recent needleroll exchange over on Hooked on Exchanges. I'm not normally a big stitcher of delicate pieces in pastels, but I really enjoyed making this for Amy, and I'm so glad she liked it! I added beads and an irridescent heart from my stash, and my LNS sells irridescent ribbon which matched perfectly :o) I do like making needlerolls, even the hemstitching is fun (now!)

Below you can see the complete exchange I sent, which included one of my floss tags:

Needleroll Exchange Pictures

Last week, the postman delivered most wonderful parcel that had come from Joan! In it was a fabulous needleroll (from a design by Lavender Wings) - complete with some needles! And no longer do I have to look with envy at others who have been given one of her lovely project bags and cute chickens - because I have my very own! And the goodies didn't finish there, either! Joan hit my wishlist in a big way, and included a Shepherds Bush needleroll kit (Forget-me-not), a whole raft of SB freebie charts and a heap of Prairie Schooler freebie charts too, as well as two skeins of DMC color variations in my favourite shades!

I was well and truly spoilt and 'thank you' hardly seemed to cover it - wasn't I the lucky girl?

Spring Needleroll - Heart In Hand

Design: Spring Needleroll (from the Spring Fobs leaflet)
Designer: Heart in Hand
Threads: DMC
Fabric: 32 count linen, cream

Another finish for the Monthly Finishing Challenge! I'm so competitive, one needleroll just won't do, I have to make up two! :o)

Again, this was hand sewn, with a hemstitch end, ribbon carriers and French seamed. This is not how the designer directed - apparently, you are just seam the roll, thread the ribbon and there you go - despite the cover model obviously being hemmed in some manner to get rid of excess fabric. Pretty poor instructions, if you ask me...

July Needleroll - The Victoria Sampler

Design: July Needleroll
Designer: The Victoria Sampler
Threads: DMC and Kreinik
Fabric: 28 count quaker evenweave

This has been languishing in my finishing pile for longer than I care to remember (possibly four years...) and thanks to Becky's Monthly Finishing Challenge blog, it's now made up!


The ends are hemstitched, as are the ribbon carriers, and the seam is French seamed, to hide the raw edges. I sew all the seams by hand too, it's easier than setting up my machine, and it's nice and relaxing, too.

Great Stitchy Day Yesterday!

I was feeling a little blue when I got home from work yesterday - it had been a dull, slow day, the weather was awful, I was feeling achey ... and then The Hermit pointed out a package waiting for me. It was covered in stamps and looked really cheerful, but what was inside was even better! Janaina was my partner in the Hooked on Exchanges Pinkeep Exchange, and she sent me a lovely stitched piece - Love, by Little House Needleworks. She says she's a better stitcher than finisher, but she's a pretty good finisher! I was spoiled with the goodies: some fruit tea (I love fruit teas!), some shower gel (I love having a long shower!), some floss - I think a Brazilian brand, how exotic (and yes, I love the colours - all autumnal!), some stitching fabric (I love neutral coloured evenweaves), some finishing fabric (I love the funky spring colours and designs) and a postcard (I love postcards, I'm a member of Postcrossing.) Can you tell I'm a happy bunny? LOL

I've taken a photo, but I won't be able to upload it until tomorrow, because I've left the relevant USB cable at work...

Anyway, that cheered me up no end, as did The Hermit making dinner, so I then set to work on my own stitching - actually, finishing this time. I'm a new member of the Monthly Finishing Challenge Blog, and the challenge this month was for a needleroll. And I finally made up the July Needleroll by The Victoria Sampler! I did it listening to the football commentary on the radio (Liverpool V Arsenal) . It was very exciting, so I was a little hyper by full time - which coincided with the final stuffing - so I went on and did another one! This was the needleroll from Spring Fobs by Heart in Hand, and it's been finished for at least three years! Again, I'll post pics tomorrow :o)

So, I'm a bit tired this morning, but pretty perky, and over the blue mood! I've got a nice day to look forward to today - I'm meeting up with my parents, my sister and my niece this morning, then I have a lunch meeting to discuss a presentation I'm making at a Learner Celebration evening - and the place we're meeting does goodfood :o).

Finishing Challenge

I've signed up to Becky's new blog - the Monthly Finishing Challenge so that will sort out my finishing goal for the month! This month's challenge is a needleroll, and I have at least two in my pile to be made up! I won't say how long one of them has been waiting to be assembled, but I think it has to be nearly four years...

Schoolhouse Needleroll - Shepherd's Bush

Firstly, a quick thank you to each and every one of you who leaves comments - they are all appreciated! If you haven't done so already, do think about signing up for my first round of "Pay It Forwards" - there's a spot left!

This is my schoolhouse needleroll finally made up after all the anguish of the red colour running - it doesn't look too bad although really close inspection will still show a pink tinge around the apples! I couldn't find a small enough bell charm for the schoolhouse, so it is silent for now. However, I think it's quite appropriate - I was reading a local history booklet about the history of my primary school, and it mentioned there that our school bell was stolen one night - I'd forgotten that! It was a bit of a nine day wonder in the village - it was a very small place! - and instead of being called in from break and lunch by the bell, the teachers had to use whistles. It just wasn't the same!

Peace Needleroll - Jeannette Douglas Designs

This was stitched as part of a Chartswappers stitch a long - I changed the colours to specifically go with the fabric I had chosen and I was lucky enough last week to find the perfect matching ribbon at my LNS - it's pinky mauve chiffon with an irridescent shimmer!

Winter Needleroll - Heart in Hand

It's not quite winter yet, but I thought I would get these cheerful chappies ready anyway! I do like needlerolls as a way of finishing smalls, I did this one very simply with a standard "dressmaking" hem.

Design Details

Fabric: 28 count linen, natural
Threads: DMC stranded cotton
Designer: Cecilia Turner (Heart in Hand)
Chart Details: Winter Fobs - Heart in Hand
Stitch Count: 44H x 62V
Stitches Used: Cross Stitch, Back Stitch, Rhodes Stitch, Oblong Smyrna Stitch, Closed Herringbone Stitch
Threads Used: DMC 712, 355, 680, 3740, 926, 729, 922, 844, 612, 3778, 927, 3362. Cross stitch in two strands.
Embellishments: Two star shaped buttons.
Modifications Made: Own choice of buttons. DMC conversion used.

Schoolhouse Needleroll - Shepherd's Bush

This was stitched as part of a Round Robin (which never really got off the ground, this was the only piece completed), but came back to me needing beads added, which I've done. I then made a huge mistake - I pressed it with steam, and the red (WDW Lancaster Red) ran, and ran, and ran... it took two days of rinsing and drying to get (most) of the colour out. The hem stitching is supposed to be done in the same thread but I'm not going to risk it!

Design Details
chart has gone astray, will complete later.

Spring Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs

Another needleroll, another beehive, another Lorri Birmingham design! I think there might be a trend here...

I miscounted centring this piece vertically, so I stitched a compensating row at the top to make it look more even when it was made up, otherwise it was fairly straightforward - even though I'm not a fan of fractional stitches, these didn't cause too many problems.

I think the bunnies look a bit "cutesey" but hopefully the focus is the beehive!

This is the last of my Lorri Birmingham kits I'm intending to stitch - I have a Santa needleroll chart, but that's waiting for supplies when I get off the wagon!

I finished this off as a needleroll almost as soon as I had stitched it, which lead to a great finishing flurry yesterday, as I had my sewing kit out!

Design Details

Fabric: 28 count linen banding, white
Threads: DMC stranded cotton
Designer: Lorri Birmingham
Kit Details: Spring Needle Roll # K287, Lorri Birmingham Designs
Stitch Count: 48H x 59H as charted
Stitches Used: Cross Stitch, Fractional Cross Stitch, Back Stitch, French Knot.
Threads Used: DMC 316, 340, 433, 435, 436, 437, 470, 471, 738, 778, 3776, 3820, 3821, 3822. Cross stitch in two strands, back stitch in one.
Embellishments: Gold plated charms - 1 x butterfly, 2 x bee
Modifications Made: Extra row of stitching added to top of needle roll.

Bumble Bee Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs

Whilst I was in a finishing mood last night, I also finished off the Bumble Bee Needleroll - one of my goals! The seam is a French seam, stitched by hand, so all raw edged are enclosed.

Stuffing needlerolls always takes longer than one would imagine, but I think it's important to tease out the stuffing, stuff firmly and evenly, and have a nice cylindrical shape! After all, what's a few minutes when one has spent several hours on the stitching, and is going to have the joy of looking at the finished piece for years? The trouble is, I'm torn - I'm impatient so I just want the thing finished, and have to curb my tendencies to cram all the stuffing in willy nilly but on the other hand I'm a bit of a perfectionist, and I want to do things properly! As I get older, the perfectionist side is coming out more, but the advantage to age is more experience, so I can achieve the results I want almost at the speed I want! LOL

Thanks to everyone who has commented so far on my blog - it is appreciated! I hope I don't ramble too much - I tried at first for a very factual blog, but then I found pieces had stories to tell, and I have to tell them! :o)

Sweetheart Needleroll - The Sweetheart Tree

This delicate sampler/needleroll was (mostly) enjoyable to work, and fairly straightforward but the very delicacy of the stitching made it seem more complex than it was! A little frogging on some of the back stitch was needed, but overall it was fine!

The colours work well together, and the piece has more impact made up into a needleroll than flat.

This is definitely as pink and girly as I get. It's not really "me" although I admit it's very pretty! My favourite thing about this are the specialty stitches - a needleroll is big enough to get the hang of them, but small enough for boredom not to set in!



Finishing was a little different to usual, but looked very effective. I've taken to making all my needlerolls with a French seam - it's more time consuming, especially as I construct them by hand, not machine - but in my opinion, it's the neatest way.

Design Details

Fabric: 32 count Belfast linen, antique white
Threads: DMC stranded cotton, #12 perle, Needle Necessities overdyed floss
Designer: Sandra Cox Vanosdall
Chart Details: Sweetheart Needleroll - The Sweetheart Tree (c) 1995
Stitch Count: 60H x 72V
Stitches Used: Cross Stitch, Diamond Eyelet Stitch, Satin Stitch, Back Stitch, Oblique Herringbone Stitch, Mosaic Stitch, Horizontal Knit Stitch, Herringbone Stitch, Tent Stitch
Threads Used: DMC ecru, 224, 225, 503, DMc #12 Perle in ecru, NN #158 Cluny Rose. Cross stitch in two strands, back stitch in one.
Embellishments: Mill Hill Petite Seed Beads #40123, Rose Quartz Heart Bead.
Modifications Made: None.

Bee Kind Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs

Now my camera is working here is the needleroll in 3D!

Full details about this design can be found in an earlier post, here.

Bumble Bee Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs

Ages ago, I stitched the scissor fob which matches this needleroll, so at last, this will be joining it in my basket of smalls!

The design calls for the bee's body to be stitched in French knots, but when I stitched the fob, my French knots left a lot to be desired (they can still do so...) so I stitched the bee in cross stitch - so I chose to do this for the needleroll too. It makes the bee look less "fuzzy", but the colour changes are more visible, so it's swings and roundabouts I guess.


Design Details

Fabric: 28 count linen band, white
Threads: DMC stranded cotton
Designer: Lorri Birmingham
Chart Details: Bumble Bee Needle Roll Item # 271K - Lorri Birmingham Designs
Stitch Count: 48H x 48H
Stitches Used: Cross Stitch, Back Stitch, Fractional Cross Stitch, Hem Stitch
Threads Used: DMC stranded cotton in white, 209, 827, 937, 3799, 3820, 340, 470, 725, 745, 317, 801, 828
Embellishments: Four Czech Fire Polished Crystal beads
Modifications Made: Hem Stitch done over four threads, not two. Cross stitches used in place of French knots on bee's body.

Bee Kind Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs

This picture is the flat piece - I have now made it up into a needleroll, but with my camera out of action, couldn't add a picture of the 3D piece! It's also not been a great finish - I made it a little narrow, but it is still very pretty! Probably at the limit of my girly tolerance ...

I don't really like Lorri Birmingham kits because the instructions are not the best, and this kit was no exception. There was some perle 12 thread included which was never mentioned in the instructions, the colours used for backstitch weren't explained, and the placing of the quartz beads wasn't charted either - so it's a good job I'm an experienced stitcher, a beginner could have been really thrown!

I do like the fact that the linen banding is pre finished though - it can be a slog to make a needleroll otherwise!

Design Details

Fabric: 28 count linen band, white
Threads: DMC stranded cotton
Designer: Lorri Birmingham
Chart Details: Bee Kind Needle Roll Item # 251 K - Lorri Birmingham Designs
Stitch Count: 57V x 50H
Stitches Used: Cross Stitch, Back Stitch, Fractional Cross Stitch, Hem Stitch
Threads Used: DMC stranded cotton in Ecru, 676, 677, 680, 729, 869, 3363, 3364, 3726, 3727
Embellishments: Two gold plated bee charms, four rose quartz heart shaped beads
Modifications Made: Hem Stitch done over four threads, not two.