Christmas Countdown #9: Val Laird Designs

I couldn't help but be charmed by this Free Christmas Dove Pattern by Val Laird Designs. Just a few simple stitches can transform this sweet pattern in so many ways!

Review: Stitch it with Wool Craftsy Class

When I was contacted by author Kristin Nicholas to review her upcoming Craftsy class, Stitch it with Wool: Crewel Embroidery, I was excited about my first experience with Crewel embroidery. I really enjoyed this experience and recommend this class for crewel beginners - Kristin is a great teacher with a Matisse-like colorful style and her thorough lessons give you all the tools you need to get started! I'll walk you through the class, the materials I used, and the small project I stitched for this review.

The class includes an 8 page PDF with a list of supplies and 2 large designs for the pillows above, with a clear breakdown of color, and which stitch goes where.

Here's a brief overview of the class, which is divided into 7 lessons: Lesson 1 goes into all the particulars of threads, needles, hoops, fabric, and transferring your design. You'll also learn great tips if you have never embroidered, like how to start and end your thread! Lesson 2 covers basic stitches - if you have embroidered for any length of time, you probably already know these - but I would still give them a watch because Kristin gives some great tips and examples. Lessons 3 and 4 are where the good stuff starts for an intermediate stitcher - introducing stitches that build on the basics. Lesson 5 and 6 introduced me to lots of unfamiliar stitches that were not yet in my repertoire - and stitches that lend themselves particularly well to crewel threads. Finally, in Lesson 7, Kristin tells you all about untangling and managing wool skeins, finishing techniques, and a really interesting topic - knowing when to stop. :)

Kristin is a fabulous and thorough teacher - she explains every stitch carefully, taking the time to explain mistakes that you may make, and how to avoid and correct them. Kristin is calming and personable, and I really like that her emphasis is more on creativity and not on perfection, which makes this class a great springboard to create your own projects. I also like that she shows you finished examples of every stitch, so that you can better visualize how each stitch can contribute to an overall design. Her own work features imaginative lines, textures and vivid combinations of color with a lively, painterly style.

You may be asking, do I really need to buy a bunch of crewel wool?



I was going to experiment with my regular embroidery floss or finer weight yarns until I saw Kristin's online store, and was hooked by her beautiful crewel wool. I bought the Some of Each set (above). Kristin was also sweet enough to add a large square of linen, in the color of my choice - I chose a neutral gray, to make the bright colors of the wool pop.

After taking the Appletons crewel wool for a test drive, I cannot say enough, yes, if you have never stitched with crewel wool, you should certainly try it.



Stitching with wool is SO distinct from stitching with embroidery cotton floss - the wool fiber is very thin, spongy, and springy. It has a marvelous matte texture that piles up nicely as you stitch. If you take this class, I definitely recommend purchasing a few crewel wool skeins. Another important note is that if you stitch with wool, you should definitely use linen fabric (something I learned the hard way, a few months ago). :)

Here is my small project:



I decided to practice the Spiderweb stitch for this review, tracing random circles to create this design. I used 3 bright colors of Appleton crewel wool, along with 2 light yarns and one thicker white wool yarn from my stash. I have to say, the Spiderweb stitch is addictive and meditative, and I can't wait to try even more stitches from this class.

So, to sum up, Stitch it with Wool: Crewel Embroidery is a great class for beginners to learn crewel embroidery, and it's also perfect for a complete beginner who has never embroidered before. There is plenty of detail, instruction, and inspiration to get you started - whether or not you chose to stitch the pillow designs as they are, or create your own designs. Thank you Kristin, for allowing me to review your class and share it with our readers!

And, thanks to Kristin, for a limited time, we have one more thing to share with our Feeling Stitchy readers - a 50% discount on the Stitch it With Wool class: Get the discount. Hurry up, because that discount expires soon! Edit 7/5/2014 - Sorry guys, the discount has expired, but I still totally recommend the class!

Have any of you experimented with crewel embroidery or stitched with crewel wool? Let me know what you thought of it in the comments!

Craftsy Hand Embroidery Class with Jessica Marquez

Photo courtesy of Jessica Marquez and Craftsy

When Jessica Marquez contacted me about her new Craftsy class on embroidery: Design It, Stitch It: Hand Embroidery, I was beyond excited. I've been a fan of Jessica's clean, elegant style for some time now - you can see her work in her book Stitched Gifts, and in her lovely shop, Miniature Rhino. She was kind enough to let me preview the entire class!

This Craftsy class was everything I expected from such a wonderful stitcher, and even more. I've been embroidering for years, so I'll admit I didn't expect to learn anything new. I was so wrong!

As proof of all that I learned, there are my stitched lessons, up above. Jessica's instructions were so inspiring, I found myself re-learning basic stitches, and trying new stitches I never thought I'd ever use.

The Craftsy class is a series of video lessons, and it actually feels like you are sitting and stitching with Jessica in a big, bright studio. Jessica is so calm, relaxed, and positive - I've decided that she's the Bob Ross of embroidery. :) You can ask questions at any time for Jessica to answer, (the video immediately pauses, so you never lose your place) and you can see all the questions other classmates have asked her.

If you want to get a feel for Craftsy, try these wonderful free mini classes on Craftsy.

In Jessica's class, you'll learn all the stitches you see above, learn to make a mini quilt, learn to stitch on a t-shirt, and learn how to draw your own embroidery patterns. I would definitely recommend this class to all levels of stitchers - if you're a fairly old hand, like me, you'll be surprised at the new stitches and techniques you'll learn, and if you're brand new to embroidery, Jessica does a really good job of making your first start non-intimidating and fun.

If you're on the fence about the cost, here's how I think of it - for the same price as 2 basic embroidery books, you are purchasing 3 hours of hands-on training with a skilled teacher. Books don't have that interactive learning component, you can't exactly ask the author questions, and as we all know, there are few things more inspiring than sitting down and stitching with someone.

Here's the most awesome news - as a special gift to Feeling Stitchy readers, Jessica is offering a 25% discount to all of you who sign up via this link!

Photo courtesy of Jessica Marquez and Craftsy

Thank you Jessica, and thank you Craftsy, for creating such an inspiring hand embroidery class!

Vote for Us on Craftsy!

Oh wow! Feeling Stitchy has been nominated for an award on Craftsy under Embroidery: Best Tutorials. If you've never visited, Craftsy is a great place to take online classes of the crafty variety. I had no idea we'd been nominated and we're super-honored that someone out there put us in the running!

I'd like to especially thank our talented blogger Kristen who has written the Tutorial Tuesday series for the past year and a half, and all of our bloggers and guest bloggers who have contributed tutorials!

Please click that badge up above if you'd like to vote for us, and be sure to check out all the awesome blogs up for awards. Thanks, Craftsy!