About Me

BlogCatalog

Arts & Entertainment Blogs - BlogCatalog Blog Directory

BlogCatalog

My Favorites

BlogCatalog

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Cross Stitch a Lucky Charm

If you love to cross stitch, and you love St. Patrick's' Day, or you just love the color green, then try this.
One heart shaped cookie cutter
One Potato cut in half.
Aida cloth, or your preferred cross stitch fabric
Lots of green cross stitch threads
Green ink pad or acrylic paint. (make sure the surface of the potato is dry)
Press the heart shaped cookie cutter into the potato half, and then cut away the rest of the potato, leaving yourself a heart shaped stamp.
Dip your potato stamp onto a green stamp pad or a light layer of acrylic paint, and stamp it onto your cloth three times forming a clover with the narrow part of the heart at the center. Start with the first one at the top of the clover and the other two on each side of it. so that their narrow ends meet in the center.
You now have a three leaf clover. Now draw the stem and let dry. Cross Stitch your clover in the green of your choice, and you now have a "lucky charm".
You can incorporate this into any type of picture, you could do a collage of them, or you can do a single one. Hang it in your kitchen for "good luck".
If you have never done cross stitch, now is a good time to learn. Counted cross stitch is easy to learn, and fun, you can get some great videos that show you hands on. Then start creating your own lucky charm.
http://www.make-crafts-for-cash.com/crossstitchkits.html learn to cross stitch with the free video, counted cross stitch is the easiest to learn, and you will be a pro in no time at all. Aricle and website by Diane Palmer, who has been in the crafts business for over 15 years..
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Diane_Palmer

The Web Stitch

The Web Stitch is a member of the Cross Stitch family. All stitches in the cross stitch family will, at some point, cross within the stitch. The Web Stitch is no exception. This needlepoint stitch, although time-consuming, is easy to work. The Web Stitch is closely woven, making it virtually snag proof. Because of this, it makes an excellent background and filling stitch. It is imperative that this stitch be worked on double canvas (Penelope canvas) only. The reason for this is explained in the details of the stitch.
The Web Stitch consists of diagonal stitches and tying stitches. The diagonal stitch is worked first. The tying stitch is then worked, crossing over the diagonal stitch, thus securing the diagonal stitch in place. The first diagonal stitch will cover only one canvas intersection. This diagonal stitch will not need a tying stitch. The second diagonal stitch will cover two canvas intersections. The tying stitch will cross this diagonal stitch at a right angle and be worked into the “double threads”. This is why it is important that this stitch be worked on double (Penelope) canvas. As the rows are worked the diagonal stitch will become progressively longer. The tying stitches will be worked at each canvas intersection, thus creating the tightly woven look.
Because of the “trammed” nature of this stitch, there is no limit to the length of the diagonal stitch. There are, however, a few negative aspects to the Web Stitch. The Web Stitch has no padding and, therefore, does not wear well over time. If the area you are filling with this stitch is not a square or rectangle shape, it will be necessary to carefully count the threads of the diagonal stitches to be sure that they work out evenly.
For a more interesting look, try using different color yarns/threads for the tying stitches. Do not be afraid to experiment with this stitch. The results may surprise you!
Detailed instructions and printable diagrams of the Web Stitch may be found at http://www.stitchopedia.com/WebStitch.html
Carolyn McNeil, creator of http://www.stitchopedia.com
…an encyclopedia of needlepoint stitches...
Stitchopedia is an instructional site with step-by-step instructions and diagrams of each needlepoint stitch. Visit us for easy to follow demonstrations on the many needlepoint stitches available: Web Stitch, Cross Stitch, Bargello, Brighton, Basketweave and many, many more…
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carolyn_Mcneil