Designer Spotlight: Needle Treasures Nook

If you like your cross stitch with a bit of a rustic look, you’ll want to check out the Etsy shop Needle Treasures Nook. This shop is based in Bulgaria and does a lot of projects shown as pillows, though of course you could frame them if you like that look better.

Because of the season at the time of this writing I was drawn first to the St. Patrick’s Day section, which has a couple of handfuls of projects for you to choose from. I like this lucky heart design, which includes shamrocks in a heart shape and a couple of ladybugs (or ladybirds, depending on where you live). Yes, they are supposed to be good luck, especially if one lands on you!

The design is 52 by 49 stitches and its shown on 32 count ecru linen that was dyed with green tea, which is kind of fun. Instructions for how to dye fabric with botanicals are included in the pattern. And of course you don’t have to make yours heart shaped but it is pretty that way.

In addition there are lots of other holiday themed cross stitch patterns. In particular there are a lot of Thanksgiving patterns, more even than Christmas, though only by a couple. Cute animals are on heavy rotation here, including turkeys, foxes, squirrels and rabbits. There are also plenty of leaves and pumpkins, of course.

How about those Christmas patterns? Here you’ll find sweet trees, rustic Santas, snow-themed projects and, of course, more adorable animals. You’ll also find projects for Valentine’s Day, Easter, spring and summer and an array of American patriotic patterns. (Do we Americans stitch so much red, white and blue stuff that designers from other countries need to make more for us? It’s a mystery.)

They also have a few fonts, Quaker style patterns, bees, flowers, fruits and more. Check out all the goodies at Needle Treasures Nook on Etsy.

[Photo: Needle Treasures Nook]

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Unique St. Patrick's Day Cross Stitch Patterns

Natalka Studio is an Etsy shop based in Ukraine with a wide variety of cross stitch designs, including realistic, detailed designs with women doing various things, holiday patterns, geometrics and more.

One of the biggest categories in the shop is called girl cross stitch, which features detailed designs of women with flowing hair doing things like drinking coffee, dancing and carrying flowers. There are seasonal projects in this category as well as a couple having to do with hobbies.

I like the knitting one, of course, and almost shared the sewing one as the featured pattern above until I realized the thread is coming off a cone on the floor and there’s no pedal for running the machine.

The one I am sharing here isn’t actually in that category but it is really cute. Little Girl with Watermelon uses 21 colors and measures 73 by 73 stitches. That’s 5.21 inches or 13.3 cm square if you work it on 14 count fabric. I love her messy hair and the little dress and matching bows. You could also change the colors if you have a little girl who isn’t as into pink (or doesn’t have brown hair).

The largest category on the page is animals, and there you will find wild animals like monkeys, pandas and sloths; ocean creatures such as rays, an octopus and a blue tang fish; frogs, dogs and geese, among others.

There are also a lot of Christmas cross stitch patterns, which include a lot of traditional motifs and some more whimsical themes. I like this one of Santa resting by the fire with his boots off.

In addition to all these you’ll find pretty flowers, a bunch of mostly floral bookmarks, a whole big set of patterns with lemons, and a lot more. The fruits and berries section (if you like fruits other than lemons) would be perfect for decorating your kitchen or breakfast area.

Check out all the great patterns they have to offer at Natalka Studio on Etsy.

[Photo: Natalka Studio]

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