WhiMusical Stitcheries

September 3, 2011 by Connie Barwick 4 Comments

When I list my favorite Cross Stitch Designers (it’s not really supposed to be in caps, but that’s the way it is in my head because they are so important), Tracy Horner of Ink Circles is high on my list. I love her mandala designs, her fun western characters, and her smaller pieces. Recently she began a series based on musical clefs.

I was happy to notice that her latest – Alto Gether Now – is now available. The design joins Here Comes Treble and First Bass. Don’t you just love the names of the designs?

Tracy offers her designs through her Ink Circles site, but she gives you time to check your LNS (local needlecraft shop) first, so if you are like me and don’t have one (sob!) then check out your favorite online shop – I am partial to 123stitch because they offer the chart bundled with the floss you need – one handy click and I have all I need. Of course, I clicked on a few extra things too – like Tracy’s Four Seasonal Mandalas which is also new.

Tell us about your favorite designer(s) in the comments section. I’d love to feature them here.

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Cross Stitch Patterns to Celebrate Holi

Comments

Jen says
September 4, 2011 at 4:57 am
Brooke Nolan of Brooke’s Books. She is a wonderful artist with great designs. Her site has a generous selection of freebies too!
Irene M. says
September 4, 2011 at 8:38 am
It’s all your fault! LOL I just bought the musical patterns yesterday and I would have purchased the seasonal mandalas if I hadn’t run out of money. Now they’re at the top of my list of things to stitch (along with a couple hundred other things). Shame on you, shame on me. 🙂
conniebarwick says
September 4, 2011 at 12:21 pm
Always happy to help you support your habit Irene!
Sara B. says
September 29, 2011 at 10:25 am
I love the musical patterns. I’m thinking that I can stitch them up and always hang them in the choir room at church if I can’t find a place at home. I to love Ink Circles. I just recently discovered Tracy’s designs when I finally found a sampler to do for my grandparent’s 50th anniversary (March 2013 – had to give myself plenty of time to work this 300 x 380 piece). I’m heading over to her site right now to get some new projects. You are dangerous Connie! lol

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Designer Spotlight: Cross Stitch Foxy

Cross Stitch Foxy has a huge selection of cross stitch patterns perfect for gifts or using in your own home decor. As of this writing there are more than 900 patterns listed, so there’s no way I can cover them all, but let’s take a quick peek at some of the options.

As with many cross stitch designers, Cross Stitch Foxy has a lot of holiday themed patterns, including Christmas, Halloween and Easter and St. Patrick’s Day. There are patriotic American patterns, feminist patterns and so much more.

Since we’re heading into the Christmas season as I write this, I thought I’d highlight one of the more than 100 Christmas listings in the shop. These Christmas mugs would be cute to have hanging in your kitchen or anywhere else all winter long.

The full pattern is 86 by 101 stitches, which comes out to 6.1 by 7.2 inches, or 5.5 by 18 cm, when stitched on 14 count fabric. It calls for 19 colors. Of course you could also stitch a single mug if you’d rather, or put them into individual frames.

One thing that is fun about Cross Stitch Foxy’s projects is that the intention is that to some extent you can use what you have to make the projects. None of the projects include single stitches of a color, and colors can be replaced with the colors you have or use blends made up of colors you already have, making the projects more cost effective and environmentally friendly. Of course for holiday patterns you’ll want some holiday colors, but there’s wiggle room to use the threads you already own, which is nice.

In addition to the categories I already mentioned, there are many other patterns, including a wide selection of seasonal gnomes, patterns with cats and dogs, food and drink patterns and a nice collection of flowers and plants, just to name a few. There’s probably something for everyone in this store, so go check it out at Cross Stitch Foxy on Etsy.

[Photo: Cross Stitch Foxy]

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