11/27/2006

So I finally got around to a little “spring cleaning” (I know, it’s almost December, but it was well needed nonetheless) and not only is my craft room now organized (thanks to these great new and affordable shelves), but I also found this stitch sampler [[please paste photo close to this paragraph]] that I created during my first class with Renie B. Adams at Penland School of Arts and Crafts. For the assignment, Renie asked us to study the texture and color mixing of a famous painting and try to express those qualities with thread in a 1x1" square. Here you can see that I studied A Sunday on La Grande Jatte (1884-1886) by Georges Seurat. The grass and trees were stitched with detached buttonhole, one of my favorite stitches. The sampler is mounted in the cover of a journal.

Great news! I’ll be teaching at Penland for 1 week August 27-31, 2007. Stay turned for more details, I’ll let you know when registration opens. Taking a class at Penland is something that can’t be missed—from the amazing food to the nightly slide shows, I promise you’ll be happy you went.

Here’s the course description:

Stitched Maps: Recording Places and Stories with Needle and Thread

Maps do more than give us a sense of place in a physical landscape, they can form the foundation for telling a story or recording a series of events. Students will learn the basics of embroidery, explore ways to commemorate a favorite place or celebrate a memory, and leave the class with a complete (or nearly complete) stitched “threadscape.” Mixed media is welcome, as are novice to expert stitchers.

Hope to see you there!

10/27/2006

If you aren’t already addicted to the DIY Network’s new craft show Uncommon Threads, be sure to watch on November 1st and December 4th. Tune in to see me demonstrate projects from by book and to meet some of my crafty friends—you’ll get to see the embroidered party accessories and maps they made for the show!

• Embroidered Cocktail Party Show (accessorize for your next party), episode DUCT-143, November 1st, 10:30 AM Eastern
• Embroidered Escape Map Show (commemorate a road trip with an embroidered photo album), episode DUCT-104, December 4th, 10:30 AM Eastern

Check out my interview with Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood, the mastermind behind CraftSanity.com. Each week Jennifer interviews a different crafter and posts a downloadable audio file of the interview on her website. During my chat with Jennifer we discussed how I got started in the craftworld, my work with Interweave Press, and lots about my book and what inspires me. Have a listen and check out the photo she posted of my newest in-process embroidery (as well as photos of some of my older projects).

9/6/2006

Embellishing with Thread Workshops

Please join me at one (or both!) of my upcoming workshops. I’ll cover the basics of embroidery threads, stitches, fabrics, transfer materials, and more! During ‘studio time’ you’ll have the chance to work on either the embroidered velvet ribbons or embroidered buttons/hair ties from Hip to Stitch (materials for these projects will be provided). Email me if you have any questions—hope to see you there!

• Wednesday, September 13th, 1-5pm, part of ArtWear Fashion week at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center, www.lctix.com/artwear, contact Charity at (970) 416-2737 to register
  
  
• Saturday, September 16th, 1:30-3:30pm (plus studio time), at the Quilter’s Garden (behind REI and Barnes & Noble in Fort Collins), www.quiltersgardenshop.com/classes.html, call (970) 223-4269 to register

7/21/2006

Wow, the summer is flying by. Lots going on around here.

First off, pack up your stitching, knitting, crochet, or other craft project and join me for Stitch N’ Pitch on July 29th when the Colorado Rockies take on the San Diego Padres! For more information and tickets visit www.stitchnpitch.com and catch me on KUSA Channel 9 on July 21st at 4 pm (Mountain).  Not in Colorado? Don’t worry, Stitch N’ Pitch’s website lists events across the nation. Stitch N’ Pitch is a national campaign sponsored by TNNA (The National NeedleArts Association) that encourages all crafters to get out and make new likeminded friends while combining two of America’s favorite pastimes—stitching and baseball! Interweave will offer a free pattern for The Stitch N’ Pitch baseball sock at the event and post the free downloadable pattern on Interweave’s website on July 26th. Amanda Berka, Spin-Off magazine’s assistant editor, designed and knitted the sock and I embellished it with baseball-inspired embroidery.

Photograph by Joe Coca.

I am very excited to announce that I am now assistant managing editor of Interweave’s Stringing and Beadwork magazines. I’ll begin transitioning to my new position in early August--don’t worry, I’m just moving across the hall and can always be reached at melinda@hiptostitch.com. I’ve loved working for PieceWork and am very excited to play with more beads!

Photograph by Joe Coca.

Check out one of my latest projects, “Quilt Squares for Photograph Albums,” in the September/October 2006 issue of PieceWork (on newsstands September 5th). I was able to use fabric from my favorite fabric store, The Quilter’s Garden and my favorite photo albums. Stay tuned for my upcoming embroidery class this fall at The Quilter’s Garden (more info to come under “What’s New” on my home page. And if you are like me and inherited a wonderful yet damaged heirloom quilt and would like to help preserve it for future generations, be sure to read my article “Repairing Worn Patchwork Quilts” in the same issue of PieceWork.

3/24/2006

I can hardly wait! I’ll be assisting Renie Breskin Adams’s workshop, Surface Techniques: Narrative Impulse, from April 9-15 at Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. I can’t say enough about how much fun Renie’s workshops are (this will be my fourth time in the class, my third time as an assistant to the class). We’ll spend the week embroidering, stamping, painting, playing around with many other techniques, and focus on using textiles to tell a narrative—you’ll be sure to leave with one of the most unique pieces of art that you never thought you could dream up. Even if you have never picked up a needle and thread, we hope you join us—enrollment is still open, click here to read more.

Renie is truly one of my greatest mentors and is always sure to make you laugh! I was drawn to her work in college, attended one of her classes at Penland School of Crafts, and have been amazed by her talent, entertaining embroideries, and love for fiber art ever since. She’s truly a pioneer in the world of fiber art (one of her earliest works hangs in the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution; other collections include The Art Institute of Chicago and the White House Holiday Ornaments Collection). See Professor of Vegimals at right —she’s always coming up with hilarious, one-of-a-kind creatures that are half-vegetable/half-animal.

Renie Breskin Adams received her MFA from Indiana University and has taught at the University of Wisconsin, Northern Illinois University, Penland School of Crafts, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, to name a few. Even if you can’t make the workshop, check out more of her work!

12/12/2005

Last March I flew to Nashville to film 2 episodes for the Do-It-Yourself Network’s Scrapbooking show. Amazingly, it feels like yesterday. In the Summer Pages episode (#SCB-534), I show you how to commemorate a favorite journey by stitching a map for a photo album and in the Preserving your Ancestry episode (#SCB-529), I show a great way to preserve your family heirloom textiles through scrapbooking and needlework. Learn more.

Be sure to tune in this Sunday, Dec. 18th at 1:30 and 3:30 PM Mountain. If you miss out, episode #SCB-529 will re-air at the following times:
    January 23, 2006, 8:00 PM Mountain
    January 24, 2006, 11:00 PM Mountain
    January 24, 2006, 8:00 AM Mountain
    January 29, 2006, 3:00 PM Mountain
Follow along with pages 38-43 and 82-85 of Hip to Stitch and be sure to tune in!

10/31/2005 

The Crafted by Hand Day at Hearthfire Books of Evergreen was a blast—thanks to everyone who came out, including these talented and energetic authors: Amy Clarke Moore, fiber artist and co-author of Beaded Embellishment: Techniques and Designs for Embroidering on Cloth, www.amyclarkemoore.com; Vicki Square, author of Folk Hats, Folk Bags, and the Knitter's Companion; Maggie Sefton, author of Knit One, Kill Two and other craft-themed mystery novels, www.maggiesefton.com; Samantha Leach, author of three beading books, including Lacebeadwork; Beth Erlund, author and illustrator of the children’s book I Thought I Saw an Alligator. You must check out Beth’s batiks at www.erlundjohnsonstudios.com. It turns out that my parents bought one of her batiks many years ago—here I grew up with one of her works hanging in our house and I just now discovered the artist! Small world. If you’re in Evergreen, be sure to stop by Hearthfire Books for a good cup of coffee and a book: 2982 Evergreen Pkwy, Evergreen, CO 80439.

9/16/2005

Every little bit helps—please donate to hurricane Katrina relief at www.redcross.org or take part in Interweave’s eBay auction for the American Red Cross at www.interweave.com. There are some great items for up bid, including an embroidered shawl, a beaded necklace, knitted booties and other great handmade items from Interweave’s books and magazines. It’s easy: visit www.interweave.com starting September 16 and follow the links to the eBay auction site. Place your bid and keep checking back through September 26 to monitor your bidding status; auction ends at noon PT on September 26.

8/11/2005

Here is your chance to win 1 of 5 autographed copies of Hip to Stitch and lots of other great prizes--including rosewood knitting needles, an embroidery kit and box of threads, Aida needlework fabric, an embroidered tablecloth from PieceWork's November/December 2004 issue, and Nancy Bush's knitted sachets from PieceWork's March/April 2005 issue. Enter now, contest ends October 10th!

Back in June I stopped by Jenny Hart's booth at the TNNA tradeshow to check out her Stitch-It Kit and, of course, chat with a true innovator in the world of hip embroidery. Some may think that we're fierce, dueling competitors (and arm wrestlers) in the land of publishing, but naw, we are both just anxious to show the world just how cool embroidery is! Next year? Thumb wars!

At the end of June my friends and I traveled to Burbank to film segments for one of DIY’s newest craft shows, Uncommon Threads—it’s all about crafting with groups of friends and is high-energy and hip like the hit show Knitty Gritty (just minus the knitting). Check out how great the apron, tea towels, and machine-embroidered gift cards from my book look on the set—I described how to make each of these projects in an episode that focuses on cocktail parties. It was so much fun.