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Monday 29 February 2016

Three New Birds and Cross Stitch Crazy Feature

In my first post of the year,  mentioned that something exciting was going to happen in February. It has been a goal of mine to have some kind of feature in a major cross stitching magazine and very soon after the new year, I was given the chance to be part of the Best For Modern Cross Stitch feature in Cross Stitch Crazy. I feel honoured to appear alongside so many talented and creative cross stitch creators.
Look for the issue with a beautiful carousel horse on the front. You may have noticed that I love Celtic art and so the Celtic alphabet designed by Lucie Heaton is right up my street!


Why do I suddenly have the urge to make a whole set of egg cosies?

And don't get me started on the cuteness and practicality of this awesome freebie!

I haven't even mentioned that Lauren Bacall is this month's Celeb Stitch. I actually went on ebay and bought a back issue featuring Humphrey Bogart so that I can (eventually!) display this iconic Hollywood couple together.

I bought the back issue from this seller who is raising money for Midlands Air Ambulance. There is a stash of Cross Stitch Crazy magazines available so it's worth taking a look if you want to add to your collection.

If you get your hands on the latest issue - 214 - look out for the  Best For Modern Cross Stitch feature on page 55 as several of the businesses featured are offering discounts for readers. If you find the code on my section, you can get 10% off all patterns in both my online shops until 31st March.

Don't forget, if you live in the UK, you can avoid a 20% EU VAT charge by buying my patterns from my Payhip shop.



I have just added three more birds to my collection and I'm currently working on a Celtic-themed WIP. You can see progress shots by following me on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.


Happy stitching!





Tuesday 16 February 2016

Hearts Entwined

We're halfway through February which means St Valentine's Day (or as I like to call it, the day after my birthday) has come and gone. Of course, you don't really need a specific day to express your love for someone special. When hearts are entwined, they're entwined forever.


Inspiration for my latest design came from what you may consider to be a surprising source - a Celtic animal design in the Book of Kells. I could see straight away how the knotwork could be made into hearts that would be perfect for a wedding sampler.

To add even more romance, I worked the hearts in colours reminiscent of an English rose garden, with vintage pinks and greens.




I also added a few beads to give an extra-special finishing touch.




You can use the alphabet included in the chart to personalise your sampler to celebrate a wedding, civil partnership or anniversary. 

Find this pattern and many more at hawthorntreedesigns.com

I'm still working on other designs that will be available later this year and I'm also planning a few tutorials which I think you'll find to be lots of fun. After all, crafting should be about having fun just as much as creating something beautiful.

There's plenty of work for my fingers to be getting on with,
Happy Stitching!