This coming week is the final class for David McCaskill’s Dolphin Topiary being taught by Marge in her own unique style !! I hear the class has been fun and this week should be no different. Come sign up for our future events and join in the fun.

Brenda has finished her project “Friendship Circles” and you have to marvel at the center, she did a wonderful job – it has to be even better in person. Great job Brenda !!

If you haven’t heard Needlefest is a go this year. Needleworker’s Delight has reserved the Embassy Suites in Berkeley Heights NJ for Saturday Aug 28th. They are still selling tickets though I am sure they will be a hot item, don’t wait. NJNA members have tickets from last year that will be honored this year. I hear the tables will be well spaced and there will be out door stitching weather permitting. It will be pure fun from 9:30 AM until 6 PM – hope to see you there !!! https://www.needleworkersdelight.com/NJNEEDLEFEST.html

All you soon to be Grandma’s need to check out Sandy Arthur’s Duo Designs web site for adorable baby mobiles to stitch with such cute items. Of course we are all so inventive that we can find a great place to put one of these in a beach house or sun room etc. Let your imagination run wild !! Duo Designs – Website for Sandy Arthur, Needlework Designer and certified Needlework teacher. (duodesignsinc.com) Checking to see if your paying attention!

Are you an Amy Bunger fan? Sad that she closed her brick and mortar store but she is still hard at work doing her Home Studies courses at The Needleworks in Austin TX. She is near the end of “Evil Queen” and about to start “Halloween Mosaic”. It’s a Kelly Clark canvas and will be taught over 3 sessions. Her web site has past Home Study classes with stitch guides you can purchase – some wonderful items including many Melissa Shirley canvases! Homestudies – Amy’s Golden Strand (amysgoldenstrand.com) For the “Halloween Mosaic” class you need to call the store. Call to sign up: (512) 451-6931 – I love the bats !!

The Meredith Collection has some new Big Buddies – I need another like a hole in the head ! But as I was reminded recently – it’s not about need !!!

If you like an all inclusive stitch kit then check out Stitch By Stitch in NY – they are having 20% off their “Grab And Go Bundles” So many choices – so little time !! https://www.stitchbystitchneedlepoint.com/special-bundles-promotions?utm_campaign=05330611-83dd-4937-8fe5-ee9740c3b308&utm_source=so&utm_medium=mail&cid=c0656ae4-d347-42f2-af6e-74d780447731

The Needlepointer has something new – every Friday they have a show on “The Week’s best in Needlepoint” We would see it at 12:30 ET – see what new things they have to share.

If you drooled over the fabulous colors and designs of the 3 hearts in Needlepoint Now – like I did – they have something new – Owls and they are beyond cute !! Check out the “What a Hoot” kits. https://colourcomplements.com/product-category/what-a-hoot-kits-colour-complements?utm_source=Colour+Complements+News+%26+Updates&utm_campaign=7a3519d6e0-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_06_02_04_45&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_df3c6af38d-7a3519d6e0-285058737&mc_cid=7a3519d6e0&mc_eid=a82e51f2f8

June is the month of the topiary project finish. Marge will be finishing the class stitching David McCaskill’s Dolphin Topiary. I have seen a few of them in progress and they are interesting in how he creates images with his choice of stitches. If you have never done a David McCaskill project you are missing a challenge. David will be with us in August to talk about overdyed threads. Come join the chapter for a chance to meet David and hear his interesting views on needlework.

It’s that time of year !!! The Framed Image is having his annual sale. He is celebrating his 26th year in business and he is quick to say that we needlepointers are a big part of his success !! 15% off one framed item or photo restoration. His in stock artwork is 50% off and a portion of the proceeds supports Artworks – a charity that uses art to enhance the lives of children and young adults suffering from life-threatening and chronic illnesses. A good reason to go check out his stock !

Thread Thread Thread !

Rainbow Gallery has a new line of thread – Silk Lame Plus. It’s a combination of silk and metal braided together to create a flat ribbon thread. It’s made for 18 mesh and comes in 36 colors. SILK LAME PLUS FULL ASSORTMENT – Rainbow Gallery

A thread I have never heard of before – Elisa – it’s a 6 cord cordonnet that is 100% cotton and feels a bit softer. The size 10 is great for needlepoint and has 10 new colors. It’s made in Australia – check out the web site for Handy Hands for that and other interesting products. Elisa Size 10 Archives – Handy Hands (hhtatting.com)

Are you ready for Father’s Day – it’s in 2 weeks on the 20th !! If not then you can try for next year. Check out the Needlepointer’s web site for some great canvases celebrating the occasion. The Finest in Handpainted Needlepoint & Accessories – The Needlepointer

Today Only – June 5 Needlepoint.com has 20% off on select Father’s Day canvases with the code “Gift20” at checkout. https://needlepoint.com/collections/gifts-for-the-man-in-your-life

Everyone enjoys the Voila Bags with the straps that you can’t decide which one to stitch. Now there are more choices – they have 6 new bags with stripes, leather handles, horn button closure and a pocket inside. http://www.voilaneedlepoint.com/markettotes.html

Now you need a new wallet to go with the bag !! Check out Planet Earth’s new selection of leather wallets. Snap wallets in 4 colors that are self finishing – fuchsia, red, brown and aqua. They take a 2″ x 3″ canvas – a quick stitch and a great gift idea. Leather|| Self-Finishing (planetearthfiber.com)

Debbees Designs has released their June kit and it’s all about the sea !! Look close at the design the only thing not stitched is the pearl in the middle. This 8X8 aquamarine canvas has to be interesting to stitch those shells. She has a lot of things to see on her web site: DebBee’s Designs – DebBee’s Designs (debbeesdesigns.com)

Stitch By Stitch in NY is having a Painted Pony trunk show and so many caught my eye I had to share !

One of the goals of this organization is to pass along our love for this craft to people younger than us so that they too can enjoy what we find so satisfying, calming and rewarding. The Needlepoint Clubhouse in Saint Louis MO is doing just that. They are having a Needlepoint Summer Camp for kids. Near the end of July they will have a 4 day event for 3 hours each day to teach kids the basics of needlepoint. Each will complete a project and hopefully go on to enjoy this craft for many years to come as we do. Check out their web site and see their shop dog Rookie !! The Needlepoint Clubhouse — Rookie

It’s Memorial Day Weekend and with the weather we are having here in NJ it’s perfect for lots of stitching time !! The only ones enjoying this weather are the ducks ! Let’s remember all the brave military people that have given their lives for our country.

One of our members is doing something very interesting – Brenda is doing a needlepoint cruise with Sandy Arthur of Duo Designs called Tulip Time Along The Rhine in April 2022. Sandy Arthur has also created an exclusive kit that you can purchase to give you the entire experience. The kit is lovely and the pictures make you want to jump in Brenda’s suitcase though she has already lined up what she is wearing via an app so it might be a tight squeeze !Sandy’s Stitching (sandyarthur.blogspot.com)

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Our line up of programs has changed and if you are a member, we are now going to have David McCaskill as a guest speaker. He will be doing a 90 minutes presentation on Overdyed Threads in August. Come join the fun – Contact NJNA | New Jersey Needle Artists (njneedleartists.org)

For those who don’t have enough to stitch and are looking for a bargain try Chaparral Needleworks – they are having a 50% off “Sale into Summer”. They have a lot to choose from and who can pass up a bargain like that ?!?! https://ndlpt.com/collections/1-summer/summer

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DMC is also having a Storewide Sale for just this weekend – 25% off – stock up or try something you never used before !! https://www.dmc.com/us/?utm_source=Commonthread+Masterlist&utm_campaign=a3f6ef14f3-campaign_memorial_day_offer_1time_products&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3a652561da-a3f6ef14f3-88242903&ct=t(campaign_memorial_day_offer_1time_products)&mc_cid=a3f6ef14f3&mc_eid=a7dca30f11

It’s almost June and this year it looks like graduates will be able to celebrate like they use to with all their friends and family present. To help celebrate, Burnett & Bradley have the cutest graduation caps that can be personalized. graduation caps – Needlepoint.Com

If you listen to the news on TV (after all who watches as we are all stitching at the same time) everyone is busting out and starting to travel again. Doolittle Stitchery has some new travel rounds and adorable wool hats but check out their web site for more great items: Doolittle Stitchery | Catalog

Stitch By Stitch just announced that they are having 3 trunk shows in June. Two of the designers I had not seen before and it turns out they are a “Mother and Daughter-In-Law Duo”. the first is Audrey Wu Designs Audrey Wu Needlepoint | Audrey Wu Designs – AudreyWu Designs with adorable and different designs:

The second one is Silver Stitch Needlepoint – again, new and different designs. Check out their web site. They make a great pair !! Silver Stitch Needlepoint: Hand-Painted Needlepoint Canvas Designs …

My Apologies to Stitches by the Sea, Inc.

Exciting things are coming to NJNA !!!! Come join us and get in on the fun of needlepoint ! This week, Marge K taught the first of 2 classes – David McCaskill’s Dolphin Topiary . Next month her class will finish up the project and I’m betting that they will all be winners when they are done – take that HGTV “Clipped” !!

Coming up we have a talk by Jacqui Clarkson on “Why You Need Yellow in Your Life!” and then we will have David McCaskill talking about Overdyed Threads. You need to be a member for these wonderful presentations. Our dues are $30 a year and you can contact us here: Contact NJNA | New Jersey Needle Artists (njneedleartists.org)

The new issue of Needle Pointers Magazine has an article on Kimberly Design and her design process – she creates such incredible pieces and she has a new piece being offered by Ruth Schmuff called First Flying Lesson – I see something new and interesting each time I look at it! https://bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/2021/05/first-flying-lesson/

Rainbow Gallery is discontinuing a number of threads so be aware of the following items if you are using them for a project – stock up now before they are gone:

Needleminders – we can’t do without them (maybe hundereds of them!!) If you have not seen Oliblock magnets – you are missing a great item. They are having a sale and are strong and colorful ways to hold your needles !! https://www.etsy.com/shop/oliblock/?mc_cid=a5459193ff&mc_eid=0087025bb4

If you have not seen Aviva Canvases you are missing a treat. Gone Stitching has a large selection of them and so beautiful ! Makes you feel like your on vacation. Aviva Siddur Cover – Gone Stitching

Major FOMO Alert !!

This Past Weekend was the Needlepoint Market

So many new things – So little time – Only so many funds available – Hold on to your hats !

Kate Dickerson – everyone’s favorite has something new for Grandma’s:

Alice Petersen and Gayla Elliot – The Sports Mom has interchangeable balls !!!!

Penny Macleod – Another big favorite – so colorful !!

Other new items that I just had to put their pictures up:

And if all that is not enough – The Meredith Collection has a new Big Buddy needle minder to go with those adorable tea pots above to celebrate International Tea Day !!!

Needlepoint … Yoga For The Mind® !!

® Needlepoint … Yoga for the Mind is a registered trademark of Stitches by the Sea.

This coming week is the beginning of NJNA’s new program – the Dolphin Topiary by David McCaskill. It will go over 2 months and hopefully you have signed up for all the fun of stitching this piece.

ANG’s Virtual Seminars and Encore’s are open for registration and some have even started. Last I looked some have sold out so if your thinking about doing one of these events do not hesitate !

Congratulations to one of our good friends Vicky Witterschein – she just completed her 2nd year of her NAN teaching certification. We look forward to another one of her classes in the future.

The Needlepoint Market is this weekend and once again it’s virtual. I can’t imagine the new things we will be seeing over this next week – mind boggling and wallet busting !!

In the new issue of Needlepoint Now you need to read Elizabeth’s Musings column – she has found an APP to help decide which project to work on when you are indecisive (don’t we all have multiple projects started ?) It’s called Tiny Decisions, you should be able to find it in the app store and it’s free. It works like Wheel of Fortune but with your projects. You push the center button, the sound effects start and it lands on the project to work on – no more decisions to make !! You can use it for other things too like “Which handbag do I use today?”

Are you a Gayla Elliott fan??? According to Stitch By Stitch in NY there are a lot of you out there !! These 2 are quite sought after and understandably !! Wonder what will be new in the Market? Just an aside – if you liked those Turtle Bags Stitch By Stitch was offering that I put in the blog a short time ago you have a long wait now – Stitch By Stitch sold over 80 of them and the Turtle Bag web side is sold out until June !!! Yes, I waited to long !!

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Gayla Elliott thru Alice Petersen

Stitch By Stitch also has something else interesting – you can get a customized school jacket. Ny Needlepoint | Stitch By Stitch Larchmont, NY | United States (stitchbystitchneedlepoint.com)

The Needlepointer has the cutest new club – Sea Creatures by Melissa Prince – You just have to smile when you see them. https://www.theneedlepointer.com/product/club-abstract-sea-creatures/

If that is not cute enough then all you grandma’s need to see this !!!! The Needlepointer also has this club AND you can buy the train they are sitting on !!!! How much cuter does it get??

Eye Candy has a new canvas to add to her 5 other words canvases – this one should speak to many of us !

In reading the Chilly Hollow blog I saw a lovely limited edition ornament from Sign of the Arrow. They have been doing them for many years and you can still get some of the back years on their web site. http://signofthearrow.com/shopping/category.php?category=39

They are also having 2 trunk shows during May, one of them is for needleminders by South Beach Button Co. – very pretty! Many of them are made from mother of pearl. https://southbeachbuttons.com/pdf/needleminders.pdf – The other trunk show is for Dinky Dyes scissors. Scissors – Dinky Dyes

I saw the cutest Pippin canvas of a seagull the other day and I promised that I had something for the blog from Pippin. They released some new canvases this month and one is cuter than another. The seagulls however – they have the greatest faces to cheer anyone up !! Then there are the bears ugh – they are all great. I also noticed that they have kits for first time stitchers. https://www.pippinstudio.com/

Next week the new Needlepointers Magazine will be online to see and in your mail boxes shortly after that – the cover looks very interesting – can’t wait to see the inside.

Needlepoint – Yoga For The Mind !!

CONGRATULATIONS ARE IN ORDER FOR NJNA !! The Woodlawn Event this year had a total of 299 entries of which 27 were NJNA – BUT – NJNA had 14 pieces that won an award – how fantastic is that !!

This month our program features the beginning of David McCaskill’s Dolphin Topiary. Of course you need to be a member to join in the fun !

One of our favorite magazine’s, Needlepoint Now, has a new bi-monthly newsletter. You don’t have to be a subscriber, just submit your email. You can also get some back issues digitally and they have video’s of how to do various stitches. Really interesting is the project index. It makes it easier to find what issue the project your looking for is in. Needlepoint Now – The #1 Consumer Magazine Committed to the Fine Art of Needlepoint

Laura Perin has a new Cyber Class called Spring Fling. I know a lot of people that are realizing how much fun a counted piece can actually be. Such pretty colors and if you want to go rogue with the colors, well, have at it! Registration ends 5/31/21 and class is once a week for 4 weeks starting at the end of June. If you never did a counted piece, this looks like a great introduction. http://www.laurajperindesigns.net/ljp-cyber-classes.html

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FOMO ALERT ! I am about to continue doing a counted piece called Walking the Water’s Edge and there are several others that are going to be stitching it at the same time. Needleworker’s Delight is having the class with Diane Hermann. I took the class with her and she is lovely, great to take a class with her! Following this chart means a lot of counting and losing your place !! Someone form another guild told me about the Clover Pattern Chart Marker!! It is magnetic and you move it along your pattern so you don’t lose your place if you stop and come back !! I can’t wait to get one and try it out – ND has ordered them !! Hope they have enough to go around !!

Uh Oh – Kreinik’s Black Spools will become White for a while. They are having a problem with their supplier so you will find one of your favorite threads on these different color spools. They want to be back in black as soon as possible but I can see it now – everyone is going to think of them as collector items – LOL !!

You can tell summer is on many people’s minds at Sew Much Fun – they have new summer cocktails to stitch – just to cute !! More Fun Stuff! (sewmuchfun.ca)

I know so many people doing Kimono projects !! Truly beautiful looking colors and combinations. I have been listening to them all chatting about how they now have enough thread to open their own store. How did they come up with all those threads and combinations ??? Inquiring minds want to know !!

One of the web sites I have found is Stitch Palettes – Matching Thread Color Combinations For Embroidery Projects (stitchpalettes.com) They give weekly ideas on floss color pairings. They are actually web designers that create color combos all the time. The team leader is an embroidery enthusiast so she took her expertise and used it to help her craft. So much to see and read on this web site.

Another option is the House of Embroidery which is actually a South African Fair Trade company that sells thru Sue Spargo https://www.suespargo.com/store.php?cat=215 They have been in business since 1995 and they employ mostly disadvantaged single mothers. They hand dye in small batches and the colors and over dyes are just vibrant.

Kreinik also has combinations of silk threads including packages of just skin tones. http://www.kreinik.com/shops/Silk-Thread-Sets/?printable=Y

There is also Colour Compliments hand dyed threads. You will know their vibrant colors and combinations from the articles in Needlepoint Now over the last 3 issues with the lovely colored hearts. They also have an array of colors in Perle Cottons, Floss and Floche. https://colourcomplements.com/about

If all that is not enough there is always Etsy with threads that can be had from all over the world. I think that may be thread overload at this point !!

Needlepoint – Yoga For The Mind !

ANG Seminar has gone virtual again and they have announced what classes you can now sign up for starting Thursday May 13 and registration closes Friday June 18. So many wonderful classes that you can sign up for with some of the most enjoyed teachers: Sandy Arthur, Toni Gerdes, Jennifer Riefenberger, Gail Stafford, Kathy Rees and many more.

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The new Needlepoint Trade Show will again be Virtual and runs from May 15 thru 17. Watch web sites and social media for all the new designs to show up.

Mother’s Day is 2 weeks away and nothing says Mom like flowers. Check out some new Jean Smith canvases. She has her lovely single flower’s but also some different designs for her like the window box. https://www.jeansmithdesigns.com/copy-of-new-designs-2020

You can also make those special mother’s feel like the Princesses they are with a needleminder of Princess Di’s tiara (because none of us has enough of these !) Thank You Jane! https://www.stitchersgardenil.com/shop/c/p/Princess-Dianas-Crown-Needleminder-x55721685.htm

FOMO ALERT – Perfect for Mother’s Day !!!

Have you see the “Turtle Bags” !! Stitch By Stitch in NY has them and they are taking pre-orders for the new color – Denim. Not only is it a nice looking bag, inside has lot’s of pockets and zippers, the newer ones will have a zipper closure at the top but best of all it holds one or two canvases that can easily be changed out when the whim hit’s you. Endless possibilities. It get’s even better – they will do a bundle to include a canvas of your choice. Ny Needlepoint | Stitch By Stitch Larchmont, NY | United States (stitchbystitchneedlepoint.com)

The House of Needlepoint is having a contest ! Design your own mini tote bag ! They will supply you with blank canvas and then it’s time to let your imagination run wild. The stitched piece needs to be back to them by June 19th. House of Needlepoint – Needlework and Stitching Services in Darien, CT

House of Needlepoint also has something different – Buoys ! A quick stitch and what a cute idea for a key chain. The colors are so bright and happy.

Many of us are taking a class in shading. I just found something new by Susan Hoekstra. She will be teaching a class on shading with Art Needlepoint later this year. Purchase the canvas now and you will be sent information about the class early this summer. There are several other canvases available. https://artneedlepoint.worldsecuresystems.com/animals/altogether-by-skye-rogers

Needlepoint – Yoga For The Mind !