This months meeting was great! We had the best time. We did the business portion of the meeting and then discussed that the next meeting , because of the holidays, will be a stitch in so people can catch up and have no stress. We also spoke about how there are only 2 or 3 more open seats for the lunch in January. If you wanted to go you need to contact Cathryn C. asap and get a spot. It’s always a nice affair to attend. After all that was out of the way, Nancy B. did a program on making Ribbon Ornaments – I don’t think we laughed that much in along time. Who knew making a knot was that complicated !! LOL Nancy provided everyone that requested, all the things that go into making this ornament. The chapter picked up the cost for the most beautiful Grosgrain ribbons, thread, needle and 2 sizes of beads along with the instructions. We were having so much fun with this that they were late getting out of the library. Mind you this is not hard to do. Everyone finished at least one ornament but the amount of fun in doing it was priceless. Melita even blogged about it the next day. Just another reason to join in the fun at NJNA !!

Another reminder that Linda M and her husband will be taking the pieces from NJNA members to Woodlawn again this year. Please bring your piece to a meeting or to the lunch and let Linda M know that you are having her transport your submission. Woodlawn and NJNA have been working together for many years to make this show a success. We are one of the biggest contributors to the needlework show and hopefully we can send them plenty of entries again this year. They are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Nelly’s Needlers and are looking for entries from all 50 states. Even if you don’t belong to NJNA consider sending in a finished piece of your work.

Thanksgiving is now over, we are stuffed and eating left overs which only means one thing – every store is having a sale and my email is over flowing with deals. Hopefully you went out and supported your LNS today for Small Business Saturday. If you don’t live here in NJ, where we are so lucky to have so many stores then you can fall deep into your emails for more bargains than you might want. Not sure what to get a fellow stitcher as a gift?? Check out The Wool and The Floss – not only do they have a buy one get one 50% off sale but they have a Gift Guide for suggestions. (of course it’s a good place for dropping hints for your own stash-my list just grew longer! ) https://woolfloss.com/pages/holiday-gift-guide?se_activity_id=156214460636&syclid=ct5jjquncaps73ab2ne0&utm_campaign=Buy+one+canvas%2C+get+one+50%25+off%21+%F0%9F%92%9A_156214460636&utm_medium=email&utm_source=shopify_email#holiday-products

Even though Thanksgiving is over, I think everyone loves some kind of pie no matter what time of year it is. KC Needlepoint feels the same way and has canvases with everything from pumpkin to coconut custard to all of them in one. Very cute look for a stand up at this time of year or even a pillow – best of all – no crumbs ! https://www.kcneedlepoint.com/collections/pies?omnisendContactID=61fc368aa1816e00226a532d&utm_campaign=campaign%3A+Thanksgiving+Pies+%286718b1d60aff2101a0915476%29&utm_medium=email&utm_source=omnisend

The Needlepointer has initial Christmas Balls which are perfect for a new stitcher. They are simple yet have many ways to embellish them. Makes a great children’s gift !! https://www.theneedlepointer.com/needlepoint/trunk-show?cse=nl112524&goal=0_3621358244-74d2a6f710-69343533&mc_cid=74d2a6f710&mc_eid=2e6039e84f

Take a look at Morgan Julia Designs, she has some new clutch hand bags. She just added brown and navy! They take a 5X7 canvas and are self finishing. The bottom is nice and wide and it has choices as to how you use it, clutch, shoulder, cross body, etc. Naturally she also has many canvases to pick from for the opening. Makes a nice gift. https://morganjuliadesigns.com/products/the-classic-clutch-3m-self-finishing?_kx=rV4MBEfWGkwURglkyUXCLopGavY2DCJQzP6Y94aO8T4.RWeQns&variant=44250713587910

Everyone is in a rush so maybe you need a quicker alternative for a handbag – KC Needlepoint is selling Isabel Harte hand crafted beaded bags. They area a limited edition so be prepared if the one you like is gone already. All of them are just pretty to look at – a difficult decision. https://isabelharte.com/collections/all?filter.v.price.gte=&filter.v.price.lte=&omnisendContactID=61fc368aa1816e00226a532d&sort_by=created-descending&utm_campaign=campaign%3A+Isabel+Harte+1+%28673521ace2bf0697704fb3de%29&utm_medium=email&utm_source=omnisend

If you have never tried stitching with Straw Silk your missing out. They have both solid and variegated colors and the array is getting bigger. You can iron it for a smooth look. You can peel a bit off the side to make it narrower, etc. The Stitching Fox carries the entire line and has just shown the new color palettes they have. There are 5 colors per card with 4 strands per color. Try using it in your next project. I used it in lettering and you would be amazed at the look. https://www.stitchingfox.com/collections/silk-road-fibers/products/straw-silk-color-palettes

We all panicked when Kreinik was sold to Rainbow Gallery. Then you couldn’t get certain colors for a while as the transition was going on not to mention when they had trouble getting the spools. Who knew that Au Ver a Soie makes metal threads !! They even come in #4, #8, #12 and #16. If your a fan of the ever ingenious Ruth Schmuf (Bedecked and Beadazzled) then you can join in on her newest club – AU VER A SOIE METALLIC CLUB! How apropos! You receive 8 spools of #8 starting with the end of Dec 2024. She will continue until you tell her to stop or until she run out of colors. Just looking at the colors makes me want to try it ! https://bedeckedandbeadazzled.com/product/au-ver-a-soie-metallic-club/

TIPS AND TRICKS: I HATE beading needles. They are so hard to see the eye and then there is figuring out what size you need. Then I found “ColorEYES”. Bead Smith has 3 different size beading needles and each size has a different color where the eye is so you know what to look for when you need a beading needle. They even come in a multi pack so you get 2 of each size. Anything to make beading easier !! https://www.beadsmith.com/BNCE126

Who was that Famous Stitcher? That is the new ANG Eastern Rep Allison Leach. Her main chapter is the Piedmont Chapter in VA. We all wish her good luck with her new position.

Do you know who this famous stitcher is?

This coming Tuesday is the 9th annual “Giving Tuesday”. At this time of year many people give donations to their favorite charities. What better day than this Tuesday.