Where Samplers Rule Just 15 minutes from the Airport at the NE CORNER OF CENTER & MCKELLIPS 106 E. McKellips Rd, Suite 111 Mesa, AZ 85201 THE ATTIC 2011 April 15 Issue No. 11-12 www.atticneedlework.com TELEPHONE (480)898-1838 FACSIMILE (480)898-0332 Rosewood Manor s English Tapestry Sewing Box April s Sampler of the Month Above, my progress as of 10 p.m. last night. Right, the chart s cover photo of this exquisite design. Below, the combination of silks (Belle Soie, Dinky Dyes, Gloriana & Gumnut) that we ve selected. Our fabric shipment arrived on Tuesday and we shipped as many orders as possible in date order... until we ran out of some of the beautiful handdyed silks... more have been ordered and as soon as received we will get this exquisite project to you and your stitching basket. Thanks for your understanding. Hand-dyed materials take time but are worth the wait! As our April Sampler of the Month, you may save 15% on your purchase of 2 of the following: chart $13 32c hand-dyed linen ~ minimum needed for just the sewing box, $19 OR enough to also stitch the needlebook and scissors fob designs included as Be Creative! extras $31. Both linen cuts include 2 Kelmscott Bluebell threadrings for the closure. NPI silk $64 OR Belle Soie $75 OR the hand-dyed silk combo shown below (Belle Soie, Dinky Dyes, Gloriana & Gumnut) $101.25.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 2 Above, the vintage linen and silks selected for the reproduction of this charming Adam & Eve sampler, Ann Wheatley s 1829 sampler from the private collection of NeedleWorkPress! Part 1 of this Attic exclusive Summer Stitch-Along is expected to be available beginning in June. The charming Pins Pincushion chart $12 from Samplers Remembered is a new design... but Linda taught this button trim as a class and as part of that class provided a beautifully presented bucket of supplies, listed above in the sticker atop these buckets. We have only a very limited number of these kits, complete with vintage buttons, for $24.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 3 April May As a member of our Attic Addicts Club, during April you may save 15% on your purchase of any of the following: Rosewood Manor charts (in stock) Colorscapes/Picture This Plus linens (custom cuts) All Hand-Dyed Silk Threads Sunday, April 17, 1:00-4:00, Sampler Sunday It is the third Sunday of the month and time for this fun and inspiring get-together with a special focus on samplers. Bring yours to stitch and share. Refreshments served; please register. $10 June Saturday, May 7, 10:30-12:30, Beginning Linen with Linda s Tulip needlebook design as the class project. The $30 fee includes Linda s expert instruction as well as the chart + materials for this very useful learning project. Saturday, June 19, Meet the Designer, 1:30-4. We know not all of you are able to attend a Sunday afternoon gathering, but we don t want you to miss the opportunity to meet Barbara Hutson of Queenstown Sampler Designs and see her incredible samplers. She is bringing models and original samplers with her! Please register to help us plan. There is no fee for this reception. Saturday, April 23, 10:30-12:30, Design Your Own French Alphabet Sampler A winter visitor reminded me about this fun class when she asked for it to be scheduled. And last night I got out my still-unfinished L version begun years ago, when Tedra and Tamami (above left and right) began theirs :~( It s time. So if you d enjoy stitching a variety of these lovely letters in your chosen initial, please join us and we ll provide guidelines for you to create your very own. $15 Sampler Sunday, June 20. Although this is Father s Day, you will want to carve out a 3-hour time in the afternoon to join us for a very special Sampler Sunday with Barbara Hutson/Queenstown Sampler Designs with a very special presentation. Barbara is a renowned sampler expert, and we are honored to have her at The Attic. Fee $10; please register. November Full information regarding our Jackie du Plessis November workshops with more photos and prices will be available in about 45 days. Saturday, April 30, 10:30-?, Royal Wedding Celebration Well, kind of! The menu won t really be royal (pizza, soft drinks and perhaps wedding cake), but the wedding favors a/k/a door prizes will have a royal flair and our stitching projects are always, while perhaps not royal, certainly magnificent. November 19, 6-8 PM, Our 14th Annual BCRF Benefit, with all proceeds to benefit breast cancer research. The Online Needlework Show, the only virtual needlework show in the world, is open now! Visit the show 24 hours a day! Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, they will have some extra special specials. Shop now! http://needleworkshow.com/cgi-bin/stitcherlist.pl Show closes at midnight Sunday night, and please have your orders to us by the close of business on Monday, April 18 so that we may finalize and submit our orders to the vendors. We still have some BCRF cookbooks left. Support a great cause (all net proceeds go to breast cancer research) by buying a copy(s) of the Recipes for a Cure cookbook for a donation of $14.95 (or more) with fabulous time-tested recipes as well as complimentary designs from 11 designers.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 4 April s Spanish Mystery Sampler Stitch-Along Thank you, Paula, for leading our Stitch-Along with this note for April: This month s band is a fun winding vine and, while at times you may want to put it down since it repeats and repeats, this is a great take along project because you only need 2 colors and, once you ve done 1 repeat of the design, in fact don t even need to have the chart since you can just look at what you ve already stitched. Enjoy! A Mystery Sampler Club from Brenda Gervais ofcountry Stitches/With Thy Needle & Thread... This Special Summer Project is a 3-part original sampler described as a 21st century design with a 19th century flair. Club members will receive the design in 3 installments ~ the first will detail the border, and the second and third patterns will detail the center of the sampler. Release dates are May 10, June 10, and July 10, the dates our distributor will ship. Design size, 173w x 190h. From its title, Birds of a Feather, I m sure that it will have bird(s). A faint image of the sampler is shown in the photograph to the left. How do you join this Club? Sign up now (each sampler section is $7 each) and give us your choices for your project (prices vary depending on your choices): * Weeks Dye Works Linen in 30c, 35c, or 40c OR Lakeside Linen in your favorite count ~ on 40c the design size will be 8.7 x 9.5. * 19 skeins of Weeks cotton flosses OR a conversion to silk overdyed threads. Unfortunately, until we get the thread list after May 10, we can t provide any details on the silk palette.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 5 New From Milady s Needle Above, Sarah H. Brown s lovely sister sampler, sister to Margaret Brown, whose sampler (pictured below right) was one of our Samplers of the Month last October. On the right above is Sarah s reproduction $19 done to the faded colors on the front and, on the right, the reproduction to the brighter colors on the back. Next week we ll feature a selection of silks and fabric to re-create the antique look seen in the original sampler above. Below, In Search of Bliss, $17, an original design, a perfectly balanced sampler with a charming verse: Abroad in search of bliss we roam Yet must confess it swells at home Where kindred mingle pains and joys And thoughts of love each heart employs.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 6 Fabulously Fun New Accessories Clockwise from above, Just Another Button Company s Ewe Look Fabulous Pincushion Kit that includes everything you need to make this charming accessory including the pins $58 ~ two new tape measures, both $10, the Panda and the Pig ~ an Images Stitchery Design wooden bellpull hardware $22 designed with Lizzie Kate s Halloween Rules in mind ~ below, close-ups of the headstone epitaphs carved into this clever bellpull, funny needleworkers stones to tickle your funny bones.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 7 Samplers, Both Old & New Above left, In the journey this past week through my SABLE (Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy) boxes I found a number of interesting things I d forgotten about, including, above, Ann Simpson c.1837 $12 from The Samplar Workes/Page Dorsey. Knowing how popular Adam & Eve samplers are now and thinking that some of you may have never seen this lovely reproduction, I checked and it is still available! Above right, Grace Risk $16 is a new reproduction from Samplers Revisited, a Scottish sampler with alphabets, illuminated crowns, pots of flowers, birds, butterflies, and one very tiny rabbit! Right, FB 1827 $10, a new reproduction from Queenstown Sampler Designs Below, right to left, 2 petite new designs from Queenstown, Little Maryland $6, a tiny redwork sampler, and Miss Polly Nosegay $5, a charming scene of a little girl and her pets. Attic, Mesa, AZ Toll-Free: 1.888.94-ATTIC (1.888.942.8842) www.atticneedlework.com
THE ATTIC! PAGE 8 Homespun Elegance Treasures in Our Attic It s always exciting when the brown truck pulls up in front of the shop ~ it frequently feels like Christmas when the boxes full of wonderful things come through the door. The anticipation builds... and sometimes it s truly a bonanza day! That was yesterday, when we got a box full of beautiful pre-finished items from Sandra/ Homespun Elegance. These are so affordable, quick to stitch and therefore perfect for gift-giving. Above and above right: Pre-Finished Stitching Pocket & Scissors Case $32 has its designs in a separate chart, Stitching Pocket Plus $8, which shows a very charming scissors fob (the design repeated overone, trimmed with a bit of lace, and voila! a fabulous fob!) Right, Stitching Necessaire Limited Edition Rollup $34 was one of the Nashville hits ~ one of the many reasons we go, to find these fabulous treasures. We brought a number of them home, they were all snapped up but had ordered more, and they are here! This rollup is completely finished, including the rusty felt for your pins (the lace surround is not included), the yarn tie, and two pearl buttons for the closure. All you have to do is stitch the design ~ the linen insert is 30-count (left open at the bottom for ease in stitching). After the stitching is completed, use a blind stitch to close the bottom edge to complete the pocket. A beautiful alphabet is included for personalization. Embellish it with a tiny brass scissors charm.
THE ATTIC! PAGE 9 More from Homespun Elegance Clockwise from above Birds of a Feather $10 ~ Delivering Spring Blossoms $8 ~ Sampler Bunny $8 ~ The Sheltering Tree $8, one of my all-time favorite of Sandra s designs ~ You Make My Heart Happy $7, a simple design beautifully embellished with a bit of lace and a favorite button
THE ATTIC! PAGE 10 Other New Items in Our Attic Clockwise from above: The Trilogy s Sneak Peek Spring parts: Border + Umbrella Girl w/buttons+charms $13.50 ~ Bees & Flowers $6 ~ Gnome+Kitty $6 Counterclockwise from the left: In the Farmer s Market Series from SamSarah, Fresh Lime $10 w/ buttons, to frame or finish 3- dimensionally ~ The Trilogy s Easter Greetings in their Take- Alongs Series $26 kit ~ Quaker Easter Egg $9 from Bent Creek
THE ATTIC! PAGE 11 On Sale at 50% Discount! Take 50% off the listed prices while supplies last. All are complete kits. Clockwise from above left: A Bevy of Bunnies $37 ~ The Tiny Alphabet Sampler $35 ~ Classical Roses Sampler $36 ~ Fanciful Roses Sampler $35 Attic, Mesa, AZ Toll-Free: 1.888.94-ATTIC (1.888.942.8842) www.atticneedlework.com
THE ATTIC! PAGE 12 On Sale at 50% Discount! Clockwise from above left: Strawberry Faire Sampler $37 ~ Holly & Hearts Sampler $39 ~ Sparkling Forget-Me-Not Sampler $37 ~ Country French Heart $37
THE ATTIC! PAGE 13 Fresh from Sandy s Studio Clockwise from the left: Betty s beautifully stitched Welcome ~ I wish that each one of you could meet Betty. She is proud to tell you that she is 90 years old, and on Wednesday when she drove over to pick up her latest completed project, she provided quite a stir to the once-a-month gathering of stitchers when I asked her to come into the classroom and meet the group and show them her work. When they learned that she was 90, there was an audible gasp... and then laughter as she cautioned them about finding any mistakes in her piece because, after all, she is 90! One would never, ever know. So there IS hope... that we may live long enough to complete all that we have in our to-do baskets! Thank you, Betty, for giving us all such inspiration ~ I wanted to print a banner for her to wear across her chest: I m 90 and I m still stitching! From Heather s needle, two beautiful finishes: Just Nan s Common Ground $40 w/beads+brass charm, with its very touching verse that we can all relate to about our needlework. Heather s is on 40c, and I wish you could see it in person, and see the absolutely perfect frame Sandy chose. Stunning piece! And the last one Heather said she stitched on the way to her aunt s funeral. What a lovely sentiment on this L-aD-Da design, Your Gentleness $8.