A conversation began in All Stitched Up! issue #337 about thread storage and the myriad ways to tame and store that which is so integral to our time with needle and thread.

The article - Threads, Threads, Everywhere… - sparked a flurry of emails from the Inspirations Community who joined in on the conversation to let us know the many and varied ways in which they’ve managed to tame those sometimes untameable lengths of thread.

There were those who favoured ‘complicated’ systems of winding, packaging, recording and storing threads prior to use. Whilst others preferred the ‘pull them from a bird’s nest of threads’ kind of approach.

A recent email from Terry, which we’ll share in an upcoming issue of ASU, posed a question about thread storage that had us pondering the ‘problem’ all over again. This in turn reminded us about our fabric stash that could use a little attention, and the beads that are currently crying out to be sorted and stored, and… well you get the idea!

Sometimes our stashes are organised, colour coded, labelled works of art. Whilst at other times they leave a lot to be desired!

Since taking over The Bobbin Tree, our ‘stash’ has grown exponentially, and given it’s a retail space ‘leaving a lot to be desired’ isn’t an option! Yet somehow, we’ve found the process of sorting, storing and displaying The Bobbin Tree stash a whole lot easier and more enjoyable than tackling our own personal supply of all things needle and thread.

Sure, the items in store are all new, which makes the process easier from the outset, but we think the thing that’s made the biggest difference is ensuring that everything has a space. Then once that’s achieved, all we have to do is make sure that everything is in its space and voila, job done!

The Bobbin Tree by Inspirations has inspired us to tackle our personal stashes in a whole new light. We’ve come to realise that no matter the method we use to sort and store our stitching reserves, everything needs a place, and everything needs to be in its place. Considering the ‘visual merchandising’ of our stash is also something we’ll consider as beautiful things deserve to be stored, and perhaps even displayed, beautifully.

Creating a space we’d be happy to invite others into would also give us cause to make certain ‘leaving a lot to be desired’ isn’t the way in which we’d describe our stash.

Now if we could just ‘borrow’ the shop staff from The Bobbin Tree by Inspirations. Naomi would organise everything into categories quickly and efficiently, Jacquie would sort, fold and store our fabric by colourway, Monique would carefully work out what gaps we had in our own personal store, and Sue would find and gather whatever Monique thought we needed!

Even after our spring clean over recent weeks, it turns out there were still a few emails that were yet to see the light of day. So this week we’ve cleared some more ‘dust’ from our inbox and are continuing the conversations you continued!

All Stitched Up! issue #347 made Carolyn ponder the idea of how one chooses what to put their needle and thread to. As the Chair of the Brighton Embroidery Group, she realised that ‘planning and then just seeing how a piece of work evolves’ is how they’re currently approaching their stitching.

Carolyn shared some of the group’s latest creations, acknowledging that whilst her poppy required careful observance of the instructions, the Yin and Yang designs were far more freestyle and were open to individual interpretation from the other members of the Embroidery Group.

Carolyn, we appreciate you taking the time to share your group’s approach to stitching and loved the way you described it as, ‘we follow precise patterns and like taking our needles for a walk’ as it speaks to both the careful observance and individual interpretation shown in the pieces you’ve shared.

After reading All Stitched Up! issue #351, Susan emailed to let us know what she was up to:

‘Today I decided to tidy my sewing room! I will iron all my cotton fabrics, folding large pieces into fat quarters, whilst others will be cut into strips, then sewn to make squares. These will then be made into lap quilts.

All the smaller scraps will be made into bags for Christmas presents and I will put together slow stitch kits to give away or sell. I will allow myself to keep one box of fabric for doll and soft toy making.

‘Playing’ with fabric sounds like the perfect way to pass a day… or two… or three! We hope you enjoyed the process and that you found those missing bobbins along the way.

ASU #352 posed the question, ‘What do you love and loathe about your time with needle and thread?’, which Jane took the time to respond to.

‘The best part about my stitching time is the joy of being on my own, creating something no one else has ever seen. It is my secret bit of fun. Maybe there will be some aggravation over a tangled thread or a complex stitch that will trip me up. Oh, my mistakes! Things go sideways some days and I wonder what I was, or was not, thinking when I stitched it.

Jane, we love your approach to your time with needle and thread and we believe it is always time well spent! When you’re ready to share your secret projects, we hope you’ll choose to share them with us.

Issue #353 of All Stitched Up! saw us unpacking the idea of form over function. Ann emailed to let us know that the space she’s set aside for all things needle and thread is going through a transition from function to form.

Ann, we know from experience that form absolutely contributes to mojo! We hope the transformation of your conservatory has helped you find your creativity again and we look forward to seeing what it inspires you to create.

Also, in ASU #353, Thuy was hoping someone would be able to point her in the direction as to how the motif depicted in ‘The Gown’ was created.

Although we weren't able to point Thuy in exactly the right direction, Debbie emailed to let us know that the book’s author, Jennifer Robson, as she’s not an embroiderer herself, went on a search to find someone who had worked on the gown. Jennifer’s search led her to Hand and Lock where she embarked on a one-day embroidery lesson to immerse herself in the craft she was to write about.

Jennifer eventually forged a connection with a seamstress who had worked on the gown when she was very young, having created 22 buttonholes by hand, with one of the characters in the book being fashioned after her.

Having read the book herself, as well as having done a lot of historic research into whitework, Debbie found the descriptions of the methods written about in ‘The Gown’ to be ‘quite accurate and one of the highlights of the book’.

Like Thuy, ‘The Gown’ also comes as a highly recommended read from Debbie.

We close this week’s Have Your Say with Ann’s thoughts on ‘The Good and Bad Bits’ from her time with needle and thread.

‘For me the 'bad bits' include finishing off a project, like sewing up the seams of a piece of knitwear or a woven bag. Then at a workshop I discovered Pillow Weaving!

By cleverly warping a simple card loom it is possible to weave a circular piece with no side seams, and if you firmly beat down the weft as you go, the bottom will be finished off too. The warp comes off the loom leaving a neat top to the resulting cylinder, so nothing to do there either! A final touch is that, with a bit of planning, threads to make a drawstring to close your bag can be incorporated in the piece as you go.’

Ann, it turns out Pillow Weaving was an unknown technique to us too prior to receiving your email. We appreciate your detailed description of the method and love that you found something to banish the ‘bad’ from your time with needle and thread!

As always, we love that the conversation continues and look forward to chatting with you again soon.

Calling all lovers of silks.
Calling all lovers of colour.
Calling all lovers!

If you love silk, colour or just love to love, check out these three new Pipers Silks Thread Packs:

Autumn
All the Autumnal colour palettes you would expect. Think Brass, Terracotta, Pale Apricot, Henna and more.

Heather
This is a purple lover's delight. We’re talking Bright Mauve, Dark African Violet, Mulberry, Bright Pansy and more.

Imagine
Let your imagination go wild with these colours. Dream in Pastel Pink, Daffodil, Rhubarb, China Blue and more.

Why Pipers Silks? Quality silk threads produced by a family run business based in Suffolk in the UK and used by some of the best designers in the world.

Each Pipers Silks thread pack includes 10 rolls of premium quality silk threads with each roll measuring 80m (87.5 yards). Click below to browse our new range and discover the specific colours included in each pack.

A whole new world of coloured silks await…

Several weeks ago, with much fanfare and celebration, we released the latest book in our Passion for Needlework series titled The Whitehouse Daylesford.

For those new to A Passion for Needlework, these books are the pinnacle of our company’s collective creative endeavours to produce the world’s most beautiful needlework publications.

An Enthusiastic Reception…

Since the release of volume 4 we have been humbled by the enthusiastic responses we’ve received from some of the needlework greats:

‘I have to admit that it quite took my breath away - it is the most beautiful ‘object’ - your attention to detail is unsurpassed! Congratulations to all involved.’ - Jane Nicholas

‘The Whitehouse Daylesford is the most beautiful needlework publication that I have ever seen and I just love it and will treasure it forever! I love the layout and the photography is out of this world.’ - Di van Niekerk

‘I received my copy this morning and I was delighted. It’s an absolutely beautiful publication, thank you for the hard work you’ve all put in, it’s lovely.’ - Tania Cohen

‘What a book! My first impression on opening the boxes of books that arrived here at the studio this week was Wow! These are Huge! Followed by Wow! These are Gorgeous!’ - Mary Corbet

You can read Mary Corbet’s full review of the book on her website HERE.

Getting Kitted Out…

Whether you are beginning your A Passion for Needlework journey, or picking up where you left off, we have everything you need to get kitted out.

To browse the complete collection of A Passion for Needlework books, click below.

After you’ve been beguiled by all the beauty and wonder of the featured projects, you may just be tempted to purchase some kits.

We still have a few kits available from the earlier volumes of A Passion for Needlework, which you can check out using the links below.

Ready-to-Stitch Kits for the new release A Passion for Needlework 4 | The Whitehouse Daylesford are in high demand and while our kit department are striving to keep up, stock availability is fluctuating.

Use the link below to browse current stock and check back in a few weeks if your favourite project is sold out as new inventory is being added continually. Hopefully even for the ever elusive project Arbor Vitae, the kits for which can be purchased on backorder, but are yet to be released.

A Word of Thanks…

Epic books such as A Passion for Needlework would not be possible if it wasn’t for three groups of incredibly important people:

Needlework Artisans – it is our great joy and privilege to publish your remarkable pieces of stitched art. Thank you for entrusting us with your work.

Inspirations Studios Team – a collective powerhouse of talent that continually strives and succeeds in delivering outstanding results. You make us all proud.

The Needlework Community – to all our readers, all our customers, all the stitchers and all our fans, THANK YOU for supporting us. Through needlework, each of us is making the world more beautiful one stitch at a time. And that is a very noble and worthy cause indeed!

They say good things come in threes. They also say bad things come in threes. Who ‘they’ are and why they’re so contradictory, no-one is quite sure, but it sounds like they might just be making things up!

Here is our third and final instalment:

Gentle Pleasures by Carolyn Pearce is an elegant coat hanger with silk ribbon embroidery. Stitched onto champagne silk dupion with silk ribbon briar roses and buds, this elegant coat hanger is a perennial favourite.

No Christmas would be complete without this delightful little Christmas bear. Santa’s Little Helper by Beth Allen is a gorgeous felt constructed bear wearing a jaunty red jacket with matching hat and a festive sack brimming with toys.

Our final project from issue #48 is sure to get everyone oohing and aahing. Alexandra by Di Kirchner is a truly regal gown and bonnet of ivory silk satin, sprinkled with dainty sprigs of roses and bordered with beaded scallops.

With a bounty of stitched treasures to be found in Inspirations #48, you can now unlock each project individually with all 8 now available to purchase as digital patterns.

From wares to kits and all kinds of tricks, if it has recently come back in stock, you’ll discover it below.

Modern. Chic. Sophisticated.

If someone asked you to define the style of pulled thread embroidery, these words may not necessarily be the first that come to mind. And yet therein lies just one of the many remarkable wonders of needlework – it refuses to be constrained to any singular definition.

Pulled thread embroidery has no set style, no set patterns and has no set colour.

Other than that, it’s free to be whatever you want it to be.

This is a mantra that Italian designer Maria Rita Faleri thrives in and her eye for dynamic and multifaceted design styles seems to know no end. Italy after all is famous as a world leader in style, fashion and design across numerous facets of industry, so it stands to reason that Maria would bring a long and deep lineage of genetic advantages to her needlework. That and her unceasing dedication to perfect and teach traditional Italian techniques, which she has done so for more than 20 years.

Her latest piece, Chequerboard from Inspirations issue #116, is an outstanding example of what it looks like when you take a traditional technique like pulled thread and use it to maximum effort in a restrained and stylish execution.

There is clever craftsmanship in the way Maria allows the linear designs to intersect at the change of each rectangular repeated pattern. All this is achieved by creating alternating blocks of four-sided stitch and satin stitch worked onto 20 count white linen.

This linear approach allows you to scale the design up or down to suit your requirements. Need a larger mat, or a rectangular mat? Simply add more blocks.

Once you’ve cut your linen to size and overlocked the edges to prevent fraying, mark your starting point on the fabric using a pin or removable marker and mount the linen into your hoop. Prep done. You’re now ready to stitch.

All the instructions are included in the article in the magazine, along with easy to follow step-by-step instructions including how to finish off the piece with the beautifully delicate picot hem.

What makes Chequerboard such a modern, chic and sophisticated piece?

We put to you the simple classic design consisting of lines, no circles and bereft of superfluous decoration is a winning combination. Add some Italian heritage and a designer steeped in the skilful art of ‘less is more’ into the mix and the world just got a little more beautiful.

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

Chequerboard by Maria Rita Faleri is a stylish table mat with effective use of pulled thread embroidery.

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for Chequerboard includes everything* you need to re-create this harmonious mat: Fabric (unprinted), embroidery thread and needle.

Tulipan by Christine P. Bishop from the book A Passion for Needlework 3 | Blakiston Creamery is a superb table mat worked using Hedebo cutwork and needlelace techniques.

Field of Flowers by Deborah Love from Inspirations issue #106 is a whitework mat with flowers worked using a compelling variety of traditional Schwalm fillings.

Mind Games by Kim Beamish from Inspirations issue #109 is a whitework table mat or cushion front worked with Hardanger embroidery.

Saving Grace by Barbara Kershaw from Inspirations issue #99 is an elegant linen cloth embellished with drawn thread techniques.

Inspired by the delicate lace-like patterns of our Featured Project, Chequerboard, this week’s What Are You Stitching? showcases projects that are in perfect harmony with the needle and thread of Maria Rita Faleri and are every bit as delicate and elegant as her pulled thread mat.

‘The shawl was created from the centre out in the round, and I added gorgeous crystal beads to the edging.’

Susanne, your shawl is beautiful and would have been an elegant addition to your granddaughter’s wedding. No doubt it will be treasured over the coming years and may even be seen at weddings for generations to come.

Joyce, we often hear from people who don’t feel confident enough to share their work with us, yet we’re always amazed by the talent that exists within the Inspirations Community! Your basket is beautifully executed and is absolutely worthy of sharing. The story of your journey with needle and thread may even tempt someone to try their hand at Romanian Lace themselves.

It is said that ‘from little things, big things grow’ and that, Ann, is your journey with lace. To think the pursuit of a simple lace trim led you to ‘Lace Without Bobbins’ shows we never know where our journey with needle and thread will lead. Your work is delicate and precise.

Is the work of your needle and thread delicate and dainty or are they the last words you’d use to describe what you create?! Refined, elegant, coarse or naïve, whatever words you’d use to define your stitching, we’d love to see it.

Simply email news@inspirationsstudios.com to share your needlework journey through both photo and word.

Become part of the Inspirations family by subscribing to the magazine... we'd love to have you join us!

Whiteley’s Epaulette and Stork scissors - individually handmade using the skills and techniques handed down over the centuries.

Little Birds by Ana Mallah is an enchanting set of three hanging ornaments in a pink or red colourway.

Daisies & Forget-me-nots by Ana Mallah from the book The Design Collective | Pincushions is two enchanting pincushions, each surrounded by pretty stumpwork flowers.

Mushroom Magic by Ana Mallah from the Handpicked Range is a delightful mushroom pot with a handy pincushion top.

Season's Greetings by Ana Mallah from Inspirations issue #96 is four enchanting Christmas decorations.

Summer Blooms by Ana Mallah from Inspirations issue #110 is three charming needlework accessories featuring pretty garden flowers.

~ Anonymous ~

Stay informed of upcoming needlework events taking place all around the world in our What’s On page on the Inspirations Studios Website HERE.