Hi <<First Name>>, The Dash. At some stage all of us will have our time here on earth summarised in this format: Jane Smith 1925 - 2013 Of the five elements above: first name, last name, year of birth, dash, year of death, there is only one thing we control - the dash. All the other things, our name, when we’re born and when we die, are not of our choosing. The dash is where we live our lives; it’s the part of the equation where all the magic happens. It’s where we write our own stories and, as stitchers, that’s where we excel. Each piece we stitch marks a season in our lives, a time and place we will remember, a moment captured forever in thread. Our needlework is intensely personal, yet once finished it becomes public and we wear our heart on our sleeve by putting our creations out there for the world to see. We are survived by our needlework… it will forever sing our songs, retell our stories and help keep our ‘dash’ alive. In a special issue of EN, this week we pay tribute to the talented designer Julie Kniedl, who is no longer with us in person, but lives on through her exceptional needlework.

What pieces have you stitched that will tell your life story to the generations to come? We’d love to hear about it, email us at news@inspirationsstudios.com

It was a beautiful winter’s day in July in Adelaide - the sun was shining, and we gathered at our favourite Italian café where, for the very first time, we met Julie Kniedl and her husband Peter. Julie’s work had featured prominently in Inspirations for over 5 years, yet it wasn’t until now that we had the great honour of meeting her. She had flown all the way down from Queensland specially to meet us and showcase her latest designs, as well as discuss upcoming projects we were to collaborate on together. No-one expected to receive the news just 16 days later, that Julie was suddenly no longer with us.

	‘Garden Fresh’ – Issue #90

Julie’s needlework was revolutionary. We have written numerous times regarding her pioneering work in creating a brand-new type of technique we called Three-Dimensional Embroidery. This differs from stumpwork in that the pieces are not anchored to any fabric, thereby allowing them to be completely standalone. In this way, needlework has been freed from the usual restraints and becomes far more versatile in its application, as Julie so skilfully demonstrated.

In honour of Julie, the Inspirations editorial team reflected on her amazing journey with us:  

	‘Nature’s Bounty’ - Issue #75

‘Julie’s spectacular and innovative three-dimensional embroidery first came to our attention when she entered and won the ‘Home for my Needle’ competition in Inspirations #72 back in 2011. Her fun and fabulous cauliflower pin cushion was an instant favourite when it appeared in Issue 75 as ‘Nature’s Bounty’.

	‘Succulent Spool’ - Issue #85

Julie followed this up in 2014 by winning the ‘Design Diva – Off the Sheep’s Back’ and Grand Prize in our ‘Stitch Your Heart Out’ competition. Her stunning entry, Succulent Spool, featured a realistic collection of unusual garden succulents, stitched with wool thread, resting on a rustic wooden twine spool. We loved everything about this, from the unique concept through to the superb detailing, inventive use of materials and intricate workmanship.

	‘Briar Rose’ – Issue #87

Julie’s following magazine projects were equally outstanding; Briar Rose in Issue 87 where again she chose a timber spool as the perfect foil for her elegant pink rose; Christmas Bouquet in Issue 88, an exquisite spray of holly, ivy and winter rose, stitched in silk and tied to a clear glass bauble, and Garden Fresh in Issue 90, an extraordinary reproduction of a cob of corn, worked in silk and wool.

	‘Cornus’ – A Passion for Needlework

The cover of A Passion for Needlework was graced by Julie’s beautiful study of the North American dogwood, Cornus. Stitched with silk, this elegant embroidery typified Julie’s approach to her art, careful study, ingenious application and faultless execution.

Our deepest sympathies to Julie’s family and friends and we also feel the loss of a great, unique talent to our embroidery world.’

	‘Christmas Bouquet’ – Issue #88

Since Julie’s passing, we have stayed in contact with her husband Peter, who has graciously granted permission for us to release Julie’s un-published projects. Peter sent us some of his own words for inclusion in this tribute:

‘At the funeral I spoke mainly about Julie’s kind loving nature, always putting other’s needs before herself, her passion for her craft and the happiness it brought her to see her creations in print. She was so looking forward to progressing down the track with further creations and possibly teaching others about her work. It was hard for me to speak as I got very emotional. Thank you very much for putting Julie in your magazine for others to see what a talented woman she was. Regards, Peter’

Peter, it was truly our honour to have Julie as part of the Inspirations family and we all deeply feel your loss. We know her needlework brought tremendous joy and wonder to all who saw it. We thank God we met you both just before we lost her, to have had the opportunity to tell her face-to-face how much we valued her personally, and her contribution to the international needlework community, we will forever cherish.

Vale Julie Kniedl | 1962 - 2017

This week we’ve released another project from Inspirations #94 as a digital pattern. 

SWEET SACHETS – INSPIRATIONS #94

‘Sweet Sachets’ by Monique Johnston is a marvellous example of using the bullion rose in the classic setting of a delicate sachet. 

Monique has selected three different colour ways to present these delightful sachets, each with a bespoke palette of threads to best complement the hue of the ground fabric.

> PATTERN – Sweet Sachets Digital Pattern Available HERE

> BLUE - Sweet Sachets Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> GREEN - Sweet Sachets Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> PINK - Sweet Sachets Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE

> Issue #94 Patterns – Browse HERE
> Issue #94 Kits – Browse HERE

SEASON’S GREETINGS BY ANA MALLAH

Did you check out today’s date? November 24th… officially one month until Christmas Eve. What’s that? You haven’t even started thinking about anything to do with Christmas yet? Lucky for you we have a brand-new contributor to Inspirations who might just save the day!

‘Season’s Greetings’ is four spectacular Christmas decorations by Ana Mallah that will ensure your festive season is very merry indeed!

Not only will these beautiful designs light up your tree, mantelpiece or anywhere you put them, there is plenty of Christmas joy to be had stitching them! 

It all starts with a glittering snowflake created with surface embroidery using cool hues of silver and blue, outlined with metallic thread. Absolutely perfect for beginners, or those on a tight time frame needing something post-haste for the big day!

Then there’s the adorable Christmas tree which utilises four shades of green to re-create the pine needles, silver metallic thread for the lighting cord, and finished with 12 of the cutest baubles you’ll ever see and crowned with a beaded gold star.

The Poinsettia is where things start getting interesting technically! Nine large bracts (petals on poinsettias are in fact bracts and the flower is the tiny bit in the centre) and four smaller ones are created using stumpwork and, together with sage coloured beads in the centre, assembled to form a striking white version of this quintessential Christmas flower.

For what is perhaps the pièce de résistance of the four, Ana has created a magnificent Berry Wreath generously covered with 44 garnet red berries, cleverly clustered atop rich earth brown stems and finished with five avocado green leaves to really make it pop.

The precision of Ana’s needlework will no doubt be a trademark to know her by, as is evident by the hanging loops for the decorations. Crafted with tiny glass seed beads and bespoke colours for each design – green for the tree, pearl for the poinsettia, ice blue for the snowflake and tan for the berry wreath.

It is this attention to detail that makes Ana such an exciting emerging artist and her project ‘Seasons Greetings’ is already a huge hit with needleworkers the world over.

MAKE YOUR OWN SEASON’S GREETINGS
BY ANA MALLAH

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

‘Season’s Greetings’ by Ana Mallah – four gorgeous ornaments to stitch for Christmas.

> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #96 Available HERE
> PATTERN – Season’s Greetings Digital Pattern Available HERE

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kits

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kits for ‘Season’s Greetings’ include everything you need to re-create these four beautiful ornaments.

> KIT – Berry Wreath Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> KIT – Poinsettia Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> KIT – Snowflake Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> KIT – Christmas Tree Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE

LOOKING FOR MORE CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS?

CHRISTMAS BOUQUET – INSPIRATIONS #88

‘Christmas Bouquet’ by Julie Kniedl is a stunning three-dimensional embroidered bouquet.

> KIT – Christmas Bouquet Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #88 Available HERE

TRUE LOVE – INSPIRATIONS #68

‘True Love’ by Susan O’Connor - Celebrate the first day of Christmas with this stunning ornament, stitched with lustrous stranded silk threads onto silk satin.

> KIT – True Love Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE
> PATTERN – True Love Digital Pattern Available HERE
> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #68 Available HERE

CELESTINA – INSPIRATIONS #67

‘Celestina’ by Carolyn Pearce is a fabulous glistening angel decoration.

> PATTERN – Celestina Digital Pattern Available HERE

Inspirations issue #96 is unique in that it features five first-time contributors. This week’s ‘What Are You Stitching?’ is also unique as all of our stitchers are making their Embroidery News debut. Welcome Anna, Anne, Annie and Joan, we’re so glad you joined us!

ANNA LIFSON

‘With over 20 years of hand embroidery experience, my skills in traditional silk hand embroidery have been handed down the generations through my family and were also learned in high school.

My grandmother, who was one of the imperial royal family members during the period of Bao Dai Emperor before 1930, taught my mom and then my mom taught me. To create my hand embroidered artwork, I use only silk fabric and silk threads.’

Anna, what incredibly fine work – it’s only with the closest of glances that one can tell that your pieces are stitched rather than painted!

We hope there’s someone in the next generation you’re able to pass your knowledge onto so that your generational skills in traditional hand silk embroidery continue on.

ANNE ORSI

‘I only recently learned about Inspirations Magazine. I love the high-quality photos and the detailed instructions for each project. Inspirations #95 is the first issue I received as a subscriber and for my initial project, I wanted something that didn’t look too complicated. I also wanted to use materials I had on hand. I chose Late Harvest.’

‘Because the recommended threads were not available in the US, I substituted close color matches from the Caron Collection’s Impressions line of silk/wool thread, something I could not have done had the high quality, close up photos not been included with the stitching instructions. I am absolutely delighted with how the project turned out!’

Anne, welcome to the Inspirations ‘family’! We appreciate your kind words about the magazine and are honoured to play a part in your stitching journey. You’ve stitched and finished Late Harvest beautifully and are absolutely more than ready to take on anything the magazine throws at you – simple or complicated!

If Anne has inspired you to make your own Late Harvest, printed copies of Inspirations #95 as well the Ready-to-Stitch Kits for this project are still available for purchase.

> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #95 Available HERE
> KIT – Late Harvest Ready-to-Stitch Kit Available HERE

ANNIE TAYLOR

‘I've always sewn, drawn, painted and taken photographs - and done none of these technically correctly! A few years ago, I quickly made some Lost Toys out of old discoloured pillow cases and their stuffing. I then tinted them further with water colour and tea, to give a particularly aged appearance, and took them out and about photographing them for my mixed media artwork.’

‘I had not expected such a positive reaction to these Lost Toys, and began making more dolls, fairies in cages, and mermaids in jars. My artwork is all based in the realm of Fairy Tales, and as I live by the sea, this does mean I make a lot of mermaids!

As the dolls grew (Big Alice is 16 feet tall) the stories became more important again, and I began to stitch the stories onto the soft sculptures. My favourite stitch is chain stitch, and now I tend to work in Gutermann's beautifully coloured machine threads, which slip through the fingers like silk. My single thread chain stitch is tiny, to follow my own handwriting or the flowing lines of the painted hair curls. The fabrics are either calico or recycled bed linens.’ 

‘It amuses me that I have come to doll making, even if they are rather big, as from a young age I would make clothes for my dolls and now on a shelf in my rather messy studio, sit four of my dolls watching me work.

Much of the material I incorporate into my work has been given to me - boxes of threads and beads from my mother's and grandmother’s friends. I have lately been given a large box of buttons, and am waiting to see where this will lead.’ 

Annie, we love that your work has brought a touch of whimsy to this week’s WAYS! It must be magical to spend your days surrounded by pieces of your imagination you’ve brought to life with needle and thread.

JOAN MAZE MILES

‘After completing a crossword puzzle, it occurred to me that its grid is a natural canvas for cross stitches! The random pattern of the black squares allowed me to fill them in with colourful stitches, but still allowed me to read the words. I like leaving in my scribbles and mistakes because it shows my brain working! Plus, it has a graffiti-like feel to it which I am liking more and more.’

‘Part of the reason I’ve always been drawn to hand embroidery is the therapy of it - the tactile and meditative push and pull of the thread in my hands making the same stitches through fabric, over and over. I’ve always liked the sound of that in and out, and with this piece, stitching on paper was a new experience and a new soothing sound to the push and pull, a sort of a crispy kewwhhh… kewwhhh… kewwhhh. When complete, I added the flower power fabric as a frame to further celebrate the ‘Summer of Love Challenge’ I had made it for. What fun!’

Joan, it was a joy to meet you and see your work at the ‘After the Summer of Love Challenge’ in San Francisco recently. We love that your creativity has allowed you to combine your passion for crosswords and cross stitch into a single piece!

Are you someone from the Embroidery News Community who’s yet to share your work with us? Now is the time! Email photos of what you’ve created with needle and thread along with a few details about your stitching journey to news@inspirationsstudios.com.

NOT A SUBSCRIBER? JOIN TODAY…

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

SUBSCRIBE TO INSPIRATIONS MAGAZINE

PRINT | For a print subscription fill in our secure online form with your details HERE.

DIGITAL | Digital subscriptions can be purchase through Zinio direct HERE or through the Inspirations APP which can be downloaded via the iTunes and Google Play stores, by searching ‘Inspirations Magazine’.

CALL US - If you have any questions regarding an Inspirations subscription or just want to have a chat, we’d love to hear from you.  You can call us from anywhere in the world on +61 8 8293 8600 anytime and if we’re not in, leave a message and we’ll get back to you.  For anyone within Australia, call us on 08 8293 8600.

Otherwise email us anytime at subs@inspirationsstudios.com

MAKE YOUR OWN CAN’T SEE THE FOREST
BY BETSY MORGAN

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

‘Can’t See the Forest’ by Betsy Morgan is an enchanting counted thread box with a pull-out drawer and matching scissor fob.

> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #96 Available HERE
> PATTERN – Can’t See the Forest Digital Pattern Available HERE

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for ‘Can’t See the Forest’ includes everything you need to re-create this thread box: interfacing, wadding, comic board, embroidery threads, beads and needles.

> KIT – Can’t See the Forest Ready-To-Stitch Kit Available HERE

FREE BONUS CHART
CAN’T SEE THE FOREST AUSSIE ANIMALS

Betsy has created a bonus chart of Australian animals to give you the option of swapping out any of the original animals for the Aussie equivalents.

> PATTERN – Can’t See the Forest Aussie Animals Available HERE

MORE SWEET PROJECTS FROM BETSY MORGAN

SWEET SOUVENIR – INSPIRATIONS #72

‘Sweet Souvenir’ by Betsy Morgan is a delightful scissor etui with a variety of counted thread stitches.

> PATTERN – Sweet Souvenir Pattern Available HERE

SWEET TREATS – INSPIRATIONS #92

‘Sweet Treats’ by Betsy Morgan is a set of cute little pincushions showcasing a variety of counted thread designs.

> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #92 Available HERE
> PATTERN – Sweet Treats Digital Pattern Available HERE

SWEET SURPRISE – INSPIRATIONS #61

‘Sweet Surprise’ by Betsy Morgan is an elegant embroidery accessory – the ideal gift for a stitching friend.

> PATTERN – Sweet Surprise Digital Pattern Available HERE
> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #61 Available HERE

MEADOW SWEET – INSPIRATIONS #57

‘Meadow Sweet’ by Betsy Morgan is a beautiful stumpwork study featuring a stunning gold dragonfly.

> PATTERN – Meadow Sweet Digital Pattern Available HERE
> MAGAZINE – Inspirations #57 Available HERE

What: Jeanie Baker’s Circle Exhibition
Where: Tasmania Museum & Art Gallery | Hobart, Tasmania
When: to 26 Nov
Details: Click HERE

What: May Morris | Art & Life
Where: William Morris Gallery | Lloyd Park, Forest Road Walthamstow, London
When: to 28 Jan
Details: Click HERE

What: Bungendore Quilters’ Annual Quilt Exhibition
Where: Bungendore Memorial Hall | Molonglo Street Bungendore, New South Wales
When: 25 & 26 Nov
Details: Click HERE

What: The Embroiderers’ Guild of Queensland | Christmas Craft Fair
Where: 149 Brunswick Street Fortitude Valley, Queensland
When: 26 Nov | 8:00 to 12:00
Details: Click HERE

What: Christmas Shopping Day at Create in Stitch
Where: 433A Fullarton Road Highgate, South Australia
When: 29 Nov | 9:30 to 7
Details: 08 8377 7792

What: Ruby Squares Exhibition | Solihull Emb Guild
Where:  Makit Christmas Fair | Cranmore Park Westmidlands, UK
When: 2 Dec
Details: Click HERE

What: Albury Wodonga Doll, Bear & Hobby Show 2017
Where: Mirambeena Community Centre | 19 Martha Mews Lavington, New South Wales
When: 2 & 3 Dec
Details: Click HERE

What: Jeanie Baker’s Circle Exhibition
Where: Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens | Brisbane, Queensland
When: 11 Dec to 25 Feb
Details: Click HERE

Send us details about events, exhibitions and celebrations happening in your place of stitch and we’ll include them in Embroidery News. Contact us at
news@inspirationsstudios.com

Happy Stitching
The Embroidery News Team