Hey pinky -

The kits you buy do tend to be lame, although they are much better now than when I started stitching as a kid! (Back then, it was pretty much flowers,
scottie dogs or pudgy-cheeked Indian kids)  However, they're good for mastering the basics and of course, getting hooked on stitching.  And the
other good thing about lame bought kits is, once you get sick of doing them, it drives you to start designing your own stuff, and that's when things really get creative.  So keep at it, and good luck!

What a thoughtful gift - I'm sure they'll love it.

merwing - Love, LOVE your stuff!  I checked out your website - you have a new fan!

My grandma on my dad's side taught me how to crochet and knit when I was a kid.  It only took me about five minutes to get it, so maybe I was a natural, I dunno.

My mom was very creative, but flighty.  When I was a kid, she'd try oil painting one week, macrame the next week, embroidery, playing the violin, yoga, and she used to sew clothes for me when I was in early grade school. In later years, she got into quilting.  Mostly, she didn't finish much.

Her dad enjoyed gunsmithing and tying fishing flies.  Boatbuilding.

Other than that, I don't remember many rellys doing much.

I've always been crafty.  I've always been the type to just get a book and teach myself how to do whatever I wanted to learn.  And I jump right in with a difficult project usually.  And I pretty much always finish what I start.

Gorgeous stuff, kiwikrafter, and all my favourite colours, too!  Tell me, how did you do the crocheted looking fan embellishment on blu block 1?  Be sure and post all the stuff you do, I want to see it!

Please tell me those black ones are done on black fabric, not all stitched black! (in which case you definitely qualify as obsessive!)  Good work.

I've made a needlepoint for a pillow for a thank-you gift.  I bought velvet for the back, and four tassels for the corners.  I want it to look really nice.

My questions:  Will tassels look funny on a pillow with no piping around the edge?  The tassels come on a little string loop.  Do I sew them so the head of the tassel is snug against the corner, or do I let a little of the string loop hang out?  I've been looking on the net, but I can't get a clear picture or a straight answer anywhere!  Thanks in advance, oh knowledgable ones!

I think you did a great job, hello.  And I'm always thrilled to see a guy's take on needlework.  More, more!

Cool link, thanks.

Piecework.