The battle to change the image - my constant cause.

Whether it is Jonathan Adler, Frederique Morrel, or Kaffe Fassett, 

this is how needlepoint should look. 

I'm on my soapbox; no more cutsie, no more blah, no more stale. 

This is how needlepoint should look in your home, fresh, modern and exciting.

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Nothing quite like a good tool.

I love me some good tools!  I find good tools are a little like buying jeans.  You never know which pair will really be the one you will keep coming back to and which will be the one you put on, look in the mirror and take off, again and again.  You just never know, because if one did, I would have a much larger balance in my bank account.

This is why I want to share some of my successes with you, (re-needlepoint, not jeans...).  This one is my own, and they are phenomenal!  I've always struggled with the floss cards out there on the market, too small to write everything you want on them, glossy so your ink smears, flimsy so they don't last.  I designed these for my own use and thought you might like them.  My Adorn floss cards are 2.5" square and are printed on super duper heavy and lovely card stock paper.  On the back there is room to write the name of the thread, obviously, but also where you've used this thread, i.e. which design.  To me, that is super helpful.

They are available for purchase on our shop HERE.

I'll be sending out a few for you to try with every order placed, for the next few weeks.  I love sharing good tips and if you have a tool that has passed your test, please let me know!

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Cyberpointers ANG, my new class!

"Victory Gardens" is now offered as a class with the ANG Cyberpointers, the online chapter of ANG.  Registration has started and goes on till October 15th.  Class starts February 1st.

The best part is we can meet in our PJs!

Cyberpointers is a great way to enjoy needlepoint classes at your leisure and without the expense of travel, hotel, meals, etc.  I myself use cyber class opportunities quite a bit, whether it's needlepoint or jewelry making.

I haven't seen you in way too long, let's meet!  Take a look HERE.

Pass the word along, we can all meet in our PJs!!

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The Ultrasuede® winners are...

Congratulations to:

NCPat:  "I like the embellishments and beads that coordinate. I use random number generator for my giveaways and never have any issues."

needle-artist: "Because I concentrate on bead embroidery now I'd like to see more beads and embellishments; especially one of a kind cabachons and unusual beads. The ultra suede would be a nice bonus. Thank you for the opportunity."

Please contact me privately to make arrangements for you to receive your lovely gift.

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Delightful embroidery and one more day for GIVEAWAY!

Margaret Dier's work caught my eye.  Makes me feel good!

And please don't forget to help me out, comment on my blog, give me your wish list for future Fiber/Embellishment/bead collections and maybe you will find one of two amazing Ultrasuede® collections in your mailbox!!

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Need your help and an Ultrasuede giveaway, so there!

I want to hear from you, my friends!  As you know I have a monthly Fiber Collection program, and so far it's been received with great enthusiasm.  I plan these monthly collections in advance and I would like to make sure my monthly offerings are interesting, new and provocative.

What would you like to see in future collections?  New companies and new threads? Different threads in the same colorways, such as a range of blues, or the same thread in lots of colorway combinations?  Would you like a bead and embellishment collections? Don't hesitate to request outside the box, I want to hear your most wild collection dreams!

September Collection

August Collection

July Collection

After much thought, (see HERE),  I've decided that I want to give away two Ultrasuede® collections to two of my readers and since there is nothing sinister in my request for your help, I don't see why I can't send out thank you gifts!  BUT, it is so very hard for me to randomly choose two recipients when I need to collect responses from various places so here is the only stipulation...  in order to be eligible to be a part of the random draw, you must give me your collection ideas in the comments on this blog.  Please make sure to comment to the blog and check back for the winning announcement!!

I'll be checking for your ideas and announce the winner on Monday, October 21st.

Thanks so much! xo
Orna

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Inspiration Friday :)

Izziyana Suhaimi brings a simple and effective dose of stitch work to the table with these cards...

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Ultrasuede® Giveaway? Why I want to but can't do it...

Remember when I asked you to raise your hands if you want an Ultrasuede® Collection back HERE? I wasn't kidding, but then something came in the way.
I happened upon a blog belonging to Sara Hawkins, an attorney.  She wrote an entry called: Sweepstakes, Contests & Giveaways - Laws Bloggers and Brands Need to Know.  So I started reading and could feel myself rolling my eyes.  What now?  Why has it become complicated, legal/illegal, and altogether "forget I even mentioned it"?  I understand the internet is the driver and the laws seem to follow, and I understand why these Giveways can lead to tricky situations. But my only intention is to send a few of you a gift, a little something from me.  I must say I have no patience to try to understand what I need to do in order to be in compliance. This is the long checklist that Ms. Hawkins has for keeping a giveaway legal:

Checklist for your giveaway:

If your giveaway winner will be chosen at random you are hosting a sweepstakes and thus you should comply with the laws regarding sweepstakes.

1. Identify the prize – provide as much detail as necessary to both identify it and make it attractive to your readers

2. Who can enter – detail who is allowed to enter, as well as those excluded

3. Duration – clearly set out when the giveaway (sweepstakes) will begin and end, and follow through

4. How to enter – let the reader know what they need to do to enter your sweepstakes, keeping in mind that element of consideration that could vault your sweepstakes into illegal lottery territory. Ultimately, the best bet is to keep entry as simple as possible.

5. How Winner Is Chosen – describe how you will choose your winner, especially since you are likely choosing randomly

6. Technical Issues – since we all know there could be technical problems, let people know how they will be handled. For example, will you delete duplicate entries? If your site goes down, what will you do?

I admit, can't deal with this.  If you have any ideas of how I can get a beautiful little Ultrasuede® collection to 4 lucky readers without any problems, let me know.  They are all here, ready to go. (22 pieces of Ultrasuede®, 22 colors, all about 2.5" x 3" in size).

Waiting to hear from you...

xo
Orna

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New Cuffs - Watermelon and Avocado

With two new colorways, I am reintroducing one of my fav cuff, "Shimmering Jewels".  

The design isn't new, but it was out for only a short period of time.  

The reason this is one of my favorite cuff designs is because it is extremely portable, take with you, extremely doable, won't take you but a few sittings, and lastly, it is perfect for ANY stitching level.

These two colorways come with the beautiful teardrop glass beads on the edges of the cuffs, really adding a higher level of richness and extravagance!

I'm planning on utilizing these gals in my winter wardrobe!  My favorite wool coat works beautifully with the Avocado colorway and a crisp white blouse brings out the Watermelon colorway!

You can find the cuffs on our lovely Website, (at the bottom of the Needlepoint Jewelry page). They are priced very reasonably ($68), and include detailed instructions on stitching, constructing and beading. CHECK IT OUT HERE!

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