Blue Crabby

Here is the Blue Crabby .... back from the finisher ...THE STITCHERY in Camden Maine ( see link on this page)...finished and on his very special hardwood starfish stand... designed by Squiggee and her master woodworker husband created this stand, just for Squiggee Designs.....

Best Friends

This a Squiggee custom piece for a great lady....these are her two pooches....the design is 14" square on 13st....they are too cute for words....here in Squiggeeland ..we love the pooches...

MERRY CHRISTMAS from Squiggeeland

Happy Holidays to all from Squiggeeland...............
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Angels in Squiggeeland

I had to really search my files for Angels.......Not too many in my files...and the ones I do have are a mixed bunch....Funny but my custom stockings rarely have angels......being a little unconventional...my angels all have a different flavor...the big Victorian angels with swirls and whirls of floating ribbons, never seems to be in my thoughts...maybe because most of my angels are sweet people and loving dogs that surround me daily....too much fuss and bother... all those extra heavy wings and masses of material...my everyday Angels just sparkle and shine from within....

A Little Christmas Cheer

Here in Squiggeeland we haven't seen the sun for days and days...we have had grey...with rain and snow and sleet...not Squiggee's time to sparkle....so I took one of my little tiny gingerbread houses and worked it on 10st.....I do love ten stitch ...and since Squiggeeland has almost any size bead ..all that had to be done was add larger beads...lol...
I plan to work two small gingerbread characters on 18st to display with this little house....
the best of both worlds...it has so much sparkle I thought it would add a little cheer to the greyness......besides who wants to see a gingerbread house in August...lol...

A Whole New World..!!!!

Years and years ago in the early 70's...a custom order, consisted of a visit to a needlepoint shop,

where an order could be placed. The customer would bring in fabric samples or other source material, and consult in person with the artist and pick wool colors. This could also be achieved by mail...not email , just plain, lick the stamp and send it mail...what some people refer to now as ,snail mail.....lol ..... we have become a society of instant photos and technology that now allows a customer to send a photo via a phone.....makes one feel very old some days...

anyway ...this is a custom pillow ,the first of three...15" square on 13st...for an office...the customer sent via phone, pictures of her furniture and Persian rug , then followed it up by mailing me fabric samples, for a better take on the colors and patterns...a combination of low and high tech...the low being the mail....good thing because the photos she sent, the colors are very different....

so here we are, the order started with a phone call, then an email and phone pictures...then mailed fabric samples....wooosh....so organized and quick to achieve...... when I think of how things have changed , I am truly amazed.........

this is the first design combining elements of the office decor, keeping the feel of the room but adding a little complexity........so as not to have pillows just copies of the fabric...if you wanted that, you could just have pillows made from the existing fabric in the room...

the elements of design are classic enough and so varied , that if you redecorated ,using similar colors and style the pillows would still fit......I enjoy this type of designing...and this customer gave me free reign, with this first design, to see what I could come up with...we will see if she is pleased....exciting.......

A Christmas Kaleidoscope

Another Squiggee sample I worked....I do notice, that the metallics ,do warp the canvas a little...not much, but they seem to have a mind of their own...the eight pointed stars are in basketweave, and boy are they solid metallic...interesting fibers all the way around...this piece in person does shimmer and shine...perfect for a Christmas thingy...not sure...it is 6"sq on 13st...I guess you could use it to make a tiny pillow , or better yet an insert for a big pillow......frame it or use as an ornament on a big tree......I haven't decided how I will have it finished......anyway...I am learning about some fibers...I really never thought this day would come.....lol...

Christmas is in the Air

This is a custom Squiggee piece I just did for a loyal Squigger....last year I did one the same size 13 x 9" on 13st that said ...SNOW HAPPENS... this is the second...great to have festive pillows or framed sayings...... I have a stuffed Green Grinch that puts me in the mood...lol...I love this time of year ....good thing, since Christmas needlepoint goes on all year....sometimes I laugh when i am painting a stocking and it is 100 degrees outside...

Underrated...10st.

With all the new fibers , many of which are specifically created to be used on 18st....

18st seems to

be the most popular size canvas, followed by a very versatile 13st.

When I first started in the business in the early 70's and wool was the primary fiber , 10st was very popular.

Pateran Wool used full three ply was perfect for 10st. Somehow, over the years 10st designs became

obsolete.....except for the occasional rug, or chair seat....I happen to love the way 10st looks and feels...substantial, and it really looks like a piece of tapestry, even from a distance....but all the new fibers are a problem....I found , not so much....DMC Tapestry Cotton Floss doubled is perfect and Caron Snow doubled is also perfect....and then you have wool that adds a nice rich texture to the mix...... and Kreinik heavy braid is made for 10st in my opinion.....i will give any combination of fibers a try and if IT covers and looks good, I ignore what the manufacturer recommends....now this is just my personal views, I am far from an expert...but if you like a fiber ..give it a whirl in another context...you never know.......these two gingerbread people are large enough to sit on a shelf in the country kitchen....and did they go fast...you bet ...lol...and very easy on the eyes....

Rollie Shopper back from the finisher

What a great job the finisher did...the Burberry plaid is matched exactly on the back seam....it really pays to have a professional finish your needlepoint....she is seamless...I really don't know how they do it...anyway here she is in all her glory on her solid birch base......she is perfectly straight...must be the table..lol...

will mess with leveling her...but these snaps are good enough to show her off...and yes...I worked her myself.......at one time I had lovely red nails...but too much painting and hand work..now they look like I dig gravel..lol...and no polish..way too hard to get the paint off..acrylic really bonds on acrylic polish...

FYI...my finisher....Stitchery Square, Camden Maine..owner Michelle

1-207-236-9773....

http://www.stitching.com

just tell her Squiggee says hey !

ps...they are very reasonable and excellent and fast.....

Santa is on his way....

I got this great picture today from one of my Squiggers...( these are loyal stitchers that have done many Squiggee canvases , and have been supportive from the beginning..part of the Squiggee family)...This ornament was ordered by Lucy Moore, as a gift for her Son.....

As you can see , she did a beautiful job and was kind enough to send me a snap of the finished ornament.....something I just love to see......great job Lucy....

xoxoxoxoxox

squiggee

A little Girl's stocking

This is a custom stocking for a little girl....the order sheet was just chucked full of things , she herself had requested on her stocking...being a big dog lover, I so enjoyed all the little doggie touches..lol

The stocking was painted on 13st.