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Saturday, May 1, 2010

Begin House Part Two

I can't believe it is May already.  I am going to put Frank on the shelf and get going on part two of the Haunted House.  I am using my new frame stand from K's Creations.  It clamps on both sides of the canvas.  The Evertite stretcher bars are quite heavy, so this set up is better than a clamp on one side only.

I have read through the guide a couple of times and have a game plan.  That includes not getting bogged down like I did with Frank's pants.  I plan to work everything I can before doing the raised stem areas, and there are a lot of them.  There are the windows and the bricks to do.  Amy has picked out some great new overdyed threads for us to use on the bricks, as well as an interesting stitch.  And there are the bats...lots of bats.

And this guide is FULL of tips.  Great tips.  I will share one that is universal so those of you who are not stitching Halloweenies with us can use it.

Amy says,

"When a straight stitch meets a slanted stitch on a needlepoint canvas, there is always a decision to be made. Do I work the straight stitch and cover part of the slanted stitch next to it or do I not work the straight stitch and leave a tiny bit of canvas showing?  The decision breaking question is, "Who owns the line?"  In other words, which object is in front of the other?  If the straight stitch is on the object to the front, then, yes, stitch it to slightly cover the slanted stitch.  If the straight stitch is on the object to the back, then, no, don't take that last stitch; leave a tiny bit of canvas showing."

6 comments:

  1. I received my threads yesterday and plan to read the stitch guide this evening. The tip re: straight vs slanted is great. So far this Home Study has been so much fun and I feel like I am learning so much. I love the Evertites and used them for quite a while. I usually use a Systems 4 but think I will use the old fram I have from Shay Pendray that has a clamp on each side. Thanks for mentioning the frame your using, Peggy....made me remember that I had a frame that might work better with the Evertites. It's all fun

    Sue VanderNoor

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  2. Not having the glitter glue or Press 'n Seal on hand when the new threads and instructions arrived, I skipped ahead and started on the chimney. The stitch is slow-going for me, but it sure creates realistic looking bricks!
    Nancy

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  3. Good to hear from you Nancy. I skipped ahead too. I am going to Target today to get the glitter glue. I am going to do the windows, door and bricks before first. We can skip around in the stitch guide. Let's be sure to check out the stitch order for the balustrade that Amy has provided for us. It is on page 8. Take care.

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  4. The chimney is done and I'm moving on to the brick foundation and have found a problem. The foundation on the right side of the house is painted just like the photo. However the bricks on the left side extend clear to the edge of the painted canvas. On the photo it looks like the fence and flowers should extend that far, but not the bricks. Here's my question: should I stop the bricks at the edge of the house? This would require that the gray sky area is fully stitched, not lightly stitched. Or should I just stitch as mistakenly painted, extending the foundation beyond the left side of the house?

    Your thoughts will be appreciated. Thanks.

    Nancy

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  5. Wow, I see the problem! This is another case of our canvases being painted differently than Amy's. Let me talk to Amy about it tomorrow. My GUESS is that we stitch the bricks as I am not sure the background will be fully covered. I will get back to you tomorrow on it.

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  6. Amy says,
    "There are two choices that I see - - stitch it as painted and not worry about it. The viewer won't notice, just like none of us noticed until she started to study the individual pieces of the painting. The other option is to stitch heavier bushes in that area to cover the painted porch. She could build up some bushes on the opposite end to match if she wants. I am not planning on a thick coverage for the bushes so she would need to work them as if they were separate bushes."

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