I have some good news & some bad news. I’ll get the bad news out of the way first. Major delays from the painting services are still plaguing our canvas designers. Several designers are saying the wait for new canvases is indefinite. Others say over a year (especially for large canvases); most are saying wait times are over six months. My advice is to buy what’s in stock when possible, check with your shop for lead times for ordered canvases, and plan ahead.
Threads have become easier to find, but some are still scarce. Be willing to substitute.
Although it’s vacation time for many, new product notices keep coming to me. I want to share these with you.
Jenny Henry has adorable new seasonal squares and glasses cases. The squares are going to be an upcoming club from Needlepoint Junction in South Carolina. In her fall preview, she has a wonderful clutch front that is of bookshelves. I bought it as soon as I saw it. Stitch Rock Designs has announced three fall canvases, a bright sunflower, a jar of sprinkles, and a cool geometric clutch. Needlepoint to Go has added several canvases to its line reflecting Charleston. These include doorways, typical Charleston houses in groups or singly, Rainbow Row, plus other landmarks. These are printed canvases done using their new technology.
Atlantic Blue has a series of hobby Santas. My favorite is the soccer Santa who is balancing a ball on his head. Needlepoint by Laura has canvases of that great gameday tradition — tailgating. You can get these customized or not. Kangaroo Paw has 1″ round sorority canvases to fit the Planet Earth fobs. BTW, I discovered a great use for these if you don’t carry keys — hang them from your purse as decorations. Thanks for that tip to Melissa from The Wool & the Floss.
KCN has five new travel hearts designed by SCT. Jeni Sandberg has new clutch canvases in geometric designs based on the shapes of letters. She also has three colorways of a chain geometric, all quite dramatic.
Dog Grin Designs has leather dog collars with a painted canvas needlepoint The cool thing about the canvases is all the inserts. The collars come in brown or black and in three sizes. The designs are painted in shades of grey, allowing you to choose the thread colors. On all the collars there is enough room for customization. It’s a genius idea.
Planet Earth has lots of new news. In both {epperpot and Essentials there are three new colors, a deep violet (Rhumba), a steely dark green (Seacrest), and a sapphire blue (Waltz). They have new colors for the zip cases. They now come in hot pink,navy, royal blue, black, sky blue, and light turquoise. There are new 5′ round boxes that will fit a 4″ round canvas. I saw these in several bright colors. They have a new magnetic box, available in three colors (red, navy, and black. Made from lambskin, the box is 7.5 x 2.5, with an insert size is 6.5 x 1.5. It also has a removable tray. Look to bracelet and key fob canvases to stitch for them.
Evergreen Needlepoint is making can cozies in your choice of espresso or Walnut leather. They will hold a 2″ insert. I also saw self-finishing fanny packs. These take a 3×4.5 insert. Rachel Barri has added to her self-finishing line with laptop sleeves. The insert size is 7×9. Lee is making an iPad cover.
Friday I saw a few really intriguing tools for needleworkers. Modern Hoopla is making wooden racks for threads in spools. There are two sizes a stick that holds 10 spools and a circle that holds 19 spools. They should hold many popular spooled threads. If you store your floss on bobbins, the company is also making a storage rack for them. There are two shapes, a rectangle and a circle, holding a dozen bobbins. The rectangular one has a magnet at one end to hold your needle. Pip & Chip, a UK copany makes charming floss bobbins in shapes as well as thread holders. I found some other intriguing items I’ll be reviewing soon.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
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