You probably are familiar with the tomato pincushion, but did you ever think that these prosaic items could be the springboard for some unusual needlepoint finishing?
There are plenty of tutorials out there for making pincushions and you can adapt many of them to needlepoint. Make sure when you do that any fabric you use is heavy-weight so the needlepoint won’t tear it. If you’d like to lighten the weight some, try using interlock canvas, it’s much thinner. Finally, think about saving your ORTs and using them to stuff your pincushion.
Here is a round-up of some great pincushion ideas, my apologies if some of the pictures aren’t of needlepoint pincushions.
Biscornu: Eight-sided, these are made by setting two squares at right angles to each other. The corners of one square are sewn to the centers of the sides of the other square. There are also biscornus with more sides. THe one pictured here is a design from Bargello Revisited.
Humbug: These start with a rectangle that is folded and sewn to become a triangular shape. Eye Candy Needleart has several canvases for humbugs in their line. You can see one of them in this blog post.
3-D Needlepoint Objects: Why not consider turning your 3-D needlepoint into a pincushion. Pincushions in shapes are popular. If you are making a cupcake in needlepoint, ask your finisher to make it so the top can be a pincushion. This idea can work for all shapes as long as at least one area is not stiff, so pins can be inserted.
Vintage Objects: Small vases, pots, baby shoes, and even shells can be the base for a pincushion. Start with some batting or fiberfill. Wad it up until you have a ball that is the right size to fit the opening. Using fabric make a template of how big the covering needs to be. Use that template to trace a shape 1/2″ bigger all around for the needlepoint.
When stitched, use pearl cotton to make stitches all around the outside. Be sure to leave the tails long on both sides. Place your ball of batting in the center and pull on one tail to gather the needlepoint. When gathered enough, arrange the gathers evenly, tie the ends and pop it into the item. You can secure with glue to keep it in place.
A pincushion is a clever way to finish your needlepoint!
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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