New Design "Halloween Birdhouse"

I am very pleased to share my newest design, appearing in the September/October 2013 issue of Needlepoint Now.  This is my first foray into creating a line-drawn canvas design.  I have always enjoyed this type of design for it's "coloring book" appeal-- filling in the lines with fun colors and patterns, what could be more fun?  I hope you will enjoy stitching it as much as I did!

Here is the whole design, flat, before the finishing process:

And here it is finished!  As you may have noticed from the line of chain stitches surrounding the design, like my previous "Spring Garden" series, this one too is a project you can finish yourself should you choose.  I finished this one as a Cracker ornament, albeit it is a bit larger than most, the stitched area is 3" x 4, giving you a finished piece somewhere between Cracker and Roll Up in size.

Here's another little detail-- I put pom-poms into the ends to fluff out the ruffle and add a little surprise touch:

Here's a sneak peek at the materials list, courtesy of the magazine:

And here are detail photos for your stitching reference-- the center birdhouse:

And the little Witchy-bird, stitched in Kreinik's gorgeous peacock color metallic ribbon:

Detail of the roof and dormer.  Rainbow Gallery's FyreWerks makes for a great glass in the windows illusion:

Detail of the flowers, created with layered sequins, beads and metallics:

 The Jack O'Lantern is created with the Basketweave Beading technique using Delica beads:

Finishing details are included in the article, and couldn't be simpler!  Essentially, you are making a tube that will slide over another tube, made of fabric and stuffed like a little mini bolster pillow.  Afterwards, you can embellish them both as much as you would like!

Hope you have enjoyed this preview.  Please contact me if you have any questions about stitching or finishing this design and as always, Happy Stitching!