December 08 Newsletter

	Where has the year gone? Welcome! Another month has flown by for us here at Stitchtastic. We've had a very successful weekend at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate - perhaps you saw us there! A little break for us from shows for a couple of months now. Before our next show in the new year, we'll have a special newsletter guide to getting the most out of Stitch and Craft shows. In this issue, we're going to fill you in on the history of Stitchtastic and give you some tips on using waste canvas. My Christmas stitching - our new F1 world champion! Stitching on Waste Canvas So now we've got you 'stitching something a bit different', where can you put it? After a few years of stitching, wall space becomes a premium - I certainly have none left! So why not stitch and wear? The key to stitching onto clothes is to use waste canvas. Using waste canvas is not difficult if you are an experienced cross stitcher and it will enable you to create a truly unique finish to a plain article of clothing. Items such as t-shirts, sweatshirts, a pocket on a jacket or a plain canvas bag can be made to look really chic by adding a unique cross stitched design. A larger design can look fantastic on a t-shirt, with smaller ones suiting pencil cases or jacket pockets. For more information on using waste canvas, please see the link below. Read the rest of the article here One of our regular customers loves to stitch on waste canvas to make t-shirts. Here's her husband modelling one of our designs at Alexandra Palace! Stitchtastic On Tour Thanks to those who came to see us at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate. It was a great 4 days, lots of new people who hadn't seen our designs before, then some who had obviously made a beeline for us! We'll be at a number of other stitching shows over in 2009, starting in March at the NEC, click here for more details. Well, we had to mention Christmas somewhere! Have a lovely holiday season, I hope you get lots of time for stitching! December Spotlight Forget the Christmas washing up, or even better, let the relatives / kids / cats (!) do it and settle down to read the history of Stitchtastic, or maybe even stitch one of our favourite recommendations. Stitchtastic has been trading since the beginning of 2007. Run by Patrick and Sarah Scott in Sheffield, Sarah is the designer and Patrick takes care of the business side. Sarah says, "Having stitched for a number of years I began to find it increasingly difficult to find contemporary, individual and unusual designs. So we decided to take the plunge ourselves! We started with a range of transport designs, and soon after launched our caricature range. They became extremely popular, and we now have over 100 caricature designs, more than 500 transport designs and a range of nature designs." Stitchtastic is keen to promote cross stitch to a whole new group of consumers who had maybe never considered it as a cost effective, satisfying and fun hobby that produces a wonderful piece of individual artwork. These people have so far included men, young families and younger women who just need 'a hook'. They also provide an opportunity for established stitchers to find gifts to stitch for all the family. The PETZ range in particular has proved to be incredibly popular, with customers appreciating the humour and lively look that the designs provide. Sarah's favourite design at the moment is shown at the top of this newsletter - Lewis Hamilton's F1 car. She says, " I'm stitching this design right now and relishing the challenge. It has some blocks of colour, but other areas which require more concentration - good for my brain! It's going to look great when it's finished - brilliant displayed on the wall at our next show - Sewing for Pleasure and Hobbycrafts in March at the NEC." Patrick says, "There's so many designs to choose from....I can't choose a favourite! I'm going to go for our best selling design - the crazy scuba diving goldfish. It reminds me of our honeymoon when we went scuba diving - but in a much bigger bowl!" Some of our favourite and most popular designs - do you agree? E-mail us with your own choices at sales@stitchtastic.co.uk. Next Month Happy New Year! In our January newsletter, we'll talk about stitching for charity, and give you some ideas to fill in the cold, dark, January days now you don't have to stitch Christmas cards and presents for another year. Questions or comments? E-mail me at sarah@stitchtastic.com or call +44 (0) 114 2353958 Until next time Sarah Designer

November 08 Newsletter

	What a month! Welcome to our second newsletter. It's certainly been busy here, our PETZ designs have been proving very popular with customers and I'm trying to finish my own stitching projects too. Right now I'm stitching the weight training hamster - he's quite a small design so I'm hoping to finish him soon and start on his chum - the jogging hamster! In this issue, we're going to take a closer look at our Nature range. We'll also look at the pros and cons of stitching on dark fabrics.   Westie is proving himself very popular!   Stitching on Black or Dark Fabrics   Cross stitch pieces worked on black or very dark fabrics look absolutely stunning when they are completed as the colours, especially the paler ones, seem to really stand out against the dark background. However, stitching on dark fabrics is totally different from working on a light background and you may find it takes some considerable time to finish whatever article you are stitching. If this is your first attempt at working with a dark material, it is suggested a relatively simple pattern is sewn initially, until you are more experienced at stitching on dark backgrounds. Stitching on dark fabrics can be very tiresome on your eyes so just stitch for small periods of time making sure you have several tea or coffee breaks - or even a glass of wine if you prefer. For lots more tips on how to stitch on darker fabrics, please follow the link below. Black aida can make a design stand out and colours look far more vibrant.    Read the rest of the article here Stitchtastic On Tour Thanks to those who  came to see us at the Knitting and Stitching Show at Alexandra Palace last month. It was a fantastic weekend, with a massive number of stalls for customers to browse through! We got some fantastic feedback on our newest designs, and we're looking for more at our next venue, another Knitting and Stitching Show,  but this time for you northerners in Harrogate, 20th - 23rd November. If you visit us at Harrogate, why not take advantage of a special offer? Mention the newsletter and you'll receive 10% off any accessories you buy. We'll be at a number of other stitching shows over the next 6 months, click here for more details. The calm before the storm! Just before opening time at the Knitting and Stitching Show. You can also see the beautiful Rose window. Alexandra Palace certainly was a gorgeous venue!    Nature Cross Stitch "Fancy stitching something a bit different?" is our motto, as I mentioned last month. Sometimes, the 'bit different' bit is not only about the stitching. Using dark fabrics is often 'a bit different' for a lot of stitchers. Apart from festive reds and greens at Christmas (don't mention that word!), some stitchers never venture away from of the whites and creams of traditional aida. Well, here at Stitchtastic we want to change all that. We've been using and selling various light blue shades of aida for a while, and some of our nature designs are designed for black aida. A little wary of black aida? Don't worry, just browse the article above for some tips and hints on getting the best out of this effective material.  It really makes your stitching stand out and works particularly well for bright colours like those used in our flower designs. Not all of our nature designs use black aida. Our field of poppies design is stitched on ice blue aida, and our English Pointer Dog on Ivory. Look out for our beautiful Horse and Cowboy design, as well as the striking Charging Elephant design. These two designs are fully stitched, with no fabric showing. A great project for those who like a little added challenge! If you'd like to see more of our Nature range, please click here. Fed up already of the long autumn evenings? Brighten up your stitching with our featured nature designs this month! Beautiful flower designs stitched on black aida. Our Nature range is not all about flowers!   Next Month In our December issue, we'll show you the joys of waste canvas. How to use it, and what to use it for. We'll also look back at the history of Stitchtastic, and some of our favourite and most popular designs.   Questions or comments? E-mail me at sarah@stitchtastic.com or call +44 (0) 114 2353958 Until next time Sarah Designer

Caricature cross stitch and tour dates

	Welcome Welcome to the first of our monthly newsletters. It's great to be able to let our customers know what's new in the world of Stitchtastic, and share some of the tips and hints we've picked up to make your cross stitching a breeze! In this issue, we'll look at finding a great place to stitch - whether your house is messy or pristine, it's easy to get organized with your stitching and ensure that everything is to hand when you need it. Certainly something I aspire to! A rather unusual Goldfish - one of our new PETZ designs. Finding a great place to stitch Finding a great place to stitch depends on many factors, the most important one must be how much time each day you can find to stitch. Then you need to think about whether you stitch sitting down or standing at a frame, are you a television addict glued to various soaps, stitching whilst you watch, do you enjoy a quiet atmosphere or are you a fan of background music whilst you sew? Are you an occasional stitcher or do you like to spend as much time as possible stealing time away from other things to cross stitch? The list is endless and obviously a personal choice. Ideally, a dedicated sewing room would be superb. A place where your materials and threads as well as craft magazines can be stored or left out safely and whenever you have time to spare everything is ready and waiting for you. Not always possible, unfortunately! Click on the link below for some practical suggestions if a room of your own is out of the question - at least until you win the lottery! Read the rest of the article here Stitchtastic On Tour Why not come and see us at The Knitting and Stitching Show, Alexandra Palace from 9th to 12th October? Come and meet Sarah, our designer, who'll be stitching away! We'll be at a number of stitching shows over the next 6 months, click here for more details. Caricature Cross Stitch Two of our caricature range, the union jack mini, available in 5 colours and the alsatian guard dog. He's only available in 1 colour! A best seller - Delboy's Reliant Regal. Did you know that it's not actually a Reliant Robin? It's a different model altogether. I don't know about you, but sometimes I love to stitch something a bit different. In fact, it's one of the reasons why we started Stitchtastic! Friends and family love to receive stitched gifts, but it's so tricky to find designs to suit everyone. Our caricature range fills that need. From the stylized wheels of the mini car, to the crazy idea of a scuba diving goldfish, these designs appeal to all ages. All of our caricature designs are available as kits or charts. Whenever we appear at a stitching show, there's always a crowd around them. The range extends to around 100 caricatures now, so there's certainly something for everyone! For more brand new PETZ designs this autumn, follow this link: http://www.stitchtastic.com/catalog/caricature_petz.aspx Next Month In our November issue, we'll take a closer look at our Nature range. We'll also weigh up the pros and cons of stitching on dark fabric, including some tips on how to get the best out of black aida. Questions or comments? E-mail me at sarah@stitchtastic.com or call +44 (0) 114 2353958 Until next time Sarah Designer