I'm being published

My latest design 'Hestia's Flame' is to be published in the Australian Magazine 'Embroidery and Cross Stitch'. Issue no. 16-2 which goes on sale on the 29th of January 2009. There are some examples of previous issues at the link below.

http://www.ericas.com/xstitch/magazines/embandxstitch.htm

It's is called Hestia after the Greek Goddess of fire and has a real sparkle to it.

I am obviously really excited about this and look forward to seeing it when it comes out.

India Grace Designs on Facebook

Just for fun I have added an India Grace Designs group to Facebook. If anyone would like to become a member they'd be most welcome.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=43449709358
I am very conscious of security issues with sites like this (I only add friends that I know in the flesh for just this reason) so I promise not to send you any spam or bother you in any way!

Would anybody be interested in joining a partwork?

I am considering launching a monthly partwork, starting January 2009 and going through to December 2009. Details are under wraps at the moment but I can say that it is gong to be Hardanger based and a calendar. If anyone is interested in this they can sign up for it by joining my Yahoo Group (details below) and entering their name in the poll created for this purpose. I need at least 10 people signed up to make it worthwhile. I have promised members of my group who have already expressed an interest not to make it too expensive materialswise (I will run a co-operative buying scheme if there is enough interest) and each monthly part will be about 4" square on 32 count evenweave so not big projects. Further details are available in the discussions on my Yahoo group.

Update and new releases

I'm pleased to be able to show a couple of new releases as I've been working on some bigger projects this year and haven't had much new to add.

This is Iona, named after the island on which the famous Celtic work the book of Kells was created, as that work contains some of the most fabulous examples of Celtic knots and artwork that I have seen. It uses 2 thicknesses of the same colour and co-ordinating beads.

This one I am still having trouble naming. I'm quite excited about this design as it is bringing in some new ideas to add to the Hardanger technique. Last summer, whilst on holiday in the Lake District, I was introduced to Ruskin Lace by a lady who had taken classes in it and who, when she saw my Hardanger work, brought hers out to show me. I loved the intricacies of the patterns and was struck by its similarities to Hardanger. I have been experimenting with adapting these ideas to work with Hardanger and have a large piece that I have been working on since that summer which I hope to finish soon. This piece is my first release incorporating these ideas and I hope to use more in the future.

Ruskin Lace is a needlecraft that originated in the Lake District in the 1800s. To find out more about it please visit http://www.ruskinlace.org.uk/ I thoroughly recommend buying the book or DVD as it is a fascinating art and these needlework traditions should always be passed on.

These two designs will hopefully be released via my website soon.

New idea

I am introducing a new scheme for those people who would like a hand embroidered family crest but aren't stitchers themselves. These can now be sewn to order especially for them.

I have been producing Armorial kits for the last 3 years in association with Heritage and Heraldry of Eton, Windsor. All designs are authentic and over 250,000 surnames are available. The designs, as featured in the kits, are 7.5" x 10.5" and involve approximately 3 months work so will be priced accordingly using the minimum wage as a guide. Larger sizes will be available for a proportional rate.

The image shown here is a finished embroidery. They are sewn using the best quality fabric and threads by experienced stitchers. For further information please email me.

A new release - finally

I finally have something new to show you, this is Miriam, a birth sampler for a little girl using hardanger and other speciality stitches. I hope to have instructions completed in about a week and it will be available through my site.

I haven't had much that I'm able to release lately but there is a lot going on behind the scenes, some of which I am very excited about and hope to be able to show you soon