Zoom in on Hélène Le Berre

Zoom in on Hélène Le Berre

Many of you are probably already familiar with Hélène Le Berre’s work. She designs for Marie Claire Idées and other publications as well as hosting popular workshops in France. Something is just so delicious in Hélène’s style ... It is ethereal, gentle, subtle and fresh, and she is very much a master of texture. Hélène is capturing the heart of the next generation of needleworkers and putting her unique signature on the rich tradition of French embroidery. We’ve teamed up with trusted embroi...

Paint & Decoupage

Paint & Decoupage

I could bring Martha Stewart to her knees with my crafting. But probably not in a good way.Case in point: my weekend bookcase project of paint and decoupage. I took my mother in law’s old little brown bookcase and with the help of my son, painted and decoupaged it to within an inch of its life. Fresh, check. Colorful check. A bit slapdash, well check on that one too.What could have been done better? Certainly a more meticulous job of painting and developing a patina would have been nice. I p...

Color challenged...

Color challenged...

I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but my family has purchased a house in Burgundy. It is a in a small town on the Loire River and we got it for a song. It does need a ton of work...it is about 900 years old ! Although it has been several decades since my husband and I purchased our first home, it has me in full nesting mode. Let me repeat, FULL NESTING MODE. So while my husband frets about the trivialities of heating, plumbing and walls, I am focused on the all important paint colors and tile...

Color Drunk

Color Drunk

I get many questions from customers about the kind of needlework I do myself. Most of the things on the site, I have done... or at least aspire to do... someday. I love it all!  Over the past months though, I have found myself drawn to... okay, let's just say it, mindless stitching. I did a punch needle pillow with a gazillion colors.The frenetic punchy motion and a really scary ball of fibers felt like a big lot of crazy for a while, but I love the result. I then moved on to ridiculously sm...

New kits from French General

New kits from French General

  A month or two ago Kaari from California based French General sent me her new embroidery kit and floss. I was thrilled as I think it's something my customers will love. Simple, printed embroidery kits are extremely hard to find and transferring designs to fabric can sometimes be an ordeal. I posted them on the site last week, and have had questions from a lot of you about how to do the kits.There are five or so designs in this series. You can use your own threads or select a palette from...


Garden "les Quatre Vents" La Malbaie, Quebec

                                                         So I realize I am a really lucky duck. I first saw images of the glorious "Four Winds" gardens floating  around Pinterest and could not believe they were from a garden in La Malbaie, Quebec province right where we were planning on spending a week.  Then I read that they were only open a few days a year, but one of the days was during our trip.  Then I went to make a reservation and was told it was booked a year in advance. I decided ...


Needlework Trip to Paris...?

Hello fellow stitchers! As mentioned in my most recent newsletter, we're getting a group together for a little needlework tour of Paris in May 2016.  (maximun ten people !) We are tentatively planning for the last week of May 2016. The trip will be focused on all things needlework !  We will have workshops at Lesage, the renowned source of couture stitching, visits to the Toile de Jouy museum near Versailles, private needlework collection tours and more. To see the full trip itinerary, p...


zen stitching...

I am not a particularly talented needlewoman... I knit and crochet in rectangles  or squares only. Most of my blankets end up with the "Comfort for Critters"  charity which gives blankets to displaced dogs and cats. I'm thinking my handiwork will keep them warm, especially the cashmere and alpaca ones. And the dogs don't judge. When my husband asks for a button to be re-attached and I give him an indignant deer-in-the-headlights look, he actually should be grateful I won't do it, it would be...


pin cushion poetry

I met Deborah Heartwick at a Sully Plantation Quilt Show many years ago. We were actually booth neighbors. At that time it was news to me that one could make a career in pin cushions, but in fact, that is exactly what the talented Deb has done. She originally learned sewing, tailoring and upholstery from a Japanese mentor after earning a design degree in college. Simultaneously she developed an interest in antiques, particularly vintage sewing items. After many years collectin...


A guest blogger...

    From Elisabeth, author, and my belle soeur  in every sense of the word !   "Why do French women love scarves ?”, Lisa asked me…"Mmmhhh… Well… " I said, "Let's think about it…" There are two words in French for scarf. One is écharpe, from which the English scarf is derived. It is much longer than wide and is worn around the neck or over the shoulders. The other is foulard, which originally designated a type of fabric: a very light one, made...


more simple things....

 I mentioned a while back my new obesession in stitching....embroidering on printed fabrics... well who knew, there is a whole book on it ! The book, Broderies sur imprimes by Agnes Delage- Calvert (perhaps the twin from whom I was separated at birth) has broken the book into chapters: striped fabrics, damasks, novelty prints etc. The text is in French, but the photos say it all. You can see the book on my site here: http://www.frenchneedle.com/collections/embroidery-...