Colorful Stitchery: Review and Giveaway

For me, one of the most fun parts of being part of Creativebug is getting to watch all the teacher trailers.  I feel like I've gotten to know many of the teachers this way, and in the cases in which I've actually met some of these women in real life, it has felt easy- as if I already knew them.  Somehow the team of interviewers and cameramen really know how to capture stories and scenes that are true.   I loved filming mine.

I had a moment of longing and admiration when I watched  the Kristin Nicholas trailer.  Her cold, dark, New England Sheep farm gives way to a bright beautiful home, reminiscent of Charleston.  I love the layers and layers of color and pattern that seem to be on every wall, and seem to penetrate all her design projects in knit and embroidery.  Recently, Kristin reached out to me to ask if I'd like to review her newly re-published book Colorful Stitchery, and of course I said yes.  

The book, no less colorful than Kristin's house, is full of fun, bright projects.  Maybe it's because it is suddenly sweater weather here in New York, but my favorite is this one, that makes use of the grooves of corduroy, which I can't get enough of these days, and thanks to Kristin I can't wait to start stitching on!   Perhaps that new dress that I got yesterday will get a little stripe treatment.

Thanks to the nice people at Roost, I've got a copy for one of you, too!  Tell me what embroidery projects you've got on tap for the fall, and I'll pick one winner to receive a copy.  Entries will close next Wednesday, October 15th  Friday, October 17th, and I'll pick a winner shortly after that. Good luck!

Tidal Lace Winner!

Hello! I'm back from teaching at Arrowmont, with lots to share about that soon.  I'm just popping in today to share the winner of the Tidal Lace giveaway.   The randomly selected winner is #34, Arianna.  I'll be emailing you next, and your fabric will ship out just as soon as you send me your mailing address.  Thanks to everyone who entered!

Tidal Lace...

One of the best parts of my life is meeting interesting artists as I travel around teaching workshops.   Last year (or the year before?) I met Kim Andersson, when she took one of my workshops at A Verb for Keeping Warm.  This year, at the Makerie, there she was again.  We had so much fun sharing meals and catching up, and talking about our shared love of California.  

I was so happy for her when she told me she was nearing the finishing point of her first line of fabrics, and eagerly said yes when she asked me to design a project for the look book.  

Fast forward to July, when a stack of fabrics came in the mail for me to work with.   Her debut collection, Tidal Lace, is beautiful.  

It's partly inspired by the beautiful California coast that Kim lives on.  My favorite prints are the sea gems and tide pools, both of which are waiting, just waiting, to be embroidered.  Those sea gems seem to be loudly asking for wheels of blanket stitch, and the star fish seem obviously in need of french knot embellishments, which is just what I did.  

I wonder, what would you do?  Leave a comment telling me which is your favorite, and Windham Fabrics will choose one winner to receive an entire pack of fat quarters.   Lucky you!   The comments will stay open until next Monday, September 29th.

Instagram Tagging Giveaway!

Hello!  If you are a subscriber, you probably already know about this little contest.  If not, now's your chance! Through the end of June 2014, tag your samplers on instagram with #dropclothsamplers.  I'll pick one winner to receive four beautiful skeins of Cottage Garden Threads, pictured here.  You can tag as many photos as you like.

I've been busy embroidering some of the upcoming Colorburst Subscription samplers- I can't wait to share more of them with you all! Here's a finished one and a little sneak peek of what's to come:

PS- What do you think I should name that finished sampler?  Leave your ideas in the comments, and if I use yours I'll send along a little token of my appreciation.....

Embroidery BAGS!

You guys!  I have been remiss in telling you about these new canvas bags that I designed for Creativebug.  They are available as an incentive for new subscribers.   Anna Maria Horner, Lisa Congdon, and Kaffe Fassett also designed bags, which are free when you sign up for a new subscription!  I really like the way mine one turned out, and I love that it's lined in black with black handles, which seems like it will make it stay nicer longer.

Creativebug sent me one which I've been using for my groceries for a little while now, and they sent me a second that I've been waiting for the right moment to give to one of you.  Next week I'll pick a winner.

This giveaway includes:

• a Rebecca Ringquist/Creativebug Totebag
• the May edition of the Colorburst Samplers (**Starburst**)
• a Three month subscription to Creativebug.com, with unlimited access to a huge variety of classes

Three ways to win (choose one or all three):

• Visit Creativebug and let me know which class you would take first.
• Post this picture to Pinterest and leave a link in the comments.
• Leave a comment telling me your favorite embroidery stitch.

I'll pick a winner next Wednesday, June 4th by the end of the day.  Good luck!  

Winners Winners, Chicken Dinners!

Thank you so much to everyone that commented and pinned last week! I am happy to report that I've picked two winners via random.org, numbers  84 and 16.  I just e-mailed you two- can't wait to mail out your winnings!  And, for the first time ever, I chose those winners without having to painstakingly count by hand!  Hooray for google giving me a little help with html code- and hooray for numbered comments! My life just improved a little!

A few of you asked about the scissors in the photos. Aren't they cool?  They were a gift from a student of mine at Arrowmont a few summers ago- an artist who you'd probably love named Suzanne Andersen.  When I received them they still had the price tag, which was old and tattered and illegible attached, and they were wicked sharp.  I've since used them A LOT, and they aren't quite so sharp, but still my favorite pair.  I'm hoping the knife sharpening truck comes to Gowanus and parks outside the studio (fat chance) so I can get them sharpened.    Anyway, I found a similar pair on etsy.   Here's another on e-bay.  What about you, do you have a fancy pair of vintage scissors?  Share a link or description in the (numbered!) comments.

Dyed Fiber Embroidery Thread (and Bubblegum Sampler) Giveaway!

One of my favorite things about the subscription programs, is that every so often, I am lucky enough to partner with other small companies to offer subscribers samples of beautiful threads.  Last year, when the first subscription program was just starting, I reached out to Kathy Leever, the maker behind the beautiful threads at Dyed Fiber, and asked if she would be interested in including a small sample of her hand dyed tencel threads at some point in the first year.  Not only did she, but she reached out again to me this year to include threads in March's envelopes.

I can tell you from first hand experience that these threads are a joy to work with.  I love variegated threads so much,  if for no other reason than the fact that their changing colors keep me motivated to stitch longer.  I've long been stitching with Perle Cotton, particularly DMC, but  until I found Kathy's shop, I had never heard of Tencel Perle.  In Kathy's words, it is as soft as silk, but as strong as polyester.  Her threads are hand dyed in her Texas studio, and no two skeins are alike.

I used a combination of Kathy's threads and solid colored DMC threads in my version of the Bubblegum Sampler (which is the first in the Colorburst Subscription), and I love the way the two combined.

Along with the samples that Kathy sent along for subscribers, Kathy sent me eight full sized skeins of Tencel Perle to give away!  I'm sweeting the deal with a copy of Bubblegum (pictured above).    There are a few ways to enter to win- feel free to enter one or all ways to up your chances!  

• Leave a comment.
• Visit the Dyedfiber Shop and tell me what color you'd pick.
• Post one of the photos in this post to pinterest and leave a link.
• Post a photo of one of your samplers in progress (esepcially if you used Kathy's threads- we want to see!) to the Flickr group.

I'll pick two winners at Random next Monday, April 28th.  Winners will receive four hand dyed skins of Dyedfiber Tencel Perle and one Bubblegum Sampler.  Please make sure to include your e-mail address so I can get in touch with you!   

 *This giveaway is now CLOSED*

Color Winners!

Thanks to everyone who entered the color giveaway!

I used random.org to select two winners, and it picked #8 and #16.  Carrie and Nicole, I just e-mailed you.
I'll get the fabric shipped out to you this week.  Congrats!

Handmade Color Giveaway

Last month, (whoa! how is it possible that it is May???) subscribers to the Sampler of the Month club got a skein of hand dyed perle cotton from The Occasional Purl.  Don't you love variegated threads?  I really appreciate something that changes quickly as I work, keeping me interested.  I tell myself I'll stitch until it turns yellow, then can't resist waiting until it's orange again!

In addition to the threads, The Occassional Purl also dyed two color packs of cotton fabric and embroidery floss for two lucky winners of this blog post.  

The reds are hand-dyed with Cochineal, Rose Madder, and Brazil Wood:

The yellows are hand dyed with Chamomile, Onion Skin, and Cutch:

 Which do you like better?  I'm a red girl myself, but I love that rich Onion skin color.  

As you can tell by my background for this photoshoot, I'm not one for muted colors, but I love the way these naturally dyed colors combine with brighter colors, adding contrast.  To enter to win one of these two packs, leave a comment below telling about how you would use them.  I'll pick two winners next Monday, May 6th.  Good luck!

Color Winner!

Thanks to everybody who entered the giveaway!  It was so much fun checking out all your flickr pictures and Pinterest Boards.  You all have some great collections!  I re-pinned some things to my own board, and I'm grateful for your recommendations.....

Thanks to everybody who entered.  Random.org picked #14, and that's Amanda- I just e-mailed you!  I'll be sending you a sweet package filled with thread, the new sampler, and a special treat from Creativebug.

For all the rest of you, DyedFiber asked me to let you know to use the code 20THANKU for 20% off in her shop. 

As for me, for today only, until midnight EST, I'm offering 20% off as well.  Just use the code COLORBLAST in the shop, for the color wheel sampler or anything else you like, including subscriptions!    

Thread + Sampler = Giveaway!

If you are a Sampler Subscriber, you probably know by now how beautiful Dyedfibers threads are.  In a season of color popping up everywhere, these threads are leading the parade.    Everybody got a sample of these beautiful, color saturated Tencel perle threads in the subscription mailings last month. My mom stitched her sample using them, and I love the shiny smooth quality of the stitches.   Maybe some of you have used them too?  Show them off in the Flickr group!

Kathy aka DyedFiber, has generously agreed to giveaway a collection of four skeins to one lucky commenter.  I'm throwing in one of the new Color Wheel samplers too, since they seem to be a perfect match.

I asked Kathy how she got started dyeing these beautiful embroidery threads.....
"I began dyeing fabric to use in the Quilt Journal Project.  It was a natural progression to try and dye perle cotton along with the fabric so I would have embroidery thread that would coordinate with the fabric to use for embellishment.  Dyeing the little skeins of thread is more fun than dyeing fabric, it's a lot of color in a little bit of fiber and I just love it!" 

To enter to win four skeins of tencel perle thread and one Color Wheel Sampler, leave a comment here letting me know what your favorite color is.  Want to up your chances?  Leave another separate comment linking to your work in progress Dropcloth sampler on the Dropcloth Flickr Group. Still more?  Pin one of the pictures from this post and leave a link to your Pinterest board in a separate comment.   

Please note: Comments are open to everyone- each person can enter up to three times (see rules above).  Contest will end on Tuesday, April 9th at midnight, and I will choose a winner at random the next morning and announce it here on the blog.  Make sure your EMAIL is included in the comment so that if you win I can be in touch with you!

Announcing Subscriptions.....and a big giveaway!

When teaching workshops large and small, one question that I get asked a lot is "what's your favorite stitch?"  Although in a lot of the workshops I teach I often introduce an array of fancy stitches, I must admit that in my own artwork, my favorite stitches tend to be three simple ones- the back stitch, the french knot, and more recently, couching.  I am, like most people, susceptible to ruts.  The back stitch has always been my favorite.

Somewhere along the line of this year's workshops, I thought it would be fun to introduce a challenge- a routine-busting plan to help me and everybody else break out of their stitch ruts and try some new ones.  From that idea and from a particularly helpful phone call with my friend Jill*, the idea for an Embroidery Subscription was born.  I've spent the last month or so (including some very windy days in the midst of a Hurricane) drawing a series of samplers. Each one highlights a different family of stitches, starting with these first two- the Filling Stitches and Couching Stitches, stitched on our Thanksgiving road trip.  Special thanks to Katy for driving so that I could embroider, and special thanks to my mom for finishing the first one  when my hands couldn't stitch any longer!

Subscriptions are now available in 3, 6 or 12 month increments, and will begin mailing out on the fifteenth of each month, starting in January.   You can begin a subscription at any time. Each five inch sampler fits perfectly in a five inch hoop, and can easily be finished within a month's time, just in the nickle of time for the next one to arrive!  At the end of the year, you will have stitched the vast majority of your average embroidery how-to book.

These subscriptions are of course available as gifts, please make a note in checkout and I will send a handwritten card (with your note if you leave me one) letting the recipient know who it's from....

I've got lots of exciting ideas in store for these subscriptions, and I can't wait to see how you all complete them.  To a year of new stitches...........

Now for the fun part!  I have teamed up with Creativebug to offer one lucky reader a combination Sampler Subscription and Creativebug Subscription.  You'll win a month of instruction and three months of samplers, delivered right to your inbox and front door!    There are three ways to enter to win....

This Contest is now closed- but you can still use the discount Holiday2012 for 10% off everything, including Subscriptions, in the shop.  http://www.etsy.com/shop/dropcloth

I can't wait to see what you're working on, and I can't wait to spend a year exploring new ways of mark making with you.  If you're so inclined, please do enter all three ways!  


*If you are excited about the idea of a subscription but are more of a knitter than an embroiderer, please do check out Jill's amazing hand dyed yarn subscriptions....I'm no knitter but her colors are dreamy....

Winners!

Hey everybody- I hope you all have a great weekend.  A very special guest is arriving at my house this evening, and I can't wait to shower him with New York goodness.   At the top of his list is the Statue of Liberty and Lula's Dairy Free Apothecary.  At the top of mine is sitting at the kitchen table and listening to his stories.   Before he arrives, I'm wrapping up a few loose ends, including the winners of this week's contest.  THANK YOU!  Thank you thank you, I'm so excited to sit down and look at each and every one of the links you sent for small shops and resources for thread, needles, kits, etc.  I promise that in time it'll all get compiled here.

Now, on to the giveaway WINNERS!  I used Random.org, and the two winners are numbers 2 and 17.  So, Juli and Liz, please send me your snail mail info so I can get your kits out!

A Question and a Giveaway.

I taught my second Tradeschool class today, and it was another great group.  A few people came back again from last week, and a few new people came to embroider their initials.  Special thanks to Phyllis who made the most delicious dairy free gingerbread.     There were a couple no shows, so I have two left over kits.  I'll send two modified kits* to two lucky readers, complete with something that wasn't in the Tradeschool kits....a Summer Lines Sampler!  Just in time for actual summer spring, which is coming up fast and green in Brooklyn.

I'll admit that my motives for holding this giveaway are not entirely altruistic.  Whenever I teach workshops, people inevitably ask me where I buy my supplies.  While I buy what I can in local shops here in New York (I love Daytona Trimming) there are some things that I can only seem to find online, and that people that don't live in New York will definitely find themselves ordering online.   Joann carries a lot of things, but is essentially an online big box store.  So- in the spirit of Tradeschool, please tell me your favorite online sources for embroidery supplies.   I'm feeling generous, so feel free to leave separate comments for separate sources, and you'll up your odds!  ****Please be sure to include a URL*******Two winners will be drawn this Thursday afternoon (3/28), before the next and final live Tradeschool class at the Museum of Art and Design (sorry New Yorkers, it's sold out already....)  Good Luck!  I can't wait to hear about your resources, and when I've compiled them all, I'll be sure to add a new section to the blog for all to use.

*Kit will contain: Summer Lines Sampler, Backing Fabric, Perle Cotton, Embroidery Floss, and an Embroidery Needle, as well as a Rebecca Ringquist Postcard.  Good Luck!

A Quick Hello

My residency at MAD ends a week from tomorrow, so I have had my nose to the grindstone the last week in the studio, trying to finish the work that will go up at the museum in a few weeks.  I'll be back in a few days to show you the progress.  Until then, I wanted to let you know about a giveaway over at WeLoveFrenchKnots.  Head over there register to win a free copy of my Love Sampler.  There's also free shipping all week long in my shop with their code, FRENCHKNOTS.    See you soon!

Edit: The MAD residency has been extended until April 4th- please come say Hi!

Embroidered Crazy

I have a fondness for the crazy quilt.  This one peaked my interest years ago, and quickly won my heart to become my favorite object in the collection at the Art Institute of Chicago.  I mean, it wasn't a contest.  A whole quilt dedicated to a boxer?  It's too weird not to love completely.

I went to the new/old version of the American Folk Art Museum today with a heavy heart to see the second installment of their quilt show.  I was so saddened to hear their location on 53rd street closed.  It was one of my favorite places in all of New York; a quiet retreat from the chaos of 5th avenue.  My favorite things today at the Lincoln Square location were two crazy quilts.  Do you know what these stitches in red are? Or the same ones below in pumpkin?   I think they are some variation on the feather stitch, but please do pipe in if you've got the specifics.  Everyone who wages a guess here will be entered into a giveaway to win a free Mistletoe sampler.  Leave a link to a stitch diagram for bonus points!   I'll announce a winner on Monday afternoon, after the holiday festivities.

In addition, from now until then, I'm offering free shipping in my shop when you use the code THANKSGIVING.   Please do tell your friends.  I'll be offering another little surprise through my Facebook page later this week, so be sure to check over there before Friday if you're thinking of ordering. 

In the meanwhile, I'm off to keep on enjoying a week of feeling like a lucky tourist in this great city of New York with my visiting family.  Happy Holidays! 

Winner of the Paisley Flickr Contest....

Congratulations to spindle and shuttle, your photo wins the contest!  Contact me with your address and I'll send out the Summer Lines Sampler.  Thanks to everyone for posting!

Flickr Love....

O, a photo by bluepeninsula on Flickr.

There are a few new pictures being added lately to the Sampler flickr group (you can get to it by the link over on the right).  I love looking at them, and especially love the details, like this satin stitched O that my friend Bonnie added recently.  And just look at the details on Susan Norwood's all pink cake sampler!  It makes me think of raspberry meringue.

There's lots more to see at the flickr group, but sadly no photographs of the newest Paisley sampler.  I'd love to see what you all are working on!  Post a photo to the group between now and next Tuesday and I'll draw a random winner to receive a free Summer Lines sampler.   Your work does not be any means need to be finished- after all, the details are often the best photographs;  a little tiny corner of colorful Paisley would be lovely!  Leave a comment here to link to your flickr photo.  Good luck!

Wooden spools seek good home.

I'm cleaning out the studio again this week, organizing things that are just surfacing after teaching at Squam.  May and June (and part of JULY) were a blur- so much travel and teaching and art exhibiting.  It feels good to be in the studio again, but it's been a dumping ground for awhile and I'm getting to the bottom of it this week.  Counterspace is emerging!  I unearthed a bunch of samplers from the past that had accidentally expired over in the shop- so those are back up again.  If you saw Mary Jane Meckleson's post about the pink cake sampler, I found 18 more and they are now back in stock.   The chain stitch sampler is back in stock too in a few colors.  It's amazing what a little tidying up will find!

In other tidying news, I unearthed a small box of empty wooden thread spools.  I used all the thread already and have no interest in what's left.  Do you?  If you would like them, I'll happily mail them to you.  Just send me a message (rebeccaringquist (at) gmail) with your address.  First come, first served. The spools are headed home to Louisiana!

Finally- You have until Friday to enter to win a sampler of your choice from the shop- just upload a photo to the flickr pool (see link at right) of a sampler in progress- even if you've only completed one or two stitches!  Good luck.

Contest Winner Announced!

My apologies for missing my own deadline yesterday- I had an unexpected kind of a day, a good one, but forgot all about the deadline.  Now, a winner, chosen randomly from all the entries....Toni K.  Please send me your mailing address, Toni, and I'll ship your sampler right out on Monday.  Have a great weekend!