Cape Hatteras Light
Island House – 18 Mesh
Jupiter Inlet Light
Island House – 13 Mesh
Cardinal Ornament
Here are some beautiful needlepoint canvases from Needle Crossings. Sorry, but the 13-mesh Island House is already spoken for. The other canvases, however, are available.
UPDATE: The Cardinal Ornament has just sold.
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
And here’s Miss S frolicking about on today’s early morning walk. The slide show is a little self-indulgent, but you get a good look at what a pure bred German German Shepherd (as opposed to American German Shepherd) looks like: notice the straight back (American Sheps have been bred to have sloping rears, which is why they are prone to dysplasia).
Her twin-like sister won all kinds of Schutzhund competitions in Germany, but I decided to let Miss S grow up to be a beach-going, footloose and fancy-free gal.
Too bad the rising sun behind her made Miss S’s face look so dark in these pics. I’ll just have to take more, one of these days!
At any rate, I’ve just added a late-breaking bonus video to this post package. Enjoy!
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
A typical day at the beach in May.
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
Voodoo Doll
I saw this canvas on an auction website, and I guess it, uh, put a spell on me. Just one of those, ‘I’ve got to have it’ needlepoint moments.
After all, what can possibly make a better pincushion than a voodoo doll?
Voodo Doll Finish (Back)
It was originally purchased someplace in Louisiana.
I haven’t seen a canvas like this anywhere, which ought to tell you something, and I know all the gris gris places.
Stitching the thing, I didn’t use any of the Paternayan wool or even the rooster claw it was kitted with, but instead stitched it in bright neon metallics.
I love the backing of the my voodoo doll, with its shaded gris swirls.
Now, if you go to Wiki (where I downloaded the background pic), there is an interesting history about voodoo in New Orleans and the Queen of Voodoo, Marie Laveau. Holy graveyard!
Elvis is probably real lonely tonight.
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
Crab Salad
Have you ever wondered what a pattern found in nature might look like on a needlepoint design?
Let’s try a little experiment.
Organic Pattern
Given that I live near the ocean, I decided to use the pattern of a seashell I found the other day on the beach.
I cropped an image of this shell, and pasted it as a tiled pattern on a clip-art crab illustration by Pamela Perry. I also changed the colors of the illustration, turning the drawing into a crab with colorful blue claws and yellow legs.
Then I added an image of a piece of sea lettuce (from Wiki), and layered the whole thing on a background of 18 mesh canvas.
The end result is certainly a starting point. You might then decide to add other details, like a starfish, or a scallop shell with a pearl inlay.
Who knows?
You could end up with a custom design that you might want Needlepoint Land or your local needlepoint shop to have painted!
Bottom line, if you’re handy with image editing software, you can easily try out organic patterns on needlepoint designs.
After all, it’s only natural.
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
There’s no question that short and funny creative needlepoint videos can be a lot of fun to watch.
They’re also a blast to make, too! (Just to be clear: I am not talking about commercially creating a derivative work from copyrighted material: this post is just about passing time on the beach, so to speak, with your latest internet gizmo.)
For example, I’ve often thought what it would be like if I could animate a canvas. Or move different elements of a canvas around. Or move one design element from one canvas to another, creating a different look. As long as the design isn’t too elaborate, it’s quite simple to do, and takes only patience.
Julie Pischke Designs
Julie Pischke is a native Floridian who has lived in Key West for many years, and has designed many awesome tropical-themed needlepoint canvases. I like their simplicity and bold colors, which one can plainly see in a canvas such as her Calypso Crab one.
It’s really a snap to load this image into your favorite graphics editing program and play around, then run it through a simple video editor for extra bells and whistles.
Here on my latest Vimeo clip you can watch the Calypso crab come to life, and it took only a few minutes to do. I had to change the background a little, to fill in the big hole when I took out the crab, but you get the idea. I’ve kept it basic and slow, so you can see the different steps Mr. Calypso takes to get across the canvas.
Jazzing this basic idea up is simple.
If I wanted to, I could easily have added two black dots to Mr. Calypso’s eyes, and have him stop and look around. Or I could make his little legs wiggle, maybe to the beat of funky calypso music. There really is no limit but your imagination to this kind of stuff, but of course in the end nothing beats getting the original canvas and stitching it!
It’s just that some stitchers like to have a little extra fun. 
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
Enjoy, and don’t forget to share with your friends!
UPDATE: Here’s some breaking news about the trials of an oyster farm that’s located on the other side of the Tomales Bay State Park peninsula.
Erin McGrath and Needlepointland.com, 2012 – 2016.
