Latest News: needlework patterns
| Sign up for our newsletter ! |
All the news, as published in Creative Poppy's newsletter
Antique Samplers and context
It's always fascinating to follow the footsteps of stitchers of yore, recreating their work stitch by stitch. In the case of the antique samplers carefully chosen for her private collection, Meriem Chauvet of Couleur Tourterelle goes beyond simply reproducing the sampler - though she does it with remarkable precision - she unravels a story for us, researching similar samplers and bringing to life the possible decisions the stitcher made. A fascinating story.
Here are the latest 3 samplers researched and reproduced by Couleur Tourterelle. Photos show the reproduction left and the original right.
>> see all Reproduction Samplers by Couleur Tourterelle
Psychic readings
Wearing the most amazing outfit of gold, precious stones, luxurious silks and feathers, and equipped with all the tools of the trade, from magic potions to crystal ball, Barbara Ana's fortune teller is deep in concentration, connecting with mysterious spirits, travelling into the cosmos searching for the clues to our destiny.
It is amazing how much detail designer Barbara Ana manages to fit into a concise cross stitch pattern. Textures are stunning too with plush effects rendered using a couple of simple cotton threads.
>> see all Portrait patterns by Barbara Ana Designs
Last days for joining the David Bowie inspired SAL by Barbara Ana
Join this exciting new stitch-along by Barbara Ana Designs, a tribute to rockstar David Bowie. The mystery chart is available in three parts released on Feb 1st, Feb 15th and March 1st. If you missed the start you can still catch up at any time!
Oldies but Goldies by Barbara Ana Designs
Since day one when she starting creating cross stitch patterns just for the fun in the mid 2000's, Barbara Ana never stopped. Her humor, her creativity, her curiosity and her sense of fun are endless. Here's a compilation of the patterns she first created, dozens and dozens of them... still relevant today!
>> see all Oldies but Goldies by Barbara Ana Designs (all designers)
Spring Cleaning in the Sewing room
Simple life, simple joys, such as cleaning up the sewing room and going through one's stash, finding lots of treasures one had forgotten about, mind bursting with new project ideas...
Life captured in cross stitch by Samantha Purdy.
 | 
Cleaning Up | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Samantha Purdy Needlecrafts |
|  |
More simple joys of life with Samantha Purdy
>> see all patterns by Samantha Purdy Needlecrafts
Baby's best friends
In baby's eyes, his best friends the beloved teddy and the pet kitten are equally alive. Proof is Teddy has prepared a bowl of milk for Kittie. Designer Perrette Samouiloff depicts these toddlers and their play pals, rendering them in cross stitch with immense tenderness.
More Perrette Samouiloff patterns with Toddlers
>> see all Baby and Toddler patterns by Perrette Samouiloff
Spring in the yard
Designer Kateryna tells us of Spring arriving at the farm, with babushkas selling fresh eggs, mother hen scolding her mischievous chicks, and rabbits in a world of giant carrots.
Cross stitch patterns by Stitchy Princess.
 |
Mrs Hen | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess |
|  |
 |
Fresh Eggs | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess |
|  |
 | |  |
>> see all Spring patterns by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess
Harbinger of spring
With its restrained palette of browns yet discreet touches of cheerful yellow and green, this cross stitch pattern seems to be transitioning from Winter to Spring. An elegant design, perfect for bringing a light seasonal touch to your home. Pair it with some fresh daffodils!
Viennese elegance
Picture yourself seated at this polished coffee house, being served by a courteous waiter, in tailcoat. All the fun in this cross stitch pattern is the way the designer substitutes humans with rabbits in this scene full of decorum.
A cross stitch pattern by Kateryna, Stitchy Princess.
More delicate portraits of ladies
Including another portrait of Miss Rabbit and her baby brother.
>> see all Easter patterns by Kateryna Stitchy Princess
Lesley Teare Country Folk 2023 SAL
Check out the brand new 2023 Lesley Teare stitch-along
featuring the monthly activities of countryfolk on a farm.
Featured right is the January motif, featuring a beekeeper selling his home-harvested honey.
The SAL comes as a subscription, and is available in 12 parts. The January and February patterns are now available. You can join at any time. The next part will be released on March 1st 2023.
>> 2023 Country Folk SAL by Lesley Teare
Home is where we nest
Twelve nesting birds, each in a different home, be it a basket, watering can or teapot. This detail-rich design* comes with a motif relating to each month of the year. Make it unique by stitching on the background fabric of your choice.
*Initially the 2022 Lesley Teare SAL
 |
Birds Homes | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Lesley Teare Designs |
|  |
>> see all Year-round patterns by Lesley Teare Designs
Love blooming in a spring garden
Love knots are symbols of the unbreakable bond between lovers. Associating flowers with each kind of love, Lesley Teare portrays the innocence of first love, hopelessness of unrequited love, thrill of secret love and happiness of eternal love as if they were gardens. The four cross stitch motifs combine into a cheerful and decorative sampler evocative of a spring. So why not stitch them all and keep them guessing?
>> see all patterns expressing Love (all designers)
Vintage haberdashery
Delight in stitching the delicate detail of this stunning design by Perrette Samouiloff, stuffed with fun surprises such as the antique wooden needle and reel holders, hedgehog shaped buttons or the tartan ribbons neatly folded on vintage cards.
More patterns with Sewing Machines
>> see all patterns related to Sewing and Needlework (all designers)
A question from a stitcher: a puzzle greeting card
We have just been contacted by Suzanna who asked if she could use Tam's Creations puzzle designs as greeting card?
"May I ask your, I see jigsaw cross stitch is that for card or frame I wonder? Because I was thinking to plan graph for my mum’s favorite jigsaw birthday card or Mother’s Day card."
Well the answer is yes!
You can use virtually any combination. The very smallest is 2 x 2 or pieces, under 4 inch square (10cm) on 16ct/32ct. It will also work in a rectangular postcard layout with 2 x 3 pieces under 4 x 6 inch (10 x 15cm). Both would work for greeting cards. Want bigger? There is no upward limit!
For a Mother's Day card, why not use the floral pattern?
An extra bonus is that you get to pick the colors you stitch. So, especially will a small design, you can use up any odds and ends of floss and make the pattern unique!
When is Mother's Day this year?
Mother's Day differs in each country. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, it is on "Mothering Sunday", the fourth Sunday of lent. It will be on March 19th 2023.
The majority of countries celebrate Mother's day on the second Sunday of May. This year this will be May 14th 2023 in Australia, much of Europe*, Japan and North America.
* excluding France, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Romania, and Sweden.
>> Mother's Day dates around the World (Wikipedia)
>> see all patterns for Mother's Day
>> See all the Cross stitch News for Mother's Day
A remarkable sampler by an 11-year-old
It must have taken many hours for young Clémence to complete her sampler, under the guidance of the nuns teaching at her rural catholic school, near Chartres in France. With wonderful colors perfectly matched with the original, the design features numerous birds, remarkably this pair of nesting ones among foliage and wild flowers. A cross stitch reproduction sampler by Couleur Tourterelle.
>> see all Reproduction Samplers by Couleur Tourterelle
More reproduction patterns with Birds
>> see other reproduction samplers with birds
The space invaders are back
New by Barbara Ana, a gorgeously designed dreaming girl, body and mind dissolving into the cosmos, together with a playful hint at the little pixel monsters that haunted the 1970's, when early video games appeared.
The Dreamer is the bigger sister. Her sibling is the first Cosmic Dreams design. Why not stitch the two cross stitch patterns as a pair?
More poetical dreams by Barbara Ana
>> see all Portrait patterns by Barbara Ana Designs
New Year-round patterns by Lesley Teare
A Shaker style sampler with houses for each season - matching the one with one with the Georgian houses - and a tall banner shaped sampler with rows of seasonal motifs interspersed with poetic quotes.
>> see all Year-round patterns by Lesley Teare
Steaming hot chocolate
Oh what a wonderful smell in the kitchen! Designer Perrette Samouiloff captures a lively scene with children preparing steaming hot chocolate while playful kitten enjoy their bowl of milk.
>> see all Winter patterns by Perrette Samouiloff
More Hot Drinks in cross stitch
Ukrainian Winter
It is not without a certain emotion that we received Kateryna's latest pattern, knowing what she is going through, living in an area that is regularly shelled with only intermittent electricity.
This is such a sweet pattern, with log-cabins huddled together and animals gathering to pay tribute to this young woman, oblivious to the cold, in a gown and head-dress fit for a queen.
 |
Miss Winter | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess |
|  |
SITUATION IN UKRAINE: Due to the war, and the particularly gruesome situation in designer's home town, we are providing as much support as possible, and are contunuing to donate an extra $1 for each pattern sold through Creative Poppy's website. Please help by spreading the word about Kateryna's designs. |
More Winter ladies
>> see all Winter and Christmas patterns by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess
Retrofuturistic Fashion
Enjoy the ride! Barbara Ana takes you onto another wild and whimsical ride, combining her interest into weird trends - Steampunk anyone? and her own favorite leitmotifs (hat and sunglasses a late addition). Each new design seems to be moving on from the previous, always with an interesting tweak. Here the background fabric, evocative of steam plays an important role in the design.
Down memory lane
Bright and lively this pattern - designed to be turned into a cushion cover - will delight both kids and parents. The children will love the playful designs while parents will recall found memories of their own childhood.
A cross stitch pattern designed by Tapestry Barn
 |
Retro Toys | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Tapestry Barn |
|  |
>> see more patterns by Tapestry Barn
More patterns with Letters for Children
>> see all patterns with Letters & Alphabets for children (all designers)
Coming up soon
>> see all Up coming events to cross stitch
Creative Poppy Designers in the news
Searching for a cross stitch pattern you've seen featured in a needlework magazine?
Click on the picture to access to the corresponding design.
Perrette Samouiloff - Mother and Baby Animals in Winter
As featured in The World of Cross stitching magazine issue 329 on sale Jan/Feb 2023
>> see all patterns featured in cross stitch and needlework magazines
Whimsical Harvest
Part of the Dreaming girl series, here comes another young lady arms full with a lush harvest. Vintage Barbara Ana, the cross stitch pattern is stuffed with fun detail including a hidden face.
>> see all Dreaming Girl patterns by Barbara Ana Designs
More patterns with Foxes
>> see all cross stitch patterns with Foxes
Ice skating and Christmas market shopping
Days turn shorter and shorter but that's no reason not to go out and have fun. Like meeting one's sister at the ice rink, and enjoying a warm drink browsing the booths at the Christmas market. Samantha Purdy captures the simple joys of life, in cross stitch.
>> see more Winter patterns by Samantha Purdy Needlecraft
More Ice Skating patterns
>> see all ice skating and skiing patterns
Snug and Cosy
All wrapped up in our matching tartan coats, doggy pulling hard on the leash, we're off for a walk!
All the simple joys of life, depicted in cross stitch by Samantha Purdy Needlecraft.
 |
Matching Coats | | Counted cross stitch pattern by samanthapurdyneedlecraft |
|  |
More Dachshund patterns
>> see all patterns with Dogs (all designers)
Vivacious Bird sampler
The vivacious bird featured on this reproduction sampler is showing off colorful feathers. Bright-eyed and full of life, it has its head turned as if on the lookout for food or danger. Stitchers of the time - late 19th century - would often pick motifs in various pattern booklets. They would however have to do with the yarn colors they had access to, and often adapt the motif. In this case, the stitcher did a wonderful job with colors. A reproduction sampler by Couleur Tourterelle.
Puzzling letter order
What is striking about this reproduction sampler by Couleur Tourterelle is the unusual order of the letters of the first alphabet. This is by design, to help young pupils of the needlework class learn and memorize those stitched letters. Letters were taught by type, first straight letters, then rounded letters (O P Q B R), and diagonal letters (K A, V, W, X, Y, Z). Similar letters were taught in pairs (U and J, M and N).
The first alphabet is notably a variation linenmaid's alphabet, the letters used for "marking" household linen with ones initials (and a number), for the sake of identifying each piece. It was still in vogue at the dawn of the 20th century in France and we can presume the students of the school were expected to know how to stitch them...
>> see all Reproduction Samplers by Couleur Tourterelle
More patterns featuring the Linenmaid's alphabet
Almost a hundred years apart, these 19th and early 20th century French samplers all use the linenmaid's alphabet, albeit slightly modified for the later ones, where letters are all aligned at 7 stitches high.
Glory to the Newborn King
As the angels joyfully announce the birth of Christ, Mary bears a peaceful look, hands joined in prayer. We love Ukrainian designer Kateryna's interpretation of the Holy family and the visitors come to pay tribute, following the Star of Bethlehem. A cross stitch chart by Stitchy Princess.
>> see more Christmas patterns by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess
More Christmas nativity in cross stitch
>> see all Christmas nativity patterns (all designers)
Cat-chy Christmas Quotes
Fun cat and kitten motifs with catchy quotes, ideal for greeting cards or small Christmas ornaments. Delight your cat-lover friends with a hand stitched card sent with all your love. Cross stitch chart designed by Lesley Teare.
>> see more Christmas patterns by Lesley Teare Designs
>> see all Christmas motifs for Greeting cards (all designers)
Wild and mysterious
Facing us with large hypnotic eyes is Awbow! , Barbara Ana's latest cross stitch portrait, a mysterious tortoise-like-but-winged creature surging out of a lush tropical garden, its stunning colors standing out against the deep black background fabric.
 |
AWBOW! | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Barbara Ana Designs |
|  |
>> see all portrait patterns by Barbara Ana Designs
More cross stitch on a black background - our tips
Cross stitching on a black background works wonders, with colors illuminated against the dark fabric but can be a bit tricky. Here are some tips for making it easy to cross stitch:
- Use natural light when possible and put a white cloth on your lap to make holes more visible
- Go for a smaller count fabric, and use Aida rather than linen, like Barbara Ana did.
- Consider stitching with 3 strands of thread for better coverage. Test a small area of the design first.
In any case, make sure the fabric you select has a deep black tone (all black fabrics are not created equal) and which is colorfast.
Mamma Mia, how can I resist you?
This pattern is dedicated to all of us who cannot resist a beautiful thread, a soft colorful yarn, a deep rich colored skein, as we feel the irresitible itch to reach for our needles and turn them into unique works. Featured here is a sample of needlework joys, knitting, needlepoint, cross stitch and even French knitting, the very first time we may have been introduced to yarn. A cheerful and irresisitible cross stitch chart by Perrette Samouiloff.
and for those of us who prefer knitting exclusively
>> see all patterns by Perrette Samouiloff dedicated to needlework and leisure activities
More cross stitch patterns dedicated to Knitting
>> see all patterns related to Needlework activities (all designers)
Creative Poppy Designers in the news
Searching for a cross stitch pattern you've seen featured in a needlework magazine?
Click on the picture to access to the corresponding design.
Kateryna - Stitchy Princess - Miss Deer
As featured in the Best Buys section of The World of Cross stitching magazine issue 327 on sale Nov/Dec 2022
 | | Miss Deer | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Kateryna - Stitchy Princess |
|  |
>> see all patterns featured in cross stitch and needlework magazines
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!
A delightful new Christmas cross stitch pattern by Barbara Ana, portraying her favorite in Santa's awesome team of reindeer. Lady Dancer is pictured wearing a warm woolen sweater, red of course. Powdery snow is falling from her antlers where a tiny village is nested. The date 1823 featured in the cross stitch medallion refers to the year the author of the poem, Clement Clarke Moore, wrote the story initially titled A Visit from St. Nicholas.
 |
Dancer | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Barbara Ana Designs |
|  |
>> see all Christmas patterns by Barbara Ana Designs
Bah Humbug!
Barbara Ana takes us on a wild ride in this Christmas cross stitch pattern combining eeriness and attraction in a surprising mirror effect. Vintage humor by Barbara Ana Designs.
New Christmas releases by Barbara Ana
This pair of ornament size patterns can fit into a small hoop. You will recognize designer Barbara Ana's unmistakable style in the depiction of the sleepy village , the pretty quaker motifs appearing in the snow, Assisi style, and the beautiful detail of the miniature reindeer.
 |
Holy Night | | Counted cross stitch pattern by Barbara Ana Designs |
|  |
 | |  |
More Christmas designs by Barbara Ana
>> see all Christmas patterns by Barbara Ana Designs
French fashion
While 18th and early 19th century French samplers mainly featured religious themes, as charted motifs stared to be published, sampler layout and style changed altogether, with ornament becoming the main focus.
Among these samplers a unique category of "compliment samplers" became popular. These featured a short poem expressing gratitude and paying tribute to a loved one. This sampler dated 1893 is a fine illustration of the genre, with the text elegantly nested among colorful motifs.
 |
AG 1893 | | Reproduction Sampler by Couleur Tourterelle |
|  |
An intriguing sampler and a fascinating story
When Meriem Chauvet of Couleur Tourterelle first saw the intriguing original sampler, with its palace and air of Arabian night fairy tales, only signed Maria Lhomme, and not even dated, she could not resist investigating further. Pouring through masses of documents, she identified the actual building which, it turned out, was as sumptuous inside as it was outside. A large pool of water with fountains, surrounded by exotic plants, occupied the interior. If you look closely through the arches you can indeed guess the presence of the basin. We will not disclose the full story here, but it will be revealed to you in detail in the introductory pages of the chart, supported by beautiful period illustrations.
>> see all Reproduction Samplers by Couleur Tourterelle
Year round stitching with Lesley Teare
With the final Winter pattern now published, Lesley Teare's year-round sampler collection is now complete. The playful design combines a quilt-style house and garden, Quaker stars and tiny seasonal motifs creating the variations between the seasons.
>> see all Year-round patterns with one for each season (all designers)
Did you know Creative Poppy also offers chart packs?
Creative Poppy patterns are available as downloadable pattern files. However, if you would like to receive professionally printed charts, we can also deliver your charts directly to your mail box.
This is ideal if you don't want to bother with downloading and printing your files, or if you can't obtain best quality print-outs at home. Also it's nice to have a beautiful chart you can archive.
What you get:
- Professionally printed color charts on beautiful extra smooth paper. Each chart is packaged individually in a sleeve.
- Chart packs are shipped in a strong flat box so they reach you in perfect state.
>> find out about our Shipping by Mail service
By the way, you still get your downloadable chart. So you can source your supplies while you wait for the postman, you can print out working copies that can be used for highlighting while stitching.
That's not all! More news continued on next page...
>> more Creative Poppy News (continued...)
>> back to most recent news
Creative Poppy Newsletter
| Sign up for our newsletter ! |
Samantha Purdy Textile
.jpg)
