Our first semi-automatic chart program

I've got a little information for you today on a semi-automatic program for the Six-Fat Men chart set from Lizzie*Kate.  I currently have 2 of the 3 designs released so far on the website, one was out of stock with my supplier and 3 are yet to be released.

These charts have been designed so that they can be stitched alone or together to make up a larger picture, using the border on the Lizzie*Kate website.

This semi-automatic program is for those people that would like the whole set of six designs.  It's semi-automatic as I will send PayPal invoices when I have all six in stock, which you will then need to pay.  The advantage to you is that you know I will have your charts in stock so you won't risk me being sold out of any you need.  Please only sign up if you definitely want the charts.

There are two options for this, chart only or chart plus hand dyed fabric

I anticipate that the full set of 6 charts will be in the region of £17.00 when I have them, that's dependant slightly on the exchange rate, it won't be more than £17.50 (plus our standard p&p).

If you would like the charts plus the hand-dyed fabric.  The stitch count is 182 x 147, which equates to a piece of fabric (28 count evenweave or 14 count) of 19" x 16.5", this gives a 3" margin around the stitching for making up.  This works out in price to approximately £26.60, for both the chart and fabric together (final price might vary slightly from the exchange rate), that is a saving of 10% on the separate prices of the fabric plus the charts (the fabric would be £12.55 on its own).  Don't forget to add our standard p&p to this price.  Different counts and types of fabric are available and the 10% off will still apply.  At the bottom of the sign up message for this option please add the colour fabric and the fabric type and count you would like.  The Crafty Kitten recommended fabric is sunset sky.

The links to sign up for this can be found here

Lots of new charts

Well as promised I've managed to get the new charts up on the website.  There were quite a few of them and they can all be found in the charts category.  The charts are either split into theme or by designer.  The designers with separate sections are Lizzie*Kate, Sweetheart Tree, and Ink Circles.  I have also added sections for dragons, Halloween, animals and hardanger. 

The charts are from a mixture of designers and themes and across several price points.  Many of them have chart plus fabric discount offers on them.  Where I've paired a chart with a hand dyed fabric you can get 10% off the price when you purchase both together, you can also chose whether to go with the colour I've suggested (if there is one) or with a different colour of your own choice.

Shown are a selection of my personal favourites, it was hard to get it down to three!

We have an App in the Apple App store!

It's Friday, and looking to be a very wet weekend in the UK.  I do however have something new for any of you that have an iPhone, iPad, or iTouch to play with.  A while ago I was looking for an app for my phone that would calculate fabric sizes for stitched designs.  I couldn't find one available so I had a chat with the lovely guys at Westward IT, who built me one.  It's called Crafty Fabric and will work out the sized piece of fabric you need.  All you have to do is give the app the fabric count, size margin you want and the stitch count and select if you want to stitch over one or two threads of fabric and it will tell you how big a piece of fabric you need.  There are full details on the website, including the App store download links, here.

You might also notice that I've been playing about with the home page for the shop a little, I'm gradually in the background moving fabrics into colour groups so they are easier to browse.  It's going to take a while to do, but watch this space!

Have a great weekend and I hope you get time to stitch.

A lovely mock up

It's another cold wet day here in the UK, definitely stitching weather as it's really feeling autumnal rather than late summer!

There are still a few of the small grab bags left, if you want one let me know.  The 5"x8" is the absolute minimum size cut in any of the bags, most of the pieces are quite a bit larger.  These small bags will be great for ornaments as Christmas is approaching far too rapidly.

I've got a really lovely mock up to share today, this one was sent to me by Johanna earlier.  The design is Chatelaines Small Hamam Oasis, the background is bonfire smoke.  I can't wait to see this one actually stitched on the fabric, I think it's going to look totally stunning.

A finish on Septembers featured colour

I finished the beading Mirabilia's Trick or Treat last night, I'm just on my way to update the picture in the featured fabric advert on the Crafty Kitten homepage but I popped in here quickly first to share the picture with you.  I'm really pleased with how this one turned out, the fabric works wonderfully with the design (ignore the bit of fluff in the top corner!). 

On a shop related note, there are still a few of the small grab bags in stock if you wanted one.

A very quick grab bag update

Only the small cut bags are left, the others have sold out really quickly.  These small cut bags are available in both aida, and linen/evenweave options.  They include opalescent fabrics as well as normal fabrics in a mix of counts.  The absolute smallest cut in any of the bags is 5"x8" most of the cuts are larger, some exceeding the 9"x12" size in the bags that have sold out. 

I think these small cut bags are a great buy, they are all large enough for smaller designs such as the small magazine charts, small Lizzie Kate designs such as flip-its, cards and ornaments.  They're also good for adding to your stash with a range of different colours and fabrics.

Have a great evening stitching.

Something to brighten up a wet miserable September day

I hope the weather is better where you are than it is here in North Devon.  It's a cold wet and windy day here, it feels more like late October outside.  Still it's an excuse to dig my boots out and start wearing them again, I went out in sandals earlier and regretted it!

The other good thing is of course that it's nice weather to curl up inside evenings and stitch.  I have been doing quite a lot of that in the last few weeks and as a consequence I should finish beading my Mirabilia Trick or Treat fairy this evening.  There will be pictures tomorrow, and don't forget the fabric colour for her is on offer on the website for the whole of September.

I have also sent in a chart order, which I'm looking forward to receiving.  As soon as I have it I'll get the charts uploaded to the website (and try not to hold onto any for my stash in the process).  In the end I ordered a mixture of designs from assorted designers, including Ink Circles, Firewing, Lizzie Kate plus several others.  There are a mixture of themes, though I will admit that the order is a little heavy on dragons and Halloween designs.  When it comes and they're all uploaded I'd love some feedback on what I ordered, and what you'd like to see more of (themes and designers).

Now I'll stop rambling and get to the point of this post.  The grab bags are back.  There aren't that many of them.  However, this time there are aida only bags (mixture of counts from 14-22) and evenweave/linen bags.  There are also 3 different size options for the bags 9"x12" (linen/evenweave only), small cuts (card and small picture sizes minimum of 5"x8", though most pieces are larger), and medium cuts (10"x15" minimum, again most are larger).  The second two options include a mix of normal and opalescent fabrics.  This is a selection of some of the fabrics that you'll find in the bags.

Once they're gone it'll be next year before the grab bags make return appearance.  These are a great way to expand your fabric stash more economically.  Enjoy!

What's new in September?

 I have just sent this months newsletters out and decided that now is a really good time to update the blog.  September sees the launch of four new colours including this months ltd ed fabric.  This month the Ltd Ed is a blend of greens and blues with some white peeping through.  It's really pretty and should be versatile enough to work for many different designs.


The other three colours released this month are:

• Goldrush, this is a pretty golden sand colour, which will work well for beach and desert scenes along with other designs that need a fairly soft golden background. 
• Summer Garden, a blend of dark pink and purple.
• Mocha Berries, a browny mauve blend.

This month also sees the launch of a new feature on the website, which will throw a different fabric into the spotlight each month.  The first month the feature fabric is Fall Foliage, this is a blend of golds and brown, which works really well for autumnal and Halloween designs, as well as being a soft enough colour to work with many other themes.  The feature fabric is a special offer that runs for the whole month.  For that month the featured fabric colour is reduced by 10% across all fabric types and counts, which makes it a great time to get hold of it.  Here is the current months colour and a WiP stitched on it of Mirabilias Trick or Treat.












The long awaited grab bags will definitely be back next week, the fabric is sitting in a pretty pile waiting to be bagged up and priced.  There will be at least two different fabric sized bags this time, a card sized bag and a small-medium picture bag (9x12 to around 13 x 18 maybe a bit larger, the pieces are variable).  There are a mixture of aidas, evenweaves and linens of assorted counts, including quite a few pieces of opalescent.  I will sort the bags into aidas and evenweave/linen packs.

Lastly for now, there are a few new pictures up on the Flickr gallery, including Karens beautiful WiP of Chatelaines Christmas Market and Kathy's finished Fushsia Fae from Passione Ricamo.