Rugs: For those who are looking for fine needlepoint, silk gauze is a very good bet. Something else that you can try use is 20 or 22 count double canvas (sometimes called penelope canvas). It has double thread that can be easily separated, so you end up with a 40 or 44 count canvas. It is a lot more stiff compare to silk gauze, and some people find it easier to use. It was originally intended to be used in petitepoint for certain areas that needs more detail, such as a person's face.

These needlepoint rugs are extremely time consuming. The one that I finished making took an entire summer worth of commuting time (2 hours a day). There's about 15000 stitches. With miniature stitching, I found that I can't do it for too long, otherwise my eyes starts to hurt.

For those who are looking for rug punches, I have some for sale on my website, along with some rug patterns, pre-printed backings and other materials . It probably isn't what the original posting was referring to, but it comes in three sizes (only two of smaller ones are suitable for miniature), and the loop size is adjustable. The small one is marked as 0.057 in/1.45mm, and the medium 0.065in/1.65mm . Some people are having problem with the shopping cart, so please email me if there is any problem. http://pobox.com/~nim

Vina

Braided Rug: If you have lots of patience, you can also make braided rug by braiding together DMC floss. To make it in scale, you need to braid it quite tightly, that way each of the color spot from the braid is more of a square rather than a long skinny braid. When you are braiding tightly, you need to check the braid fairly often to make sure that it is not twisted. The braids can be sew together like the real size ones with a very thin thread in the back. If the braid isn't tight enough to be sewn together, you can also glue it onto a fabric backing, or use one of those iron on backings.

Vina

Braided Rug: I made several braided rugs more or less the way Vina suggested. But when I got to the point of sewing the braid together, I made a "loop" of wide masking tape, stuck one side of the loop to a surface, which gave me a sticky side of masking tape up. I coiled my braid around the masking tape in the right shape and then sewed it together. It was slow but it worked. I'm not sure if you could use an iron on backing with the masking tape, though, because the heat of the iron might cause it to do nasty things to the braids.

Dona Vaughn

Difference between needlepoint and cross-stitch: Needlepoint is typically done on a woven canvas and all the stitches go from the lower left corner to the upper right corner. Just the one direction. Cross stitch is down on woven fabric, such as linen or aida cloth and there is a cross stitch on each square of the cloth. Stitches go from lower left corner to upper right corner then lower right corner to upper left corner. You can iron a transfer on a piece of cloth and depending on the design, either cross stitch it or embroider it with DMC embroidery thread. Usually you should do the design first so you can pull the fabric taunt while stitching using a hoop. After you are done, cut it to the shape you want.

Linda

Gentlemen's fashion website: I've just been to this delightful website about gentlemen's fashions etc. check it out http://www.lahacal.org/gentleman/index.html

Goldie Williams in Aurora, Mo.USA

Re: direction of stitches in needlepoint and X-stitch: Light reflects off of and casts shadows on the stitches, so this direction thing is important. Novice needlepointers aren't as likely to switch directions as novice x-stitchers are, but believe me, it matters which stitch is on top.

Also, where you go behind the material between stitches makes a big difference in the angle of the top stitch. After making one piece when I was a novice, I was SO puzzled to find a line across the middle of the face. I hadn't changed hanks, so I knew it wasn't a dye lot problem. FINALLY, I figured out that I had gotten bored going back and forth and had switched to going up and down. This changed the angle of the stitches and was so noticeable that it ruined the piece. Fortunately, I was so excited about the possibilities it offered that I almost didn't care. This angle thing is also true with X-stitch. It can work for you or it can work agin' you. But at least if you're aware of it, you won't end up with any really stupid looking lines through your piece!

I also experimented with using both pessimistic and optimistic stitch in the same needlepoint piece. (A "pessimistic" stitch goes from upper left to lower right; an "optimistic" stitch is t'other way 'round.) I found I could make things look more 3-D and make the difference from foreground and background more pronounced. In needlepoint, it takes some finesse to deal with the places where the stitch angle changes. In x-stitch, you just switch which stitch is on top.

I also had some real fun with multi-strand variations with my x-stitch. I usually used two strands of floss and got wonderful results simulating woven patterns (e.g., plaid!). The best thing was that, by using three shades of the color, I could get almost painterly curves, rather than the kind of paint-by-number effect one gets with a patch of color next to a patch of a different color. To do this, use your main one, plus one a shade lighter and one a shade darker. Blend the colors by changing from 2 strands of the same tone, to one of that plus one of the next, then to 2 of the next. To move from a cheekbone to the hollow of the cheek, you will have 2 strands of the lighter flesh tone on the cheekbone and move through 1+1, to 2 of the middle tone, to 1+1, to 2 of the darker tone in the hollow. It takes some concentration and planning, but the results are worth it.

BTW, when you iron your finished needlework, don't press down; just stretch it on your ironing board with pins and hold your steam iron ABOVE it, then leave it pinned until it is dry. If you iron right on it, you squash your stitches and reduce the degree to which light will play on them. My sister told me that was the dumbest thing she ever heard, but I happen to think it makes the difference between 'oh wow' and 'ho hum' results.

Chrissy the Hyphenated

Mini Knitting-Thread: Recently I was in a dressmaker's/craft shop in Montreal and happily came across Zwicky Flora Thread. It's quite similar (in thickness) to Gutterman's Top Stitching thread, which I also use for mini knitting.

Anyhow the Zwicky Flora Thread is absolutely wonderful for mini knitting. It's 100% pure silk, and you would think that because of it being all silk, it would be difficult to work with by sliding all over the needles. It's not, and it doesn't. Not at all. I first made a pair of panties with in, in racy red no less, and they came out absolutely lovely!

Because this stuff is not easy to get (at least here) I did a search on the Internet and found one place that sells it, http://www.victorianpleasures.com/

They are based in Canada and prices are in CDN$, they take phone orders, or you can print out the order form and send it off to them. And yes, they do international orders also.

Joy in Pointe Claire

Shingles: I am shingling my house now. It's a cheap, punch-out kit house, so the roof is that splintery wood stuff. (I don't know what you call it.) I am cutting the shingles with scissors, 3/4" long, from very thin stripwood. They're glued on in rows 1/2" apart, with 1/4" overhang. I use a Monoject syringe to apply a thin bit of Aleene's Tacky Glue to the points at which the shingle touches down. On the bottom row, that is the whole shingle, but above that they angle over one another and only touch in two places. It's slow, but I don't want any glue squeezing out because it would interfere with the way the finishes get absorbed later on. I'm also a klutz and found that if I tried to glue too much at once, the row got crooked, so I do only do about 6 before moving on to another task while that bit dries. Anyway, it is turning out nicely, for whatever that's worth to you!

~Chrissy the Hyphenated

brick making: I've been catching up on my mail and have decided to tell you about the bricks that my dh made to make a brick outhouse for me to use with the log house that my daughter and son-in-law made for me. My husband mixed up some Bondo (used for repairing dents in autobodies). He spread it out on some aluminum foil. After it had set up he cut it with a box knife (razor) into bricks. They even have color variations in them like real bricks

GC99CRAFT

Downspouts: When I needed downspouts I went to the local balloon shop and got the sticks they put on balloons. They are hollow, come in different colors, (or you could paint them), and a flexible straw fits on them so that you can have the curved part of the downspout go whichever way you want. I attached the downspouts to the gutters that are made by Houseworks. Because I was looking for realism for that particular project I wanted downspouts that could actually carry water. Not sure if this is what you had in mind for a 19th century house, but maybe there is a clue here you can use.

Carol