The Belt Curse x Black Friday

Hi girls! I can’t believe it is almost December and I have officially been in San Francisco for 2 whole months! Time here has flown by, but we are having an absolute blast. I am gearing up for a season of traveling back and forth to the east coast for the holidays (Beef Stew the cat included) and I can’t wait to spend the holidays with my family after an autumn full of craziness, changes, and a cross-country move. All of that being said - let’s get into my very first installment of Stitch and Sprinkle! 

Stitch

If you are a needlepointer, you may have heard of the infamous “belt curse”. If you are new to the curse, let me give you the rundown. The “belt curse” means that if you needlepoint a belt for your significant other, you are doomed to break up. I think we all know where I am going with this, but yes, I am needlepointing my boyfriend a belt.

Jokes aside, stitching this belt has not been as daunting as I anticipated. I was hesitant to stitch a belt for my boyfriend because if you know him, he is a fashionista. I could not buy him a belt without him approving it first. Last time we were in Dallas I dragged him into NeedleWork, as I always do when we visit his family. I hadn’t even gone in with the intention of buying my first belt, but the section caught my eye. Since he was there with me I figured this was the time to have him pick one out. He chose an adorable canvas with a neutral tan background and a bunch of colorful old cars. To make it even better - it happened to be a part of their trunk show! Major boyfriend points for picking that one out. The amazing store ladies helped me grab an acrylic and wool fiber called Burmilina, a stranded fiber, which they claimed is tried and true for belts. I haven’t had to strand before but I trust their expertise and want this belt to last a lifetime so I figured I would grow up and learn how to strand. I grabbed all of the fiber for the background and figured I would deal with the individual car colors another day. I haven’t found Burmilina in

any needlepoint stores since so I decided (with the approval of 2’s needlepoint in Rock Hill, SC) that I would use Pepper Pot Silk for the rest of the cars. I figured this would give them a cute shiny look compared to the more matte background.

My progress is measured by how many cars I've stitched. I’ve been working on the belt for about a month and am almost done with 3/6 cars. I hope to have the belt done by the end of the year, which I don’t think is too lofty of a goal - so wish me luck! The binding stitch around the edge is another first for me, so it may have to have its own installment in a post later this year. The ladies of Needlework Dallas believed in me so I think I can get it done. For finishing, I think I may need to send it back to Dallas but I would love any suggestions on great belt finishers. I want this to be an anniversary gift (April), so fingers crossed I can stay true to my timeline. I better get to stitching.

Sprinkle 

I swear Black Friday starts earlier and earlier each year. I won’t lie. I have already indulged in a couple of BF deals. I’ve decided that the fall is actually the best time to move across the country because I got Prime Day in October and now BF in November! I don’t need a ton of home items, but just a thought. I’ve always been a summer-move type of gal, but I think I may have officially converted. 

My first BF pick is something that I have been eyeing for a long time. These are the types of items that I think are best to snag on Black Friday because you know that you’ve been wanting them. Especially things that are a little expensive. 'Tis the season to grab them on sale. Standing mats are a great way to elevate your kitchen and add a pop of personality. I have wanted one from House Of Noa since we lived in our last apartment. I am glad that I didn’t purchase it back then because you have to pick the right size for your kitchen and I knew we were planning on moving. I have never seen this brand run a sale so when I saw that they were doing 20% off for Black Friday I grabbed my tape measure and ordered immediately.

My kitchen has pops of gray in the backsplash, but my whole apartment has bright wood floors with almost an orange tone. Our kitchen island is sage green with wood accents as well. I was originally going to pick a mat that incorporated the brown in the wood floors and kitchen island, but looking around our living room and kitchen I decided that the wood is taking over. I opted for the light gray shade “Ash” and am so excited to add this to our kitchen. I think it is really going to help me start pulling the room together.

I have been patiently waiting to fall in love with a set of throw pillows for our living room couch and I think I have finally found ‘The Ones’. Pepper Home has some of the most fabulous pillows and curtains I have ever seen. Their mix-and-match color options for the pillows and piping are a great way to coordinate with the rest of your decor and give your space a personal touch. Pepper Home claims that this is their only sale of the year, so I’ve been heavily considering buying pillows now. I think I may need more time to develop the color palate for our living room so I am not sure if I will be participating in the sale this year, but either way, I will have these pillows soon. Pepper Home also has a great selection of fabric swatches perfect for ornament backing fabric. I love their velvets, although they are quite thick. I successfully used their velvet for the backing of an irregular shaped ornament, but it was not for the faint of heart. I will probably be using the remainder of my velvets for squares, but they also have lots of other great fabric options.

Of course, I have to add in the needlepoint sales that I will be shopping because when needlepoint goes on sale… you buy it. It’s just girl math.

Penny Linn Designs was obviously the first BF sale that I shopped for the season. This year the 20% included their acrylic line. For my non-needlepointers reading this, Penny Linn created the first trademarked line of magnetic acrylic trays, coasters, and boxes that you can snap your needlepoint designs in and out of. These can be rather pricy year-round, so I knew I had to grab the coaster set during Black Friday this year. Luckily, I am an email subscriber and had access to the early sale, so I bought them before they sold out (which I knew they would)! I have one coaster that I am finishing over Thanksgiving break and one coaster canvas on my wishlist. I can’t wait to see these coasters finished around my house! 

I am nothing short of obsessed with Elizabeth Crane Swartz’s designs. I am specifically in love with the canvases that I could turn into home decor. The bright colors and simple shapes would add the perfect sprinkle of personality to any pillow, tray, coaster, or framed piece. One of their coaster designs is on my to-buy list - I will include it below. It is a white square coaster with letters of all sizes in black. I can already see it stitched with a sparkling black for the letters and a citron velvet for backing that I happen to already have in my fabric stash. My other favorite of Elizabeth's canvases is her tic-tac-toe board. I don't think my bank account will let me snag it this season, but it is precious and would look incredible on any coffee table!

Just this week I stumbled upon potentially the cutest ornament canvas ever and I  knew that I needed to add it to my stash. I had already added it to my wishlist when ABC announced their Black Friday sale. Perfect! This needlepointing Santa canvas is a must-have for every needlepointer’s tree. I love to always have an ornament (or two) in my collection whenever I need a break between large projects or if I am traveling and don’t have room to bring an entire belt. ABC has a ton of great canvases to choose from, including the matching needlepointing Mrs. Claus (someone please tell me I don’t need it).