I love Whitework!

That statement should not come as a surprise to those of you that know me.  I do a lot of whitework.  I could literally cover every surface of my house with runners and doilies and pictures and still have some left over. This is a band sampler named Flowers for Sue.

And now the Interchangeable Diamond Panels:

 This is my intermediate level.  The difficulty level with this series is mostly determined by the complexity of the eyelets.  I happen to adore eyelets.  There are some buttonhole and chain eyelets in it.

 This is the beginner level.  The eyelets are all either single, or the spot type.  Easy-Peasy!

This is the advanced.  There are lots of chain and shaped eyelets.  The cross eyelet at the bottom is especially vicious.  I had to rip it three times before getting it right.

 This is Winter's Dream.  I kept wishing it was warm outside and ended up filling it with flower motifs. There is a close up of the stitched band below.  I was fortunate to fine some pre-finished fabric squares with the lace already sewn on.  It makes finishing really easy, but centering really hard.

 This is my latest finish and is being proofed by pilot stitchers as I write.  it is another one of my travel pieces.  one of the best things about traveling with whitework is I only need two sizes of white pearl cotton. I don't have to be hauling around a lot of skeins of fibers and sorting colors.  Just throw in two balls of pearl and I'm good to go!  I started this one in Koln, Germany and finished it on  Tybee Island, Georgia.

 This is one of my first designs.  It's simply called the Diamond Ornament.  It uses Ukrainian style whitework and the Mereshka Poltavska technique.  It is a fun and fast technique.  I love the lacey look it gives.

 I am occasionally daring and add blackwork to my whitework.  This is a small table runner I designed several years ago.  It is one of my all time favorites.  No, I will not be charting this one for sale.  I am going to keep it my own one of a kind.

 And sometimes I play with shapes.  I was folding paper one night and this is what happened.  I've since designed five of these cute little Lotus Boxes.  This is my first one using my favorite techniques.  (Yes, white and black again.)  I also have a Bargello Lotus Box, and a Cross Stitch Lotus Box, but as they actually use color I will feature them in another blog.  The other two boxes are still under wraps, but I can give a few hints.  One is Hardanger and will be taught at an event that will be announced in October.  The last one is also whitework, but I have also worked it in fall colors.  That one will be featured in the October 2014 issue of Just Cross Stitch Magazine.  Here is a little sneak peek: