Moonflower Designs

 In 2003 I became interested in the creation of hand-painted needlepoint canvases.  This required research into the materials and methods needed to insure quality.  I created my first small design with which to experiment and this would be titled "Yule".  Around this same time, a friend who owned a frame shop, began dyeing fabric for cross stitch.  This was extremely interesting to me and I decided to adapt my little design for cross stitch.  Being inspired by the name of one of the fabric colors she produced, I named my first design "Yule".  

I had decided to offer these small designs as kits with the fabric, thread, and embellishment.  While researching threads for wholesale purchase, I connected with Caron Collection and chose the Waterlilies silk threads. If you stitch with silk threads, you may have experienced, as I did, the joy in stitching with them.  The rich texture and the beautiful appearance create a very satisfying result.  

In search of an embellishment to coordinate with "Yule", I was sidetracked by some beads I had on hand and the name of another of the PTP fabric colors.  I created the design, "Jewel" to use a Swarovski crystal heart as the embellishment.  This became my official first release.  Inspired by other colors in the Picture This Plus line of hand-dyed fabric for cross stitch, created by Marilyn, I launched Moonflower Designs with the Small Scapes series.