Stitching HD: Harvest Witch

• Pattern: Ghostly Treats, booklet #349 by Stoney Creek
• Materials: 28 count "Lapis Lazuli" Cashel linen by Silkweaver, DMC, Kreinik, Petite Treasure braid, Glissen Gloss, Stoney Creek buttons
• Size: about 11" x 10"
• Time to stitch: 16 days since May 2020

Presenting one of my bucket list projects, finally stitched many years after stashing the chart.

The pattern is actually pretty straightforward for a Stoney Creek chart.  It's not huge, but it does pack in a lot of detail.  The backstitching is extensive, as is the use of the glow-in-the-dark Kreinik.  There are several blended thread colors and a fair amount of quarter stitches.  As for modification, I charted most of the backstitch myself, to avoid the stair steps, which I think does a disservice to this sort of chart.  I went over the backstitching for the mouth twice since it was very faint, hardly visible with the 1 strand.  The backstitching instructions are quite long, using around 10 different thread colors.  

There is some long stitch too, mainly for the wheat.  I think all the "harvest" details in this chart are really fun; the pumpkins, apples, and wheat all provide some warm colors to contrast her cool purple, green, and blue ensemble.  The dress and cape are the bulk of stitching, fortunately some of my favorite colors are used and the shading is very well done.  

As for materials, I found the linen in my stash and tried to position the design so the moon would be on the lighter part of the fabric.  Speaking of the moon, it is entirely stitched with Glissen gloss (2 strands Glissen gloss +1 strand DMC in various silvery greys).  It wasn't bad to stitch; as long as I kept the lengths to about 12 inches, the Glissen gloss held up pretty well.  

The Kreinik was another story, it's 5 colors of glow in the dark Kreinik and some of the colors felt like plastic lace.  I don't give a whit about glow in the dark, and I had difficulty finding some of the colors, but I had no luck with substitution either; eventually I sourced everything on Etsy.  Some of my Kreinik stitches look terrible because the thread is so ornery.  At least since everything is backstitched, I was able to cover some of the problems and wrestle the stitches into submission.  My other problem with materials was stitching with 2 strands of blending filament for the spider's web, as directed.  It looked terrible so I frogged it and redid with petite treasure braid PB10 that I had in my stash, leftover from another piece.  
Petite treasure braid worked great and is thin enough to give the spindly web effect.  It's also much more visible and sparkly, compared to blending filament.  As for the buttons (glittery star, bat, and spider), they were not cheap (about $10 for the 3) but it was entirely worth it, the buttons are beautifully detailed and add a lot to the piece.

My favorite details are the black cat, the plump pumpkins, the voluminous cape and hat, and the web with the amazingly realistic and dimensional spider button.  I think the broom worked up with a lot of (visual) texture, and her green fingernails, fractional stitches with Kreinik and backstitched with matching blending filament, are quite interesting.  When I started this in May, I really didn't expect to finish it this year, but it didn't take too long and I'm glad I gave it the time. Now my "dance card" is open for another Halloween piece and I have plans for January, indeed I do.  

Comments

[Joanne Perry]

Congratulations on the Happy Dance for your Hallowe'en Witch, she is wonderful.
Some of those threads are a nightmare to work with but they do look lovely. Especially in the web.
The buttons really add to the design too.
Very excited to hear there's a new Spooky design for the New Year!

[Leonore Winterer]

Oh, she looks gorgeous! I love all the harvest details too, especially these ears of wheat. And that little black kitty! Well done.