Embroidery with a needle in your hand...what a concept!

OK. It's true. I have one of the best jobs in the world. Not only do I work with fabric all day, I get to buy new things for the web site all the time. Lately, I have been enthusiastic about expanding our needle crafts. We have all kinds of new products on the way including needle felting supplies. But today I want to tell you about the hand embroidery kits and transfers I have for you.

Now, let's all be honest. We all have a little box of DMC floss stashed away somewhere. It could be left over from your cross stitching days. That's definitely where I grew my stash from. It could be that you are still an avid embroidery junkie. Whatever the excuse, you have some of this floss somewhere. I have the perfect projects to get some use out of it. Let's start with the product that got me crazy about hand embroidery again. Sublime Stitches is '' NOT your grandma's embroidery'' transfers. With subjects like monkeys, yoga, sushi and pirates, you're pillowcases will never look like Nana's. But that's the whole point! Sure, you can jazz up a T shirt, but open your mind kids! Those really are some pretty boring pillowcases you got there. And, it's a  great place to practice simple stitches before you venture on to a T shirt you want to wear in public! Speaking of stitches, the creator of Sublime Stitches has a little instruction in each transfer set to get you started on the road to hand embroidery. You'll be surprised how fast you become as you practice.

So after finding Sublime Stitches, I found three great kits that include the floss, a needle, transfers, embellishments (like sequins) and a felt stitch guide to give you something to practice with. HipStitch Kits include Mod Brit, Indian Exotic and City Girl. These transfers have fashion in mind. Once again, I want you to think outside the T shirt with these. A really strange, but interesting blouse from the Thrift store can become a $500 look with some hand stitching and some embellishments. Savvy Stitches kits also offer floss, needles, practice fabrics and instruction with their transfers. The best part is, you get a tone of different transfers in one kit. Choose the Divine collection for paisley, florals and  flourishes. The It's A Girl Thing collection includes everything from flip flops to coffee to a curly alphabet. The Monograms collection comes with two complete alphabets and some great ideas for variations.

Last, but not least, are a couple of transfer books that are a little more traditional. Monograms and More have 15 alphabets and 34 project ideas. If you had a girlfriend getting married, hand embroidered pillowcases with the bride's and groom's initials would be priceless. Then we have 200+ Fun and Funky designs transfer book. It has something for everybody.Skulls and butterflies. Monograms and Christmas motifs. Flowres and vegetables. If you think you want to create presents for everyone in the family, this is the embroidery transfer collection for you.

In case you didn't know, most of these transfers can be used up to ten times each. You could also use tracing paper and a stylus to apply the transfer. Then they will last almost forever! So, what are you waiting for? Run, don't walk, to your linen closet and check out the potential. You are going to enjoy the creativity of the process and the end result!