Hello from Alabama!
If you have never been to The Needle Bug you must go. I’ve never seen so many threads in all of my life! If your summer travels take you through Montgomery, please plan to stop. Or better yet, plan a detour. The canvas selection is fabulous and the threads are divine. I would imagine they have one of the largest selections, if not THE largest selection, of threads in the country. Tell Leigh, the shop owner, that I sent you. Leigh’s simply the best and a real hoot. She has always been so generous and hospitable to me. First, when I was a stitcher shopping in her shop, as a retreat attendee and now as a needlepoint designer. The Bug has a stitch-in every Wednesday, and yesterday I had the pleasure of seeing some of the most beautiful stitches I’ve ever seen. I was totally blown way by the talent, good humor and kindness in that room full of women. The Bug will always be one of my favorite shops. Because of their thread selection? Sure. But mostly because they make you feel like family.
Tonight, Jessica Eiland, @stitchingwithjessica (you must follow her if you don’t already!), and I are hosting a private event for beginner stitchers. Jessica and I became friends through Instagram. She lives in a small town in Alabama, Andalusia. I have family living in Andalusia, their families know one another and are both members of the country club! Small world. Through our communications we spoke about how much we loved needlepoint, and how we both wanted to share the joy of needlepoint with others. Jessica talked about there weren’t a lot of stitchers in her town and how she wanted to change that. I wanted to help her, and join the mission! For needlepoint is always better when it is shared, and stitching is more fun when stitching with others. Andalusia is an hour and a half from the closest LNS. We knew the only way was to bring needlepoint to Andalusia!
We have 15 woman registered to come to a beginner needlepoint class tonight!! We have a needle, threads, a pair of scissors, a threader, an appropriate beginner canvas, some very simple instructions, and well…that’s about it. We are not professional needlepoint instructors, there will be NO doubt about that. But we love needlepoint! We are passionate about sharing the joy and benefits of our beloved hobby and lifestyle with other women in hopes that they too will find joy, community, relaxation and fun.
Like many of you, I learned how to stitch around a kitchen table. So tonight, Jessica and I will gather around a table and we’ll teach other women how to needlepoint. The odds are that we’ll have a lovely time, we’ll laugh and new friends will be made. And someone will leave tonight a new stitcher. And this is what it’s all about.