Let me begin by saying that I learn as I go–sometimes because I do it wrong and learn to advise you otherwise. Particularly in the order of the steps. So when a photo shows something done that the instructions say to do later, trust the instructions. For example, the rosette stitch for the candies is a somewhat fragile stitch. Look how sharp and nice they look when I first stitched them:
By the time I finished the candy cane stripes around the triangle, I’d snagged and roughed them up quite a bit. So ya. Trust the instructions–not the photos for order of the steps. Now let’s begin…
Stem stitch around each window. The curtains are open buttonhole stitched with straight stitch tie backs. To begin the open buttonhole, you need a backstitch around that curtain shape. I stitched a backstitch between the white stem stitch and the window wool.
The candle is a needle weave bar with 2 lines. The flame is a detached chain stitch with a small bullion knot in the middle. These windows take some time and LOTS of red thread.
Chain stitch a rainbow swirl. Begin with red and go halfway around the circle along the edge of the circle, but ON the circle. Next orange (two stitches on the edge and then alongside the red) Yellow (two stitches on the edge then alongside the orange) Then green, then purple. Keep stitching until the swirl is full. Here is what the finished swirl looks like:
Satin stitch candy cane stripes. ½ inch wide stripes with single strand stripes between. See photo for direction on the angles. I did across the bottom from edge to edge. Then the sides and I configured the stripes so that they would meet near the top, but not fill the whole space. My sides are nearly symmetric.
Next is the “candies” on the roof. The rosette stitch is not in Sue Spargo’s creative stitching manual, but it is in the Right Handed Embroiderer’s Companion book. You can find instructions in my stitch library here (coming soon). Add a french knot to fill the hole in the middle.
First, marking the circles. They are 3/8 inch apart. I marked 3/8 inch lines along the edge of this pink cardstock because the math of subtracting 3/8 was hurting my brain. The top line is 10 3/4 from the bottom edge of the project. I just marked the center of each candy. Then once a row was complete, I would mark the next row. Once I’d done 3 rows, I marked the rest.
THE SIDES WILL LOOK DIFFERENT BECAUSE THE SNOW IS NOT SYMMETRICAL! This bothered me when I was stitching, but once it was complete it looked perfectly normal. On the porch roof, I did the middle row in the middle of the porch snow, then a row on top and a row underneath.
Back stitch around each gumdrop with the corresponding color and add french knot “sugar” on top. Chain stitch around each of the white snow patches on the roof. Chain stitch around the upper roof & porch roof & chimney. Backstitch the side edges on the outside and inside side walls. Wrap the side walls backstitch EVERY OTHER STITCH with red and white to form the candy stripe. I did the white first.
The stitches are a little harder to find after the first color is wrapped, but use a tapestry needle and they are right in the middle of that big white stitch.
Stem stitch the 2 rectangles on the bottom of the door. The candy canes are made from LONG bullion stitches. Add stitches for the stripes. Palestrina knots for the sides and top of the door, then backstitch along the bottom edge. And a little bullion loop for the handle.
Four vertical lines with 8 stitches each on the chimney as the base for the “ribbon candy”, which is a double pekinese stitch.
Be careful not to pull the threads too tight when tying knots on the back (like i did). Add vertical bullion knots in white and green to make a “mint” top.
