Who new these pirates would become such a hit?  I think everyone has a bit of pirate in them, or at least knows someone near and dear to their heart that has a bit of pirate…ya gotta love those bad boys! 

Do you have a pirate idea you want to share with me?  I always welcome your ideas though please don’t be disappointed if I don’t use it…it has to hit me just right for me to consider it and that might not happen right away.  However I might read it next month and the timing is perfect.  So, I do keep almost all the suggestions for that very reason.  Or your idea combined with someone else’s idea could morph into a whole ‘nother idea and I am off and running.  So please don’t hesitate to send me an email at suehillisdesigns@aol.com.

Pirates are always looking for booty, after all.

I am thinking about another group of designs with a pirate’s raggedy parrot yelling orders, like “Fire his arse!”  or “Downsize–just another word for keel-haul”  Let me know your thoughts on this!

The bunnies remind me of a book of my childhood…I don’t even remember the name but it was a Little Golden book and the bunnies were all busy, as these are, getting ready to fill Easter baskets.

These two were so fun to design!  I had two of my grandchildren in mind when I worked on these…Ella (age 3) is a girly girl, and Jackson (age 5) is all boy!
I also recalled favorite toys from when I was young and added them ALL into these two pieces because I like to stitch pieces that have a lot of components.

L431 Thank Heaven for Little Girls

These two fit perfectly into 8″ x 10″ frames when stitched on 14/28 count fabric. 

L430 Thank Heaven for Little Boys

Also included are color numbers for African American, Asian, and Latino skin
tones so you can truly personalize these designs to suit yourself.  These two leaflets should be available from your favorite shop at the end of the month. 

For a while it seemed like these pirate designs took over my entire life…lucky for my sanity, I have a new series coming mid-March featuring angels…but more on that later!
I’m not saying that there won’t be more pirates…as you can see here, there are still more in my design file.  It’s amazing how circuitous a design can be…a friend gave me one idea (that hopefully can be used eventually if I can find a rum bottle charm), that evolved step by step into a whole new design “Burnt to Perfection”.  So the final design, is often a surprise to me!
I think “Burnt” will be a great seller, especially for Father’s Day, don’t you think? 

PS157 Burnt to Perfection

And with record breaking snowfalls this year, I thought the pirate snowman was the perfect stitch while we sit waiting for Spring to arrive!  When our family was deciding on where we wanted to live after my husband retired from 22 years of military service, we decided to settle here in Virginia.  We wanted the change of seasons and the little bit of snow we experienced here in two tours at Fort Lee.  So, that was more that 20 years ago, and aside from a few minor snowfalls over the years, there was just no snow!  Well this year makes up for it!  We have literally piles of snow everywhere and so far, I still love it!    L432 Shiver Me Timbers

These two designs are going to be introduced at the Nashville Market next week and your favorite shop should have them soon after that!  Enjoy the stitch!

Christmas in the Kitchen just makes you want to start baking cookies with your grandma…or your grandkids!  These little motifs would be cute stitched
onto a jar top full of Christmas treats to give as a gift, or a bread cloth…or frame it for yourself!   Fits into the usual 8″ x 10″ frame when stitched on 14/28 count
to make it easy for you!   Available now from Joanne.  Merry Christmas!!

Here is the newest annual Santa…he is finally finished and is almost finished being stitched up.  He should be at your favorite shop at the beginning of November.  He is the sixth in the annual series and you can see them all at www.suehillisdesigns.net.  All have a similar border so you can group them together if you choose.  Part of our Charming Collection, the Poinsettia Santa has a gold poinsettia charm hanging from the basket, and when stitched on 14/28 count fabric, he fits perfectly into a standard 8″ x 10″ frame.  The charm is included with the leaflet for your convenience.  Thanks for looking!

Yummm….no explanation neccessary for this PostStitch…I think we all can relate to the message!
When I was working on the cruise project with those Whitman Tins, I was inspired by the way the
Chocolates LOOKED (aside from the taste, of course!).  Your favorite shops should have it about October 1st!

This PostStitch comes with the little gold key, and of course fits into a standard frame.  Stitch count
is 55w x 81h. 

Here she is!  You can see she’s got the rep to support the phrase “Women who behave rarely make history”!  And the handcuffs charm pretty much say it all.  A nice complement to the other pirates, this design fits nicely into a standard 4″ x 6″ or 5″ x 7″ frame.  She will be making her debut at the St. Charles trade show at the end  of the month so she will be in the shops on October 1. 

Here’s another new design that I will be showing at the St. Charles Show next week (next week??  already??  I have so much to do still!)
I have a Halloween themed design like this from last year and it’s a good seller so I thought I would expand the idea…hence Happy Holidays! 

It will be available to shops on September 26th, so if you like the design, ask your favorite shopowner for it!