This needlepoint canvas has an all-over leopard pattern with a center stripe and can be finished as a tote bag or large pillow. I overlaid a large monogram at the center of my tote bag, but you can use more subtle initials, or none at all.
Design size: 9 x 18 inches
Canvas size: 13 x 22 inches
Mesh size: 13
Needle included; canvas does not come stitched or with threads. Stitch painted on 100% cotton Zweigart canvas.
My tote bag was finished by Pinnell Custom Leather in Crozet, Virginia. The canvas *already includes any extra rows* that are needed for this finish--you can just stitch what is on the canvas. I stitched my tote bag with Appletons crewel wool and blended several colors. I suggest the following colors in Appletons tapestry wool:
- Darker background: 902
- Lighter background: 691
- Spots: 993 black
- Spot centers: 904, or of you want to shade the spots from the center to the outside edge you can use 697, 904 and 903
- For the stripe I used black for the center instead of blue and used DMC pearl cotton colors 930, 931, 932, blanc and 807; and Planet Earth wool Red Hot 004.
I buy Appletons from HM Nabavian in New York--they ship very quickly!
The last image shows the exact stitch count for each color to give you a rough guideline of how many yards you may need. Stitch a yard of thread and count the number of stitches you get (usually between 100 and 120), and divide the number of stitches by that number to get the approximate number of yards you will need.
