Hello Châtelainers!

So, here we are, in October already! Autumn is on its way with cooler days and colder nights but also bringing all those lovely autumnal colors with it. If you stitch seasonally, there are so many lovely autumn Châtelaine designs to choose from – for example mushroom and fern which is the feature of this issue!

Speciality Stitches

In the last newsletter, we highlighted the resources section on the website where you will find updated materials lists, an errata list, and other useful pieces of information. Those of you who are in the Châtelaine Facebook Group will have seen the post about a new addition to the resources – guides for the speciality stitches used in many Châtelaine designs.

These have been created by Jay Hooper at embroidery company, Dizzy and Creative and are pdfs that you can download. These have step-by-step instructions with diagrams for both right and left-handed stitchers. So take a look if you haven’t already done so!

We will be adding more to the resources section over the coming months so do check back often!

Crystal conversions

As we all know, Swarovski has stopped producing the crystals that are used in the Châtelaine designs. We are working on a list to convert the original Swarovski crystals to other brands that are more readily available including Preciosa, Serenity in the UK, and Star Bright and Crystal Passions in the US. 

For some things, there are direct replacements for others, there will be suggested replacements and we hope to have the first version of the list available shortly.

If you have any suggestions of crystal replacements you have looked at yourself, or other companies who have suitable crystals then please get in touch by emailing as it would be good to have as much input as possible.

Featured Design and Stitcher

We are delighted to feature the Mushroom and Fern Mandala stitched by Michelle Luscombe, @chellssweetcreations on Instagram where she documents the progress on her Châtelaines almost every day. Here's what Michelle has to say about her beautiful project:

Mushroom and Fern is very special to me as it was a Mother’s Day gift from my daughter and mum. It is my seventh large Châtelaine finish and took much longer than the others due to the complexity of the design. Once you start that first Châtelaine there’s no going back – it’s like a drug; you’re hooked! 

I’ve stitched the design on 32ct Zweigart Sand Evenweave – it’s a beautiful, subtle, mottled fabric. I started stitching on 30 October 2020 and completed it on 25 May 2022.

I love the experience of stitching a Châtelaine as you are constantly learning new things. The silks are pure perfection and the designs actually look much harder than they are. The instructions are well-written and easy to follow, and the final piece is just so wonderful – so much better than the computer-generated image.

I’m sure you will agree that this is a wonderful piece of work so if you have it in your stash, perhaps it’s time to get it started?

If you would like your work to appear on the website, on social media, or in a future newsletter, then email us with your pictures and a bit of information about you, along with how and why you stitched the design. We love seeing your work and it’s great for future stitchers to be inspired by the work that you all do!

Engage with us

Follow us on Instagram (@chatelaine_design) and tag us using #chatelainestitching so we can see your lovely work, your progress, and your finishes.

Also, make sure you join the great community of stitchers in The Châtelaine Support Group. You’ll find support, encouragement, and probably more than just a little bit of enabling! (Make sure to answer the joining questions.)

Until next time!

Ela & the Châtelaine Team