Submitted without comment.

Made by the always awesome Ruby42.

This quote from The Hobbit was stitched by our own Ruby42. See what she’s been up to in her Flickr photostream!

Hi everybody! It’s Saturday, and you know what that means – so if you’re ready, scroll past the mousey and let’s get to it!

WARNING!

NSFW SATURDAYS WILL CONTAIN CONTENT THAT IS NOT SAFE FOR WORK!

IF YOU READ THESE POSTS, AND ARE OFFENDED, WE’RE SORRY BUT WE DID WARN YOU!

The work of Ruby42 is one of the main reasons we created NSFW Saturdays. She’s a saucy stitcher and a fabulous person, so I was glad to see something new from her recently.

See more of Ruby’s stitchy goodness – naughty and nice – in her Flickr photostream. Great things await!

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NSFW Saturdays are brought to you in association with Subversive Cross Stitch, the original snarky stitching site!

Hello everybody! Last time we looked at the history of blackwork, this week we’re going to look at contemporary interpretations of that style.

First up we have this piece from Pins and Needles.

Illusions in Blackwork by Pins and Needles

She said, “I love quilts that show illusions of 3D, but I am not a quilter. How could I get the same effect in my work? By using Blackwork, of course! It seemed ideal, because I could choose the density of the stitching by the pattern I chose for each diamond.” Click the link under the photo to read more about this piece.

Up next we have a blackwork sampler from Bethism.

Blackwork Shading Sampler by Bethism

She said that after experimenting with shading in blackwork, she decided to try her hand at perspective. Pretty amazing piece! She said of the box on the top right, “This is my favorite of the two (boxes) because the optical illusion makes it appear as though the sides of the box curve in.” She goes on to explain the sphere, “I researched shadows and reflections and discarded a number of images before settling on this view. It was hard to know when to stop. I was constantly aware that it would be really easy to ruin it by overworking it.”  Click on the link under the photo to read all about her blackwork experiments. Mad scientist!

I love those two pieces because they take very traditional stitches and turn them on their head. Of course, no post on blackwork being used to create an optocal illusion would be complete without a nod to Escher.

Blackwork- M.C. Escher Design by bridgittepicart

Really nicely done. I like how the blackwork birds and fishes really sink into the background, and then you notice their eyes.

This next piece by sallytheskellington is a lovely take on illusion as well.

There is a Light That Never Goes Out by sallytheskellington

One of the things I love about this piece is that rather than using blackwork stitches to gradually highlight the flame in the center in a “realistic” way, she boldly creates contrasting “swatches” of gray to black stitches to achieve the same effect.

I love this piece by ceresus-parpi.

tree4 by cresus-parpi (Detail of larger piece)

The thing I really find intriguing about this work is that the use of blackwork produces a kind of shifting positive/negative space. Plus, the stitches themselves are gorgeous. It also feels a little lonely and creepy to me, without being heavy handed. Speaking of creepy-

Twins by freshmonkeypanic(ehme)

This is really fantastic. I love to be tricked into thinking I’m looking at a drawing, and then it turns out to be embroidery. The fabric reminds me of kitikata paper, which takes ink beautifully, and the stitching is like a perfect contour drawing. Really stunning. I love how stark and simple it is. Click the link below the photo to see the entire medical embroidery set.

If those two pieces above were slightly creepy, well this one scares the crap out of me.

The End is Nigh… by Ruby42

Okay. Okay. Nerds. Close your eyes, and imagine finding this on your doorstep. What’s the big deal? Bear with me. Walter Kovacs came across the material for his “face” when he was… wait for it… sewing garments in a dress shop. Okay. And then when he goes to rescue doomed kidnapping victim Blair Roche, he finds her remains in AN ABANDONED DRESSMAKER’S SHOP. See? Do you get it? It makes perfect sense that Kovacs was a secret manbroiderer. Two of the biggest turning points in his life involve stitching. Ruby’s on to something. I’m going to write the New Frontiersman about it. Also “Rorschach?” Sounds like a Flickr name to me.

Whew. Let’s keep that under our hats. On a lighter note, I’ll leave you with this.

Ruthless Organ Blackwork by Beefranck

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Penny Nickels is a printmaker that started playing with needles with tremendous effect. She and her husband, Johnny Murder, have been described as “The Bonnie and Clyde of Contemporary Embroidery” and you can discover the power of her creativity at her blog.

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References for this article include photos which are the property of the cited artist, and quotes which can be found on the artists’ web pages. Also, Alan Moore stuff that I made up.

Dorothy Parker is quotable – and stitchable, as Ruby42 proves here.

See more awesome stuff from Ruby in her flickr photostream or her etsy store – there’s lots of great stuff to see!

It’s a special Saturday because we’ve got another batch of naughty goodness from Ruby42. If you’re ready for a taste, scroll past the puppy and let’s begin!

WARNING!
NSFW SATURDAYS WILL CONTAIN CONTENT THAT IS NOT SAFE FOR WORK!
IF YOU READ THESE POSTS, AND ARE OFFENDED, WE’RE SORRY BUT WE DID WARN YOU!

This delightful dish was created by Ruby for the NSFW swap at the Phat Quarter.

On the safe side of the pillow, she’s shared her recipe for cream pie.

On this side, she’s provided an illustration of a different kind of cream pie.

Awesome as usual, Ruby! Be sure to check out her flickr photostream and her etsy store.

NSFW Saturdays are brought to you in association with
Subversive Cross Stitch, the original snarky stitching site!

Ruby42 – we just love her, and it’s obvious. She inspired the dedicated NSFW posts and has been featured in them several times. This time, however, she’s got something different going on.

Ruby is a huge fan of Hugh Laurie, and she showed her affection by stitching his portrait – twice! The economy being what it is, Ruby has made the difficult decision to part with these labors of love. You can find the listing for this beauty here…

…and this portrait here. They are both amazing pieces that took months of work, and I hope they both find a home.

Ruby is having a sale on the rest of the pieces in her shop, too – check it out here!

It’s amazing that Mr X Stitch is one year old.

I can’t quite explain how it’s happened, but a year ago I wrote the obligatory “This is my blog” introductory post and off I went:

“It’s an attempt to funk up the world of cross stitch a bit, and stems from my frustration at the lack of decent patterns for men, and for people with a bit of style. I’ve had enough of country cottages and kittens playing with balls of wool. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure they bring joy and happiness to a lot of people. Just not me.” Mr X Stitch, 27th August 2008.

I still stick by that first statement – I prefer country cottages and kittens in real life, rather than embroidery, but that’s my particular persuasion.

What’s been astonishing about this site is that it’s introduced me, and you, to a huge array of stitch superstars who create magnificent works:

Like William Schaff, whose work just blew me away when I saw it. And I’ve also gotten to know a lot of very creative individuals, such as the inimitable Benjibot!

And the legend that is Ruby42 (NSFW).

It’s been terrific over the past year how people have manifested their own expression with a needle and thread.

The Nu Craft Movement is growing and the increase in stitched pieces that we’ve seen appear over at the Phat Quarter indicate how popular stitching is becoming. It’s a great time to be a stitcher.

I still blame this person for a lot of what’s gone on here:

If Bridget hadn’t come on board, this site would still be crap. But her enthusiasm and endeavour has brought us all kinds of wonder. And for that, we are all grateful. Thanks Beef!

We’ve had some exciting finds over the year. The discovery of Severija‘s amazing embroidered metalwork was a good moment:

Particularly as we were able to also feature Lynette Andreason‘s embroidered silverware on the same day:

And we’ve had some terrific concepts, like Girli Concrete:

Tinyhaus‘ embroidered porcelain:

And Liz Kueneke, who uses stitching to engage with communities:

It’s terrific to see new ideas emerge and to discover people who have so much to offer – long may it continue.

There have been some stitched pieces this year that have pushed at the boundaries of the genre, in a variety of ways. The thing I like about this is that each push opens up more creative ground, and gives other people space to explore.

I hope we get more works that continue to break new ground, and I also hope we get to see more stitchy animation stuff  - that baby’s got loads of potential.

So it’s onwards and upwards for the next year – who knows what we’ll find along the way?

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If you know of anyone that should be featured on this or any of our posts, just email me, or Beefranck, with your ideas. We love hearing from you!

So, now that we’ve gotten all of that out of the way, it’s GIVEAWAY TIME!

Yay!

No, seriously YAY! Who would like to win a gift pack from the fantastic Subversive Cross Stitch!?!?!

(A bit like, but not exactly the one below!)

I want to know your thoughts:

Tell me about stitching, what does it mean to you?

What stitchy stuff excites you? What inspires you?

Competition Rules:

The closing date for this competition is Midday (GMT) on Thursday 3rd October.

The winning comment will be chosen by a random number generator and announced in a post on the same day.

The winner will not be eligible for any of the other prizes in the competition – if their comment is chosen at random in a subsequent competition, another number will be chosen.

The winners will be contacted by email and the details for postage arranged therewith.

(Ha! I said “therewith”! I love all that – “herein”, “forthwith”, “henceforth” etc. Magic words!)

Anyway, come and comment and best of luck to all of you.

Hi everybody! Ready for some stimulating stitching? Great! Just scroll past the puppies and we’ll begin!

*Warning – there are real, not stitched images of naughty bits in this one!*

WARNING!
NSFW SATURDAYS WILL CONTAIN CONTENT THAT IS NOT SAFE FOR WORK!
IF YOU READ THESE POSTS, AND ARE OFFENDED, WE’RE SORRY BUT WE DID WARN YOU!

This week’s artist is the one who gave us the idea of NSFW Saturday in the first place. It all started with this lesbian porn embroidery post. Here’s a couple new saucy stitches from the lovely and talented Ruby42!

She seems happy, doesn’t she? This embroidery is an example of self-gratification stitching at its finest.

If Mr X were writing this, I believe he would say “Crikey!” right about now.

This was made for the anatomy swap that took place at the Phat Quarter recently. Ruby embellished an image from pornography with buttons, decorative embroidery, and a stitched statement. The combination of the explicit image and the intimate message makes this piece especially poignant. Ruby has been doing so many new things lately – I can’t wait to see more!

If you’d like to see more of her work, you can check out her flickr photostream or her etsy store.

Welcome to the first NSFW Saturday post!

Here at Mr X Stitch, we realise that the world of embroidery is changing and a new wave of stitchery artists are producing fantastic works of art using needles and threads. We pride ourselves on seeking out the newest pieces from the freshest stitchers and sharing them with you. And we hope that the works you see on here will inspire you to try new things.

But the world moves forward and the pioneers of contemporary stitching are exploring more exotic topics. Sex, drugs and rock’n'roll are all being featured in stitches these days, and we think it’s a good thing. For any medium to evolve it has to explore the limits of what is possible before finding a natural state within those limits.

So we’re going to help!

WARNING!
NSFW SATURDAYS WILL CONTAIN CONTENT THAT IS NOT SAFE FOR WORK!
IF YOU READ THESE POSTS, AND ARE OFFENDED, WE’RE SORRY BUT WE DID WARN YOU!

Kitty says "Are you sure you want to carry on reading?!"

Each week, NSFW Saturdays will bring you something new from the world of stitch that you wouldn’t necessarily show your grandma.

Things like Boocifer’s triumphant cross stitch sampler, that pretty much covers all the bases, with some really nice finishing.

We aren’t afraid to show a bit of sex. Realistic or unrealistic. If it feels good, we’re gonna do it. Always Inspired reminds us that the Karma Sutra is still on the money.

And yes, we’re not afraid of swear words. Language should never be a barrier – even if it’s filthy. Mooosh takes it to the limit, but with a wicked sense of humour.

And Spamberly helps us address the final frontier. Porn exists. Get over it.

Let’s just set the record straight. We’re not just going for cheap thrills. This is about the evolution of stitching and challenging people’s perceptions. The quality of the work is essential.

And just to prove the point, we leave you with a selection of work that we’ve already featured that sets the standard:

Penny Nickel’s frisky pillowcases.

Rachel McKay stitches Christian Bale’s eloquent expressions.

Mr X Stitch’s Bad Mofo embroidery.

Ruby42′s now legendary lesbian porn.

People, this is history. The world of stitchery just changed. And it changed for the better.

How do you feel?