Orange is the new Black...I mean KIT!

Yes, I've joined the bandwagon (one season late!) and I'm busy watching Season 1 of Orange is the New Black on Netflix.

If you don't know what I'm talking about, skip ahead to the "orange cross stitch" portion of this post. But, for those of you also watching "Orange is the New Black"....OH MY! Such an interesting TV series set in a women's prison. It's funny, heart-breaking/heart-warming, troubling, thought-provoking, irreverent and totally unlike any other series I've ever watched. And it's based on a TRUE STORY...gulp/gag/I hereby purpose to make responsible decisions and never break the law! Warning: not kid-friendly viewing (for mature audiences)

Back to the TRUE reason for this post - we have a new ORANGE themed kit called SPOOKY EYES! Alas, no picture...yet!

We're headed to market in a couple weeks, and we're keeping this one under wraps. There's a special promotion at market with a bunch of vendors, and we agreed to participate and make this one a surprise!

But here's some behind the scenes scoop on SPOOKY EYES!! I promise our "orange" secrets are not half as scary as what goes on in that women's prison!

After I did this little Halloween design, I searched for the perfect spooky fabric. I chose a fabric called (very appropriately) EEK! from Picture This Plus. This gorgeous fabric is a muted orange with gray/black streaks running through it - perfect for the spooky season. It looks darker above, because it's wet and hanging out in the dye pots. This hand-dyed fabric company is in my Kansas neighborhood, so it's fun to work with a nearby vendor. 

Here's the fabric after it's overdyed with the dark swirls...hauntingly beautiful!

Now it's hanging on the drying racks. After it's dry, PTP graciously agreed to cut the fabric into individual pieces and serge the edges. The gals at PTP are the best, hardworking, Kansas fabric gals I know! Marilyn (the owner) is a farm wife, but "commutes" to town to run her biz out of an historic building downtown. The fabric dyeing happens in the basement, with an awesome bookstore above her on the main level.

Another fun product I'm including with this kit is some over-dyed pom pom trim. I can't get enough of pom pom trim lately - so darn cute! I ordered up a giant batch of this stuff so I could include it with each kit. It's BLACK, with some purple/dark blue highlights. 

I spent several evenings cutting/bagging pom pom trim into kit-size while watching Orange is the New Black. It's a boring job, but much more enjoyable when I'm diverted by the drama of all those ladies in orange!

Final SNEAK PEEK! Here's the star of the show - SPOOKY EYES -  spending some time in the spotlights and getting photographed. Can you spot it, nestled in the middle of those Halloween props?

Need more ORANGE in your life? Contact your favorite needlework shop and ask them to order SPOOKY EYES for you! Kit includes 28 ct. Eek! linen, black pom pom trim, mother-of-pearl buttons and tiny black buttons, kohl WDW thread, and complete finishing instructions.