Extracted from the front page of the
White Bear Press for Wednesday, October 13, 2004

A downtown White Bear Lake needlepoint shop replaced its window display of Halloween-themed canvases Friday with one slightly more gruesome - a crime scene, complete with a dead victiom.

Needlepoint Cottage decided to use its storefront to replicate the cover of a new needlework-focussed mystery book titled "Crewel Yule," by Monica Ferris.

The book is the eighth in a series that has drawn a following among the store's customers, said Ellen Johnson, spokeswoman for the store.

"Our customers enjoy these books so much because they're written about someone who is involved in needlepoint or needlework, which is our passion," Johnson said.

The books' author, Monica Ferris, will visit the store this week for a book signing. Ferris first visited the shop about seven years ago, when she was doing research for one of the books, Johnson said.

The store's owner, Teddi Ballin, told Ferris stories of things that had happened at the needlework shop, many of which have appeared in the stories, Johnson said.

The St. Louis Park author was not a needleworker when she began writing the mysteries, she said. She had written fiction in the past, and her editor, who had seen the success of a similar mystery series involving quilting, asked if she'd be willing to write needlepoint-related mysteries.

Now Ferris visits needlepoint shops throughout the Twin Cities to get ideas for her books, and to buy crafting supplies, she said.

"I stand there for a while and watch the interactions between the owners and customers to get ideas," Ferris said.

Throughout her research, Ferris said she's been struck by the kindness of people who do needlework, and the fact that they give most of their artwork away.

"They're sweet people," Ferris said. "They like the process, not the product."