Oriental Fan Part 4

I'm a day late this week; I normally like to post on Sundays. It's my lazy day when I get stuff done that I WANT to do and not what I NEED to do!

The fan face is DONE! Well, almost...I ran out of the color for the back stitching of the leaves. That's why the leaves on the far right side look a little wonky. Back stitching is the greatest thing...without it my leaves just look like green blobs of color; they lack the definition that only back stitching can provide.

Seeing as Dimensions has been so kind to me recently by sending me a new Elegance of the Orient pattern, I didn't want to bother them again over the one color I am lacking. Instead, I went online to find the DMC equivalent. If you Google Dimension to DMC Conversion then you get a plethora of charts that give you the color code that matches. A word to the wise here: DMC and Dimensions do not dye their floss with the same stuff. Therefore, the DMC equivalent is NOT the same color. It's just the closest match that they make. Sometimes the floss looks the same but mostly it is a completely different color and the difference will be noticeable in your project. Anyway, I found the color code I needed and trotted off to my local craft store to see if it was even remotely the correct color. Well, they didn't have it! So, I sent another email to the kind people at Dimensions. In hindsight, I think this is a better plan anyway. They should know that their kits don't contain the right amount of materials and hopefully, if they receive enough requests for more floss, they will start putting enough in the kits. I have NEVER completed a Dimensions kit that has had the correct amount of materials: I always run out of at least one color or there is so much of another that I wonder what they think I'm doing with it all! I have now taken to saving the leftover scraps of floss from previous kits so that I can use them when I run out during a new project. I am amazed at how often I dip into my reserves!

Where was I? Oh yes... I have finished the face of the fan! Next, I didn't really feel like doing the spokes of the fan just yet. It will be boring...lots of the same color over and over again. Also, I think I might need to unpick the small section of the spoke that I have completed because I think it might be a little sun bleached. I like to work outside in my yard on sunny days. Perhaps not the best idea, but c'est la vie! Anyway, so instead of doing the charcoal spokes that will go on forever, I decided to get started on the background! Did you think this was going to just be a boring fan in the middle of some fabric? Oh no, much better than that! Just wait and see how lovely this is going to be when it's done! I love the background of this piece because the effect of the half cross stitches make it look almost like some pencil sketches of fans and leaves. Gorgeous! Also, I wanted to do the background for a bit because half cross stitches and back stitching go SO quickly! I love this kind of instant gratification!