So Close!!!

I had wanted to finish this project and be able to show you all but instead it's still a WIP!!! Yet again, I have run out of floss and have to write to Dimensions. This kit has been brutal for running out of floss. So far I've run out of 4 colors! The kind people at Dimensions are going to get to know me very well. I'm so close to completion!!! I'm very excited!!!



As a complete aside, our birds had babies!!! My husband and I have 4 zebra finches and they are lovely! We got birds because we were trying to entertain the cats indoors. When my one cat Jericho goes outside he picks fights with other cats and comes home looking like he got attack by a lawnmower. We decided the cats need to stay indoors if they can't behave themselves outside and the birds have really helped them stay entertained. They have proven to be very avid bird watchers!!! Well, last week I poked my nose into the birds' nests and noticed we had eggs and a few days ago I was snooping again and found babies!!! We have 7 babies!!! I think we're going to need a bigger cage but it's VERY exciting!!!

Daddy Day, Buckets, Updates, and Future Ambitions

First of all let me wish all the Daddy's out there a very happy Father's Day!!! I have been musing over what to get my dad. He's a simple guy who feels uncomfortable when people spend money on him. Also, his birthday is on the 20th and so I often combine gifts. I think I will have my "All is Calm" piece framed and give it to him for his birthday.

He needs some calm in his life; he works very hard and never takes enough time for himself. Also, a few months ago we lost my brother very tragically. My mother was very upset on Mother's Day and I think today may be difficult for my dad. I want to make sure this Daddy Day is as easy for my dad as possible! Please send happy vibes our way!!!

Well, that last paragraph had a sombre tone to it. Let's move on to something more chipper! Last night I watched "The Bucket List". Has anyone seen this? Hilarious and sad all at the same time! The part when Jack Nicholson gets to kiss "the most beautiful girl in the world" had me crying/smiling for about 20 minutes! My only wish was that they made the character of the assistant a little funnier. That actor was the best part of "Will & Grace" and I think his character in this flick could have been HILARIOUS!!!

And finally, an update on my latest project. I have finished the spokes of the fan and done the couching with the gold metallic thread. I love couching!!! It's a touch time consuming but the effect is lovely! Next, I've been working on the next fan in the background. I'm really happy with the progress I'm making. I think the excitement over my next project is giving me the inertia I need!!! My diligence is paying off!



I've been reading a bunch of blogs out there in the ether and I've decided that I HAVE to get myself a Heaven and Earth Design! I am in love with every one that I see! Also, I think I'm due for a Miribilia for the same reason! But my all time favorite that I've got to get for myself is "The Lady of Shalott". You know...that famous painting, by someone whose name escapes me, of her in the boat floating down the river with that soulfull look on her face after she realizes that she's dying. I love that painting and I love that poem! I think I'm getting ahead of myself AGAIN!!!

Oriental Fan Part 6 and Dimensions Came Through AGAIN!!!

I love this border but it is taking FOREVER!!! Since last week I have completed the top portion of it and the gold flecks within it along the left side. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I really dislike stitching with metallic thread but I love the effect it provides; it's a love-hate relationship! I got a bit bored with the border and so I moved on to the spokes of the fan. I'm SO happy with how quickly they are forming!

I went to the mailbox the other day and found that Dimensions had sent me the floss I need to finish the back stitching for the leaves on the face of the fan. YIPPEE!!!I haven't done it yet but am excited to do so. I've had very positive experiences with Dimensions so far. They have sent me a replacement for the pattern that was lost and now they have sent me some more floss because I ran out. I wish I'd known how easily they send you replacements because I never would have bought extra thread from my local craft store when I've run out in the past! My only qualm with their otherwise GREAT customer service is this: when you send them an email letting them know what you need all you get is an automated email in return saying that they have received mine. Thus, I never know if they are going to send me the item until it shows up in my mailbox. I wish they could send me a quick email letting me know that they are sending it so that I would know if I need to take a trip to my local craft store or not. It's a small thing but I think it would make a big difference. Am I being too picky?

What can be my useful tip for today??? Well, I was talking a few days ago about how I kept making mistakes on the border and had to unpick it. The reason for this was because I lost my pencil. Lost my pencil? Yes, lost my pencil...you see as I stitch an area I shade in the squares I've stitched so that I know I've stitched them. I'm certain A LOT of people do this but most people tend to use a highlighter. I like using a pencil because I can erase it if I need to. Also, I use my highlighter to color the back stitching lines on the pattern that I have completed. I've found this is a useful tip. I remember the first large pattern that I stitched because that was when I started doing this. I'd lose my place on the pattern but not realize it and end up stitching the wrong colors in the wrong places. I must have unpicked at least a third of it!!! LOL!! Then I started shading in what I had done and it made ALL the difference. The only thing that you need to be careful about is getting pencil on your hands and then getting it on your thread. If you do it's not a big deal because it will wash out. I made this mistake while stitching the snow in "All is Calm"; I kept wondering why my snow looked dirty until I looked at my hands and gasped!!!

Well, it's 30 degrees outside today and about 40 with the humidex. Too hot for doing much outside so I think I shall curl up next to the air conditioner and stitch to my heart's content!

Oriental Fan Part 5

Yet again, I am a day late in my post. Yesterday I took my nephews to Black Creek Pioneer Village. They had a great time and I think I've found my new vocation in life. Throughout the village they have people in traditional costume pretending to live in the era and answering questions. In one of the houses was a woman who sat by the fire all day working on her embroidery. Where do I sign up for that job!?

Anyway, during this past week I have completed the background for the top area. Next I moved onto the border. I like to finish the left hand side of the pattern first because I am right handed and it's a little more awkward to complete. The border has proven to be a slight nightmare. Granted it is a very simple pattern but somehow I was still able to make a couple of mistakes! I had to unpick portions of it twice! Never stitch while enjoying wine! LOL! Now, I am trying to be extra careful to avoid having to unpick again.

Next, this border uses 5 strands of floss to create the weight of it. It is SO uncomfortable! Not only is it a nightmare every time I try to thread my needle but I feel like I'm stitching with yarn! I'm so glad I used the stretch bars on this project because if I hadn't the fabric would have invariably been quite warped! The pattern also calls for cording along the border. I now understand why: to mask any warping in the fabric!!!

I seem to be grumbling a bit in this last post. Sorry, next post will be more chipper!

PS - It is my photography skills that have made the pattern appear crooked and not the actual pattern.

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!

Oriental Fan Part 3

What have I done this week? Well, let's see. I stitched another flower and some leaves and did their back stitching. I also started to stitch yet another flower. I did some more back stitching to create the accordion folds of the fan. Oh and I did some of the black back stitching along the left edge of the fan just to see what it would look like! Cross stitching is teaching me patience! LOL!

As usual I try to keep my work looking uniform. I have found that the easiest way to do this is to keep all of my stitches looking the same. All of my stitches should be left over right crosses. To help me do this I use the following tip. If I am stitching downwards I start from the bottom left corner of the stitch and work from left to right and then back from right to left. This way when I go to start on the next line down my thread is not coming out of the fabric in the place where I want it to go down again. Also, when stitching upwards I do the opposite. I start my stitching from the top right hand corner of the stitch and then work from right to left and then back again from left to right. This is a simple method that I have found to keep all of my stitches as uniform left over right crosses and it also helps to keep the back tidy too!

Oriental Fan Part 2

Another week of work is under my belt on this one. I still haven't heard from Dimensions about my Elegance of the Orient pattern and so I guess I'll be working on this project until it's complete!

This week I did a bit of the red border on the left side and a bunch of the ivory background so that I could do the back stitching to create the effect of the accordion folds of the fan. Next, I did the back stitching on the first flower and its leaves and part of the second flower. I LOVE the effect that back stitching provides! It really makes the art work come alive!

I try to keep the back of my work neat and so I try not to jump more than a few stitches. Instead, I will finish and restart the thread in the new place. I've been experimenting with a new trick to keep the back neat. I have been weaving my thread through the back of my work so that all of my stitches are either vertical or horizontal and never diagonal. Let me elaborate:

Say, I'm stitching the following pattern (Ignore the underscore on the second row. It's not a stitch; it's just helping me create placement for this blog)

XXXX
_XXXX

I will start top left and stitch the first row so that I end up back at top left. But here's my new trick: When I start the second row, instead of just going directly to the bottom left where the stitching begins, and therefore creating a diagonal line on the back, I weave my thread through the back of the first stitch of the top row and then down. By doing this, I have gone horizontally through the first stitch of the first row and then vertically down into the second row and kept with the natural pattern of the stitches I'm doing. I'm AMAZED at the results!

Oriental Fan

Considering the fact that I am unable to work on my Elegance of the Orient project, I have started a new one in the interim. It is called Oriental Fan. (I seem to do a lot of Oriental patterns because my husband adores them! Our home is decorated in that style and so they fit in nicely!)

I have been working on this project for about a week now. It doesn't look like much yet but it will be gorgeous when it's done.

I tried to get a lot of the metallic stitches over with...I hate stitching with metallic thread. You have to be so careful not to let the thread twist because it knots SOOOO easily.

I read on another site a very good tip for keeping the back of your work neat and tidy. To start fold one full (uncut) piece of thread in half and thread the two ends threw your needle so that you have a loop at the other end. When you make your first stitch, weave your thread threw the loop at the back of your work! That way, to start your stitches you don't have to tie a knot (heaven forbid, LOL!) or weave them threw about an inch of stitches. Brilliant tip!