Monthly Archives: November 2019

Nov 11 2019

Embroidery

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I have worked on this new embroidery piece for a few days, and I love how it is coming along. But I didn’t love the awful stitch diagrams to show you how to complete each stitch (YouTube to the rescue!) and I didn’t love trying to use 6 strands of floss wrapped around the needle twice to make French knots. The needle provided simply won’t go through the fabric, and none of the needles I have on hand have big enough eyes to accommodate 6 strands, while being small enough to pass through the fabric. I also tried out the couching stitch but it was just horrible. Perhaps on straight lines it would not be so bad, but it is only used on rounded areas, and it took so long just to do one tiny area. I ended up taking it out and doing it in backstitch instead. This is the rounded blue areas on the outside. I think it looks just fine using backstitch.

I am a little worried about the inner portion of the design, which uses many less strands of floss. I am not sure it will be sufficient to cover the white lines of the design. I guess I will have to wait and see how it looks when I get to it.

All in all, this is a fun project that I can pick up and work on for a few minutes at a time, without the need for counting or concentrating. It is just what I needed to work on at the moment.

XXX
Carrie

Nov 7 2019

Glad to be Done!

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In September 2018 I started on this card kit. I quickly grew frustrated with it and put it away to work on other things. When I finished the penguin card kit the other day, I decided to finish up all the small projects I have going before starting anything new. I found this barely started kit in a drawer and decided to tackle it again. It only took a few days of stitching here and there and was a lot easier than I thought it would be. It was really only the backstitch and french knots that were an issue.

Yes, this is another cover kit from an issue of The World of Cross Stitching. I think it turned out pretty adorable, although I have absolutely no idea what to do with it now that it is finished!

XXX
Carrie

Nov 4 2019

Something New to Try

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The other day on Facebook I saw a post from a lady who had purchased a kit and was going to start it. It was her very first project. I thought it was adorable – a neon colored mandala displayed in a hoop. Some other people pointed out that it was not cross stitch at all, but embroidery. Others said they had stitched it and loved it, while others said they could not get the hang of it. I have done embroidery before, although certainly not as much as cross stitch. But I adored this project and decided to search for it online. I ended up finding the kit on sale on Amazon for $6.99 with free shipping, and there were only 4 left in stock. I looked at it for a few minutes and then there were only 3 left. I decided to snag one before they were gone, and sure enough later that day they were sold out. I plan on working a bit on the mermaid pattern for a while, but then I want to dive into this. The hoop is only 6 inches, so it has to be a small project. Lately my brain fog has become worse and worse, and even if I am having a pain-free moment in which to stitch, the counting is difficult. I think doing a project like this will be easier since you are simply tracing the pattern on the fabric.

The kit is by Leisure Arts and is called Mini Maker Neon Mandala, item 49808. It retails for $7.99.

XXX
Carrie

Nov 2 2019

A Caroling Penguin

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This cute little caroling penguin came as a free cover kit with issue 259 of Cross Stitch Crazy. It took me a lot longer than expected to finish it, because of several colors that all looked the same (white, cream, and light gray) and that awful fluffy backstitch. I love cute little critters like this, but stitching the details on their fur is the worst! Instead of completing this in a weekend, it was more like a month-long project, only working for 5 or 10 minutes here and there. But it turned out adorable 🙂

  

XXX
Carrie