Stargazer @ 52 hours

Please don't mind my wrinkles... Here's what my Stargazer looks like at 52 hours worth of stitching. I'm hoping the brighter blues that I have yet to stitch will help the dress pop out of the dark fabric like I was hoping. I feel disappointed at how the darkest color in her dress is matching so closely to the dark fabric. I hope she doesn't completely disappear! I'm concerned about how her hair will blend into the dark fabric as well. Oh well! There's no going back now!

Sparklies

Googling cross stitch stuff paid off big time for me... I discovered Sparklies! It's a lady in the UK who hand dyes fabrics and they are beautiful! I had chosen a new Mirabilia design that I want to stitch and so I chose this fabric to work it on. I was so giddy with excitement the day I chose it out and the day it finally arrived in the mail. It is AWESOME. It's called "Pitch" and I chose it in opalescent (which means it SPARKLES!). It's gorgeous and I began stitching on it yesterday. 

This material is going to make this piece simply breathtaking, in my opinion. The design I'm stitching is called Stargazer. It's of a woman in a beautiful flowing dress, hands to her chest, eyes lifted heavenward towards a sky full of stars. It's full of beadwork that will be in her dress and the stars in the sky. I can't even begin to describe to you how excited I am to be working on this! I'll post pictures of my progress as it's coming along. 

Lighthouse

I just finished stitching this lighthouse which is the first in a series of four that I am going to be putting together as a quilt. It took me about four months to do this piece. There were a lot of french knots in this, but they were kind of fun to do... proof that I've finally mastered how to do them! 

Dimensions Beacon at Daybreak

stitched area 5" x 7"

It's Framed!

I finally got this back from the framer's. It took a while because first, the order was sent to the wrong store. Then when they reordered it to the right store, the mat was cut rectangular instead of oval so had to be reordered again. I was finally able to pick it up last Friday and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out! I just can't take my eyes off it. Having it framed adds some dimension to the piece and really makes it stand out. As beautiful as this is in the picture, real life is way prettier. I'm one happy stitcher!

Tiger Chilling Out

I love tigers!! I had so much fun doing this piece. I love how the stitching looks on black. 

Interesting story with this one: I had finished all the tiger and was working on the water. We took a trip up to a friend's cabin and I had taken my cross stitch with me. After arriving home and wanting to work on it again, I couldn't find it anywhere! I thought surely I had left it up at the cabin. The friend checked all around the next time they were up there and it was no where to be found. I couldn't find it anywhere in my house. I was so sad to think it was lost! All that work... my beautiful tiger! About five months went by and then one morning in December, when we were packing up our house to move, my husband woke me up out of bed with a surprise. He had found my cross stitch! Somehow it had gotten caught in the crevice of the back seat of our car and was only visible when he had laid down the row of seats as he was loading it up to take stuff to our storage unit. I was sooo happy to have it back again! Now this project is finished, but I don't have it framed yet. It will be the next one I put up on display.

Tiger Chilling Out by Dimensions

Stitched area 9" x 14" 18 count

Queen of Peace

This was my favorite project to do! I loved doing all of the beautiful beadwork on it. I stitched it on 32 count linen. For Christmas, my dad and stepmom paid to have it custom framed for me and it is hanging up in our dining room. Every day I see it and it makes me want to do another one like it!

Queen of Peace by Mirabilia

Stitched design 10.5" x 20"

Mother and Child

I finished this piece a few years ago and it had been sitting wrapped up in a storage bucket. Finally, this past weekend, I decided it really needs to be framed. I took it in to have it put together in a custom mat and frame and I am sooo excited to get it back! It should be ready in about two weeks. 

Mother and Child by Plaid/Bucilla

Stitched design 9" x 11.75"

Good Fortune

I'm pretty much in love with anything Chinese after being able to spend 5 months there teaching English, so I was excited to do this little project. It is framed and hanging up in my bathroom.

Good Fortune by Sunset/Dimensions 

Stitched design is 5" x 7"

Hang in There Kitty

This darling little piece is called Hang in There Kitty by Dimensions. I love it, but never framed it! So I ended up giving it away to a cousin on the spur of a moment about a month ago. I'm glad to see it go to a good home.

Stitched design 5" x 7"

Lazy Afternoon

This piece is called Lazy Afternoon by Lanarte. I stitched it on 28 count white linen. Stitched design is about 12" x 12".

I do have this piece on display in our home with a custom mat and frame that my husband made for me.

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ABC Project

In 2006 my sister-in-law gave me this for Christmas:

In it, I noticed there were really cute patterns of each of the alphabet letters and the wheels just started turning in my head. The stitched area of each letter is 5" x 5". I began stitching them with the intention of putting them all together on display in a quilt when I am finished. 

It's a project I've been working at off and on for the past six years and I'm pleased to say I'm halfway through the alphabet! I'll post the pictures of each letters as separate posts with the label ABC project, and then continue to keep you posted as more letters get finished.