IHSW - April 2014 & a Finish!

I hope you've all had a wonderful Easter weekend, whether it's something you celebrate or not.  I used it as an opportunity to get some extra stitching in as it also happened to be International Hermit and Stitch Weekend too!

I decided to work on The Three Fates.

Before:

After:

It's not that easy to see as it's still on the QSnaps but there is some progress!

I also managed to get Celtic Fairy finished as well, I did hope that she'd be done soon and I pushed through and got her done!

Wide shot

Close - up

Apologies for the slightly crumpled picture as I haven't pressed her yet.  Whilst I love the fabric, I think I made a bit of a bad choice as you can't see the moon clearly behind her.  I still like it though and it is a bit clearer in person as the sparkles help.

She was stitched on 28ct Jazlyn in Dawn Blush from Crafty Kitten Fabrics using DMC threads and the chart was designed by Joan Elliott and featured in CrossStitcher Magazine Issue 227 (July 2010).

Now to look through everyone else's posts!

Confetti......

It's been a while since my last post, I wish I could say that I've been doing a stack of amazingly exciting things, but sadly that's not the case.  I've been a bit under the weather and the stitching suffered, also the fact that I seem to have reached very confetti heavy sections in a few of my WIP's has made progress very slow and there didn't seem to be much to show you, however I can't wait until I'm satisfied otherwise I'd never post anything!

Let's make a start with Joan Elliott's Celtic Fairy:

It's coming along really well and I'm really hoping that the next picture I show you she'll be nearly done! 

Next up, The Three Fates - Jasmine Becket-Griffith (HAED)

It still doesn't really look like much yet, but it's taking shape and coming along pretty well.

Next one is Pyramid 4 - Ciro Marchetti (HAED).  I've not shared any picture of this for a while (no idea why not) so I'll find a few for you.

This is one of those confetti nightmare projects, I really can't describe how confetti heavy those feathers are....and I've got to do the ones on the other side as well :/  I'm not sure about those pale patches on the face and I may unpick them and redo them in the darker colour to make it look more even, what do you guys think?

Another WIP that I haven't posted pictures on for ages is QS Clara - Hannah Lynn (HAED). Apologies for a ropey photo!

This is really confetti heavy although there are some large blocks of colour as well so switching between them makes it bearable.  This was one of the first HAED's I stitched and I am finding that I seem to have found my preferred HAED fabrics and it's 25ct & 28ct, so stitching this is not as enjoyable as others are but I will persevere and get it done eventually!

There is a project on and off that I haven't shared, it's not for any particular reason other than I've just not gotten around to taking any pictures.  It's Dirt and Glitter - Zindy Nielsen (HAED)

It's stitched on 28ct pale pink Lugana 1 thread over 1 fabric thread.  As you can see, not done too much yet, but I love it already!

I've also stitched a card for a friend who's birthday it was recently.  It was a cover kit from World of Cross Stitching magazine and as soon as I saw it I knew she would like it.  I switched out the fabric for some hand dyed that I had from Sunny Dyes.

Again, I apologise for the bad picture, but I took it right at the last minute as I was packaging it up to send over to New Zealand!

I'm going to try not to leave it so long next time and post a little more often :)

Now...to make a start reading through all your blogs!

A bit behind.....

As usual, I'm a bit behind on my blog reading and updating....I blame all you wonderful people who keep updating your blogs regularly!  I promise to read them all but I might not comment on all, that doesn't mean that I don't love the work you produce!

Well, I've done a bit of stash buying, although I'm too scared to put it all in one place to take a picture!  Needless to say it included a fair bit of Crafty Kitten Fabric (one of my favourites!), some Sparklies fabric (another favourite!), Ink Circles charts and new QSnaps.  I've finally got my fabric for the AAN SAL, so I plan to start that very soon, possibly next week.

I've a few project updates for you though, so there are some pictures to see!

This is one that has been unloved since mid 2012 and I decided I'd quite like to finish her this year.  It's Joan Elliott's Celtic Fairy:

The fabric doesn't show up too well, it's a lovely pale yellow with hints of pink through it.  I'm really enjoying this stitch so I think I'll keep on with her this week too.

Next up, another project that hasn't seen any love since I initially started it back in 2013, The Three Fates - Jasmine Becket-Griffith (HAED)

It's starting to look like something rather than some splodges of blue, actually no, it does still look like splodges of blue!

Last one for you is Endless Dream - Vacher (HAED)

A bit of progress, although I can still see the mistake, as I stitch more it is becoming less noticeable!

I'm really happy with how my stitching is going so far this year, maybe a bit less than I hoped for, but all in all, a good start to the year!

As a final note, I want to wish you a Happy Valentine's Day!

We don't really celebrate it, I feel blessed everyday and although I don't feel I need a special day to tell my loved ones how much I love and appreciate them, I know it can be really fun!  This year we decided to sponsor a kennel at the local Dog's Home as our present to each other!