New finishes :D

I think it's time for a new update :)

Can't believe it's over 9 months since my last craft related update and already over 5 months since my London/Dublin update. Time flies.

But even tho I don't update often, I did finish a few things this year. *happy dance*

First there's "Individuality" by Tammara Markegard. It was started 28/08/2014 and finished 25/04/2015.

And the second finish is "Lucifer" by Linda Ravenscroft. Started 03/10/2013 and finished 22/07/2015.
Stitched on 28ct white Lugana, 2 over 1, basketweave stitch.

I've also discovered crochet again this year.
The last time I've done some crochet, I was about 10 years old. I've tried it a few times after that but I've never worked on a pattern and I got bored after 2 or 3 rows. So you could say I haven't done any serious crochet in over 20 years.
Then earlier this year I've seen a cute little amigurumi dragon I just HAD to try.
I didn't know if I was still capable of doing that but it was quite easy... sewing the parts together was more of a challenge then the crocheting itself.
I knew I wouldn't keep the dragon. Crochet is just another hobby, something to pass time when I need a break from stitchting. I just can't keep them all - not enough space and already too many memory-laden stuffed toys in the flat that I can't part with - so I decided my first crochet toy will be an x-mas gift for my cousin's baby girl (33 months by then).
But this little girl has a little cousin herself... she'll be 27 months by x-mas. I can't bring only one toy if there are two little girls so of course I decided on making a second dragon.
And I've thrown some cute little snails in aswell cos I think they're great little gimmicks in gift baskets etc.

So here they are... the little gang that I put the last finishing touches in today:

At the risk of sounding smug... I'm a little proud of my self *blush* Didn't expect it to work out this well. Not after 20 years.
Still I won't crochet anything else this year anymore (except for 2 little catnip toys for my Lily right before I'll see her again) as I really despise the sewing part.
And I got quite some cross stitching withdrawals these past days. Will focus only on cross stitch for the rest of the year. :D

For anyone wondering - I got the patterns for the dragon and snails here:
(Note: they're only in German)
http://de.dawanda.com/product/25194801-hausdrache-xxl-amigurumi-haekelvorlage-pdf-dateihttp://de.dawanda.com/product/16826490-haekelanleitungjasper-josephine-schneckenliebe



 

So now I'll be off to work some more on Garnet... but SuSi's World travel bookshelf and No smoking are waiting as well :D

Cross stitch updates

Oh boy, I seem to get worse and worse when it comes to blogging. *blush*

But I'm still stitching and I'd like to show my updates.

In the last post I've mentioned my yearly goals of finishing 15 pages on "Lucifer" and 12 pages on "Garnet". I've completed these two goals about 2 months ago.

So I set a half year goal too: to start Individuality by Tammara Markegard and to finish 10% (10480 stitches).
As of yesterday I have 5 out of 47 colours finished and 34197/104800 stitches... so all my 2014 goals are done :D
This is stitched on 28ct light blue Lugana, 2 over 1, basketweave stitch.

And I've already kitted up my next project: World travel bookshelf by Aimee Stewart on 28ct white Lugana.

Will have to finish Individuality first tho.

Again it's almost 5 months since my last update. *shame on me*
I spend all my days stitching and always forget to update my blog.

But I've been busy again.

My HAED yearly goals for 2014 are to finish the first 15 pages of Linda Ravenscroft's "Lucifer" and finally get Rachel Anderson's "Garnet" back out to finish the first 12 pages.

This is my progress on Lucifer between October and beginning of February:

 

That's 5 pages (first row) finished and lots of the 2nd row done.
I just love the look on his face.

But after getting this far on Lucifer, Garnet suddenly felt neglected and started to scream. :D
So now I'm working on her.
I've started her back in May 2011 but put her away when "Rose" got in the way.
This is how far I had gotten back then:

 

She's stitched on 28ct white Lugana, 2 over 1. When I started her, I was using continental stitch but I've now switched over to basketweave stitch as that doesn't distort the fabric.

And this is my progress as of today:

 

I had to take a little break from Lucifer in November 2013 though.
A friend and I decided, very spontaneously, to go and watch Sunrise Avenue live in Berlin.
Even though I have family in Berlin, I had nowhere to stay, so the friend offered me to stay at hers.
She's a huuuge bookworm, so as a thank you for letting me stay, I made this little guy for her:

 

Like it says on the pic, it's SK History of chocolate by Randal Spangler. He's stitched on 28ct white Lugana, 2 over 1 and I've used basketweave and continental stitch. 
I started him Nov. 4th, 2013 and finished him Dec. 15th, 2013. He was really fun to stitch. Have to make one of the guys for me someday soon... if only my to-do-list was shorter. *lol*


On Feb, 16th I started on my first train-trip on my own. To see the finnish guys from Sunrise Avenue and have a great time with my friend.
The last time I went somewhere by train was about 15 years ago and it was a very bad experience for me. They just weren't used to people with wheelchairs back then.
But I decided I had to try again. Otherwise I'd be stuck in my little town. And this time it was a great experience. Everything went very smoothly and they were really friendly.
Guess it wasn't my last trip. :D

Sadly it didn't work that well with the tram and S-Bahn in Berlin. Really, Berlin, you are the capital city of Germany... you should work on your service.
The journey to Berlin was nice. The S-Bahn's driver was friendly and helpful and with the tram we only had to go one stop too far to get out with the wheelchair. That was okay.
But getting back out of Berlin after the concert was a real pain in the a**. First we couldn't find a tram station where you could get in with a wheelchair. The one we got out at only worked for that direction and all the other stations were in the middle of the street. Oooh it's a nice feeling to wait in the middle of a busy street for the tram driver to get the ramp out... NOT. And then the ramp was stuck so they had to heave me into the tram. Thanks to the friendly car driver who helped... but I guess he just wanted us to clear the street *lol*
It was already 11:30pm and we hoped this would have been the hardest part of getting back home.
But no, there was more to come.
When our S-Bahn arrived and we asked the driver for help he actually refused and went off without us. :O
It was about 12am now, it was freezing, we were 2 women alone in this not exactly friendly looking station and he said no. I was furious.
We had to wait another 20min for the next train to arrive.
It would have taken him ONE minute to get the ramps and help me in. And to be honest, the ramps wouldn't have been necessary. Helping me in backwards, making sure the small wheels don't get stuck in the gap between train and platform would have been enough.
It was 1am when we finally arrived at home... it took us 2 hours.

But apart from that, it was an amazing time.
We spend most of the time watching old videos of our favorite band (Westlife). It's still hard for me to watch the videos when I'm on my own. But watching them with friends, re-living all these beautiful and funny memories is just one of the best things in the world.
And these three days were topped off by Sunrise Avenue's concert. I've never been a fan of rock music but these guys are absolutely amazing. They played all the songs from their latest album plus a few older songs.
That was a good thing for me, as that's the only album I have. *lol*
We had a really good view but I have to admit, I've missed the big sreens left and right to the stage. I was so used to them from my Westlife concerts that it felt a bit weird. *lol* But still, it was a great experience.
I didn't take any pictures... I think that's a first. But due to our seats the pictures would have turned out to dark, so I decided I would just enjoy the show.
But a few other peeps have taken videos so here are a few youtube links:
Girl like you
Keyboard solo & Hollywood hills
Hurtsville
Lifesaver
Don't cry
Unholy ground & I can break your heart
Big thanks to everyone for sharing their videos.
Yeah, I admit, I still prefer the slower songs/ballads. :D


So, now let's see how long it'll take for my next post *lol*
Bye for now. *waves*

Almost half a year since my last post *blush*

But I was quite busy during these past months. :D

First a picture of my finally framed lighthouse:

I also finished the HAED Freebe SAL 2013 piece QS Mystic garden:

And another finish.
After more than two years I've finally finished "Rose" in August:

She already found her new home in my grandparents' living room. Never saw grandma so happy about a present. <3

Then I had to make a little present for my mum and her new husband. They got married about 2 weeks ago.
I haven't seen them yet as the wedding was very private but they'll get this as soon as possible.
It's QS Lady bug from Ching-Chou Kuik but without the flowers. I replaced parts of the 310 with 747 & 321 and it's stitched on 28ct opalecent Lugana:

And the last finish for this year... the two hares from "Guess how much I love you".
It's from the book "Classic storybook cross stitch" by Gillian Souter.
They're stitched on 28ct light blue Lugana, 2 over 2, full crosses and the pillow is a present for my cousins baby girl who was born 3 weeks ago:

That's all my plans for this year finished and I can now concentrate on a project just for me :D

I've started Linda Ravenscrofts "Lucifer" on 03/10/2013. He's stitched on 28ct Lugana, 2 over 1 in basketweave stitch. He was started in continental stitch but as that distorts the fabric I switched to baskedweave hoping this will prevent distortion.

Not much to see yet as it's only background for now.

Rose and a little lighthouse

Hello everyone,

I'm really not one for regular updates. Shame on me. *blush*

Over the last 3-4 weeks I worked a lot on Rose and so I've finished row 4 and about 2/3 of row 5.
Somehow she looks like she's almost finshed but there are still 2 full rows, 1 partial row and the rest of row 5 to go. I still hope to have her finished by christmas.
Lets see if that's a realistic goal. *lol*

 

Before I picked up Rose again, I stitched this little SK:

  

It's a crop from Melissa Dawn's "Sailor boy". I just needed something small, that I could finish fast for a change. I think it took me about 3 weeks. Now I just need the right frame.

That's it from me for this time... I'll go back to Rose now, let's see how long it'll take to finish the next row. :)

Secret project & HAED BB SAL 2013

2,5 half months since my last post... uups. *blush* Sorry again for the lack of updates.

But I was busy working on my secret project.
I've spent the last 1,5 half years working on this (with most of it being stitched during the last 5 months) and finished it on January 21st.
And here it is:

This is a picture of Kian Egan that I took during the Westlife Gravity tour in Cardiff 2011. One of "my girls" is a big fan of him so I converted this picture into a chart to surprise her. After finishing it I've sewed the finished cross stitch work into a pillow case and my friend received it last wednesday.
I couldn't give it to her personally but judging by her posts online, I've made someone very happy. :D

After finishing this, I was very happy to get away from all the different greys, so I started this years chart from the Heaven and earth designs Stitch-A-Long: "QS Mystic garden".
It's quite confetti heavy so it took me almost 2 weeks to finish the first page but today I've put in the last stitches of page 1 :D

It is stitched on 28ct white lugana, 2 over 1, continental stitch and was started on January 23rd.
I love the white tiger and can't wait for page 2 to arrive so I can start his "brother".


At the start of January there was also a big surprise waiting for me over on the HAED forum.
You can set yearly and half year goals for your HAED projects over there and everyone who reaches their goals gets the chance to win HAED charts.
I still can't believe it but my name was chosen for the first prize which means I was allowed to add 6 new charts to my stash.
And these are the ones I choose:
- I know I can do this - Sharon Hurst 
- Winter rose - Rachel Anderson
- Panthera Leo Lion - Steven Paul Carlson *retired*
- Faces of Faery 185
- Faces of Faery 187
- Mini Melinda and Moohoo 

And these are my goals for 2013:
- Finish the Kian Egan pillow case (done)
- Finish pages 19 - 30 on "Rose" by Rachel Anderson
- Start and finish SAL piece "QS Mystic garden" by Ciro Marchetti (started)
- Start and finish "QS Lady bug" by Ching-Chou Kuik (only the lady bug without the flowers)
- Start and finish "Sailorboy" by Melissa Dawn (only the lighthouse as a SK for now, will stitch the whole piece at a later point) (done)

Now I'll be off to get "Rose" back on the frame. :D

Have a great day everyone.

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Hello everyone *waves*

Yesterday I've finally finished the 3rd row of "Rose". :D

I now have 18 out of the 48 pages finished. And due to my cross country method I've already finished lots of the 4th row which brings me to about 50%. *yeah*

 

 

But now she has to go into her bag as I want to work on something else for a while. This also means it could take a while til my next update as I can't post update pictures of my new project. It will be a surprise for someone and I don't want to spoil it. I don't think the person reads my blog but better be save than sorry. *lol*

Last week I had a little browse on ebay and look what I've found:

Winnie the Pooh Alphabet in cross stitch Volume 1

As a big Eeyore fan I just had to buy it and today I've found it in my inbox. *yeah*

Haven't bought anything else than HAEDs for ages and I'm usually very careful when it comes to charts on ebay. Many charts on there are fakes or infringe copyright but I was sure this was an original so I tried it. And I'm glad I did as it's sooooo cute. <3

Don't know when I'll be stitching something out of it though. For now it's just something new for my addiction/collection :D But I'm sure it will come in handy one day. :D

Have a good week everyone.

xx

Rose, the millennium frame & the HAED button

Looook what arrived today. :D

I finally have my very own millennium frame. *jumps around*

I ordered the 30" and 24" bars and of course I had to set up "Rose" on the new frame immediately.

It's huuuuge and wow the tension is amazing.

Here's an update picture on Rose on the new frame. :D

 

This is with the 24" bars... looks smaller on the picture than it really is *lol*

It's heavier than my qsnap so I guess it will take a while for me to get used to it. But I'm waiting for needle needs to get their Aristo lap stand back in stock so I can order that too. Stitching should get a lot easier once that's here too.

As lots of people posted their "backs" on facebook over the last week, I'd like to be brave and show my "back" too.

I don't pay attention to my backs... it would just take away lots of the joy I'm feeling doing my HAEDs... so it looks a little bit chaotic *lol*

And due to the continental stitch I'm using (it looks like this / on the back instead of this |) it's got a lot more coverage on the back.

For everyone visiting my blog... a few days ago I've made a little button for my favorite cross stitch site (HAED) and added it to the blog to point new stitchers in Michele's direction. She know's about it and approved it.

You can find it on the right site of this blog, right under my little intro and my links.

If you click on the button it will take you directly to the Heaven and earth designs (HAED) page with more than 7000 amazing cross stitch charts.

If you want to add this button to your blog/website too, feel free do so. But please upload the button to your own server.

It's not much but every new stitcher led to HAED by that will help Michele to keep HAED going the way we love it.

btw. looks like photobucket is acting up big time for a few days now. Sorry if some of the pictures aren't working properly. I hope they get it sorted soon.

xx

Rose by Rachel Anderson

And another update on my "Rose" :D

 

 

Put in about 1200 stitches last night... not too bad I think. If it would only go that well every night *lol*

On the photo it doesn't look like I've done much over the past 10 days but considering that I work over 7-8 pages at the same time, my progress is okay I guess. It's almost the equivalent of a page.

I hope to get her skin finished soon and I also hope to get the 3rd row finished by the end of September.

xx

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Finally here's a new update of "Rose".

 

I'm working on four to eight pages at the same time (15-18 & 21-24). I use the cross country method cos I hate threading the needle and sewing the ends *lol* By working over so many pages at the same time, I reduce that to a minimum and it also prevents page lines.

I love watching the picture grow that way. It always feels like I've done nothing (only finished 3 colours in 10 days) but when I compare the new picture to the previous one, it tells me something different :D

My goal is it to finish the third row (18 pages) till the end of the year. And maybe I'll even finish the fairy by then. :D

xx

So many books... by Randal Spangler

It's been a few days since my last update.

As I said in my last post, I started a new HAED called "So many books so little time" by Randal Spangler.

Last night I finished the first page. It's really fun to stitch but it contains quite a bit of confetti where the illuminated stones appear. So it got a little bit bulky there.

It was started on July 19th, 2012.

Now I'm going back to "Rose". I intent to finish the next row there before continuing with these cute little draglings.

I took a little stitching break this weekend as I went back to my old home town for a family and friends gathering. My mum turned 50 so we had to celebrate a bit. :D She also got engaged so we'll have a wedding coming up sometime in the future. :D

But now that everyone is back home, the flat is cleaned, I can go back to my stitching. :D

xx

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Here's the latest progress picture of "Rose".

Finished pages 13 and 14 last night. Which means I now have 1/3 of her finished and it also means I've reached my yearly goal *yeah*

I'm amazed at how real the water droplets look. <3

 

Now I will take a little break from her to start "So many books so little time". Think I deserve a new start after finishing 14 pages in less than a year *lol*

xx

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Yay, my stitchy mojo is back, finally. :D

Spend the last few days stitching and here's a pic of how far I've got:

Working on pages 13, 14, 15, 19 & 20 at the moment to prevent page lines.

I hope to finish pages 13 & 14 over the next 1 or 2 weeks as that would complete my yearly goal on the HAED BB.

Sorry, not much to say this time. Only wanted to show my progress and now I'll go back to "Rose" as she's screaming for me again. :D

xx

Lots of floss :D

Look what arrived today.*jumps around*

148 skeins of floss in 90 different colours. *faints*

I just bobbinated half of the colours, now I have to wait for the fabric and the rest of the bobbins. Guess it will take 1 - 2 weeks for that to arrive.

I know, I should work a bit more on "Rose" before starting something new, but I can't wait to start "So many book...". *blush* I intend to do one row on "Rose" then one page on "So many books..." then another row on "Rose" etc. Hope I can stick to that plan. *lol*

As my stitching mojo is back in full force for about 3 days now, I hope to have a WIP update soon too.

xx

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Here's my update of the week. A day early this time as I've just finished the second row of pages. :D

 

And here's a close up of her face and wings. 

 

Really love how her face turned out. I had my doubts cause the first few colours of her face seemed so dark. But when the really dark colours of the hair, eyes and lips appeared everything suddenly looked perfect.

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Time for my weekly update on "Rose". :)

Great to see her face appearing slowly.

Hope to have her head finished by next week. Can't wait to see how it will look like.

I try to take part in the HAEDless SAL on the HAED-Board each month but "Rose" is hardly giving me any time for that. I can hardly put her down atm.

I put in about 60 stitches on my Non-HAED project yesterday before "Rose" screamed at me to get back to her. Very demanding little lady *lol*

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Weekly update on my "Rose" :D

Have to admit I'm quite satisfied with the progress over the last three weeks. When I started her I thought finishing one page per month would be the average but over the last three weeks I stitched the equivalent of about 3 pages. She's stitching up so quickly at the moment. Hope it will continue like this.

Love how the wings and her face are coming along.

At the moment it looks like one of the upper wings will be a little bit pale compared to the others, but I guess that will change as soon as the last stitches around it are in.

That's another thing I love about HAEDs... while stitching there are times where I really doubt if the colours are right but in the end, when everything's done and you watch the piece from afar, everything fits perfectly and it will look beautiful.

Can't wait till she's finished.

Rose by Rachel Anderson

Another new update on "Rose" :)

 

Haven't stitched as much as last week because of the easter holidays. But I'm still quite happy about the progress

The part of the background I'm now working on contains looots of confetti. Especially the area around the wings. But I'm sure it will be worth it in the end. :D

Rose by Rachel Anderson

One week later and here's a new update on "Rose". :)

Yay, the first signs of her head are there and you can see where her wings will be. :D

Took my big q-snap out again, so I can stitch over all of the remaining pages of that row at the same time. Hope this saves me a bit of time when it comes to the confetti.

Happy easter holidays, everyone.

I've won a prize *yeah*

I still can't believe it... I've won a prize on the trivia quiz held at the HAED burning board yesterday.

I can't remember winning anything in my live before. But yesterday I've won a HAED chart of my choice. :D

And a few minutes ago, this cutie arrived in my inbox:

Thanks soooo much Nance, Michele & Bob from the HAED team for their generosity.