Storykeep - Magical Arrival: The Seventh Post

I mentioned last month I had been working on some pieces that were long over due to be finished.  I mentioned that Storykeep Magical Arrival was one of those.  On top of that, Michele Sayetta who creates the HAED charts, challenged us to do 100 stitches a week over four weeks, October 28th to November 28th, which really, is not much.  I entered Magical Arrival as my challenge piece.

Here he is before (left) and after (right)

19,736 Stitches

20,880 Stitches

And what should have been quick and easy wasn't since I started working on something else and got sidetracked.  But I did exceed the 400 stitches with 1144.  They were mostly in the stocking and wall.

I'm not sure what happened, but it looks like something was spilled on it, it's mostly not noticeable, but I'll wash it after I'm done and see how it looks, there's a few sections that I might restitch, but it's mostly okay.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Storykeep - Magical Arrival
Original Artist: Anne Stokes
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: January 31, 2012
Fabric: 18ct. White Aida
Floss: DMC 2 over 1
Percentage: 87.82% complete
Colors: 56 of 89 complete
Stitches: 20,880 out of 23,775

Dragon Boo: Second Post - Complete

In keeping with the theme of yesterday's post.  Here's another random finish on something I haven't posted on in a while.  October 30th of last year to be exact.  Not as long ago as Dragon Game, but close enough.

I never added this to the WIP page because all I had left was back stitching and I figured I'd get that done quickly.  However, I had a large aversion to back stitching, I guess, and just never finished it up.  At least until today, or last night, depending on how you look at things.

I had the first dragon done shortly after my last post.  Today (Yesterday) I did the other three.

And finally a very small project that should have taken less than a week is done in a little over a year.

And now it's time for bed.  Good Night!

Project Stats:
Pattern: Dragon Boo!
Pattern by: Dragon Dreams & X's & Oh's
Started Stitching: October 5, 2014
Finished Stitching: October 15, 2015
Fabric: 28ct. Eek! Cashel Linen
Floss: DMC 2 over 2, Kreinik 1 over 2
Percentage: 100% complete
Stitches: 1250 out of 1250 complete

Dragon Game: Second Post - Complete

The last time I blogged about this was over two years ago.  Wow, time flies.

It was stitching along quickly and then I started working on a dark brown color.  It wasn't until after I'd finished the color that I realized I used 3371 instead of 3031.  I thought I'd be able to just leave it and go on my way.  However the color was way too different.  So I had to frog all the stitches, 328 stitches.  Now the problem was I had also stitched the black, and it was very difficult to tell the difference between 310 and 3371.  I picked it back up about 10 days ago determined to get it back on track.

After I finished frogging and restitching I was happy that I had decided to redo it.

And since it was small, I kept going...

And going...

Until it was done.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Dragon Game (Retired)
Original Artist: Molly Harrison
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: July 19, 2013
Finished Stitching: October 15, 2015
Fabric: 20ct. White with Gold Lugana
Floss: DMC 2 over 1
Percentage: 100% complete
Stitches: 5,121 out of 5,121 complete

The next long abandoned project is SK Magical Arrival.  I lost my progress on my chart back when my hard drive crashed.  I have no idea which colors I've stitched and which I have not.  I need to work it through and figure it out so I can finish him up.  According to my last post he's over 78% complete and I'd stitched a bit more after that post.

Laraine's Pink Orchid Pin

I tend to stay away from talking about personal matters, but this one I'm going to mention.

My sister's mother-in-law was just recently diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer.  Every year there's a breast cancer walk in Fashion Island in Newport Beach, California, and my sister has put together a team.  Somehow I was able to get the day off and will be able to run & participate.

For anyone who's interested here's the website:  2015 Komen Orange County Race for the Cure.  I know this is something that affects most if not all of my followers.

Now my reason for posting.  I decided to make an orchid french beaded flower for her in the classic breast cancer pinks.  She loves orchids and I did make her a previous orchid, a moth orchid, which can be seen in one of my earliest posts here.

I started on it Wednesday night and put all the beads onto the wire.  Here's an in progress photo I took as I was putting the beads on the wire.

That's pretty much everything I need, the beads, the wire, some wire cutters, scissors and hemostats, and the iPad, it has the pattern on it.

I went to my parent's house today to help with the race packets and finished up the flower there.  Here are the five large petals.

Apparently at this point my mother was wondering how it was going to possibly look good.  I think she used the adjective hideous when she was recounting her thoughts before I started assembly.

I forgot to take another picture with all the parts, so here it is done.  I took two pictures, one on white so you could see the pinks better, the other on burgandy so you could see the flower better.

It looks better in real life, I think I need to get my sister take a good picture.  I glued it into a boutineer (I'm not sure this is spelled correctly) holder I purchased at work.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Cymbidiun Corsage (changed to pin)
Flower Design: Dalene Kelly
Started: Septemeber 23, 2015
Finished: Septemeber 25, 2015
Beads: 11/0 Czech Seed Beads
Wire: 26 ga. Artistic Wire

Okay, there we go, on to the next project, whatever that may be.

Ophelia: Ninth Post - Pages 9 & 10 (2)

Okay, warning: I got VERY picture happy.  I did a small project, which I need to post about.  A gift for a family friend, so Ophelia took a little bit longer to finish than I thought.

So this time I was finally able to keep myself on track and finished all the darkest colors on the left hand side of the two pages.

I found her lips.  Good.  Without them I could only think of Pac Man when I looked at her mouth, and she seemed a bit deformed.  Now she's looking much better.  Her eyelids are also starting to take shape.

I think it was around this point that I started doing colors from the least stitches to the most.

And one color left to stitch:

That last color is finally in!

Finally, here she is looking quite beautiful:

I was afraid that after doing her face the rest would be rather anti-climatic.  But I'm actually finding I can't wait to see how well her clothing turns out after seeing how well she's looking so far.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 17.69% complete
Pages: 8 of 54 complete
Stitches: 59,873 out of 338,400 complete

I really should put her down and start working on Christmas gifts.  We'll see what I actually end up doing.

Ophelia: Eighth Post - Pages 9 & 10

I kept working on Ophelia, with the promise of her face, I just couldn't stay away.  I decided to stitch both pages 9 and 10 at the same time, as you could probably tell by my post title.  At first it was a little daunting after only doing a page at a time.  However, I did not want to split the two pages because the split went right through her left cheek.  While I cannot see any of the seams between my previous pages I still figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

I did my usual trick of stitching the background first, which really was not all that much.

That big blank area in the middle just reminded me of how much I had decided to take on.

I was going to go through and do some of the dark areas because they were easy to see on the fabric, but I then decided to do the most prominent color on these two pages which was a pink in her face, it made an outline of sorts so next I just filled it in.

And then I just started filling in here and there.  I just did certain colors as I felt like it.  I really don't have any rhyme or reason to which color I do next.  I focused on a few colors in her tiara, then I got bored of that and who knows what color I went to after that.

See those two random pink stitches below her chin?  Those are the only stitches of that color in the entire chart, so... yay, I completed a color!

So now these two pages combined are 52% done.  I'm not quite halfway through page 9, and over halfway through page 10.  Even as I look at this I'm trying to decide what color I'm going to work on next.  I think since it's so late I'm going to work on her tiara a bit.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 15.49% complete
Pages: 6 of 54 complete
Stitches: 52,411 out of 338,400 complete

Ophelia: Seventh Post - Page 4

Well, this page took longer than I anticipated.  I've been adding beads every once in a while on Mermaids of the Deep Blue, so she hasn't received my undivided attention.

So, I decided to go over to page 4, instead of going down to page 9, and finish off the top of her head.

I did the same thing I did with page 3, I did all the background first, which was actually slightly over 80% of the page.

Then the rest of the page, I did say the rest of the top of her head, but it's mostly flowers on the top/side of her head.  I did all of this part of the page this week, I think it took only three nights after I got off from work.

Here she is currently, 6 pages complete.

All that's left on the top row now is a full page and a partial page only 12 columns wide, all of which is just background.  However.... I think she needs a face first, what do you think? ;D

Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 13.34% complete
Pages: 6 of 54 complete
Stitches: 45,143 out of 338,400 complete

Beaded Pluto: First Post

I mentioned a few posts back that I had started working on another beaded project.  This is the piece I designed for Pluto that is similar to the one I made for Chip 'n Dale.

To the right is the image I used to make my pattern.  However, I did not do the extreme shading they did in the image.  I wanted him to look more "old school" like the original animations.

This one is a bit simpler than Chip 'n Dale.  I was thinking of adding a bone in the upper left hand corner as I had added the acorn in Chip 'n' Dale, but I didn't like the way it looked and eventually abandoned that idea.

So I started off with a bang, 41 rows completed.  Granted quite a few of those were only two colors, but still, it was quick.

As of April 21, 2015, 41 Rows

When I started working on Pluto I slowed down a bit.

As of April 28, 2015, 57 Rows

And then I took a break.  And today I worked on a whole bunch.

As of July 7, 2015, 87 Rows

I did 30 rows, completed 2 colors and got most of his head done.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Pluto
Original Artist: Disney
Pattern by: Me
Started Beading: April 21, 2015
Beads: 11/0 Miyuki Delicas
Thread: Silamide
Percentage: 43.06% complete
Rows: 87 of 202 complete
Beads: 4,089 of 9,494 complete

I think I'm going back to working on Ophelia for the rest of the day.  I haven't gotten very far on the new page yet.

Ophelia: Sixth Post - Page 3

I've been waiting for this page, and now it's here / done.

I forced myself to do all the background first.  I figured that would motivate me to get it done faster so I could actually start stitching Ophelia.  I'm not sure how well it worked, but the background colors were 67% of the page, but only 12% of colors.

I finished the background and then was going to take a picture, and I forgot.  So instead this picture has all the background colors and two and half of Ophelia's colors.

I got a ton done the first night I worked on her, I might have stayed up really late.  I just have to show up to work, right, if I'm a zombie from stitching all night, that's acceptable, right? ;D

One interesting fact about this piece, there is no black in it.

So here's pretty much everything except the flowers, there's a few bits missing here and there, but they're mostly in the flowers.  Wait, another pic?  How many am I going to take?  What can I say, I'm actually stitching something other than background and I'm excited!

And I finished up the flowers tonight.

And here she is, finally started with the previous pages so you can, maybe, get a sense of the overall scale.

There are two more full pages and a very partial page left for the top row.


Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 11.11% complete
Pages: 5 of 54 complete
Stitches: 37,600 out of 338,400 complete

I'm not sure if I'm going to keep going to the next page or take a short break and work on Mermaids of the Deep Blue.

Ophelia: Fifth Post - Page 8

I expected to continue with Mermaids of the Deep Blue, but I want to order a different color of bead.  I think what I have would work, but sometimes I can be a bit of a perfectionist, so I want to change it to a closer color.  So I went back to Ophelia.

This time I started on the bottom half of page 8.

Then I finished everything except the colors in the flower:

And finally the flower is in!

Here are all four pages:

I can't wait to get more done so that the flower doesn't look so odd.  It kind of looks like more of the background blob, but once I get the page next to it done, I'm sure it'll look much better

Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 8.87% complete
Pages: 4 of 54 complete
Stitches: 30,020 out of 338,400 complete

The top of her head will be visible next.  Lots and LOTS of new colors.  I went through my floss to make sure I had all the colors and had to pick up a few.  I'm sure they're around somewhere, but I just wanted to make sure I had them immediately on hand instead of searching.

I also want to thank everyone still reading my blog and especially those who leave a comment.  I rarely reply to comments, however, I make sure I reply to questions.  I just wanted everyone to know how much I enjoy them and I get excited every time I see a new one.

Mermaids of the Deep Blue: First Post

This is one of those dreaded UFOs.  It is my one UFO that I want to finish more than anything.  Initially this project stitched up pretty quickly.  My biggest regret is that I started this before I started reading blogs and realized that you really don't have to follow the exact specifications listed on the design.  While I've seen other color variations on the stitching I would have still done the same colors on the mermaids.  However, I would have chosen a different color fabric, also I think something with texture would have looked better.  I don't dislike the way it looks, I just would have done it differently if I'd started it within the past 3-4 years, but I'm not changing it now.

Everything was going well, until I got to the beads.  I got a few done, but I hit a block.  But I'm determined now to get it done, dangit!

This is where it sat for the longest time, probably since 2009:

I knew one of the reasons for my lack of progress was that the beads were too large for 16 count.  At least they were in my opinion.  There were supposed to be long lines of beads, and I had to take one or two out because they didn't fit in the area they were supposed to, and that drives me nuts (I never said I wasn't strange).  After working on Ophelia I realized I really only had one option, start over.  But just on the beads.  So I took out all the beads I had stitched around the right mermaid's hands, on her hair and on her chest.

So, the Mill Hill seed beads are gone and will be replaced by Delicas.  Now, I have tons of Delicas from my beading, and sure enough I found some beads that I think are practically identical in color.  However, I am still using the Mill Hill pony beads and "treasure" beads (if only I can find the rest of them).

Here's how far I got last night (you can kind of see how much I took out):

Just a few, but enough to know I'm still not a huge fan of beading this way (give me my peyote stitch any day), but I'm happier with the way they fit and I know it'll look awesome.  There are over 2000 beads on this.  I just need to do a little a day and I'll get through it.

Pattern: Mermaids of the Deep Blue
Pattern by: Mirabilia
Started Stitching: April 7, 2008
Fabric: 32ct. Zweigart Amsterdam Blue Linen
Floss: DMC 2 over 2
Completed: All Cross Stitches & Backstitching, some Beading

Ophelia: Fourth Post - Page 2

So page 2 of Ophelia started off with a bang.  I got over halfway through the page in the first week.

The last half just seemed to take forever, especially when I got to the main darker purple.  Tonight I was finally able to push through to the end.

As I mentioned, I'm not stitching the parts that are actually Ophelia, which is why the bottom right corner of page 2 is blank.

So, finally three pages down:

The next page is, again, mostly background.  There is a flower that I will actually stitch since it's kind of in the middle.  So be prepared to see a few new colors, finally.  As of right now, I'm still planning on keeping this my main project, however, I did start another beading project.  If I'd known changing the thread count would make me work on it this much more quickly I would have done it ages ago.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 6.78% complete
Pages: 3 of 54 complete
Stitches: 22,956 out of 338,400 complete

Ophelia: Third Post - Page 7

So page 7 is finally done.  I didn't work on it while on vacation, but I've spent a bunch of time on it before and after.

This is how far I was at the end of February:

And finally, page 7 completed:

And here's the ever exciting full view of Ophelia:

Background... lots and lots of background.  Next up... more background.

Project Stats:
Pattern: Ophelia
Original Artist: Jonathon Earl Bowser
Pattern by: Heaven and Earth Designs
Started Stitching: August 15, 2009
Restarted Stitching: January 1, 2015
Fabric: 25ct. White Magic Guide
Floss: DMC 1 over 1
Percentage: 4.56% complete
Pages: 2 of 54 complete
Stitches: 15,442 out of 338,400 complete

I think I'm probably going to continue on to page two, again.  I really am still enjoying this, and I'd like to get to stitching Ophelia, unfortunately that's still two pages away, since I'll do page two then page eight.  Those both have a little bit of Ophelia in them, but I'll probably wait until I get to the pages next to them before I stitch her, I think it'll look cleaner.

Vacation Scarfs - Completed

Well, I just got back from vacation.  I wore my new shawl to dinner one night, however, my older nephew fell asleep during dinner and we ended up using it as a pillow for him.

Since my youngest nephew seemed to like the scarf I made for my sister/his mother, I decided to make him one.  And working on crocheting on vacation is much easier than working on cross stitch.  So I actually made him a scarf on the first day.

Here's the yarn:

And the finished scarf:

Project Stats:
Project: Kellan's Scarf
Pattern: Fillet Squares
Pattern by: The Crochet Stitch Bible
Started Crocheting: March 6, 2015
Finished Crocheting: March 6, 2015
Yarn: Red Heart: Gumdrop - Blueberry
Percentage: 100% complete

As I was working on the scarf for the younger nephew the older one asked me what I was doing, and I told him I was making a scarf for his brother and asked if he'd like one too and he said yes, so I had another project to work on while on vacation.

I made up a pattern since I didn't take any extra patterns with me so I just made up a pattern for this scarf:

Project Stats:
Project: Logan's Scarf
Pattern by: Me
Started Crocheting: March 7, 2015
Finished Crocheting: March 10, 2015
Yarn: Red Heart: Gumdrop - Blueberry
Percentage: 100% complete

I didn't work on Ophelia at all, it was just so  much easier to work on crocheting.  But I will hopefully have an update soon on her anyway.

Faces of Faery 88: Seventh Post - Framed

I mentioned that I got Faces of Faery 88 completed in time for the framing sale.

She's not up on the wall yet, but she's all framed and pretty.

Well, back to working on my projects and packing for my trip.  Ophelia's going with me, we'll see how much I actually get done.

Lacy Shawl - Complete

I'm going on a little vacation soon so I decided I wanted to make myself a shawl for the trip.  I found some really pretty yarn and a pattern that I liked at work.

Here's the yarn:

And I took absolutely no progress pictures, every time I was thinking to take one I was in the middle of crocheting and didn't want to stop, so here it is complete:

It's 7ft long and 20 inches wide, 2.13m long and 51cm wide.  I folded it in half to make taking the picture easier.

And here's a close-up to see the detail.

I ended up using 4 and a little bit of the 6 skeins I bought, and now it's packed and ready for my trip.

Project Stats:
Project: Lacy Shawl
Pattern: Shawls and Wraps
Pattern by: Leisure Arts
Started Crocheting: January 8, 2015
Finished Crocheting: February 25, 2015
Yarn: Red Heart: Boutique Unforgettable - Dragonfly
Percentage: 100% complete