La Belle Dame Sans Merci

I have finally finished this goal for the year. Two pages complete- spread out obviously. I did a little extra because I wanted to see what the dress was going to look like... the original can be seen in the sidebar. I hope to get to her face in 2008.

Soul of a Unicorn

Finally another goal done. This is by Josephine Wall, and I must say, I think it will be spectacular!! That Unicorn's horn is positively glowing!! And of course, the more confetti stitches there are, the better the outcome... I keep telling myself that... lol

Vision of Light

Here she is after a week straight of only stitching her.... there's no way I could be a OAATr. That big motif on the lower right was very fiddly. Met my 2007 goal for her, so now it is off to Magpie Fairy or Soul of a Unicorn. Still haven't decided which one, lol.

Mates Framed

Back from the framers yesterday... and off to a new home today! We're having our Christmas party for work today. I think the new owner will like it. She had a wonderful timberwolf named Dakota that passed away a few years ago. I see a lot of "wolf hybrids" at work that are just husky or malamute mixes. Dakota truly was a wolf hybrid. I hope this cross stitch gives her a lot of happiness and fond memories of Dakota.

Another Goal Completed

Here's the first 1/2 of pages 1-4 of Midnight Orchard. Roughly 15,000 stitches, but actually more because I carried most of the stitching down past the 50 line cut-off. I'm stitching her in VC silks. She's going to be lovely!! Now on to Vision of Light goal...

Awen Inspiration

Here's one of my finished goals!

Now on to Midnight Orchard...

FINALLY!!!!!

I have finally finished Mates- took a total of 276 hours. Whew... what a relief. It is off to the framers tomorrow. Kinda hate to give this one up since it took so long, but the future owner is a huge wolf fan, so I think it is going to the proper home.

Still Plugging Away...

AACCCKKK. Seriously. I can't seem to get this one finished. Something is always coming up, eating into my stitching time. I hope to finish this the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, but since I have to work this weekend and the next... and the next.... Like I said before, AAACCKKK. I really need to get back to my HAED stitching. I hope to put a couple of hours in VoL since it is the Challenge SAL weekend. Anyway, this is Mates (my Christmas Gift Stitching) at 66.7 % complete.

Catching up on some pics

I haven't had time to post in a while- all my free time is spent stitching Mates. I am giving this as a gift for Christmas. Unfortunately, the Christmas Dinner is in the first week of December (it's usually just before Christmas), so I am missing about 3 weeks of stitching time. Gotta get it done as quickly as possible, so no more HAED stitching for a while. Of course I'll still participate in the Challenge SAL with Vision of Light.

Here is Vision of Light after the last SAL:

And La Belle- which I think is going to be beautiful- look at those trees forming in the mountain.

And Mates which is 33% done at this time:

Retired Artists SAL

This time around I worked on Metamorphosis since it was her turn in my rotation anyway. I have finally completed the first page. Hooray!! I took out the backstitch around her eyes for now- wasn't happy with it. I will work on it again later.

The little fishies around her are just getting started. This one is very addictive and is always hard to put away.

Back Online!!

I am finally up and running internet-wise. Turns out a group of rogue squirrels had taken out 4 inches of our cable. Took some time, but the issue has been resolved... now if I can only get that pesky woodpecker to stop destroying the side of the house...
Anyway, back to stitching. This past weekend was the background SAL at HAED. I had Guardian Angel coming up in my rotation, so it worked out nicely. Here are some lovely shades of red/purple/brown that I ended up with after the weekend.

HAED Background SAL

I am temporarily off line at home ATM. Something is going on with my ISP- hopefully that will be repaired on Wednesday.
I am presently stitching Guardian Angel by Jacqueline Collen-Tarrolly for the background SAL. It just happened to come up in my rotation this weekend. Lots of reds! I have placed a pic in the sidebar if you would like to see it.
Happy stitching to everyone!!

The Napping Hat

Here is an update on the Napping Hat QS by Molly Harrison. I quite like this little piece a lot. I have finally completed an entire page of stitches. She actually stitches up quickly, but I faithfully rotate. I hope to get to the kitty's tail next time she comes up.

HAED Challange SAL

Here she is after the Weekend SAL. I am officially over the 50% mark!! I am now trying to decide which HAED I will concentrate on after she is finished. I know I have at least a year to decide...lol.

Awen and Maggie

Couple of update pix- here is Awen Inspiration- very colorful and detailed.

This is Wall's Magpie Fairy. Even more detail than Awen. Lots of confetti stitching, but still fun to stitch.

I'm currently revamping my rotation. There are so many wonderful HAED artists, that I am changing my rotation to "subjects" rather than "artists." So, instead of BK Lusk or Wall, I'll have "Fairy" or "Mermaid." I'm going to complete the rest of this round, then change officially. I'll have to start stitching more on Mates as well. It is a Christmas gift, and I've only made it through 10% so far, so I'll start rotating it every 10 hours. Well, I'm off to stitch on Vision of Light for the HAED Challenge SAL. I'll post a pic of her later. This is my first weekend off work in a long time for the SAL, so I hope to get lots of stitching done.

Mermaid of the Deep

Here is my newest Mermie by JBG after the new start SAL:Tons of black in this one. I will probably be stitching on her or Meta during the HAED background SAL coming up in September. I ended up getting over 4000 stitches done- easy when 85% is black or 939.

HAED New Start SAL

What to start?? I have so many patterns I want to start NOW, that this SAL is giving me a headache- and it just started. I have a few to choose from: Luna Moth by Rachel Anderson, Mermaid of the Deep by JBG, and the 2 new JBG's (Raised by Wolves and Wolf Manor), QS Bramble Fairy by Dillhoff....those are my top pics. After much debate, I have decided to start Mermaid of the Deep. She is almost the animated version of Meta, lol.
Here is the original pic:
I am off to stitch- I would like to get 1/4 way through the first page- that's about 2000 stitches. DH is going the the Nascar race tonight, so I have the entire day to stitch until my fingers are worn to nubs. I should at least be able to stitch 2000 stitches by the time the SAL is over. Happy SAL stitching everyone!!

Metamorphosis Update

This little mermie is a delight to stitch. She appears to be slowly coming to life. I am coping with all the bg by stitching 2 full lengths of bg thread, then one length of color. I am close to finishing the first page. I had added backstitching around the eyes, but took it out because I wasn't happy with it. I think I am going to print off a pic of her face stitched, then take a pencil and draw in the eyelids until I am happy- then I'll stitch them.

Midnight Orchard

I have spent the entire weekend with Midnight Orchard. She is being stitched on 25 ct lugana using VC Silks. You can now see her ear starting to peek through. For a HAED, this is an easy stitch. Not a ton of colors, and very minimal confetti. I got about 21oo stitches in, for a grand total of 11,000. I'm going to spend a little time with Mates next. I have Tue and Wed off from work (yipee!), so I will start working on Metamorphosis again. After that, it's off to the New Start HAED SAL- probably starting Mermaid of the Deep by JBG.

Vision of Light

Here she is after the HAED August SAL challenge. I completed 4100 stitches. She is such a pleasure to stitch- the colors are fantastic. I am very close to reaching the 50% mark. Should happen during the next SAL.

Nomh Forest Fey

Well, I got to begin the third round of my rotation with a new start. I love this piece by Margaret Dean. I can't recall having seen anything of hers being stitched, which surprises me because her work is beautiful. This is the first 10 hours and is stitching up very fast for a HAED. I think there's only around 30 colors or so in it. I put a pic of the original in the side bar.

The Rest of Round 2....

Playing catch-up again. I took pics of these, but forgot to update Love Me Not. I'll try to get to that one later on today.
This is Metamorphosis- I LOVE her. I am stitching one block (100 stitches) of the background and then one color around her face (may only be 2-3 stitches). That seems to help me keep motivated. I put her in my next rotation twice, but if she screams loud enough, she may stay out longer.
Soul of a Unicorn by Josephine Wall at around 30 hours. I can't believe the detail in this little corner. Can't wait to get to the main unicorn- he's going to be wonderful!!

I'll try to get a pic of Love Me Not up today as well.

OK.... it's later. I've got my pic of Love Me Not now. She's going to be beautiful as well. It's funny, every HAED I'm stitching becomes my favorite while I'm working on it. I practically have to force myself to rotate. Hhhmm.... maybe one day I'll become an OAATer?? Probably not. But it would be nice to finish one of these beauties!

Round 2 Rotation Pix

I've had some trouble out of my rechargeable batteries lately, so I've haven't been able to take any pix of Round 2 rotation. Here's lots of pix:
Awen Inspiration at 40 hours:
Midnight Orchard at 60 hours- LOVE her flaming hair!!
This is an older BAP called 4 Horses of Apocolypse by Kustom Krafts. It has always been one of my favorite pieces, and I have started it 3 times... hopefully this will get done one day- 20 hours:

Vision of Light got hardly any attention during this rotation because I had to work the entire weekend she was on the scroll rods. Oh well, there's always next month. 370 hours:

This is my New Start/Restart slot. It is Gypsies Again, restarted 1x1 on 28 ct. monaco. 10 hours:

The Napping Hat. I have finally made it all the way across the top- that means I'll have a cute little kitty in the next row of blocks!! 60 hours:

Whew, that was a lot of pictures. Incidentally, I do not have one of Mates because I restarted that one too. That's a total of THREE restarts during this rotation!! I hated working on it because in was on 20 ct over one to make it bigger (I like 28 ct 1x1 best). I decided I would never finish it if I stitched on that fabric, and since it is supposed to be a Christmas gift, I needed to get with it and stitch!! So it is now 1x1 on 28 ct with a double mat in its future to make it bigger. lol
I am also restarting Metamorphosis by Wolk within the hour. I was originally stitching on 32 ct tent over 1. Too much tension- making it warp. Now I'm going to my favorite 28 ct monaco 1x1. I bought an entire roll of rose colored monaco (the only color they had), so I have a piece big enough. Woohoo- gotta go stitch...

My Storykeep- Buzz

I started this cute little storykeep a few months back- I only stitch on it at work, so I haven't gotten a lot done, but it sure is fun!! You can see the original pic in my ever-growing WIP list in the sidebar...

Waiting for Neptune

This is 20 hours of work on WFN. I'm doing this one 1x1 on 32 ct. I didn't think I would like this count, but it is actually fine. The coverage is great- sometimes I feel like it looks a little "bumpy," but only when you're up close inspecting it.

Can't wait to get more done on this one. I think the colors are wonderful and addictive.

This weekend I have been stitching on Waiting for Neptune. I should have a new progress pic up late Sunday or Monday. I have also been frogging my Mask of Colors. I decided to restart it 1x1 instead of tent stitch, so it has taken a while to frog!!
Wanted to update my July goals as follows:
1- 2000 stitches Awen Inspiration
2- 1000 stitches Waiting for Neptune
3- 4000 stitches Vision of Light
4- 2000 stitches Midnight Orchard
5- 1000 stitches The Napping Hat
6-3000 stitches Mates (non HAED)
If I could stick to one pattern, there's no doubt I could finish by the end of the year, but i have so many I want to stitch!! I figure instead it will take longer, but I should be able to have a few finishes in the next few years... if HAED would stop putting out so many great patterns... just kidding!!

Awen Inspiration

This is an update on my Celtic stitching. I'm not really a fan of Celtic things, but HAED's new artist Jen Delyth has wonderful artwork!! I already have three patterns from her and plan to own more before the week is out due to the HAED July 4th sale. I'm still holding out before ordering to see if they release any more "must haves." This is on 28 ct monaco, and yes, the fabric is pale rose. It was the only piece I had big enough- I thought stitching red and orange on the pale pink would make me sick, but it's not bad at all. It's just the canvas I'm using and the rose color disappears as I stitch ;)

Midnight Orchard

This past weekend was the 5th weekend Potts/Daniels SAL on the HAED BB. Perfect opportunity for me to stitch on Midnight Orchard. I completed 1500 stitches. I can't wait until she's up again in my rotation because I will get to start stitching on her hair again!! I'm using 25 ct lugana with VC silks 1x1.

Vision of Light

I finally finished those last few hundred stitches in the bottom right corner. I am now 45% done... isn't she lovely?

She looks so alive IRL. One of my yearly goals is to complete the first 12 pages of VoL. I am now 3/4 of the way there.

Fairy Day SAL

I started Magpie Fairy by Josephine Wall for the HAED BB Fairy Day SAL. My DH actually picked this one out. I had seen it on the site before, but didn't really pay much attention to it. Turns out, if you really look at the original, there's all kinds of trinkets that this little thief has taken- hence the name. I absolutely fell in love!!
Now, don't get me wrong, this is NOT an easy piece to stitch. It is by far the hardest HAED that I have going... I thought Revelation was hard. Nope, not compared to Magpie!! And I'm just on the fringes... I'm sure as I keep going it will become even more chaotic.
Here's my pic so far:

I may keep stitching on this one for a while. It's technically time to move on to something else in my rotation, but since I don't have a time limit set (must be at least 10 hours per slot, but can stitch more), I may keep going. This is 30 hours so far on Magpie. I didn't have to work this weekend so I had all kinds of time to stitch.

Soul of a Unicorn

I thought I would post a pic of a recent start by Josephine Wall- Soul of a Unicorn. This piece is fantastic. I'm sure it will become very difficult with tons of confetti, but right now it's smooth sailing. I'm stitching this 1x1 on 28 ct. rose monaco.

Busy Stitching

Hi everyone. I am busy stitching for the Fairy Day SAL. I am stitching Magpie Fairy (my New Start). Thought I would check in and share my new rotation plans....
I am using the Random Researcher to mix these 10 catagories up- there's a link in the sidebar if anyone would like to use it. It goes like this:

1- BK Lusk
2- Non HAED BAP
3- Sheila Wolk
4- Josephine Wall
5- Celtic
6- Ian Daniels
7- Free slot (absolutely anything goes)
8- Miscellaneous HAED
9- New Start
10- Quick Stitch

I am stitching anything I want to by each particular artist, but definitely concentrating on Vision of Light by BK Lusk. I have links to all the charts I picked for this first rotation in the sidebar. I think I should make it at least one or two months on this rotation. Who knows. I may change it all around again tomorrow! lol

My Birthday Charts

I was very happy to find HAED having a Father's Day sale since it was my birthday weekend!!
I bought the following charts:

1- Unicorns Cut and Bright
2- Surfer's Dream
3- Mer-Angel
4- Purple Moon
5- Dreams of Unicorns
6- The Tower of Stoney Wood

I also made a new start- my first Josephine Wall- Soul of a Unicorn. I just love confetti.

Working on My Blog...

I've been spending a lot of time recently trying to get my blog in order. I promise I'll have some WIP pics up soon. If you look at the side bar, you'll see a lot of changes. I added a slide show of various finished pieces (no HAEDs finished yet, lol). I'm also putting up WIP pics of each of my HAEDs- there's more than I have listed right now.
I'm still not sure if I like this layout. I think I would like to have a left and right side bar, but so far haven't figured that one out....
Hope everyone has a great day!!

This is Midnight Orchard after the 5th week SAL at the end of April. I think she is going to be beautiful!!

Revelation

I have been stitching on Revelation for the past week. I recently restarted on 25 ct pink lugana 1x1. I had been stitching 2x1 half cross on linen, but the fabric was warping. So rather than waste more time, I restarted. Here's a pic- I did it without the flash, because with the flash it seemed too bright. You'll have to ignore the shadow at the top :)



Now for my other HAED projects that are 2x1 tent stitch... I am restarting them all. Why? Same reason. If they were started on linen or lugana, the fabric is not strong enough to keep from warping. My Vision of Light is stitched on Monaco which is much stronger than linen or lugana, so it will be fine. I am also leaving Sea of Roses alone because it is on Monaco. The others have just a little done, so no matter what the fabric, they're getting the restart and 1x1 treatment. I like the look of the 1x1 better anyway. I used to think that 2x1 tent was twice as fast as 1x1, but turns out confetti is confetti. An extra millisecond to cross the top leg really doesn't matter when you have to rethread your needle 50 times in a 10 x 10 block!!

Hope everyone has a great stitching week!!

Vision of Light Update

Well, here she is after the April SAL challenge on the HAED BB. I decided to do a "chunk" instead of stitching straight across. I had no idea how much faster it would be! I completed over 5000 stitches during the SAL- probably because I didn't have to rethread the needle over and over and could actually complete a color all the way down. I stitched in five block coloumns.

I've now reached the 50,000 stitch mark and it has taken 300 hours!

I've included an up close pic of the jewelry. Had to be a little dark to show the beautiful sparkle. It took about 8 hours from start to finish. I used DMC precious metals and antique effects. Very fickle stuff to stitch with, but worth it. The hardest part was trying to "chart" the jewelry. Obviously, there were more colors charted than I had to choose from and it was also difficult to decide which part was necklace and which was skin. So, I did my best and am happy with the result. There's a little metallic blob of knots in between the earring and the necklace- you'll have to excuse that. I couldn't do a loop start with this metallic stuff, so intead of tent stitching, I did it 1x1 full cross. I think I'll like the contrast with the rest of the piece which is tent stitch 2x1. Oh, and I did this out of sequence to give me time to change my mind and frog it all out before I actually get there with the cotton. It's virtually impossible to frog very much when you park threads without tearing out the stitches you want to keep!!

The last pic is there because I'm going to use one of the colors as the gems set in her jewelry. Still haven't decided which one. I'll probably wait until I get there with the cotton part to decide.

Changing my rotation and April goals

I have decided to rotate based on "screaming" rather than my normal list of WIPs. I think that will make stitching much more enjoyable. I was becoming overwhelmed with the thought that I must stitch this or that because it was coming up in the rotation and having to put one that I loved away to stitch on a lesser favorite. So, now I am stitching whatever I want whenever I want to... let's face it, it's not like I'm going to get all these HAEDs done in my lifetime anyway!!

I'm also going to try to remember to list my monthly goals... my April goals are as follows:

1- 2000 stitches on Revelation (my restart)
2- 4500 stitches on Vision of Light
3- Start QS The Napping Hat by Molly Harrison
4- 1500 stitches on Midnight Orchard
5- 1500 stitches on La Belle

I am also going to do my best to remember to post progress pics of each of my goals.

The HAED BB had an Easter Creature SAL- the perfect opportunity to start The Napping Hat. Here she is after the SAL with 5500 stitches done (17.6% complete)


She screams very loudly to be stitched, however so does Vision of Light. I'll be stitching VoL this weekend for the April Challenge SAL.

Vision of Light 27% done!!

I have finally reached the 25% mark on VoL. Actually 27.1% to be exact. She now has a nose and lips and even a few fingers!! This piece is so beautiful. The colors are wonderful. I can't wait to see her on my wall!!

This is my start on Mask of Colors. It is being stitched on 32 ct. bittersweet lugana over 1 tent stitch. I have a good start so far... I think the fabric will look nice with this one. Unfortunately, the pic doesn't do it justice.

So Far This February...

Well, this month's almost over and this is my first post. I have been dealing with the flu for the past week. I have several pics to show from earlier the month.
This first pic is my newest HAED start on Midnight Orchard by Ian Daniels. I am using Vikki Clayton silks. They are very beautiful. This is stitched 1x1 on 25 ct lugana.

Today I also was able to finally complete the top 5 rows on La Belle Dame Sans Merci. This is also done 1x1 on 25 ct.

This is my start on Love Me Not by Selena Fenech. It is done 1x1 on 28 ct evenweave.

One of my February goals was to finish the second row of blocks on Revelation. This piece is very beautiful with lots of confetti... when I get frustrated, I just have to look back at the progress pics of others to see it will be worth it!!

This is another BAP, but a break from HAED. It is called Rainbow Wind. The original artwork is by Joni Solis- converted to cross stitch by Jodi Watson of the Golden Hoop. This one is very colorful and one of my favorite subjects- horses!!