Red WIP

So I got accepted into the college I wanted to go to and I will be starting classes in January. I am super excited and super stressed out by it at the same time. A lot of small things have to happen between now and then but I am looking forward to it.  Work has calmed down a touched, but with the season of sales coming up, I am envisioning lots and lots of overtime.

Stitching wise, I've been busy.  I completed the top half of Red and I am in the midst of crocheting gloves for my local renaissance festival. Not exactly sure when I'm going this year, but I'm looking forward to it.  The first photo is a WIP picture I did about a week ago and the bottom is how it looks like now.  All the blank space is ALL beads.  She's going to look absolutely fabulous.

That's all I have for today.  Thanks for reading.  Happy Stitching!!

A Long Time With a Lot of Stitching

I know it's been forever. Life is amazingly busy right now and I just haven't had the time to really make this blog a priority.  My life has truly done a 180 since this time last year.  I am with an incredible man who has helped give my life at least some purpose and meaning and has helped me want to be a better person in every way.  I am now on first shift and they have been giving my boyfriend and I a TON of overtime that has really drained my reserves.  Because of this, I have decided to go back to college for my own sake versus having someone suggest I go back.  I haven't gotten into any colleges yet, but I have hope that it will happen.  If all else fails, I can do online courses for a while and then try again with a real college....or something.  My relationship with my family is greatly improved with everyone....except my brother, who's just a general jerk in the first place.  My life is amazing and I'm looking forward to seeing how my life continues.

On to the main point of this blog: THE STITCHING!!  Now, I have finished one piece that I am hoping to use for my wedding.  The theme is owls, so it's really perfect.  I was hoping to use it as a memorial type deal.  I used gold metallic for some of the leaves and it really gives it a touch of specialness.

I was able to frame the Ever After piece I posted last time.  It took at least an hour to figure out how to deconstruct it without ruining it and to then put it back together.  It had old, hardened hot glue on it and I spent at least 15 minutes doing it the hard way before I got fed up and looked up an easier way to get rid of it without ruining the wood (rubbing alcohol, btw).

Last finish of the day: my crochet project.  It's a simple blanket but it didn't turn out half bad for a first project, anyway.  I haven't been brave enough to try another project, but I'm working up the nerve.  I really want to get a pair of gloves made in time for our local renaissance festival.

Now for WIPs.  Now the first WIP is Celtic Summer.  I started it for my mother's sake because I eventually want to do all of them for her.  I stopped where I did because I got mildly bored by it and obsessed with starting a different project.  Anyway, this is where I am now.

Now the project I've been dying to stitch for a while now is Red from Mirabilia. I've been working on it for about a month now and I'm absolutely loving how it's turning out so far.

Randomness:  I had a fish.  It was mildly suicidal.  I had it for about a year.  It recently died.  I didn't really want to get another fish to replace it, on the other hand I wasn't sure what to do with the tank. I'm on Pinterest and I'm following someone who posted stuff about terrariums.  At first I thought it was silly.  Time goes on and I started to want some green life in the house.  When I first noticed the fish not looking so hot, I started planning what to do with the tank.  When it finally died, I had decided that a low maintenance plant would be a better fit.  So I did some research and I made this.

That's all I have for today.  Thank you for your patience.  Happy Stitching!!

Skeleton Crew WIP and Some Small Finishes

Well, life has greatly improved for me. My ex is completely behind me, I got hired on full-time, and I have someone new in my life.  So those are the major pluses.

Well, I have a bunch of small finishes and Sprite Stitch Swap gifts to show off.  First, I'll start with the swap.  This year, I made some Portal themed items that was well received.  I think you'll see why. As for the received gift, it definitely made my day when the package came.  I received several Harry Potter themed goodies that I'm afraid to really try, a Sailor Moon themed scarf, a Navi amigurami, a Pokemon themed thread catcher (which I use for my tv remotes), and a jar with the Skyrim logo and popular phrase "Fus Ro Dah."

For a Sprite Stitch Challenge, I painted something.  I got an appreciation badge for it...otherwise, no votes.  I didn't even vote for it, lol.  The theme was...something about homes. Anyway, I painted Hyrule Castle. I tried to make it look like the Ocarina of Time version.

I also made some small pieces for some of my coworkers. Really small pieces, like 4 inches. Nothing too fancy, but they liked them.

And last but not least, I have a Skeleton Crew WIP to show off.  It's coming along nicely.  I don't have as much time to stitch as I'd like to, but I do what I do what I can.

No patterns today.  I figured this post was too picture heavy without adding patterns to it, too.  Hope you enjoyed, and Happy Stitching!!

I am Back...Mostly. New WIP and a Finish

So it's been a minute since I posted anything.  My big "life decision" was leaving my emotionally abusive boyfriend and moving back in with my parents.  It's not something I took lightly and I'm still recovering, in a way, but I am happier now than I was when I was with him.  Along with leaving him, I was a bridesmaid in my BFF's wedding, looking for a job, and just trying to adjust to living without him and back with my parents.  I am now working 3rd shift at a factory and my days and nights are all confuddled, but I'm doing well with it.  My parents...well, it hasn't been a particularly easy transition on that front.  Parents insist on their point of view and rules, and I want my independence, so that's been difficult to deal with.  Doesn't help that I lost my car a couple weeks ago and now have to depend on their vehicles to get anywhere.  There was a really bad storm in the area and my job told us to go home, and I managed to stall my car in a bit of high water on the way home.  I'm fine from that, no injuries, but the insurance company decided that it wasn't fit for me to drive anymore, so there's that.  They paid off the rest of the loan and I'll still get some money to pay off debts accrued this past year and get another vehicle, so that's a blessing in a disguise.

Stitching wise, I went through a slight lull, but have been back at it.  I in the mini swap for Sprite Stitch this year, but I haven't manged to think of ANYTHING for it, and I'm getting worried that I'll never have the motivation to actually do it since I can't relate to anything this person likes.  I have manged to finish something I started back before I moved.  Small piece that my mother picked out.  Very simple; one color.

I was thinking of framing it and giving it to her for her birthday later this month.  See how it goes.  I have another finish, that I sort of forgot about.  I made a small wedding sampler for my BFF, but I forgot to bring it with me to the wedding, so I now have time to do something creative with it...don't know what, but something.

I started work on a new piece about a month or so ago.  I am stitching Skeleton Crew from The Cricket Collection.  I am enjoying stitching this piece and find it to be quite fun.  Nothing too complicated and I really like the color scheme.  It forces me to stitch using multiple colors in progress at a time as it doesn't really work with skipping around, so that's a new experience for me.  Here's what I have.

Not bad for a month of work while working 3rd shift, lol.  Irony, in a way.  Working on ghosts and creepy crawlies while working the "graveyard" shift.  Ha!

Now for patterns.  Feeling thoughtful tonight, so I bring you some "thoughtful" patterns.

That's it for now.  I'll try to post more when I can.  Internet here is pretty shady, so it won't be as often as I would like.  Happy Stitching!!

Closer to Being Done...The Night WIP

Yet another The Night WIP.  It is really coming along and my hands are hurting trying to finish these bottom few inches.  However, since I now have no job, I have the time to finish it in a somewhat timely matter.  It sucks not having a job, but the fiance had the better paying job and we only have the one car, so that's how that went.  Anyway, my progress on this piece is coming along nicely.

I'm not overly crazy about the fact that the color of the bottom two inches of the dress don't quite match the top part, but I think it might be because of the time difference between stitching the top and bottom....that or the dye lots aren't quite the same, which is even more aggravating to think about.

Now for patterns.

I know I've done some doubles, so I apologize for that.  It's hard to keep track of them all after a while.  Anyway, Happy Easter and Happy Stitching!!

Yet Another The Night WIP

The majority of the main page of The Night pattern is complete.  I have the orb, the lettering, the backstitching, and the beading yet to do, but that stuff will be done in it's own time.

I'm really excited to be working on the bottom couple inches of this piece and I'm looking forward to seeing this done.  It will definitely be quite a beauty to behold when it's done.

Now for patterns.

That's all for today.  Happy Stitching!!

So Close, and Yet So Far Away!

Another The Night update today. I have one more major color left for this side of the pattern, and then it's down to the homestretch of the stitching portion, which is the bottom 2-3 inches.  This piece is starting to take on some real shape and I can't wait to get these last things done with.  Now for the update:

As you can see, she's just about done. There are some random spots that need to be stitched still, but I'll try to get to them when I start the back of the pattern.

Now for patterns.

That is all for now.  Life is still pretty busy, but things are looking up.  Happy Stitching!!

The Night WIP Update

I have an update for my most recent large project. It might not seem like a lot, but I did a lot of block stitching of a couple colors.

Alright, now for some patterns. Random patterns...hope you all don't mind.

That's it for this week. Happy Stitching!!

Catching Up

Since I posted last, I got a boyfriend, moved out of my parent's house, freaked out over reality, moved to a different shift, continued to freak out over reality, and quit my job that was depressing me to the core of my being. Now, I am unemployed and looking for work with my boyfriend and have finally found myself with time on my hands to do whatever I want for a little while.  Hopefully, neither one of us is unemployed for too long, but it's nice to have this free time after working for two years, pretty much straight. Stitching wise, I've been productive. I haven't been stitching as much as I would like to, but life does that to things that you like doing.

First, I would like to present what I have managed to finish.  This first one is a dragon I stitched up just before moving out. I found the pattern while I was in Florida last Thanksgiving and it was a nice easy piece to do after the monstrosity of the Chandelier piece.

These next pictures are of the projects I did for the Sprite Stitch Mega Swap this year.  I have yet to receive mine, but I am sure they will come in due time....that or they were lost in the mail. Anyway, I stitched up a Sailor Moon collage of her and her brooches, a Elder Scrolls quest marker magnet, and a Tardis in a hoop.  I took closeup shots of the stitchings in the collage.

Next I did a small owl. I got the kit in a Just Cross Stitching Magazine that came with patterns and thread.

Lastly, my boyfriend insisted that I stitch things up for Halloween since it's our favorite holiday and I couldn't refuse him.  The first one is a small one and the other one is much larger. He framed it for me for Sweetest Day this past Saturday while I was away with my parents for the weekend.

I did most of these projects while in the midst of stitching something else and I have a WIP for that.  It's called Night and it's a pretty big project. It's coming along, though, and I like stitching it while I have the chance.

I have a few patterns for the world, too.  They're characters from the anime/manga Chobits.

Alright, that's it for today.  I will try to be better with posting, but no guarantees.  Happy Stitching!!