carol singers - Cross Stitch Gold 133

Flying visit - I`m literally typing this while packing a wee case AND emptying the fridge at the same time (we`re going away for 3 days only but, naturally, you have to empty the fridge, the freezer and, preferably, all the cupboards as well, as if you were moving out of the house forever).

The latest issue of Gold hit the UK shops yesterday and I`m sooooo happy to finally be able to share some pics of Joanne Aston`s Victorian carol singers, one of my all-time favourite projects to date.

For all the minute details that create this stunning picture, it grew surprisingly fast - I finished it in 70 hours and that included all the backstitch in 8 different shades and the dozens of French knots. I`m also happy to see it on the cover of the magazine - funnily, I`ve just noticed that it`s in a golden frame there, yet inside the mag it`s in a red frame to complement the door (I think both look lovely btw):

I have made another mini-film with the 5-hourly photos I`d taken but before that, here`s a sneak peek I`ve spotted right under the close-up shots of the carol singers: a preview of the Maria Diaz picture I stitched a few months ago. Happy stitching, everyone! :)

lions - Cross Stitch Gold 127

Last week was a well-and-truly stitchy one. I participated in the 7-day challenge, for which I collected some photos of my earliest projects and I thoroughly enjoyed being reminded how it all began and why I fell in love with cross stitching in the first place. Then, almost as if to counterpoint my first post on Monday of my first-ever (6-stranded!) sunflower, on Saturday I received the latest issue of Gold, with one of my largest projects in it so far.
I stitched this Anchor picture (I just called it The Lion King because they reminded me of Mufasa and Simba) in August-September last year and loved it so much that it was a real struggle to send it back. It was a nice change working with Anchor threads and I loved how quickly the picture was building up: yes, it is big and looks complicated, but as you`ll see from the photos I took (and edited together into a one-minute mini-film), and which were taken every 5 hours, as usual - the chart was pretty straightforward, with not too many colour changes or confetti stitches, and thus I could do quite a lot in a five-hour session. And once the lions and the (equally straightforward) grasses in the foreground were finished, then came the best, and easiest, part: that stunning sunset sky with all the burning oranges - and all half stitches, which are twice as quick! *fistpump* Fair enough, the last stage took an absolute age; there`s several days` worth of backstitch there, most of which is almost invisible, but it was worth it and besides, I always enjoy doing the backstitch, even if it`s a massive PITA, because it means I`m very close to the finish line. ;)
So here`s my African savanna, which is thus introduced in the magazine: `Imagine the pride you`ll feel at completing this magnificent design`. Having felt proud of this picture for the past 5 months, the above sentence reminded me again how privileged I am to be a model stitcher: there is something enthralling about being the first person to see these beautiful designs come to life, even before the designers, editors or readers could have a peek. And so I don`t need to imagine the pride and joy - I feel it every day, :)