mandala cushion - Cross Stitch Crazy 225

This week another magazine has hit the shops and I thought I`d better post about my stitching in it before the whirlwind that is Christmas knocks everything else out of my mind. It`s a lovely pastel mandala designed by Tiny Modernist and it`s been one of the most relaxing stitches I`ve ever done - cross stitch is pretty therapeutic at the best of times anyway but working on repeat motifs like a mandala is especially joyful when you just want to switch off and chill out.

It took 48 hours - 40 for the cross stitch and 8 for adding the backstitch. I took a few pictures between `layers` and I`ll add the photo of the finished cushion too from the magazine. Have a very happy Christmas and all the best for 2017, stitchers! :)

mandala cushion - Cross Stitcher 308

Out now in the UK shops is the latest issue of Cross Stitcher with this gorgeous mandala cushion (yes, a cushion. I see a theme developing here!) by Felicity Hall. I stitched it in April-May and if I`m honest, it wreaked havoc with my OCD that I couldn`t stitch the complete design, only a section of it (and even that wasn`t bang on a quarter or half) but I loved the colours and how quickly it grew. I stitched it on 20 count evenweave, 2 over 2, which meant the crosses were the size of peppercorns, so it built very rapidly (the magazine estimates the stitch time at 32 hours but in fact it was only 23, which makes it, I think, an ideal last-minute wedding, birthday or housewarming present).

I only have a few progress pics for this one: since stopping every 5 hours wouldn`t have made sense here, I rather just took the occasional break and a photo when I started to add a new colour.

And would you believe it, as it turns out, all the while I was stitching it upside down! :D