Union Jack Mini Cooper - Cross Stitcher 305

In all the excitement of the Bank Holiday weekend, I almost forgot that issue 305 of Cross Stitcher has been in the shops since last Friday, with my little cover star on it, a classic Mini Cooper, complete with British flag roof. This adorable design by Jane Prutton took 30 hours to stitch, and I have a before and after backstitch photo of it - I love how much difference adding the details has made to this project! :)

I also received my subs copy of Cross Stitch Gold the other day, and although there is still a long wait until the next issue comes out in the middle of June, at least there`s already a sneak peek here of the gorgeous Kate Knight cushion I was working on last month - squeeeeee, can`t wait to see more! :D Hope you`re having better weather than we do just now, it`s a sleety snowy rain that comes on every time I hang out the washing... meh. Enjoy the rest of the long weekend, happy stitching! :)

cool cats - Cross Stitcher 301

Oh dear, oh dear... I`m only just realising that my last post is so... last year. It`s a bit weird to say Happy New Year on 21 Jan but believe me, for someone who stitches sunflowers in the winter and Christmas stuff in June, this is nothing out of the ordinary. Hope you all had a great festive season and managed to get a little down time too - if so, please let me know what that`s like, tee hee!

Stitching-wise, I was a wee bit busier than usual over Christmas and New Year, so much so that out of my 4 projects, I only just finished the second one today (yeah, I know, I`d better get a move on with the other two). So I`m afraid this is just a quick wee blog post because in the meantime, Cross Stitcher 301 has hit the UK shops, and in this issue there`s another joint effort from Durene Jones and yours truly, a cute little black cat (or several black cats, optionally) in different catty poses on retro furniture in magenta - but the colour is easily changeable to suit one`s decor, esp. as it almost ended up orangey copper, which I personally would have preferred but I`m sure everyone will have their own favourite colour. It`s a nice quick project too, only took about 15 hours in total, the backstitch is easy and straightforward, so this pic would make an ideal last-minute birthday or house warming present for a cat-loving friend. Am off to do some tapestry now for a change, happy stitching!