Yahoo!! I have a finish. It’s always a good day when I have a finish. Today’s finish is Birds of a Feather from Blackbird Designs.
I finished stitching it recently and decided to jump in and start looking for a frame immediately. I have quite a stash in my basement. When I’m out thrifting if something is only $2 – $3 and looks like something I could use, I often pick them up. I’ve gotten more selective as my stash has grown but even if I buy 50 of them, I am still WAY under the price of what one frame might cost.
I did find one in my stash and this one was only $1. WHOOT- WHOOT!!
I did have to cut down the frame. After that was done I needed to lace my project. I don’t like lacing really huge things but this project wasn’t very big and I’m trying to cut down the cost of framing so I grabbed my lacing thread and got busy. I use a heavy-weight thread. Crochet thread works really well. After I lace side to side, I flip the piece over and try to straighten it. Straightening isn’t hard to do at all. A few pushes and pulls and everything is in place.
Then I lace them from top to bottom. Again, I can still shift the piece and do until I feel comfortable with how straight it is.
From there I put in the glass. I do use glass. Things at my house are dusty and I just prefer glass. I use AR glass. It has UV protection but isn’t museum glass. When you look at the pieces, I can’t even tell there is glass on the piece. Glass for this was $17. The frame shop I work with cuts it to size.
Next up, I use spacers. They allow for air to get between the stitched piece and the glass which is needed to protect the stitching. All quality frame shops use spacers.
Next I use Glazier Points to keep everything held together.
I forgot to take a picture of the paper and hanger I added but they are there…and HERE IT IS ALL FINISHED!! I did change a few things. The bird wing on the left is supposed to be stitched in the white color but it didn’t show up the best on the linen so I picked the peachy color of the called-for colors.
I stitched this on Picture This Plus Heartland. I used the DMC conversion. I made a mistake on the placement of the red birds so modified it by moving the leaf towards the middle.
I did do the called for chain stitches around the center flower.
I personalized the piece by adding my late husband’s initials on the left and my initials (with my maiden name) on the right. I also added the year we were married.
I used Brenda Keys Ultimate Sampler Motif book for the letters. I’ve been working on this are in my living room and decided to put this piece there…
It landed right below my We Live in Hope from Blackbird Designs. I am saving the other places on this wall for smaller Blackbird Designs pieces. I’m hoping to stitch My Heart Can Rest and The Winter is Past to put on this wall as well. We’ll see how soon that happens.
It is so hard to get a photo of cross-stitch pieces that don’t have glare and show the coloring of the project correctly. I think the coloring in the photo above is the most accurate of all the photos in this post. I tried one more time…it’s still not quite right.
I’m happy to say this one is finished. This was a very economical stitch. The chart was given to me. It was stitched in DMC and I had all of the flosses except two. I framed it myself with the thrift store frame. All good!! The glass was likely the most expensive part.
The chart was a unicorn chart for me (one I really wanted but was out of print and couldn’t find) so a sweet blog reader, Sueann, gave me the chart. It has since been republished. You can find it HERE.
Yahoo…I’m so happy to have this one finished!!
Wow you have quite a collection of finished pieces, and they’re all beautiful!
Love this. Your personalizations are beautiful and meaningful.
Beautiful! You are so talented.
I love seeing all your cross stitch pieces. This one is beautiful, I love the red flowers!
Another great and beautiful finish! The frame looks so good. You sure know how to cut a frame down and have it look perfect. Your display is wonderful and you must get a little excited each time to have a finish to add to the wall.
Your cross stitch piece is beautiful! I especially like the frame you used. Just perfect and a great addition to your wall.
It’s a lovely piece. I like how you’ve customised it. And I really like how your display corner is coming together. I’m in awe of your framing skills!
What a lovely area of your home. Sometime it would be fun for you to video a tour of your crosstitch decor. You could give us your thought processes behind your choices, placement, etc. I for one am horrible at that type of thing lol, and could use a tutorial. Just a suggestion, though, feel free to ignore it if it’s not something you’d enjoy.
Came out perfect! Love it and love where you placed it! You saved a lot of money by doing it yourself, good for you!
This one turned out beautifully. I really like your corner in the living room. It’s a great corner for your cross-stitch pieces.
Jo… you are REALLY INSPIRING me! I used to be an avid cross stitcher before I fell in love with quilting (31 years ago). I even had a couple patterns I designed published in a cross stitching magazine. Oh my, I havent thought of cross stitch in years, but seeing all of your beautiful work makes me think that maybe I should consider reviving that long lost passion of mine! Thank you!
April in Iowa
Oh April…cross stitch is SO much better now. No backstitching!!! What part of Iowa do you live in?
Jo – I live in Central City… that is east of Cedar Rapids/Marion and west of Anamosa.
I have been out of cross stitch so long… can you recommend a favorite online resource for kits/patterns?
April in Iowa
I would happily meet you at the Backstitch in Elkader one day. It’s a bit of drive for you but not terrible!! They you get to a store and see everything…So fun. If not, I love the Stitchery Nook online and in person. They are in Osage. That would be a longer drive for you. There are many online stores. 123Stitch, Fat Quarter Shop, Colorado Cross Stitcher, Hollis Hands Creates on Etsy.
Oh, Jo… that is SO SWEET of you to offer!
Wish i could take you up on it, but our adjustment to some kind of retirement schedule is escaping us at the moment. Hoping we get the hang of actually BEING ABLE TO PLAN OUR DAYS (instead of them just happening to us like they are now)! Seems like that part was a lot easier before we retired. Can you tell we are newbies at this?
But i sure will keep all this in mind… and your SO VERY KIND OFFER! You are such an amazing and caring lady!
Thank you… April in Iowa
A beautiful finish Jo! I love your framing. Such a cost savings to do it yourself.
And I’m so happy that I was able to see your post. The posting yesterday was all gooblely but today it’s fine.
Another lovely finish with a stitchery project. Your wall looks amazing and well planned out.