I had a busy week cross-stitching. I knew I was close to a finish on my All Creatures Great and Small so on two different nights I sat down to cross stitch a little earlier in the day than I typically might have.
The project is from Barbara Ana Designs and is stitched on Vintage Country Mocha with the called-for colors except I changed out the red to Anchor 20. Cynthia from Stitching in the Light was the inspiration for that.
Here is where I was last week on this project. I needed to complete stuff on the bottom row and put my initials in the center.
The true colors are more like the colors above. I took the photos below under my lamp while I was stitching.
Gannon and Georgie love this piece. They always want to play eye spy with it whenever Kelli comes and I show it to her.
Gannon’s favorite is finding the keys.
Georgia of course has to find the horse.
I finished the hill but wasn’t really happy with it. It was off and I knew it. But it was really too late to fix it. I wasn’t going to rip everything to the right of the hill out. It was WAY too much…and it’s still totally okay.
Did you see I changed the color of the dog on the hill to be… beagle colored?
I wanted to figure out why that hill was off. Some people might not share mistakes like this but I want to so that you can learn from my mistakes…and I want people to see that even with mistakes, pieces can still work out okay.
It seemed like the right side of the hill was smooshed. So I started more closely examining the right side of the piece.
Can you see that the division lines don’t match up? The line to the top is three stitches off the line at the bottom. DARN. I now, after seeing this, totally remember stitching that bottom grass line over to the right and just left it at the stitch with the intention of going back and counting it to reconcile it. Then I put the piece away for a bit and worked on my Forever and Ever piece. Then when I picked it up again, I forgot all about counting that out and finding the exact ending of that line. DARN. It was a rookie mistake.
Well, I found the mistake but somehow I had to fix it. Having the grass lines not match up was noticeable. Although the pattern called for the house to sit on the very edge of the stitching to the right, I ended up adding to the grass at the bottom and then extending out the hill the house sits on to the left.
It’s not my favorite but it’s totally okay. SO…note to self and readers. Don’t leave a line unstitched to reconcile later because later might be at the end of your stitching when you can’t do much to make it right. So…the final verdict. My hill is off because I was three stitches too far to the left.
Moving on…
I had decided to add my husband’s initials to the tombstone. Initially, I wanted dates but decided against that.
Kayla had put together a few designs for that but I wasn’t happy with trying to combine stitching one over one with one over two stitching so I found a tiny alphabet that allowed me to stitch one over two and only make his initials.
I did use Kayla’s design for the center of the piece though. I used the one with the flowers at the center top.
That was my last stitch. I put that stitch in at about 11:15 pm. I stayed up a little later than normal so I could finish it that night. I was so happy to put in that last stitch.
Here is the wrinkly mess of a finished project I took that night.
Here it is all ironed and looking good.
Here are a couple more peeks at the hill with Rosie…
And the grave stone…
..and my initials.
I’m just thrilled to have this finished and thrilled that I met my goal of getting it done in the year 2022. It was my New Year New Start. Yes. I’m already starting to think of what next year’s New Year New Start will be. There are so many to choose from!
I pulled out my Red Bird Sampler Stitch Along. This is by Brenda Gervais of With Thy Needle and Thread. I’m stitching mine on 40 count Shekie’s Tan by Needle Bling Designs. I love this linen and will buy more if I see it again.
I am using the called-for flosses. This week I finished the small flower and the vase of flowers.
I am debating about just sitting down and finishing this one. We’ll see. The stitch along started on August 1st and my hope was to complete it by the end of October. I’m tempted to work ahead just so I can check another thing off my list.
I also pulled out my Seasons of the Heart by Brenda Gervais of With Thy Needle and Thread. These are being stitched on Vintage Country Mocha with the called-for flosses. The patterns for each of the seasons are in one book. I already stitched the Winter one. I’m working on the Fall one.
I got all of the pumpkins stitched. I only had a little bit of time for this. Next week I’m hoping to get the outside border finished. Honestly, I’d love to get the whole thing finished. We’ll see. I have kids and grandkids coming home this weekend so I likely won’t have stitching time on two of the nights.
These are the other two patterns in the book. I think I will set this aside and then pick it up again in January or so. I want to have all of these finished as the seasons come around over the next year. They are so cute!!
Gannon was here over nap time on Wednesday. I had to sit with him long enough to get him to fall asleep. During that time I added the red flower parts to the border I had stitched the week before. As I said, this will be a slow-going project.
This is Christmas Garden by Blackbird Designs. It’s in the Home for the Holidays book. I have long loved this piece. I’m stitching along with a few of the gals I went on a retreat with. My hope is to have this stitched by July of next year. I’m gonna have to stitch faster than this but at least it’s forward progress and that’s all that matters.
I am doing a bit of a debate now if I want to just get the border done so I can start really stitching or what I want to do. After my trouble with the Come Into the Garden piece, borders have me a little scared. We’ll see.
That’s what I’ve been up to this week. In the past, after I’ve finished a big piece I’ve done a little floundering. I go from piece to piece until something sticks. I’m not sure at this point what is going to stick. I’d love to go back and get that border done from Come into the Garden. I’d love to work on Fall smalls. I’d love to work on Christmas Garden. I’d love to finish Red Bird Sampler…oh, and there’s a new piece I’d love to start. More on that another day. I’m off to flounder…and look for frame options. I’d love to have my All Creatures Great and Small hanging on the wall!! So much to do and think about!!
I love your All Creatures Great and Small piece, Jo. Thanks for sharing how you fixed it, it’s actually really helpful to know how others rectify things.
Congratulations! A beautiful finish! Anxious to see how you frame it!
WOW I could not see the mistake in the hill at all. But I do like how you corrected it! I have a question about the one quilt in your top on the blog name area. Its one w the white and Blue stars. I have made all the blocks, but in getting it out and putting it away so many times the order of the blocks is not the same. Some of the white is horizontal, and dome are vertical. Will ig still go together right?
I think the only way to know Carolyn is to lay it all out on the floor and see how it looks. Kelli, my daughter, made the quilt top so although I designed it, I don’t know.
Do you wash/rinse your cross stitch pieces after you finish stitching them and then iron and block the piece?
Such Beautiful work!
Hi Becky. I am not a washer. I think that is something that has changed in the cross-stitch world. Fewer people wash their finished pieces.
All Creatures Great and Small is beautiful! One would really have to examine it closely to see your mistake and hopefully nobody does. I just finished a piece that was to be symmetrical and it isn’t. Again, somebody would need to really examine it and know cross stitching to see. I just wasn’t about to take it all out once I realized it. I am not perfect. The world we live in is not perfect.
All Creatures Great and Small is beautiful!! One would really need to examine it closely to find your mistake and nobody needs to do that. I just finished a cross stitching that should have been symmetrical but it isn’t. I’m not changing it. I am not perfect and the world is not perfect.
Beautiful work Jo! Thanks for sharing. You inspire me!
Beautiful! Errors–well I like to think that is what makes any creation uniquely yours???!!! In just 1 picture and looking closely–i thought the top of the hill on right side looked maybe 1 stitch lower. Pretty sure some of what we see all depends on the angle we are viewing. I don’t see how anybody would notice once you have it framed and displayed on your wall. Even if, so what?? How about if you know that you have a mistake and you will have to come back to it– write a note–a post it note?? or maybe pin a note to your piece so you don’t forget??? Anxious to see what you frame it with and up there on your wall. What areyou going to do when you don’t have any more room????
Beautiful piece and your stitching looks wonderful!! Hugs,
Beautiful finish, Jo!! Looking forward to seeing what frame you choose….thanks for sharing!
I think the hill looks just fine….if you didn’t know you wouldn’t see it.
It’s great that you show us that the overall finished product is the important thing.
Beautiful finishes, Jo! Very inspiring.. Loved how you personalized it with initials and of course dear Rosie. Have a fun weekend .
The stitch is absolutely beautiful.
I do not have the patience to do big pieces any more. And don’t do linen.
The ‘Hill error’ really doesn’t show. But if it bothered me I think I would have just taken out the flower on the top right of hill. Sorted the green and have put a smaller flower in the space.
I lo e that yo u personalised it by changing the dog colour. You are such a good ,patient stitcher.
I have a cross stitch kit but I don’t know how to start it the pattern is not on the cloth ! Any ideas
A lot of people start in the middle and work out. I start upper left or lower left most of the time. It’s just personal preference.
ACG&S looks wonderful! I think you compensated well for your “mistake.” I also wouldn’t call it a rookie mistake. I’ve been stitching for 40 years and STILL do the same! Even regular ol’ counting is sometimes hard. Haha!! If I stop at a place that needs more attention or found somewhere else that I’ve missed a stitch, I try to circle it on my working copy so when I get back to that project I remember. It’s really easy to forget!!
About the hill, remember that the Amish and the Navajo rug weavers add an error to their work because only God creates perfection. I always say that God grants me plenty of errors so that I don’t have to remember to add one. The hill is your gift.
This piece is on my to do list. Yours came out beautifully. The beagle was easily my favorite part!
It’s beautiful, and your adding your husband’s initials makes it such a personal heirloom. I don’t want this to sound like I’m fishing for anything because I’m really not, I can’t stick to any project. Truly a lovely piece and congrats on finishing it. As for those “mistakes” there are none.
Beautiful piece, congratulations on your finish!