Updates on Dandelion Clock Dance

Hello!!!!

And welcome my newest followers via Grow Your Blog party: Martha, Linda, Angie, Tazzy, Slogance J., Sharlynn, Claire, Miss Lilly and Jules. Hope you will enjoy your visit with my stitching blog.

I know I should wait for the WIpocalyse post next month but hey, I've got some exciting updates so i guess I should just tell you guys how much I've down so far on DCD. I managed to finish the second row. Wee heeee!

Here she is BEFORE:

And AFTER

Please excuse for the bad lighting as the 2nd pic I took under yellow light (as I finished this at midnight). So i put down 9,200 stitches over the last period (4 partial pages) ( not continuously as I am involving in other projects as well). Now I have 1 more row to go and DCD will be my first HAED finish. How exciting!!!!

Having said that, there will be a good amount of stitching need to be done. I have in total of 5 FULL PAGES ( roughly about 8,000 x 5 = 40,000 stitches) more to finish.

CAN I DO IT????

xoxo

Gwen

GROW YOUR BLOG 2014: If you want to know a little more about me....

So I decided to join Vicki at 2bagsfull this year for her 'Grow your blog' party. There are already over 500 bloggers signed up and will join the fun tomorrow (Fri 25th) by having a post at midnight of 24th (which is now, in my timezone). There will be some give-aways at some blogs. So if you can, please join and visit as many blogs as you can (click the badge at the top right corner of my blog).

The idea of this party, I guess, is to help people who have less followers increase their viewings and share their ideas to larger community - which is the MAIN reason why I'd love to join this meaningful party. 

I am a craft lover. A nature lover. A traveller. And a foodie.

I love small little beauties that I see at craft store and crave to make it myself. I especially love sewing and stitching. I began with small kits of Dimensions or Maia to larger advanced cross stitch project like Heaven and Earth Designs. My love for nature and landscape also affects what I am stitching, which mostly scenery. You can find my progresses and thoughts about it here on my blog. I update weekly.

Here are some of my stitching in progress:

Autumn by Jacek Yerka (HAED)

Dandelion Clock Dance by Joanna Bromley (HAED)

Harvest Moon by Lisa O'Malley (Love Thy Thread) FINISHED

Cow Parsley Design in Cross Stitcher Magazine (Finished in throw pillow)

Magic Fire by Esmira (Paine Free Crafts)

A little bit more about myself that people yet to know:

I was born and grown up in Vietnam, a Southeast Asian country. I studied in Japan and Singapore where I met my husband before we moved here to U.S, to learn and to chase our dreams. We move from places to places so we called ourselves the travelers. We are international couple, so sometimes we speak 4 different languages at the same time.

I love food which resulted in my fear of weighing and my effort to loose them. I love homemade bread. I love home-brew coffee. The perfect day for me is the day when I can munch bread, sip coffee while stitching. With a lot of sun shining through the window. As simple as that.

Here is my perfect day:

 Life is hard sometime but I feel blogging is a way for me to meditate. To get to know more beautiful friends. And to live a more meaningful life. I want to grow my blog, to achieve just that.

I love you all and thanks for reading this.

Gwen

Test stitching on 'Magic Fire' by Paine Free Crafts

Hi guys

I have mentioned in earlier post that I want to do test stitching on some charting companies other than HAED and Love Thy Thread to compare the details and stuffs, so I did give it a go on Paine Free Crafts these weeks.

Like I said before, 'Magic Fire' (Esmira) caught my attention at first sight, just like a magical feeling that I have to have it done and hang on my wall (I know it sounds so odd lol). I started on the central page, which is page 10, where most of the confetti appear, in order to see how the details work in the chart. And I must say, it works AMAZINGLY.

I find the chart is super easy to read, even compare to HAED. Firstly, Sarah (owner of Paine Free Crafts) takes time to divide the block into smaller blocks (i.e 4 small blocks - 25 stitches each block within the normal 1 big block -100 stitches) with a vivid dividing line. Secondly, the symbols in used are super duper easy to my eyes. I can differentiate them easily, which makes my needle move a lot faster. Thirdly, the chart is in large mode. Each page of the chart is designed with full blocks (appx 6 columns and 8 rows/ page, i.e no partial pages -> no 'gap' confusion occurs! Seriously, I have an issue with HAEd whenever I see partial pages, I know I'm gonna mess it up. I therefore feel that this design is such a relief for a dummy like me. Another great thing is that at the bottom left of each page, you will see a page preview where you can easily identify where you are (without searching for correct pages again and again). I'd like to start at different pages at a time, so the preview is my life saver.

So you wonder how 'Magic Fire' looks after reading such a long post? I started at page 10 and here how it looks after the page is completed.

I can't wait to stitch the next pages finished to see the whole face of her. What do you think?

xoxo

Gwen

January WIPocalypse

Hi guys

So I've decided I will join WIPocalypse 2014 organized by Measi . I have been watching people join it for several seasons now. The reason why I did join last year is because I am skeptical of committing something done. It's kind of psychological fear that once you said you will have something 'done', you will never get it done (or it's just me!). So I am so scared. Yeah, freaky me. But this year will be totally different. I want to commit a finish and no matter what it takes, I will fight to finish it.

So here it's my finish goal:

Dandelion Clock Dance (DCD) by Joanna Bromley (HAED)
Last year image:

I have about 2 partial pages and 1 more row at the bottom left to finish. So in total, 7 1/2 pages. It's so weird that when  I am closed to a finish, I just loose all the interest and continue stitching it's like a world of pain.

I also have other goal for this year, you can find it here. But DCD will be my main focus for 2014 and will be my main post of WIPocalypse 2014.

Please come back on Feb 14th for my next post of WIPocalypse to see how my commitment goes (now you scare me if you do lol)

Enjoy!!!

Gwen

'Autumn' SAL 9th update

Hi guys

This is the first SAL post of year 2014 and I did really hope I will bring you a greater progress of this piece. However, I regret to tell you that I do not have much done this time (only about half a page done).

 I will be completely honest: I am short of DMC 938 and therefore unable to keep stitching. If you have (or you will) a diagram of 'Autumn' in your hands, you might notice that this color is used almost everywhere, as many as 3371. It means, when you ran out of it, you're finished Lol. Well, I can just move on stitching other colors first and come back fill in the blank when my supplies come. But I feel incomplete by doing so, as I want to show you guys a neat image on each post.  Good news is I did ordered the floss last month. Bad news is it will take a long long time to reach me. Why? Because we are buried in snow storm the whole month, like 15 inches deep. I think this is the toughest winter in the last 20 years in America (if you read the news!). So I will completely understand if the postman wants to wait until the snow is melt...which is hell know when.

OK, so back to the main thing, it's picture showtime. This is what I stitched before running out of 938:

I hope you enjoy it and please leave comments below, I'd love to hear from you!

And don't forget to visit Pull the other thread's blog for her update this month, which surely will be a pleasure to see.

Happy stitching!

Gwen

HAPPY NEW YEAR, HAPPY FINISH, 2013 in Preview and Resolutions for 2014 and Stash Enhancement (Picture heavy)

Hi guys,

I. A finish

You read the title and you demand a picture. Yes, of course. I am so happy to present you my first finish on Love Thy Thread's chart: "Harvest Moon" by Lisa O' Malley.

This is the speediest stitching piece I ever stitched and  I hope I made Bev proud.

'Harvest Moon' by Lisa O' Malley
Designed by Love Thy Thread
Stitching period: November 2013 - January 2014
Tented 2 over 1 on 26 count hard danger

How do you guys think?

On the other note, similar to HAED, Love Thy Thread also offers a loyalty program where you can receive a free chart of equal or lesser value by submitting a finish. I love Sabine Rich sketch painting and I was lucky enough to receive 'Owl' from Bev as a reward. Here it is:

I can't find a copyright mark image so please  excuse me for my bad skill. You can find this pattern available for purchase here

How adorable this owl is! And it requires only 1 color (20 pages in total though)! Ehehe. Should I dig in this one immediately? Yes, cause I really want to!



II. Stitching Summary of 2013 and goal for 2014

I think it's worthwhile to give a brief summary of my stitching in the past year to encourage myself go further this year. So here is my stitching summary and goal that follows.

1. Dandelion Clock Dance by Joanna Bromley (HAED)

Started on November 2012

As of November 2013

My goal is to finish this pattern within the first quarter of 2014

2. Autumn by Jacek Yerka (HAED)

Started on May 15, 2013

As of December 15, 2013

My goal is to finish 2 bottom rows of this pattern this year :D

3. Ryo by Haruyo Morita (HAED)

Started on October 2013

As of October 2013

After finished a page, I did not have chance to touch it again. I feel very guilty leaving it aside as it is a beautiful pattern. My goal this year is to finish the first row of this chart :D

4. Harvest Moon by Love Thy Thread: Started on November 2013, finished by January 2014.

5. Cow Parsley from Cross Stitcher: Started and finished within September 2013

6. Others

As you might know, I also started other HAED patterns but for some reasons, I lost interest in them so they probably out of my stitching rotation this year as well.

III. Stash enhancement

Santa Claus visited me last Christmas and spoiled me:

From Paine Free Craft:

The Scribe by Suzi Dragonlady

From Heaven and Earth Designs:

Dragon Pleasure by Jacek Yerka

Ripples by Stephani-Mun Law

The Owl Maiden by Annie Stegg (new artist)

and last but not least 

The Plagiarists by Jonathan Wolstenholme (new artist to HAED)

New stash means New start? I'm not sure yet. Probably no BAP (Big Ass Project) for this year but small and medium project cause I want to have something hang in my house with proud Lol

What is your year in preview and what are your resolutions?

xoxo

Gwen