Showing posts with label Mirabilia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mirabilia. Show all posts

Monday, February 3, 2014

Goals Update #1

I have been working toward some of the stitching goals I set for myself, and so far, so good. Here is just one of them.

1/24/14

1/24/14

1/31/14

2/3/14
I picked out a fabulous Nora Corbett pattern, "Gardenia."  I am so smitten with this design! I opted for something from Corbett's smaller Pixie Couture line rather than one her larger Mirabilia patterns (like I had originally planned) because I thought I had a better chance of completing the smaller Pixie pattern. 

I've also been poking around the internet in search of a good granny square tutorial, and I found one that clicked with me. I will share my very first granny square with you soon. Stay tuned!

Thursday, September 8, 2011

The Halloween Fairy is Done!

Yes, that's right. The Halloween Fairy is DONE. 

Halloween Fairy, designed by Nora Corbett


Soon, I hope to find the perfect frame and add this gorgeous gal to the Wall o' Halloween Stitchery.

I haven't even taken her out of the q-snaps yet. Here she is, lounging on the floor near a basket of unfolded laundry.


I like to keep it real around here, people. ;)
This gal didn't come without issues. As you may recall (scroll to the bottom), I ran out of floss for one of the wings when I was close to being done. A visit to my local needlework store didn't solve my problem, as I'd hoped, for even though they had the correct color, it wasn't really correct. Since this project was stitched with hand dyed floss, the new color I picked up was from a different dye lot and looked NOTHING like the one that had come with the kit.  It was much lighter and had very little variegation.

Anger and panic ensued. Was my whole project ruined? Even though I had tried tea-dyeing the new floss, it wasn't right. What was I going to do?!? 

That's where Tracy, aka besomom, comes in.

Tracy, a fellow blogger (House of Hodgepodge--go check it out!) and super talented stitcher, read of my woes and graciously offered to send me the leftover floss from her kit. (Did your kit come with 2 skeins, Tracy? I forgot to ask how you had so much leftover while I didn't have enough.) "Hopefully it will be what you need," she wrote to me. And guess what? It was PERFECT. 

Tracy is an angel, people. She saved my project. :)

Here, take a look at this:


That's the new floss I bought, and the one Tracy sent me. "Do you see how different these are?" I asked my husband as I compared the two skeins. "Isn't is crazy how different they are?" 

"I dunno, they look the same to me," was his reply. 

"The same?? No, no, no. They are different. Very different!" How he didn't see that is beyond me, though I am pretty sure he didn't really look at the skeins. The TV was on, and you know how that goes. ;)


Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore, because the project is done. The skein Tracy sent me was a great match, and I am so grateful to her. 

How 'bout a few more pics of the fairy, hmmmmm?




I love the beaded wand. I love all the beads, really.

 The beading went quickly, as there really weren't that many to attach. I love the way they form a fringe near the bottom of the dress. And they sparkle so nicely when the light hits them.


One thing I should tell you about this is that I deviated ever-so-slightly from the pattern. The fairy's skin color was supposed to be Crescent Colour's Bella Rosa, but it was just way too pink. I changed it to DMC 948, which worked out quite nicely. My little fairy is very pale, just like me. I don't tan whatsoever, boo. Even if I burn, I don't fade into a nice tan like some people do, I go from red back to pale. But I digress. I did end up using the Bella Rosa for this project, but only to attach the beads. The stitching instructions didn't specify what I should use (in fact, there was no mention of the beads at all in the instructions), so I had to wing it. It turned out well, I think, and you can hardly see the thread where the beads are attached. I can only assume that's the way it was supposed to be done.
Now that she's done, I kinda miss working on her, despite the fact that I have so many other awesome things I want to stitch (and am currently stitching). Does anyone else ever feel like that after completing a large/involved project? 


Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Progress (and a Sneak Peek)

Here are some pics of the Halloween Fairy I showed you last time. She's coming right along. One more wing, some backstitch, and the beadwork, and she'll be done!

one wing down...

oooh, purdy

progress

details

variegated wing...

And below is just a little sneak peek at something I've been working on lately. I'll show you more soon.

sneak peek

Talk to ya soon, darlings! ♥




Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Halloween Fairy WIP

I seem to be in the mood for two things lately: cross stitch and Autumn. More specifically, I am in the mood to stitch up some Halloween goodies. It happens every summer. Once the 4th of July has passed, I am ready to move on to chilly nights and frosty mornings. I am ready for fall. :)

But it's not fall. However, that doesn't mean I can't work on some Halloween stitching. The piece I am showing you today is a WIP from several years ago. (I want to say 2006, but don't quote me on that.) I usually get the itch to stitch on it each summer, but end up putting it away after just a few week's worth of work. Hmmm. I'd like to break that cycle this year and actually be able to display this beauty come October, but with all the other things I need to work on, I don't know how successful I will be. ;)

halloween fairy wip
(Halloween Fairy limited edition kit by Mirabilia)

Poor thing, she hasn't a head.

headless fairy

wip in the q-snap

Crescent Colours are so fun & pretty, don'tcha think? I love overdyed floss.

eve's leaves, tangerine...

Her pretty dress will eventually be accented with beads. I just love the colors.

pretty skirt

My favorite part, though, isn't the pretty dress. It's the treat sack.

treat sack 2

 treat sack

Seriously! How cute is that?!

So, please wish me luck with my goal of completing this Halloween Fairy this year. It would be nice to add her to my collection of Halloween stitchies. :)