I’ve recently gotten back into crafting, helped largely by my good friend Bek who keeps mentioning her cross stitch. I had a latch hook that I had started in 2007, intended for a Christmas present … and then never finished it. I’m pleased to say that 5 years later (and only about 2 weeks of actual work!) it’s completed – that’s a story for another blog post.
But midway through doing this, I got hit with the bug. Big time. I think it’s fair to say that I have a bit of an addition going on, based on the amount of things I have been ordering lately!
I originally started by ordering two more pieces on eBay. Then was looking for some more stuff, and found an American store called Stuff 4 Cross Stitch. I placed one order. Then another one, after being egged on from my work colleagues. And then a third one. I’d like to say I’ve stopped, but I’ve already earmarked a few more things to purchase… but I may hold off for a little bit and give the poor credit card a break.
People have asked what I’ve bought, and what I’ll be working on. I’ve bought items that are latch hook, cross stitch (which I have only done a tiny bit last week – the most recent time before that was 10+ years ago), and needlepoint – which I have never tackled. Yes, I am ambitious!
And so, this is a list of the things which are either sitting on my dining table to be put somewhere and worked on, or are in transit from the US to here (curse you, customs, for holding stuff up!) Please ignore the funky spaces, I’ve copied them from the website and I can’t be bothered with the effort to crop the white borders.
Latch Hook:
16″ tall Lion Huggable – I’d never heard of these before, but they’re really cute! Glenn wants me to make one for him, and one for his brother – they’re both Brisbane Lion supporters, so I’ll probably just buy some coloured ribbons to add to them. I’ve got two of these to make.
14″ Frog Huggable – I don’t know who this is for, but it’s cute. This is the first huggable that I came across and ordered from eBay, and have only just received it. I’m sure I’ll find a use for it!
14″ tall Pink Teddy – I have a couple of people in mind for this one… depending on how fast I get it completed. I haven’t tried the huggables so I honestly have no idea on how long they will take to make/assemble.
24″ by 34″ Lab Puppies – This one is for me (just no idea where to put it). I’ll probably start this one in a while, though – it’s not got a time deadline, and it’ll be nice to work on after all the huggables!
30″ by 50″ Sierra – This is going to be my biggest project. Literally – it’s almost the size of me. The chart is HUGE. I don’t expect to have this finished before the end of 2013, and that’s optimistic! But I think it will look fantastic once it’s done.
Merry Men – My current project that I’m working on. Aiming to have it done before Christmas this year, and I’m well on track for it.
27″ by 40″ Lion – At the request of Glenn, who has informed me that we are filling the house with lion-related items (again, back to the footy team). This is my contribution. At least it’s a nice lion!
27″ by 40″ Windjammer – the picture is awful, as it’s an image of the colours of the pattern, rather than a picture of the finished product. This one’s currently travelling to me, so once I’ve received that box, I’ll post an updated picture of what this is meant to look like. Glenn has requested I make this for his father as he likes boats – I’m aiming for his birthday in July 2013 because Christmas is not happening, I have too many other projects.
Needlepoint:
Admittedly, I’ve never done needlepoint before – or if I have, I was about 7. I’ve looked into it, and it’s similar in concept to cross stitch, which I know I am capable of, so I’ve ordered these:
16″ Long Christmas Stocking – I’m actually hoping to make this for Glenn’s brother – him and his wife are expecting a baby at the end of November. Apparently, I’m going to be ‘that’ aunty that gives a whole bunch of craft as presents! I’ll give it a crack for this year – but otherwise I’ll give it as a present for next year. The baby will only be a few weeks old this year so it’s not a massive drama if it waits til 2013!
10″ by 15″ Asian Butterflies – Again, no clue where I’m going to put this, but it’s gorgeous and butterflies are one of my favourite things. It’s a bit hard to tell in the picture, but that’s an actual coin.
Cross Stitch:
There’s quite a few Christmas themed ones here. I’d like to have at least one or two done for this year, but we’ll see.
Ho Ho Ho Ornament – It’s a small one (so hopefully won’t take me forever and a day) which I thought was quite cute. Something to hang… somewhere… around the home at Christmas.
7″ by 5″ Travel Memories – A bit of a day dream, for me. I’d love to go to Paris (and Europe) one day, so this is a reminder of this. And again, butterflies.
12″ by 12″ Savannah Birth Record – Look, I’d like to have this done for my nephew in November. But it’s kind of large. So, we’ll see how long it takes… otherwise it may just be a late birth record =P Otherwise, someone else is bound to have babies at some point!
5″ by 7″ Stacked Cups – I’m planning on making this for my mother – who’s the first person who got me into cross stitch, way back when. She’s got a few pieces like this that are similar styles around the house, so this would fit in pretty smoothly.
Christmas Sayings – This was the first one I purchased out of the lot of cross stitch. They look fairly simple, so I’ll probably tackle these early-ish, hopefully at least one or two will be done this year, if not the full set.
Christmas Pals – I don’t know if I’ll keep these or make them as a gift – they’re fairly cute! But the kit is Dimensions, and from my (limited knowledge) and what I’ve heard, the thread isn’t as easy to get a hold of as DMC. So I may have to research a replacement before making a decision!
I’m pretty sure that’s the lot of it. Well, the ones that I’ve purchased. I may have had a look online recently and bookmarked a few more cross stitch kits that I want to order to make for people – one for the hubby, and one for my friend who isn’t getting married for a couple of years (so I have plenty of time!)
I’ve recently completed a latch hook so I’ll post that one shortly, along with some pictures of my two works in progress. I’d love to know your thoughts on all of the kits I’ve bought and are going to be attempting, though!
