4/15/11 Stitching

I didn't get as much stitching done yesterday as I normally do, but it was for a good reason.  Most of my evening was spent at choir practice for our Easter Cantata that's going to be taking place this Sunday.  Overall, I think we sound very good but you can never have too much practice!

I'm really liking the way the lighter color purple is merging together with the darker ones.  It's blending quite nicely and when the pinks get added in it's going to look fantastic!  I'm coming up to a lot of big block sections with this color, so hopefully by the next update you'll be able to see a big difference.

On the agenda today:  clean house, birthday party, birthday dinner for my husband, and more stitching!

Good News!

My husband has just informed me that we have an address to send the Day [9] project to! 

Yay!!!!!!!!

We'd been waiting to hear back for the past week and finally have somewhere to send it.  We'll be mailing it to Sean via one of the moderators so hopefully it won't take too long to get there.

Now, I need to figure out the best way to package it up so the frame doesn't get broken during the shipping process.  I'd hate for it to get all the way there only to be cracked or destroyed! 

Monday I have to be at the hospital for surgery, but I'm hoping to get the whole thing ready to go before then so we can get it mailed off. 

I'm so excited!!

Contest!

I just found an awesome giveaway over at Cross Stitch and Cupcakes... head on over to check it out!

I believe you have to enter by Tuesday the 19th and it's really simple.  Enjoy!

4/14 Stitching

I was really getting sick of stitching all these purple colors, but I figure if I go ahead and get them done now I won't have to come back to them later.  So, after finishing 2 darker purples I moved on to a lighter one.

Making progress!

I was excited to see some of the castle come up yesterday!  I believe the rest of it is mostly blue, so it won't finish taking shape for a while. 

4/13/11 Progress

Got some more work done on the Cinderella project.  I've given up trying to keep track of how many stitches have been completed. 

The other day, I sat down to count how many colors are in this kit.  Turns out there are 66 individual colors and 2 blending filaments... seriously.... I think the biggest project I ever worked on only had around 30 so this is definitely going to be a challenge for me.

One trick I've learned that I really love is preloading needles.  Right now I only use 2 because I haven't searched through my craft boxes to find the others that I know I have, but even with just the one extra it's saving me a lot of time!  Instead of having to stop and reload the needle with thread I just switch to the one already waiting for me!

I know I've got at least 3 needles from old kits around here somewhere.  I need to find those before Monday!

4/11/11 Stitching

I finished a little bit more stitching last night, while watching the last 2 episodes of The Kennedy's.  I don't really have a good answer as to why I even watched it in the first place.  Perhaps it was because of all the drama and controversy surrounding the miniseries.  I just had to see for myself if it was truly as bad as they all said.

It was. 

Don't get me wrong, I understand fully that it is a docudrama and that a lot of liberties were taken, but at the same time it was way too melodramatic.  A horrible soundtrack played in the background for the entire 8 hours.  The characters were pretty shallow and everyone was either 100% good or 100% evil.  At least I can say that I watched it for myself. 

Anyway, here's the latest progress on Cinderella. 

It doesn't seem like much, but that's over 2 hours of work on top of what I had already stitched.  I'm thinking it's a little over 400 or so stitches completed so far.  This is definitely going to take a while!

Cinderella Wishes Upon a Dream






When I saw this kit at the craft store, I knew I had to have it!  The painting is gorgeous and the cross stitching is just as beautiful, although some of the smaller details are lost.  The finished size will be 16" x 12" and roughly 66,000 stitches. 



Sixty-six THOUSAND.  Let that sink in for a second.  Basically, I've discovered that this project is 10 times bigger than the Day [9] logo, which took about 2 months to finish. 





So much floss.

Will I ever finish it?  Eventually.  Will I start other projects while working on this?  More than likely.  Will it be worth the time and effort?  I have no doubt!

As with any kit, the first thing to do is get everything separated and prepped for stitching.  With my kids running crazy, this process took around 3 hours. 

After sorting everything, I gridded out the first page and prepared to stitch.  I've found that using the gridding method for projects with lots of confetti (little, individual squares of color that aren't close to other squares of the same thread type) is really helpful.  It also helps me count out better, since each of the squares is exactly 10x10.



First page fully gridded.



 I couldn't do all that work without at least stitching a little bit.  The colors on this kit are all so pretty!  I'm really looking forward to seeing this one take shape.



Somewhere around 100 stitches in.





Day [9] Project

The most recent project I completed was something that my husband requested.  He's a big StarCraft nerd and enjoys listening to the netcast of a player named Day [9]. 



The Logo



I admit that I am NOT a fan of the game, but Sean (the man behind Day [9]) is hilarious to watch.  Even though I don't know any of the terminology that he uses or even what exactly that game is supposed to accomplish, his humor is too funny to miss.

So, when I was looking for a new project, my husband suggested that I create the logo for the netcast.  The challenge seemed fun, so I went ahead with it.  I found an online pattern maker, entered the specifics and uploaded the picture, then headed off to the craft store to get the materials I needed. 



Around 400 stitches in... not much to look at!

Definitely started looking better with some color in it!

   

Page 2 completed

I spent around 2 months working on this project off and on.  Some medical problems kept me from completing it as quickly as I would have liked.  Eventually, I just started dragging it around from doctor's office to doctor's office and working on it while I waited. 






There are actualy 3 different colors (black, dark navy, and light navy) in that outline of page 3.



After finishing well over 6,700 individual stitches, the project was finally completed!    I decided to mount it in a simple, black frame.  Originally, I wanted to have it matted, but after looking at it with the mat in place I decided that I liked it better by itself.  The mat seemed to take away from the stitching itself and made it look more like just a picture in a frame.

Tada!

As I type this, we are waiting to hear back from Sean (or his moderators) to see about sending this off to him.  I'm very proud of it myself.  It's the first piece I've put together myself without using a kit.  This was definitely a trial and error experience, but I am thrilled with the results! 

Hey Howdy Hey

Welcome to Ambitious Stitches!

It is my job to show that cross stitching is not, as I heard someone say recently, only a "habit for old ladies".  I'm a 20-something wife and mother who just so happens to LOVE stitching.  It brings me such a sense of control -when you chase around 2 preschoolers all day you'll take control in any way you can get it!- and leaves me with a feeling of accomplishment.

When they hear "cross stitching", many people think of samplers, old country-looking pieces, and ancient tapestries.  But there are so many new options for stitchers today, from unique kits to the ability to create your own patterns and stitch anything you can concieve of!

So, I invite you to stick around and check back often.  I'll be updating pictures of my WIP's (works in progress) and posting up finished pieces.