I enjoy cross stitch and needlepoint. Mostly what I’ve done are the Calico Crossroads designs. Anyone who knows I have a black kitty will know why I love making those designs! However, there are many beautiful cross stitch designs that I really want to do.
Angel of Winter from Lavendar and Lace
One of my favorite design series are from Lavendar and Lace. They have a great angel collection. I bought a whole bunch of patterns when Hobby Lobby was trying to clear them out, and I’ve wanted to start one for years. Well, on August 20th I finally started one.
Angel of Winter, one of the prettiest ones in the series. (Autumn is my favorite season, so that one’s coming next). I’ve had all the materials to make this since last year, and I’m so happy that I’ve finally started it. Cross Stitch takes up a LOT of time, so I usually work on it a little bit before bed. My favorite time to work on this piece is when I’m listening to NPR podcasts like “wait wait don’t tell me“.
Started in the middle. Slow going, but enjoyable.
I started in the middle of the pattern. You can tell my starting mark from the red dot. That’s just a piece of red thread I used to hold that place. I normally work from left to right.
Linen is a lot harder to work on than Aida count. I practiced a bit on some scrap linen to see how many threads I should use and how wide the stitches should be. I’ve found that when I keep the stitching all in front, i.e. I don’t pull the needle up and down I just do a kind of backstitch along the fabric, it turns out too tight. It’s faster to just keep your needle at the front of your work, but the effect bothers me so I’ve been going through each side. Yes, it takes a lot more time, but the effect is much nicer.
I’m hoping to get this done in a year. I know, a long time! I can’t say enough how time consuming cross stitch is. But, it’s a lot of fun and very meditative. I find that when I do things like cross stitch, crochet or knitting a meditative, calm state comes over me. Really helps out when stressed, and each craft provides a different type of meditation.
I’ll keep my progress updated! It may take years, but at some point I’ll have all four seasons. I’m already excited to start the Autumn one next year.
