Must it *all* be fun?

I've been pressing on with my new cross stitch quite a lot this week whilst I haven't really felt up to tackling the filling in of the sampler hardanger elements.  I had a quick practice of woven picots and buttonhole bars and think I can pull those off all right, but haven't tried them on the real thing as yet.

When I posted that I was going to do this cross stitch last week and said that these designs could be a bit boring to stitch in parts, one reader asked why I was going to stitch it if it was going to be boring, after all, didn't I embroider for fun?  That set me thinking about how much of a project can be expected to be fun and is it realistic to expect the whole thing to be enjoyable from start to finish every time?  What would you say?

If I'm honest, I can't think of any task, project or occupation that's fun 100% of the time.  I remember last year a former colleague wrote, 'Work is generally good' and I knew he was talking about a job he'd really wanted to do and was enjoying on the whole.  However, there are certainly aspects that are a bit tedious or even a nuisance and I doubt there's any job that excludes any negative factors whatsoever.

What about hobbies, crafts and needlework?  I think it's true to say that we all have our favourite parts, parts that we don't mind and parts that we accept as part of a overall enjoyable process, but that we find dull in themselves.  For instance, many cross stitchers hate backstitch parts, knitters dislike sewing up garments and I find transferring patterns to be a bit of a pain to do.  Which parts of a needlework project do you find less than thrilling?

With these Lizzie*Kate designs, there are some large-ish areas of one colour that do get a bit dull to stitch.  With this one and the 'Spring' one I did 3½ years ago, it's the fence that drags on a bit.  With some other pictures, plain backgrounds can be a plain bore to work.  Generally speaking, I've found that working on them little and often, perhaps interspersed with more interesting parts or projects, helps to relieve the monotony and gets a necessary part of an otherwise fun project done.

Strangely enough, and this goes for many tasks and not just needlework, getting through the dull and trying parts and completing them gives one of the greatest senses of achievement!!

So, I think that with embroidery, as with everything, one takes the humdrum parts along with the more stimulating ones and accepts that it adds up to an overall strongly positive experience.

What are your thoughts on the subject?  Do you really find every part of a stitching task fun and enjoyable?  Are there some you'd gladly hand over to someone else to do?  (Sorry about the awful photos above, BTW, the lighting has been terrible this week and I can't seem to improve it on Photoshop...)

The Anchor number 12 pearl cottons I ordered the other day came through the next morning.  It was so much fun getting a parcel from SewandSo after all this time!

As you can see, I ordered 'landscape' colours, except for the light yellow, which is a favourite shade of mine and the Kreinik #1 Japan thread in 321J, which I treated myself to.  Actually, I was rather disappointed with it as it was supposed to be 'dark gold', but there's next to no difference between that and the regular gold shade 002J.  Well, at least I know now.=(

As my number twelve ball drawer was full before, I had to do some reorganisation in order to get these new colours in so, as you can see, I decided to devote the drawer itself to 'colours' and moved the browns and greys into the space vacated by the Pipers Silks now that they have their own box.

I'm not 10% happy with this arrangement as, frankly, this cantilever section looks messy and, fussy creature as I am, I wanted to have all the browns in one section and the greys in another, but numbers didn't work out.  Anyway, it's the best I can do for now.

This below is my Anchor #8 pearl cotton collection - solid colours.  I have a fair few of the Anchor multi-colour ones too, which I used to use a bit when I did a lot of hardanger cards a few years ago.  I really need to find more uses for these as, whilst it's great to have a nice collection, it's even better to have a use for them, but you can only do so many things at once and I'm vehemently opposed to having a large number of projects on the go at once.  I have two WIPs at the moment and one UFO and I want to clear the slate of at least two of those before starting in on new things.  If I can clear off the third too, (which is boring me!!!), oh, how happy will I be?!=)

In case anyone was wondering why I bought the landscape coloured #12 balls, it's because I'm interested in trying some of the Helen M Stevens' 'look through' style pictures where you have certain foreground elements and then shaded in sections are fields, waterways etc.  #12 pearl cotton is perfect when the rest of the piece is to be done in stranded cotton.  I think, if I'm to use the Pipers silks, the gauge might not be quite right, but then I could bring my Madeira silks, which seem slightly twisted and considerably less shiny than Pipers, into play.  What thread combinations do you think would work?  What would you use?

Text and images © Elizabeth Braun 2013

New cross stitch projects coming up!

Yes, yes, I know I was going to do some small Helen M Stevens' designs, and I haven't forgotten them.  It's just that I, frankly, want to be able to sell on the above charts - esp as a lady in the south of England bought 'Winter' and 'Spring' from me last weekend - so I need to get them worked up.

I'm not very much into the Lizzie*Kate style of design, but more or less anything four seasons design-wise will get me, so I collected these.=)  I also rather liked the third one, 'Cherish All Living Things'.

Before we went to Taiwan just over four years ago, I sold off about two thirds of my over-dyed threads - GAST and WDW, but I kept back all the colours I needed for these projects and some others that I thought I would use in other types of embroidery.  So, thankfully, I had everything I needed to kit up these designs, except perhaps a piece of linen for the last one.  I haven't finally decided on that one as yet.

This is the floss toss for the first one, 'Summer', and I'm ready to get going on it.  I was going to wait until I'd got further on with the sampler, but, as I'm having some lung trouble which, oddly enough, restricts how I can move around and bend over a piece of work (cutting threads needs me in a certain position and I can't maintain it for long just now), I'm giving myself permish to make a start on this one!  As I remember from 'Winter' and 'Spring', they're a rather a bore to stitch in parts, but shouldn't be too bad.

The sampler is coming along well though.  I've finished the 'look through' section cross stitch etc and set that aside for later.  I've also re-positioned the main piece in the frame and cut out the top two motifs.  Sadly, my hardanger scissors declined to co-operate, so it seems we need to look at those again.  However, my goldwork pair have lovely fine points and, as they're specially toughened for cutting metal threads, won't go blunt very quickly.=)

Text and images © Elizabeth Braun 2013

Finished 'Spring'

Here it is, TA-DA->

I've given up on enlarging the photo via the 'Edit Html' tab as it always ends up blurred, no matter what I do, so I've done it right aligned so it can be clicked on for a larger size. Whenever I centre a photo, it can't be clicked on, although I've been able to click on centred photos on others' blogs. Pah! Anyway, good to have another WIP completed.=) I hope the bottom bit straightens up when framed, which won't be done until we go home, I shouldn't think. Hoping to get on with the bee next.

I've decided to get a rental viola very soon, probably early in the new year. I do rather miss playing and it would be a waste to have brought so much sheet music etc with me and not to use it. I plan to shop around for the best deal over the next couple of weeks and take up the most attractive one as and when. There are no public holidays here, (except 1 Jan, I think), so nothing to be interrupted by!!

Anyone whose been on blog 'for real' lately will have seen that I've added photos of all my pieces from this year down the sidebar under the Feedjit thingy, and also a nice, cheery 'welcome' in cross stitch at the top. So, lots of extra pictures on regular display now.

Hardanger finally finished up!

After three attempts at getting the zip in today, I eventually managed it this evening. The first time I had the edges too far apart, the second time too far over the actual fastening part and the third time I finally had the good sense to set it very carefully! Anyway, however and whatever, here it is with better photo quality today than originally posted, although the thread colours still don't show!=( I've realised that it's not the original photo that was the problem, it was using the HTML editor to enlarge it -it made it blurred! Odd as the original was easily big enough, but I guess it doesn't work well trying to do this with counted thread fabrics. Also, using the 'centre' justification for photos leaves them unclickable on to see the full size version, so a change of tack is needed for counted thread finishes, methinks!

I've done quite a bit more on 'Spring' and just have the flower pots and label to put on now. I thought that these L*K designs would be quick and fun to stitch, but I've found them to be quite long-winded and rather boring, if I'm honest. I will finish the series as I've had them for years and have gone to the trouble of doing almost two so far, and I do love 'four seasons' collections. I hope they can eventually go in Sir's new study when we go home. we may find a way of displaying them here in the meantime.

We bought a set of the most beautiful lilac rose bedding this week, (which I'd been hoping for for a few weeks!) and that made me really want to pretty up our bedroom. Once I get the rest of the housework up to date (ha-ha-ha!) then I want to make a start on getting things in there looking good. This is the fabric:

And this is a Brazilian embroidery kit that I want to work up to go on the wall. The actual thread colours match the bedding really well.

Not going to meet my target.....

...but I've been doing the best I can. I've been really quite low in strength with virus after virus after virus of late and have, basically, just lost most of the school holidays/vacation to being laid flat with another one. Anyway, I'm still alive and am determined to go to the doctor on Tuesday even if I feel pounds better (although it won't do much good, as I got no help from UK docs for essentially the same problem), and see if s/he has anything of actual use to suggest.

I've done some of the cross stitch as you can see here:

And here is the first of the 4 wired bee's wings for the stumpwork, shown rather larger than life:

I've also cut the backing fabric to size for the hardanger cushion/pillow and pressed all that ready to be tacked and sewn together and we went to Costco for the first time on Monday night where I got some watercolour pencils. They're only the kids' version, but it's a good brand nonetheless and will do to get going with the medium - if I can ever sit up long enough to draw!!!! It's a good thing I'm not the moaning, whining type, I'll tell you!


So, I think there's no danger of my having even one of these pieces finished by the time we get back to language classes on Wednesday, but I will at least have made some progress. Oh, and I'm reading Elizabeth Gaskell's 'Sylvia's Lovers', which I'm not finding myself getting on with so far. I've only read the first 5 chapters, but I find the regional dialects hard going and the subject hasn't hit the spot yet. Early days yet though.

New L*K and stumpwork progress

I've got the 'Spring' button up sampler well and truly in progress now:

And I've also been working some more on the stumpwork piece:

As you can see, I haven't finished the flatwork yet, but the next thing to do is some padded satin stitch, thus starting the raised sort of elements. After that is the bee...

I've finished re-reading 'North and South' and yesterday was lent the DVD of the BBC version of it, so I'm looking forward to watching that. It'd been long enough since I read the book the first time for it to be almost fresh reading, so remember that and don't throw out your good novels - come back to them in 5+ years' time!!!=) Marked to read next is 'Queen Victoria - A Personal History', which I'm hoping will be light enough reading to pass for a novel. I'm also reading 'Anne of Green Gables' in Chinese!!!

'Winter’ finished

I’ve finished stitching the Lizzie*Kate ‘Winter’ button-up piece. Anyone familiar with the design will see that it’s been thoroughly de-Christmassed in that I’ve omitted the Christmas stocking and the star on the tree as well as not put the red beads on the tree, so it’s much more neutral now. DH is going to try and find some way of displaying it in a temporary mount on the wall, which will be nice.


I also did this pastel picture as a copy from a photograph. I couldn’t get to sleep one night and found I was thinking about art and getting on with some, so I got up and made a start on this one. We’re going to put a little mount around that too and pop it on the wall.


Haven’t made a lot of progress on the stumpwork, as you can see here. I think I’m preferring very easy things at the moment, like cross stitch, but that may have something to do with being so dratted tired and a bit sick of using my weary brain for school and just taking care of ordinary things which, as anyone whose lived abroad will know, can be a strain when you have to do it in another language! Anyway, I did some of it yesterday and hope to get a bit more done by and by.


I’ve been reading quite a bit again and finished ‘The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless’ by Eliza Haywood yesterday. It was the first 18th century novel I’d read for a long time after quite a number of Victorian sensation novels, so it seemed a bit slow at times, but it had its thrills. If what one reads there is anything to go by, adultery and all manner of clandestine encounters were very common amongst the middle and upper classes in those days! Seems the lower classes led the way in morality!! Of course, today, there's not much conception of morals at all and what's socially acceptable, or just what one can get away with, is often mistaken for what’s actually right......

L*K progress

My Lizzie*Kate cross stitch is coming on nicely, I've almost finished it! The walls in our new place are that painful white colour that's so start and cold that it looks grey, so I'm trying to get a few nice things done - stitching and artwork - to put on the walls to break up the monotony and make the place look more like a home and less like, well, I can't think what! A Taiwanese friend came to visit yesterday and as she walked in, she exclaimed, 'Oh, how pretty it is!' Well, it isn't (there's nothing completed yet), it's just clean, that's all!

Not done enough on the stumpwork to merit a photo yet. The last shot showed just over half of one leaf done and now there's just over two and half leaves done! Hope to have something to post on that one next week.

I don't have the internet at home now and we're not planning to get it installed (need to conserve funds, esp with the pound being so low against the Taiwan dollar), so please excuse my not having visited your blogs and commented etc. I just can't most of the time. I bring my laptop in to school to update stuff on Mondays and can use the free computer lab other days, but there I don't have access to my bookmarks, of course, so not so easy! Anyway, I'm grateful for folk still visiting me here.=)

Not managed to get a viola to play as yet, but hope to organise that very soon. Been reading a fair bit though (although I agree with Jane Bennet's comment in the latest 'Pride & Prejudice' adaptation, 'I wish I read more, but there always seems to be so many other things to do.'), and have read 'Uncle Silas', re-read 'Northanger Abbey' and am now on with 'The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless'.

Still alive!=)

Long time no post, huh? Sorry for the long silence on here, but I’ve had little or nothing to show stitching wise. I know some have been looking at my life in Taiwan blog, so they know I’m still alive, but judging by the drop in subscriptions on Google Reader, some have given up on me! Well, I’m still here and still stitching!


I’ve finally got the hardanger cushion cover done and am now just waiting to wash it out (there’s a light brown mark just outside the border on one edge) and then get it made up. I’m really cross that, no matter how I try, I just CANNOT get the colour to show up in the threads. It looks virtually white on white, but it’s actually a lovely baby pink and mid lilac shade of thread used. Complete washout when it comes to photography though! And no, you can’t see the shade on the enlargement either – not even a small fraction of it. Why it just won’t show up I can’t imagine! But anyway, the stitching is done and I just need some pins so I can get it all finished up and then sent on to my friend. Sadly, although I saw her the 2nd day I was over here, I can’t remember where I had her write her new address down for me, but I can send it c/o someone else, so all is not lost.=)

I started 2 new pieces, a Lizzie*Kate cross stitch, the Winter Button-Up design and a DMC stumpwork kit – a bee design. Haven’t done much of that as you can see and, anyone who knows the design will see that I’ve de-Christmassed the Winter design so far by omitting the stocking and the star on the evergreen. I won’t be putting the red French knot baubles on the tree either!!


The last photo above is my thread drawer! I brought my complete set of Anchor stranded cottons, some pearl cottons I needed for certain designs I brought (one I thought I’d brought then realised I hadn’t – after specially buying fabric for it too! So, I got another copy on E-bay last week!) and a couple of bags of selected metallics and beads. I’m missing my workboxes though and have wanted my Marlitt (rayons) once or twice. Still, I’ve found a couple of stitching shops – here’s the one nearest to my school, and they seem to do DMC Satin, which I want to collect along with their linen threads, so I might console myself with those!


More soon – it won’t be another month before I post – promise!