Celebrate your Heart is finished!

YAY! ! !

Not without some problems though!

I kept running into a mistake I made early on. I kept thinking I had corrected for it. but nooooo! I kept running into it.
The heart shape is much like a circle and can be a nightmare if the ends don't meet!

It seems slightly askew to me, but I am very glad that it is done! I added my very teeny, tiny initials just under the Christmas tree, near the date.

I hope to get it framed shortly.

I didn't really know what to do for my next project.

I decided to stitch "Nil aon tintean mar do thintean fein". This is Gaelic and translates to"There's no hearth like your own hearth", or "Home Sweet Home".

This is a freebie that I found on http://gryphonsmoon.com/freebies/cross-stitch1.pdf .

I had trouble deciding on the color thread for this. I finally decided to use a traditional green on natural Irish linen. I was tempted to use a color that was lighter than the fabric, and I am still second guessing myself on this, but this is what I have so far:
I enjoy stitching these letters. Years ago I did calligraphy, and I always enjoyed writing in the Uncial hand.

After the 1 over 1 on 40 count, this looks absolutely HUGE to me! I had to keep checking that it was indeed 32 count, and it is! If I did it again, I might do it on 36 ct though.

It is still very much winter here. Our latest storm on Monday, dumped another 6 inches or so on us. Our furnace is not working very well so we have to use our woodstove to supplement the heat. Somehow or other I managed to hurt my back. It is just killing me. I can't seem to get comfortable in any position! Carrying wood in does not help either! To make matters worse, today I managed to burn my hand. Nothing serious, just annoying! I am hoping it does not leave a scar.

Ah Winter! Can spring be far behind?

Hope not!

Celebrate your Heart!

My next project is Celebrate Your Heart (Splendor XII) from The Heart's Content.


I am stitching this as designed (one stitch over one thread on 40ct linen), but I am thinking that I should have my head examined for doing this!
I ruined the first piece of linen when I tried to frog an entire row. You can remove perhaps one stitch from this, but an entire row is out of the question. I broke through one of the threads, so I had to cut another piece and start again.

After a very rocky start, it is finally coming along now. It is not what I would call enjoyable stitching however! I think it would have looked perfectly nice over 2 threads!

This is what I have so far:

There is an area on her dress that looks very muddy. There is supposed to be a skipped space, but it is very hard to see the detail. I think there is a mistake in there, but there is no way I am going to take it out again!

What I should have done is practiced before I started this! It really is quite different stitching. I can only do a little bit at a time. My eyes just refuse to focus after a while, even with reading glasses and a magnifier!
I have had this in my stash for ages. I figured that my eyes would never be any better than they are now, so I may as well try it.

Hopefully, I will have it done by Valentine's Day!