Archive for the 'Memes' Category
Well, I’ve pretty much given up trying to stay on time with these questions, but fear not they will eventually be answered. I have two for you today:
How do you feel about staying totally true to a pattern? Do you feel that you have to rip out stitches to fix a mistake or do you feel it’s acceptable to incorporate a mistake into the design?
Some stitchers answered this question as two questions, and I kind of interpreted it the same way. As far as the first part goes - I am reasonably comfortable making colour changes or small design changes to a chart, though I’ve done nothing major yet. However, I don’t think that’s the major question here. I think the question is actually about fudging. If I make a mistake, usually I rip it out and fix it. If it’s only tiny, like a missed stitch or two, I might fill the stitches in with a similar colour when I’m in the area. But if it’s a real error, usually a counting error (which is why I grid), I’ve learned that it’s best to bite the bullet and go back, no matter how long it takes. I am bad at fudging. Bad, bad, bad!
Do you always sign your projects? If not, why? If so, do you use your first name, initials or what?
I’ve only signed two projects. One, the ornament I stitched for Danielle, has our initials on the back, but it’s more as part of the design, like a sampler, than a ’signature’. I have no problem with that type of ’signing’. The other is a piece I stitched for my Dad. He likes to sign books when he gives them as gifts, so I knew he would appreciate me putting my name to my stitching. He did. But I didn’t really like it - I just backstitched my initials and the year in small-type, in a pale colour found in the design, but to me, whenever I look at that piece on the wall, my eye is drawn immediately to the signature, and it’s not really a part of the design. I do like some people’s stitched signatures though, and perhaps one day I’ll change my mind, and design something I like better.
November 27 2005 | Counted Stitchwork and Memes | Comments Off
Loved this quiz - found it on Jo’s blog, but it originally came from Anna. The questions must be answered with cross-stitch charts. This is a dangerous exercise though - I think my wishlist grew by half as I looked for all my answers 
1. Are you male or female? New Graduate Girl (Pinn Stitch Kits)
—well… almost
2. Describe yourself: Child of Spring (Victoria Sampler)
3. How do some people feel about you? Gotta Love a Stitcher (Bask Designs)
4. How do you feel about yourself? I Know All About Stressed (Twisted Threads)
5. Describe your love interest: Tech Support (Calico Crossroads)
6. Where would you rather be? Fly Me to the Moon (4 My Boys)
7. Describe what you want to be: The Fortunate Traveler (TW Designworks)
8. Describe how you live: Plain and Fancy (Barrick Samplers)
9. Describe how you love: Straight From the Heart (Annalee Waite Designs)
10. Share a few words of wisdom: Clean Your Ears (Calico Crossroads)
November 18 2005 | Counted Stitchwork and Memes | 1 Comment »
Morsel 1
So apparently by the time I posted last night, the ‘incompetents’ had actually won the match on a penalty shoot out and “we’re” going to the World Cup. Yay us. Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi. There. No one can accuse me of being un-Australian now 
The most amusing thing for me is that OtherHalf fell asleep and missed the excitement. Ha!
Morsel 2
We have a washing machine! The guy who installed it raved on about the brand as he ran me through the workings of this new model. I rolled my eyes. I must say though, I am honestly happy with the larger size, despite what we’ve been through to get it. It seems the company will only honour the original warranty, which expires in August ‘06. That’s what I expected, but it would have been nice to have a few months added to the warranty in compensation, if not an entirely new warranty for the new machine. But hey.
Morsel 3
Last week’s SBQ. I can’t really flesh it out enough to be a post of it’s own, so:
When comparing large projects versus small projects, which do you get more excited about finishing?
Without a question, it’s large projects for me. I like finishing small projects, for sure, and they certainly make the numbers add up faster. But for me, nearing the end of a large project (and I’ve only finished two) brings a tangible excitement, and once I’ve actually finished, I find I can’t tear my eyes away from it for at least a week!
Morsel 4
Want to know what made my day today? I retrieved a man’s walking cane for him as I waited in a checkout line… and he responded with “Thank you, my lady”. My lady! That is 500% better than ma’am. Which I hear all too often… and it’s been far too long since I heard a ‘Miss’. I say we return to ‘milady’, and to hand kissing and jousting for favours, too! What fun
Morsel 5
What didn’t make my day today was a $50 parking fine. OK, my own fault, I deserve it. I thought I looked at the parking sign, but I somehow saw only the time restriction, and not the fact it was paid parking. D’uh! I was at a perfectly wonderful toyshop while unwittingly parking illegally, but somehow my toy shopping expedition feels a little tarnished now 
Morsel 6
Lastly and leastly, though I answered her already, the answer to Cathy’s question of a few posts ago is that I am due June 20th. Just reached the 9 week mark this week. I would put a countdown over on the side bar there, but I don’t want to be tempting fate just yet, no no no.
November 17 2005 | Counted Stitchwork and Family and General Ramblings and Memes and Pregnancy | Comments Off
Here’s the remaining two SBQs to bring me up to date:
Have you ever stitched something as a gift and later realized that receiver doesn’t respect your stitched gift a bit (for example it’s never on show, or you have other reason to suspect that it may even be nonexistent or at least placed in some dark storage room corner)? If so, what have you done? If you’ve been lucky enough to avoid such people what would you do if it’d happen to you?
I have been very selective in my choice of giftee. Other than immediate family (and then only those who I know would appreciate the value of a stitched gift), only a few friends who are also stitchers have received a stitched gift from me. None of the gifts have ended up in dusty corners or been otherwise ill-respected. I have a few more people to stitch for, but mostly I’m happy to stitch for myself. I wouldn’t want something I spend so much time on to be thrust away disdainfully, that’s for sure. I think if that happened, I’d secretly kidnap the piece back!
And finally:
If you have stitched for a while, can you usually pick out the DMC colors you need from memory when you go to your LNS? (For example, you know that 610 is a brown.)
Well, white, ecru, 310 and B2500 are not a problem, of course. And I would know 3041 and 3042 if I chanced upon them in a dark alley! I could probably identify a handful of other colours commonly used by Teresa Wentzler as well. But if I had a shopping list and left it home, I would be bound to forget what was on it. I have a spunky new PDA now though, so I’ll never be leaving my shopping lists behind again!
November 06 2005 | Counted Stitchwork and Memes | Comments Off
Hoo boy… I am a little bit behind on these questions. Here goes:
How do you ‘non-hoopists’ who use a rotation system handle it (as it seems to be lot easier if you are in good terms with hoop)? Do you have several scroll frames? Do you use Q-snaps or maybe something completely different? Or do you just have one or two big projects and others are small enough to be kept in hand while stitching?
I am a very happy Q-snapper. I have all the sizes (and two sets of 11-inch, which I like the best), and they do the trick very nicely, when rapid changeover is required. I will never ever use hoops again, as I am not dedicated enough to remove stitching from the hoop regularly, and I have a few small pieces with irremovable hoop-marks on them.
I only stitch in-hand for very small pieces like ornaments, can’t seem to handle anything more than that.
Oh, and a confession - I also have multiple scroll frames! Before I discovered Q-snaps I tried to find a scroll frame system I was happy with. I love the look of scroll frames, Q-snaps are a little, well… plumber’s pipe in appearance, aren’t they?! So I have two cheapy scroll frames and also a very nice set of Lokscrolls from Artisan designs, which are great, but I can’t manage to get the tension I like, using these. So I Q-snap. Someday I will sell off the hardware I don’t want!
Here’s another:
Do you mark or hi-lite your patterns or can you follow them without any markings? Do you make copies to mark up, or do you mark originals?
Um… follow without markings? Ahahahahahahaha! Um… no. I can’t do that. I am a highlighter. I don’t like to mark the originals (I suppose I could trade them afterwards, but really, I’m just a collector, and I like my collection to be in good condition). So working copies are my thing, and whatever highlighter colour I have to hand. Once upon a time I marked up the copies with pencil, but on more than one occasion, stupidly stored the pencil-marked copy with the WIP and ended up with stubborn pencil marks on floss and fabric. So far, touch wood, I haven’t had any disastrous highlighter incidents. I think Finn knows what Mummy would do if he drew on my stitching
November 04 2005 | Counted Stitchwork and Memes | Comments Off
I happy danced today, for the first time in a while. (Actually, I prematurely danced for this piece two days ago on the Rotation BB, but I had some finishing touches to apply.) I’m also very, very close to another HD. Unfortunately, I can’t share either one with you So you’ll probably think I’m making it up or something, and that I don’t really actually ever stitch. Not true, not true!
The piece I finished today was a lot of fun to stitch, and very quick. I’d forgotten how much fun little stuff can be. Next year will be the year I finally start a rotation, and I’m definitely including small projects amongst my favoured ginormous ones 
Which brings us to this week’s SBQ:
When you have almost finished a pattern and start thinking about the next one to stitch, how do you select it? (a list, most recent purchase, etc.)
When I’m stitching anything, I always seem to be wanting to stitch something else. This is why a rotation so far hasn’t really worked for me - I’m a screamer! Also, because I mostly stitch large projects, it seems I never finish anything. So while I probably should move on to an existing WIP when I finally have a finish, I usually don’t. I usually like to reward myself with a new start, because there’s nothing in the world like a new start!
My one bit of discipline is I don’t let myself start something similar to a current WIP. So if I already have a large TW, a large Mirabilia, a large Patricia Allison, and a large whatever else design on the go, I won’t let myself start another something large from those designers until I finish the one I’m working on. So lately, if I have a finish, I’ve been looking to start something smallish from my kitted up stash. While I don’t have an enormous backlog of fully kitted projects, I do have a nice selection, and I’ve got a few smaller projects waiting in the wings.
Ultimately though, what dictates what I start is a wallow in my stash. I love that - I go and put away whatever I’ve used for that finished project, and play in all my stuff for a while, and something usually jumps out and shouts “stitch ME” Often I want to start something I’ve been given - if purely to prove to the giver that yes, I do actually want to stitch what you gave me 
I have a few charts in that category right now, and I of course want to start them all, right now!
Le sigh.
Wish I was stitching…
October 07 2005 | Counted Stitchwork and Finished and Memes | 1 Comment »
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