Rob. Go away. Don't look. Spoiler Alert. Danger Will Robinson!
I get the impression that Lee is not pleased when I take on another project when I have a bunch still not finished. I have a quilt that is ready for quilting. I am waiting until I get a new machine to finish that. The craft room is currently full of the stained glass transom project, so I wouldn't be sewing even if I had a machine. Too many glass slivers. The stained glass is waiting until the order for flux and copper patina arrives so I can solder it.
Naturally I had to start a NEW project. This one is SUPPOSED to be one I can work on when I am in bed watching TV. But I need to start it in full light.
I am making a stocking for my favorite son-in-law. Well, my only son-in-law, but my favorite so far! He and Trista have promised to come to Christmas next year. I have made all the kids and my daughter-in-law a stocking, so he's next. My kids all have crewel stockings, but nobody make crewel patterns any more. I did find old ones on EBay, but as much as he is my favorite, I am not paying hundreds of dollars for one. You would think if people would pay hundreds for the old one, somebody would start re-issuing them, but not yet. That's a good idea for when I win the lottery!
The pattern I chose is on fabric with wee tiny squares. In the past I have made them where the pattern is printed on the fabric and then you get a code that shows which stitches go where. This is just a blank canvas with lots of counting tee tiny squares. That means there is a lot of taking out of stitches. Because a lot of the stitches are cross stitched, that means taking out two stitches for each square you put in wrong. You can see why this is a project best started in the light.
I have a collection of wooden frames from making crewel, needlepoint and cross stitch projects in years past. It is easier for me to mount (staple) the whole thing on a wooden frame rather than using a hoop. This way I don't have to move it around and risk damaging the stocking. It does make it awkward in bed. And I have to get up off the bed and put it up high when I am done. It is too big to shove in a drawer. It is not something I want the cats to play with. I am sure it will come away with multiple cat hairs no matter what I do!
This is the top half of the stocking and the pattern.
My plan is to get a good start so that future stitches are easier to locate. Plus, I seem to have a bit of OCD ( I can hear my kids screaming, "A BIT!!!"), so once I start something I become obsessed with finishing it. I have until Christmas, so it's not like there is a big rush or anything!
I like it because it has a old time, nostalgic flavor to it. A kind of country feel. My son-in-law is very much of a big city, grew up in London, kind of guy, so I hope he likes it. He'd BETTER.
