• Customer projects completed

    Thistle Bees by Lanarte. PN-0021870

    August 24, 2018 - By 

    Thistle Bees.

    Lanarte.

    Thistle bees by Marjolein Bastin.

    Lanarte is the latest commission I have received. Lanarte produces beautiful Cross stitch kits, which you can see or purchase by clicking on the link in this paragraph. This was my latest commissions using my favourite DMC threads.

    Thistle BeesIt’s from the animal’s collection on 14ct white Aida fabric with dimensions 23 cm x 32 cm. You can purchase this kit by clicking on the image below.


    The kit is also available to purchase as an Evenweave kit below.

    This kit came with the largest stitch pattern I have ever seen – almost double the size of the actual project! The pattern was, therefore, easy to read but was tricky to physically handle due to its size.

    In addition to this, there are no half stitches or French knots needed in this picture. The back stitch is minimal, thankfully, and worked in long stitch which seems to be how all the modern patterns create their finishing touches. In light of this, it was quick and easy to finish off – normally a task I dread!

    Beware:

    BEWARE of the border. The threads come on a numbered card which corresponds to a given symbol on the stitching chart, as usual. However, when it comes to the border the symbols are numbers which I assumed was the given colour number, but I was WRONG! It was only when I finished and looked at the completed project I thought “something doesn’t look right!” So, I checked the picture that came with the kit and to my horror found I’d used the wrong colours. The numbers around the border represented completely different colours to those on the thread card and should have been a single thread not a double. It did clearly state this on the pattern but I had just assumed and not checked. Oops! Time to unpick and restitch.

  • Customer projects completed

    Love Blossoms by Bothy Threads

    March 20, 2018 - By 

    Love Blossoms by Bothy Threads.

    Love Blossoms by Bothy Threads is the second cross stitch kit I’ve had to complete, by them. They have a large selection of other beautiful cross stitch kits that can be seen or purchased here.

    Love Blossoms by Bothy threads 14ct cross stitch kit complete with yarns, instructions and all embellishments.

    Click on the image to Purchase it here.

    The design is on a 14ct Aida and comes with all threads and embellishments as shown in the picture.

    You need to be a fairly competent stitcher to complete Love Blossoms. It comes, complete, with metallic silver and gold yarns that from previous experience I know are difficult to work with. They kept snagging, separating and tangling as I pulled them through the Aida but found using them in shorter lengths meant I wasted less.  I would not, therefore, recommend the kit to a beginner. Of course, you could swap the silver thread for a light grey and the gold for a beige brown but I think it’s worth sticking with the metallic threads because the overall effect is beautiful.
    Securing the threads is difficult because of the spacing between the separate sections. You must not be able to see them from the front. However, with careful planning, it is possible but it will increase the amount of time it takes to complete each section.

    Back Stitch.

    The backstitch, although time-consuming, is what makes this project come together. Each separate flower, leaf and butterfly suddenly become transformed into this extraordinary piece of artwork. This together with the backstitching of the word LOVE at carefully positioned points in the tree canopy make this, I think, the most detailed and gorgeous project I have worked on.

    Embellishments.

    You add the embellishments (lace flowers, plastic flowers and gold beads) when you’ve completed everything else. Surprisingly they were a lot easier to apply than I first thought they would be. Keeping them in place requires one or two simple stitches, explained in the stitching pattern. Love Blossoms comes with an assortment of embellishments which means you will have spares if you follow the pattern.  However, you can add more to create a more personalised finish to the project if you so desire!
    Love Blossoms by Bothy Threads is hard to complete. However, I am extremely pleased with the finished result. You will need patience and you will have to follow the pattern accurately. For tips on how to do this see my cross stitch tutorial. I would not recommend this kit to a beginner however an advanced intermediate should have no problem completing the cross stitch kit.

    2 years later…..

    The cumstomer contacted me again to add in the names and date to finish this project off. The colour theme for the wedding was gold and forest green. They sent me the coloured yarns to co-ordinate with this but couldn’t decide which colour to complete the writing in. I stitched one name in gold and the other in forest green. You can buy DMC threads at AMAZON UK or AMAZON USA . Of course, I sent photos to the client who made the decision to have the backstitch for both names and the date in forest green because it stood out more against the white aida. The heart, in between the names, I cross stitched in gold and outlined in forest green whilst the hearts between the date were completed in red. Unfortunately, due to privacy reasons, I am unable to add a photo of the completed project.