Blissful Mermaids

Mermaids of the Deep Blue 4

2010-07-23T19:11:00.000+10:00

Mermaids of the Deep Blue
Still gorgeous, huh?

Mermaids of the Deep Blue - Update No: 3

2010-07-08T19:01:00.000+10:00

Mermaids of the Deep Blue - Update No: 3

Day 8 close up

Mermaids of the Deep Blue Sea (MoDBS)

2010-07-05T19:03:00.000+10:00

Day 5 of MoDBS

Show & Tell

2010-07-02T19:06:00.000+10:00

Mermaids of the Deep Blue Sea (MoDBS)

What you have here are two examples of colour.
The green is the designer's choice. The blue is mine.

Here you can see the blue in detail. I'm still not 100% sure about it, but in my opinion it's a vast improvement on the two first attempts using the designer's choice of colour.
What do you think? Tell me even if you don't like it.

Framed

2009-09-12T19:17:00.000+10:00

Queen of the Sea
By Joan Elliott

Queen of the Sea

2009-04-29T18:25:00.000+10:00

Queen of the Sea
By Joan Elliott
Date started: 28th October 2008
Date finished: 29th April 2009 (21.30hrs Australian Eastern Time)

It still needs a wash, and probably the removal of excess Labrador Retriever 'specialty fibres', but here it is in all its glory. I'm so very pleased with it!

Thanks Joan for making it possible.

Thank you everyone in the cross stitch blogworld for your wonderful encouragement! I would never have started, let alone finished it without your egging me on.

Hugs, happiness & laughter to one and all,

Felicity

Queen of the Seas - Update No 12

2009-03-23T18:29:00.000+10:00

I got a chance to do a wee bit of stitching during the weekend!

Queen of the Seas - Update No 11

2009-03-20T18:32:00.000+10:00

A small progress. I've not stitched much in recent months, but here it is ...

Next week, I plan a whole lot more action.

Meanwhile, have a happy weekend, one and all.

Felicity

Queen of the Seas - Update No 10

2009-02-17T18:34:00.000+10:00

Apologies for the dreadful pic, folks

Perhaps I shouldn't be updating. More study, more study! Truth be told, I'm so over study that a break is desperately needed. Not that I've done enough stitching to warrent an update. I just really needed to make contact with your folks, once more.

Here is my tiny effort over the last few weeks.

On the personal front, I've got to make choices that I'd rather not make. My MIL and my sister are both celebrating important birthdays with a party on the same day (which is neither's actual birthday) but 600km apart. What do I do? Do I celebrate my MIL's 80th birthday or do I celebrate my sister, Jane's, 50th? I'm torn. What would you do, folks?

Happiness & laughter to one and all,

Felicity

Queen of the Seas - Update No 9

2009-01-24T18:36:00.000+10:00

Hi folks!

Obviously, none of us was holding my needle this week. LOL.

I had a surprise visit from the Cadet Princess (home from university in the north) and I'm back at the books, so haven't had time to stitch at all since last weekend. It had to happen.

These few fish are all that I managed last weekend before I put away my stitching:

Sadly, it will probably be a few weeks until I get back to it with any gusto. I've got exams again in 4 weeks. After that, the Autumn term commences. If I DO update before the 20th February, give me a lecture about procrastination and tell me that my stitching needs frogging (or something just as off-putting). LOL.

Meanwhile, Cheryl and Margaret have both been very productive this last few weeks. Gorgeous finishes of long term works in progress, I'd say.

Whatever you have been up to, I hope it has been a good week.

Happiness & laughter to one and all,

Felicity

Queen of the Seas - Update No 8

2009-01-17T18:39:00.004+10:00

Isn't my headless beauty simply gorgeous?

Thank you for all your wonderful encouragement, dear friends. You are holding that needle as much as I am.

I've also gotta tell you this: "Long live the gridding technique!" Each square represents 100 stitches, do you realise? That's a lots of counting if one stitches from the middle out. Thanks to my December 2005 trip to Hahndorf (in South Australia), where I learned all about it, my needle almost flies & I rare need to frog.

You readers are probably all bored with my one-project approach, but I'm not.
I'm delighting in a stitching success! After nearly a year of dithering about fabric choices, I am unbelievably relieved to have found something that suits my eye.

It's also glorious relief between hours of statistics & psychology study and visits to the dentist.

I'm probably going to have to repaint a room to suit it. Just kidding. Because her hair colour doesn't suit the colours in my newly finished ensuite bathroom, my sea goddess will go into the family bathroom, when it gets renovated. I know exactly what tiles I'm going to choose.

You might ask why I don't simply change the hair. Well, all mermaids have red hair, don't they? Haven't you ever seen "The Little Mermaid"? They also have lungs so need to breathe fresh air, not sea water, so where's the logic? What seems obvious to me is that merpeople have some sort of hybrid internal osmoregulation system, in which case, we humans should be doing our best to harpoon and dissect them in the name of science (I stole that last idea from someone else. Isn't that a wonderful word? LOL). Go here to check it out.

Logic, Felicity? Mermaids exist, Felicity? Give up, girl, before you really start to rave!

Maybe I will investigate a colour change, after all. Has anyone any more 'chocolatey' colour suggestions?

This week's stitching progress.

The detail is as beautiful as the overall picture. Joan Elliott has outdone herself on this design, don't you think?

Joan has published another project in the English magazine called Cross Stitch Collection (Issue 167 on sale in the UK January 16th and a bit later in the US). The 'Spring Fairy' is the first in a series of four. The design measures 12 x 16 inches and is stitched on what Joan describes as a "gorgeous" hand-dyed fabric called Fairy Footprints from Polstitches (we all know my experience with that mob!). I wouldn't be surprised if it is also featured in Joan's latest book which, ordinarily by now, I would have purchased (I didnt' quite understand if Joan was saying that it was or wasn't from the book, on her site). Unfortunately, while Amazon.com is reasonably priced, their postage to Australia is horrendous and the $$ exchange rate woeful.

Because the new project is pink, I'll probably have to buy another house to renovate or wait until one of the Royal Family produces a grand-daughter to do 'Spring Fairy' - though I can picture in my mind's eye the exact fabric (not Polstitches) I would use to stitch her ...

Ah well. There are so many variables to the stitching of this project, I'll probably give it a miss. It's a damned shame that we can't stitch everything we like, huh?

What new project has caught your eye, dear friends? Do let me know.

Meanwhile, I might mosey along to 123Stitch.com and see what's new there. Looking doesn't cost anything.

Happiness & laughter to one and all,

Felicity

Queen of the Seas - Update No 7

2009-01-10T18:51:00.000+10:00

A picture is worth a thousand words.

Queen of the Seas - Update No 6

2009-01-04T18:53:00.000+10:00

This entry feels a bit like a Sunday Mass - '1st entry in ordinary times' (i.e. after the Advent and Christmas Season).

2009 is going to be a fabulous stitching year.

This is my progress on Joan Elliott's mermaid. It's inspiring what progress can be made when one's on vacation and living the quiet life. My guess is that the work will progress much slower from tomorrow on as we are back to work for 2009. Ughh!!!

If you are interested, pop over see how Harry has grown. He's 9 months old, would you believe?

Happiness & laughter to one and all.

Keep stitching!

Felicity

Queen of the Seas - Update No 5

2008-12-28T18:55:00.000+10:00

" There is a time for everything.."
It's nice to have stitching time again!
It won't last, as life gets hectic again in a week or so.

Queen of the Seas - Update No 4

2008-12-24T14:56:00.000+10:00

Stitch by gorgeous stitch ...

Queen of the Seas - Update No 3

2008-12-15T18:57:00.000+10:00

There's not a lot of stitching time, but it's taking shape, at last

Queen of the Seas - Update No 2

2008-12-06T18:58:00.000+10:00

Beautiful colours.
It will soon begin to take shape.

Queen of the Sea - Update No. 2

2008-12-06T14:18:00.000+10:00

Beautiful colours.
It will soon begin to take shape.

Queen of the Sea - Update No. 1

2008-11-25T14:21:00.000+10:00

I started the Mermaid about a month ago.
I've not done much, but I'm enjoying doing some (as opposed to no) stitching again.

Queen of the Sea - Update No. 1

2008-11-23T18:59:00.000+10:00

I started the Mermaid about a month ago.
I've not done much but I'm enjoying doing some (as opposed to no) stitching again.

Love Embrace

2008-08-23T17:45:00.004+10:00

This counted cross stitch pattern was designed from the beautiful artwork of Maria Van Bruggen. It shows a beautiful mermaid in an embrace with a fish.

Stitches = 157w x 223h
Colours = 85 DMC colours

The pdf pattern can be found at Artecy

Mermaids of the Deep Blue #85

2008-04-16T10:41:00.006+10:00

Nora Corbett
Released on August 26th, 2005.

Two daughters of the sea swim gracefully toward treasure lost.
Their tails sparkle like diamonds and emeralds.
Their hair flows around them like veils of silk.
They are real and fairytale combined to become beauties of the deep.

I have had the chart and fabric for quite a while but didn't want to start this project until I had finished other WIPs. Then last year, my son's girlfriend, Nadia, went through my stash collection and fell in love with this work. For Christmas, I gave her the pattern, fabric, beads & floss to do the project. Her fabric was much nicer than mine (& a totally different colour), so I sent away for a second piece of fabric to put with my waiting kit.

Finally today, I have started gridding. I'm so excited!

I don't usually work on more than one item at a time, but this is going to be something special. I'm going to work in with the Yahoo Mirabilia group's Wednesday SAL timeframe.

Watch for weekly updates.

Happy stitching until next time,

Bliss