Word Searches

 I have taken to making some word searches in French. Figured I should share them with you too.

Sorry the second one doesn't have a word list. But you can find the French words around the web really easily! 

A little bit of fun if you are bored :D 

Happy Stitching, 

Caitlin

Stitching Update

 I've been a bit sick this last week. Ended up with a couple of days off work and it just hasn't gone to plan. It doesn't help that I have absolutely no energy thanks to having been sick. I often get home from work and just collapse. You know those days? I've got all sorts of amazing goals and thoughts going around for my stitching but I am really struggling to actually follow through and finish them. 

 

Some of what is coming IF I can get myself to actually follow through on my goals. 

 - I'm trying to write a book. It is a book to help beginners with techniques and talking about what you need and don't need to know to actually cross stitch. I want it to be the ultimate resource for people to go to if they need to know something. It will have a selection of exclusive patterns to teach each of the techniques and I'm so excited. I have been adding more words each week so it is something that I am really working on but it may be months more before I have everything written. I want it to be comprehensive and give as much information as possible. I want to do it right. So if you catch me asking questions about techniques you want to know about please give me answers because it's probably for this book. 

- I'm playing with a tonne of new designs. I have a aussie summer design I'm looking to submit to a magazine that I need to work on ASAP. Also a mermaid pattern to go with my fairies which is pretty much done but I am testing out the pattern at the moment so I need to get that finished. 

- I have a tonne of drawings and ideas constantly going through my head. I just have to find time to do it all, which could be why I sometimes struggle to get anything done.I think I just need to focus on a couple of designs and just push through with those and then pick up the next ones. Just little by little! 

So what do I have to show you? 

Well my mermaid is currently looking like this ... so it's getting there. Honestly I don't know what is slowing me down! 

My book dragon has gotten more done on it. I'm missing a few critical colours at the moment and I need to organise to get them but the local store has a horrible selection!

I have also been sewing I needed another skirt for work so I tried out making an 18th century style petticoat. It's secured by Ribbons not buttons or zips. So it was a really quick make. I have worn it a few times to work and it's been perfect and exactly what I needed. I had the zip on one of my work skirts break a couple of months ago so I was getting desperate!

So this is what has been happening in my cross stitch and crafting life at the moment. So much happening at the moment! 

Happy Stitching, 

Caitlin

Friday Finds: Working With Lemons

So since Hamilton dropped on Disney plus I may have been just a little bit obsessed... though I can't honestly say whether a whole day has gone without me singing the music or listening to it at all... actually I can say it honestly. I've listened to it daily. And then I started searching youtube and stumbled across this channel. Working With Lemons.

They have done a few movies in real life videos. I love the ones they did of frozen as well. But this one of The Schuylar Sisters from Hamilton is awesome. As are their versions of helpless and satisfied. Check them out to see more awesome songs, they can sing and the work they put into the videos is awesome.

Happy Stitching,

Caitlin

New Start: Book Dragon

I've been waiting to start this for a while. Honestly for no reason other than just hadn't started it. I got given this pattern for mother's day a few years ago. I fell in love with the books and the sleeping dragon. I am almost as obsessed with dragons as I am with owls. Though I always forget what makes a wyvern vs a dragon (something to do with the amount of legs).

I haven't gotten far, I keep getting distracted by some test stitching. But I will do some more work on this soon. It will take me a while to finish this but I'm looking forward to this one slowly appearing. I still need a few more of the colours and spotlight didn't have it last time I looked! Their collection is getting worse and worse each time I go in there!

I'm really looking forward to what this one will become. I already have a second one of these dragon patterns a knitting one to do as well. They will be gorgeous on display.

Happy Stitching,

Caitlin

Fairy Party

Who doesn't love to think about the fairies that obviously love at the bottom of the garden? We all know they must be there. So with my obsession about fairies in full swing after a passing comment at a cross stitch meeting about fairies being good to stitch for kids particularly since she was thinking of making something for a little baby I felt the need to do some designing.

You can get the pattern here

Now this was about 4 months ago that I started with this idea going around in my head... but as I keep saying nothing has gone to plan this year and everything has been out of order.

But last weekend I was bored and going through patterns on my computer when I happened upon the file for the fairies. Well that was me done and I settled in to do some test stitching.

I grabbed my boxes of threads and lay them out and then I had to start picking colours. The pattern was originally in generic greens and pinks and I knew that wasn't what I wanted but it was what was easiest when designing so I could have some fun. Of course being me I gravitated straight to the purple :D

Does anyone else love playing with colours and just looking in the pretty boxes full of threads? No? Just me? Oh well!

I had a lot of fun playing with these and knew I didn't just want to offer it with a light skin tone so I played with a darker brown for the next one and even without purple I fell in love with this one too!

Isn't she so cute? I just love the way she looks :D Then because I had the metallic bug and I went a bought a pile of pretty sparklies that I KNEW I needed to try out something for! I used the dark purple sparkly E718 and it ended up being soooo pretty!

But it's so hard to get a good photo of the sparkles but you get a good idea looking at it here! What colours would you play with if you made these fairies?

So what would you make for your fairies?

The pattern is now available in my shop and it comes with the three fairy designs which are two styles of dresses and two styles of wings and hair. You can make these however you want and I would love to see what you come up with! So many awesome options!

I hope you enjoy this pattern as much as I enjoyed making it!

Happy Stitching,

Caitlin