Oh, my last Desiderata post! I got this back yesterday, and was able to photograph it today. It was quite a gloomy day yesterday.
Archives
Desiderata finis
The completed sampler. It got a little cut off on the bottom, but I ain’t scanning again! lol I took so many fruitless photos. This is plenty good for me. 😮
Vitals:
Desiderata designed by Catherine Strickler of Indigo Rose
Stitched on 32-ct Antique White linen using recommended silks.
Minor changes in spacing of text and wording to reflect copyrighted version
Here’s my webshots link, in case you see a broken picture. I’m having a devil of a time today. The picture shows up in the editor, then disappears.
Desiderata Monday, pt. 43
Desiderata Monday, pt. 42
I finished the bottom band, and did the cutting. I’ve learned that the cutting part of hardanger is meant to be done by hand. I did part of it on the scroll rods, and part of it half on and half off the rods–with the bottom part of the sampler off the rods and the rest on. That was not a good idea. oops. Oh, well. I believe I can fix my boo-boos, which are easy to spot (shaggy ends, cut threads that shouldn’t be cut, like that). I just need to find a quiet, patient frame of mind. Next Monday, perhaps? I’m taking a breather right now.
I think I’m going to add beads to my acorns, too. I saw it on someone else’s wip photo in Webshots and really liked it. If I decide I don’t like it, after all, no big deal. Especially after my hardanger adventure, yes? 🙂
Desiderata Monday, pt. 41
Desiderata Monday, pt. 40
Crazy busy week this week, and I’m not adapting well to WordPress changes. Still, I managed to make progress on this band. I’m starting to stress about the cutting. 😀
Be Cheerful.
I am! I finished the text on Desiderata yesterday. And, and, I touched bottom! Yes, I have reached the last band. I stayed up late watching true crime shows just to do it. My heart was pounding with excitement when I began the Kloster band, I kid you not. It was really hard to put it away today, but I have that dragon I want to finish before the end of time, so I can’t get distracted by Desiderata Tuesday, Wednesday, etc. I’ll have to rely on other distractions in my dragon-procrastinating efforts. OK, first, the unexciting close-up of the initial Kloster baby steps:
Now the squeeful progress picture!
You know what next week is: Kloster Block City! I’m looking forward to it like I looked forward to concerts back in the day. 😀
Sham, drudgery and broken dishes
Dreams. Whatever. Cleaning dishes is drudge work, they’re never really *done,* plus it sucks when your dishes break, and your perfect set is suddenly lacking. I know. I’m livin’ the dream. I miss that bowl. *sob* Enough of my babbling, on with the pics!
Star close-up:
I think the gold diagonal lines in the full-size pic look lumpier than in the close-up. On second thought, maybe it’s just me.
Desiderata Monday, pt. 37
Almost forgot to post this!
In spite of two parts of John Adams, and the return of The Big Bang Theory (b/c of them?), I didn’t finish this band. I am loving stitching it, of course.
One thing I love about this plaited stitch is its delicate, feathery quality. It sort of reminds me of a fish skeleton. Sorry about that. It does, somehow, in a good way. It seems to have a different nature when I look at the close up. It’s like the close up is less delicate, stronger, more substantial. Maybe b/c you can see the depth in the close up. I can’t explain it. I’ll just enjoy it.
Did I mention I got a new skein of Peacock for this band? The dyelot my LNS had recently has more variegation than the original skien I had. My first skein had far more of the deep turquoise and less of the browner tones. This color is so perfectly named. I think of the color name, and as I stitch, the colors change, and it’s just right, the colors of a peacock’s feathers. I really enjoyed it–the stitching, the color name, thinking of a peacock’s feather, the feathery quality of the plaited stitch. It made me happy.
Desiderata Monday, pt. 36
Stupid Frog! Because it wasn’t bad enough that reality hit and I realized that No Way am I going to finish Desiderata in the month of March, I had to make the simplest of counting errors that resulted in frogging half a day’s progress. Zee gods, zey are laughing at me now. Or croaking. Like there’s a difference.
The triple rice stitches are ready for their close-ups!
Desiderata Monday, pt. 35
I didn’t get any stitching done last Monday. The boy hit his head during lunch, and it was urgent care and the e/r after that. He’s doing very well, 100%. It’s just better to be over-cautious about head injuries.
This week I stitched quite a bit, to make up for last week. I really wanted to finish this current band, but that was pipedreaming. I’m getting excited; I can see the end. I was daydreaming I might finish by the end of March. I have mixed feelings about this. I can’t wait to finish, and have Desiderata framed and hanging in my house, but I’m going to miss Desiderata Monday. I love stitching this sampler.
Close-ups:
Long-arm cross stitch under “peace,” b/c when I stitch Desiderata, I’m at peace.
Close-up of one cross. Can I just say, vertical queen stitches are a pain!!!
Desiderata Monday, pt. 34
I changed the text again. The original chart has a comma after “be” instead of a period. I had to scoot the text over to make room for the capital “A.”
I love stitching this so much. I’m excited about finishing, framing and hanging it in my home. But I don’t want to come to the end, either! I just have to finish this block of text, one stitchy band, another block of text and the final, hardanger row.
I’ve enjoyed having “Desiderata Monday” to look forward to almost as much as stitching it. I’ve decided to choose one of my BAPs from my Goals list to replace it once I’ve finished. I hope I love my next once-a-week project as much as this one. I know whatever I choose, it won’t be as fun to announce as it has been to say to my family, “Do you know what today is?” [They always say, “No.”] Then I get to proclaim, “It’s Desiderata Monday!” Such fun. 🙂 It’s been part of the joy.
From little acorns…
A beloved sampler grows! I finished the fourth page of Desiderata!
WIP photo complete with my constant companion, my crane needleminder, and one of my new thread holders from Monique, which I purchased from her Etsy shop. 🙂
Close-up of the little acorns. 🙂 🙂
Desiderata Monday, pt. 32
While I was stitching the stems for my acorns, they seemed kind of ‘thorny’–the cross stitches seemed isolated and spiky. They don’t look thorny now. It must have been a super-close to the stitching thing.
Story of the acorns, or why thorough reading of instructions are a good thing: I’m stitching the sampler in silks, and the instructions say to use one ply of silk floss for all stitches, except where noted. I missed the part where it said to use 2 plies for satin stitch, but used 2 plies when I stitched the illuminated “G,” anyway, thinking I was instructed to use a single ply, but using 2 plies b/c I wanted to stitch it that way. So when I read the instructions for the first acorn, way back when, and it specified using 2 plies of floss for the satin acorn top, I thought I should use 3 plies, so as to make the satin top fuller than the other satin stitching in the sampler. You know, like, the directions were telling me to use an extra ply of floss. It was only later that I realized it was only redundant instructions, and not a directive for really plump satin stitching. Fast-forward to this acorn row, and the instructions say to stitch the row like the first acorn. What’s a girl to do? Stitch it as it was intended, or stitch it like the first? I chose to stitch it like the first, so I’ve got really plump acorn tops going on right now. I did it partly for sameness, and partly b/c “That’s what the instructions say to do!” ;o) and partly b/c I think it’s kinda funny. Sort of. If you’re weird like me. ;o)
Almost done with Page Four! cool.
Desiderata Monday, pt. 31
I didn’t get all my stuff done, but I spent a lot of time with Desiderata anyway. Sue me.
Originally when I looked at the model picture of this part of the sampler, I thought the diamond motifs were different colors, or possibly Watercolors Cafe Au Lait. Not so! They are all stitched with the same color. I think this row is a beautiful illustration of just how different a color can look, based on the density of the stitch used. In this case, those stitches happen to be Rhodes, Satin, Queen, Eyelet.
Right now I’m wondering how a single queen stitch stitched over the same area, rather than four clustered together, would compare to the satin stitch. All of these stitches were accomplished with a single strand of floss, as instructed. Else, I’d’ve used 2 ply for the satin diamond, out of habit. I do like how it looks, and the effect.
I’m going to go ponder the single queen stitch question. I doubt I’ll actually stitch them. Pondering is a useful way to spend a few minutes. Enjoy your day! 🙂
Desiderata Monday, pt. 30
I thought this week was going to be a week with a lot of progress, but we’ve been busy, and I was wrong. I considered not posting a progress pic at all, since the progress is minimal, but my intent in starting Desiderata Monday was documentation. I stitched, therefore I will post a progress pic.
You are a child of the universe
Small progress again this week, but I’m getting there stitch by stitch. 🙂
Desiderata Monday, pt. 28
Happy New Year!
Yesterday was busy, putting away Christmas for another year, so not a lot of stitching. I didn’t want to forsake Desiderata at my first opportunity this year, though, and did manage to get some progress. Some is always better than none, yes? 😉
Desiderata Monday, pt. 27
I didn’t get my replacement floss until yesterday. That was OK, b/c I’ve been busy with Christmas preparations and other stitchy goodness, so I didn’t feel very disappointed. This will be my last Desiderata Monday of the year. I’m sure I won’t be stitching on Christmas Eve, and I’m going to visit my brother New Year’s weekend, so Desiderata has been lovingly stored until January. Now for progress pics! This was all the progress I could make with the floss I had left:
Close-up fun–fully stitched flower, and not-quite-finished flower:
Desiderata Monday, pt. 26
I was sick last Monday, and didn’t get to stitch on Desiderata. I stitched merrily away this week. I’m very nearly out of the floss for this row. I ordered some more, but I don’t know if it will arrive by next Monday. *sob* Of course, I’ll move on, but I will be sad to have to skip ahead.
These aren’t the best pictures. It’s been cloudy, and I rushed. Busy time of year, and all that. :o)
Raised by Poodles 
