Status: Cross Stitch finished.

I think I'm just going to let the pictures speak for themselves, because I've run out of words when it comes to this project.

If you're going to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, it will be exhibited in the Arts and Crafts Show. 

The Creative Breakroom

Hi everyone, just a quick little note today.

A fun new forum has just opened up for people who are interested in all things crafty. Originally a part of the Etsy forums, and then the Unofficial Etsy Forums, the Creative Breakroom is going to be a fun place to hang out. Come find us over there and say hello!

 

My Palette Cleanser

I had a whole post written to update everyone on what was happening with my Gabriel and Mary project (discussed here and here). Last week, it was looking like a total disaster. I had finished stitching, unpicked all the guide lines, washes and ironed the cloth … and the creases were still there. It was looking pretty dire.

So I had a post written about how I was giving up, and seriously considering starting the whole thing over again (which everyone thinks is crazy and, frankly, IS crazy). I was just about to put the post up when I was reading the CrossStitch Forums, where I’ve been talking about this project a lot. A lot of people offered suggestions for my problems, which I am very, very grateful for, but one in particular, Sadpingu, linked an article on another forum which exactly described my problem, and how to fix it. In short, by weaving some thread through the back of the stitches where the creases are, I could fix the tension problems which were causing the creases.

And it seems to be working.

So I would like to take this opportunity to send out a big THANK YOU to Sadpingu, whoever you are, especially given that you registered for the forums specifically to pass on that advice to me. As I said on the forums, if I knew you in real life, I would give you a big, fat, sloppy kiss right now.

Meanwhile, I found myself a lovely little project to take my mind off my other cross stitch dilemmas. Another poster on the CrossStitch Forum, Offe, has a link to her website with some very pretty little designs for free, and I just loved this one.

I’ve been calling it my Palette Cleanser. And it has been very nice to have something quick and fun to do while I’m in denial about my gigantic cross stitch problems. So thank you also to Offe!

 I’ll put up another post once I’m completely done with Gabriel and Mary. But it’s looking good!

I won an award!

I’m very excited, I just won my first blog award!

And apparently there are rules to this, so I’ll do my part. Here we go …

1. Thank the person that awarded you:

            A big thank you to Planet Treasures.

 2. List 7 things about myself:

              1. I play World of Warcraft when I’m not cross stitching.

2. I married my boyfriend from high school.

3. My favourite musicians at the moment are Muse, Imogen Heap and Disturbed.

4. I spent two months working on an archaeological dig in Egypt in 1999/2000.

5. I’ve never broken a bone in my body.

6. I have recurring nightmares about tsunamis, so I really, really feel for the people in Japan!

7. My favourite season of the year is spring.

3. Pass the award to 15 other stylish bloggers -

1. Wired to my World
2. Becky Bee’s Stitching Hive
3. Diary of a Craft-aholic
4. Toni’s Favourite Things
5. Donna’s Craft Cross StitchBlog
6. Happiness is Cross Stitching
7. A Cozy Little Place forStitching
8. A Shoebox of Photographs
9. Nikki’s Attic
10. Georgica Designs
11. Celebrate the Odd
12. I Love Red
13. Book Geekery
14. Kalish Designs
15. Sunshine and Lolli

4. Let those bloggers know

            All done.

Thanks again to Planet Treasures!

New Designs - Vintage Home

I've been busily working on a new collection of cross stitch designs based on vintage images from 1920s and 1930s magazines. I'm very pleased to release the first two of these, The Rose and Parisian Elegance.

I'm working on lots more like this, so stay tuned in!

In other news, I've created a Stitches By Kryss Twitter page, so you can follow blog updates from your Twitter feed. You can find the link on the right of the page, along with links to Facebook, and my Etsy and Artfire stores (where you can also find my new patterns!). 

How To … Publish Your Own Book

My super-clever Mum asked me a couple of months ago about a website she had heard of where you could publish your own books. I’d never heard of it, but we went to check it out.

It’s called Blurb, and I was extremely impressed with how user-friendly it is. You can write your book online with Bookify, or you can download the software to your computer with Booksmart. Then you upload the photos you want to include in your book, and just use the uncomplicated tools to lay everything out. It can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. You order as few or as many copies of your book as you want, and it’s posted to you very quickly. Even the prices are pretty good! As methods of self-publishing go, it’s really very straightforward.

And you can write your book about anything. If you browse around the Blurb Bookshop, you can see the books that other people have uploaded. There’s everything from children’s picture books, photo albums, art and photography books … all completely unique. 

So one day in late January, Mum and I put together a book of her designs, specifically about her inspirations around her home and her photography, drawings and embroidered artworks which resulted. The result was brilliant, and we had a lot of fun working on the project together. 

  

For myself, I’m thinking of putting together a photo book of my daughter’s first year. She’s seven months old now, so I’ve got time to consider it!

I would really recommend Blurb to anyone who is interested in showing off their work in a book. With just a little computer savvy and a bright idea, you could be a published author!

P.S. If anyone is interested in a copy of my Mum's (Carolyn Sullivan) book, you can email me at stitchesbykryss@gmail.com.