Mad Hatter and Cupcake Cross Stitch Patterns

I struggled with designing this Mad Hatter cross stitch pattern for a long time. I had the top section completed but struggled on making the pleats in the skirt and making it look realistic. Today I sat down and forced myself to finish and this is what I came up with:

She sits prettily with a dazed look on her face while sprinkling some sugar into her tea cup. I used beads for the sugar and she has a few more beads in her hair, her vest and the trim of her dress.  There is also details stitched with Krienik #4 very fine braid for the trims of her sleeve and her hat's ribbon and other areas.

And here is the finished cupcake cross stitch design I have done:

My favorite color combination was used here. Aqua and pink go together to make this romantic cross stitching of a cupcake and some chocolate bon-bons. A sprinkle of white beads are used for the sprinkles ontop of the blue icing. It is a very cute little cross stitching that I think would look amazing in my kitchen!

Cupcakes Num!

I have been busy working on a Christmas fair that is coming up so I haven't been able to cross stitch much this past week. After a couple of days doing jewellery I felt like I wanted to do some cross stitching so I brought out my mom's collection of started and put together kits. In the process of sorting through all of her cross stitching stash I came across a project I had sat down and finished within 1.5 days. It was my cupcakes!:

The pattern was originally for a cupcake cushion and it was featured in Cross Stitch Gold issue 11 (April 2009) and was designed by Susan Bates. It was a pretty cushion but I wanted to just do one cupcake, the cherry on top one. I enjoyed stitching the lovely coloured cupcake so much that I had decided to do two more and make a wall hanging for my future kitchen. I changed a few colours in order to make them all work together and I made sure there was a fruit on either end with the flower in the middle to make it balanced.

I don't know how I should finish it though. It is between framing it in pink fabric with white polk-a-dots and finishing it off with it being kind of quilted...or just frame it in a frame with a soft colour mat in either a yellow or a pink. What are your thoughts? I would love to hear your opinions.