Business Trip

Well technically it wasn't a full on business trip, but I went to the island for my sister's graduation from university. For those of you not familiar with the area, the island refers to Vancouver Island, which is a really gorgeous place.

Before (and after) the grad my mom and I found some time to run into a brick and mortar cross stitch store!! Turns out the store was right next door to the hotel we were staying in! For those of you whom are curious what store that was it was The Stitcher's Muse in Nanaimo B.C. ( http://thestitchersmuse.com/shop/en/ ) We did walk away with a few things in there and I could have spent hours in there but we were rushed due to a tight time table. I will for sure be going back next time we are on the island!

Just Nan Patterns "High Hopes" "Bluebird Alphabet" and "Christmas Cheer"

Beads on Cross Stitching

I have spent a couple hours attaching beads to my Emerald Mermaid by Mirabilia. I am loving the look of all these beads on this beautiful mermaid! There sure is a lot more beads than I had originally thought! I am just happy I am used to holding a beading needle and stringing one bead on at a time for my bead weaving I do, tips and tricks I have learned by doing that are coming in handy in this project and threading a beading needle is second nature to me.

While looking for some new beading needles I came across this other project I had done a year ago. It involves beads as well:

It is Beaded Rose by Just Nan. Took me a total of two days to stitch it up and it challenged me with some special stitches and attaching beads.

For attaching beads I use two strands of a color that matches my fabric's color. I use the loop method so I reduce the bulk and I can start in strange places that aren't close to other stitches. I also do a full x in the beads so they are snug and secure on the fabric. For picking up the beads it helps if your fingers are a little moist then they will stick right to your finger and easier to put onto the needle.