OhSewCrafty Blog

• Pattern: by Them Stitches on Etsy
• Materials: 34 count cream linen (2 over 2), DMC as charted
• Size: 6″ x 8″
• Time to stitch: 8 days in February 2016

Yay, I’m finished! This project was a bit more work than I thought it would be.  Note to self: small projects should have stitch dimensions under 100 in both directions.

 The pattern is a very cool, clever design.  The chart is provided via pdf in 2 versions- (multipage and single page).  My only (minor) issue is that the pattern is charted in color only, no symbols.  There are enough similar colors in this – 6 close shades of grey and blue- that symbols would have been helpful.

As for mods, I decided to use a higher count fabric (34 linen v 14 aida).  I wanted the piece to come out smaller.  The 34 count cream linen was stashed.  Other than that, I backstitched “Mira Minion 2016” at the bottom because this will be a gift for the Mirabilia Minions retreat. At the top, per the chart, the letters of “BECAUSE” are left unstitched, ie negative space.  Maybe because I used a higher count (17 vs 14) or that my fabric is cream, not white, the letters were not entirely distinct.  So I stitched the letters in DMC B5200 (bright white) and now they stand out more.   

 The happiness and energy in this piece is really fun.  The tune pops into my head whenever I see it.  I will be fully finishing this as a flat fold, which I have never done before, but I am feeling pretty confident.  The Twisted Stitcher (Vonna Pfeiffer) has an excellent tutorial.