Next weekend it’s the London Marathon and it still seems strange for it to be held in October, rather than April. It changed during the pandemic, and next year will return to its more usual spot in the calendar. I’m not running, and most likely never will - I can see it’s an uplifting experience, but it’s also 26.2 miles which is a long, long way.
My various craft projects are also like marathons, some much longer than others. It could be they take a while as there’s so many on the go at once, who knows. But doing all of one thing doesn’t really appeal, and so with projects that work ‘on the go’ and those that can’t I’ve realised over this summer that I have a new category - hot weather projects. I haven’t picked up a crochet hook for a couple of months, the idea of having wool in my hands or a blanket growing on my lap didn’t really appeal. Over the summer I’ve done more colouring, which has been a joy, and once again picked up my cross stitch.
I last picked this up in 2014, which is a while ago - and its twenty year anniversary, but I put it down again relatively quickly too as to be honest I was struggling to see it properly! Now though my eyes (and most likely my contact lenses) are working much better so this summer I’ve made much more progress than before. Though you’ll see there’s still about half left to do.
I love the bright colours and the detail that goes into each rose, each often using four or five colours, and I’m pleased with the progress I’ve made. It’s never easy picking something up again, but that is also part of the challenge I think, though this time I realised that while I did have the original pattern and two many-folded photocopies, somehow I was missing one of the colours, which is why not all of the ‘flowers’ on the wallpaper are complete. I’m lucky to have mentioned that to my mum who had the colour in her supplies and knew just where it would be too - amazing!
I’d have been completely lost without the thread key though, the symbols on the chart at times perplexed me and I came quite close to drawing them onto the packs - though not all are in cellophane packs, so that would have thwarted my plans! As well as making some progress it’s gained a pouch for the embroidery threads which is much more pleasing than a plastic bag.
I’ve also realised that these photos show that it has been abandoned for the past week or so and is looking a little more crinkled than I’d like. My plan is to try and get back into this for some afternoon sewing spots, but if I don’t then I must remember to remove the embroidery hoop before setting it down for its next pause.
The progress might not look the greatest, but it also included unpicking a section from my last attempt. I ummed and ahhed about if I should, or if I could work around my earlier mistake but I realised that it would interfere with the alignment, so out it came.
MOH regularly asks what it will be, a question which quite honestly is entirely futile. After 28 years I’m just about half done, but I’m hoping that at some point it will be finished. Which right now seems a lofty ambition! Making it into a cushion cover (the original plan and pattern suggestion), seems a very long way off and not part of my plans just yet. I’m just pleased to have made the progress I’ve made this year and to add it to my list of projects underway.
