Ok, so I finished gridding and actually got to start stitching last night!
My tedious gridding
And here's what I got done
I was hoping for better coverage, but I still like the tent stitch effect... I'm hoping all those different colors will start popping out at me soon!
For the gridders out there - when do you take out your grid lines? I was going to wait until I was done with a large section so that it won't unravel on me as I go, but I'm stitching over it so much I'm aftraid I wont be able to pull it out!
Here's what it will (hopefully) end up looking like
Last edited by AnimaValida on Thu Jan 08, 2009 8:25 pm, edited 2 times in total.
I do the gridding with a water erasable pen. No need to pull out, and I always wash my pieces after, anyway.
Agi
"The world, as a colourful knot of threads, has turned into a memory, and now you cannot be sure whether it was real." (Géza Ottlik, Hungarian writer)
Hello Amanda and a belated welcome to the forum. What a stunning design this is. I hadn't seen Ruth Sanderson's work before and this will be just fantastic. You've made a really good start and made me feel very guilty as I haven't touched my HAED (or HOED as I call it!) in several months now - I must pluck up the courage to start again. I'm working very slowly on Cloak Of Stars and also using tent stitch - although after some advice here I changed to continental tent stitch to help eliminate any distortion. Good luck, I'll really enjoy seeing this wonderful design grow.
Susan
My Stitchy blog: SF Stitch
(updated 16th April 2010)
I am a gridder
When I take the stitches out depends - if you take them out too soon it is very easy to lose your way and I have found that cotton is easier to take out than synthetic thread. Haven't done any true tent stitch so I can't really imagine, but it may be easier to take out of a tent stitch project than cross stitch. I would suggest initially stitching over some of your gridding and testing how easy it is.
Good luck
mags
WIPs:
Heritage Tower Bridge (yes still )
various bits and bobs
I used a soluable pen on my gridding because I wouldn't have the faintest idea of how to unpick stitch griding without ruining things. But that's just me.
This is looking great, it's going to be fun to watch it all come together. What type of frame or hoop are you using for this project?
current project rotation:
Twilight Balloon Flight
The Accolade
Faces of Faery 89
Dad's Flower Pot
woooo hooooo!!! Congrats on your start! It looks great!! And a totally random thought....I just noticed over at HAED that you can get the background removed from any their charts for an extra 3 bucks...I was actually planning on getting this one and thought I'd offer to get them to remove the background from it. Since you already bought it and I want it...I thought I could send you a copy of the one without the background so you could avoid all the frogging that is sure to happen trying to do it yourself! Or at least all the frogging that would happen if I did it by myself!!! Just a thought! Let me know if you'd be interested...I don't think that would be breaking any rules...but I could be wrong...
Thanks for the offer Quirky, but I don't know how much luck you'll have. I atually bought this chart 2 months ago and just got it downloaded last week ... Bob couldn't get the artist's permission to alter the design. So, I ended up with a bigger project than I originally thought! If you're able to make it happen, that would be great though! I have big plans for this design!! But hey, If I get through it first, I'm sure I'll be able to give you some pointers on what to leave out by the time you get there!
OHhh and I totally forgot to ask...is having the grid there helpful??? Each small square I mean?? And as for taking it out I think it depends on what you use to grid it. I used this Sulky Metallic thread and it is on ply so I can't split and too boot it is super slick so I shouldn't have a problem getting it after the fact...I do believe the problem you run into is if yu used a thread you can split...then it might be a real pain to pull out as you may split the thread if you stitch over it...But I am by no means an expert!! so take that as my personal guess and what little I've dealt with it
I'm using the Sulky too! Its just getting lost underneath layers and layers of stitches... lol. You know, I spent HOURS gridding so that I would have less of a chance of miscounting, but I saw what you had done with parking, Quirky, so I gave it a try and it works! I've been doing one 10x10 block at a time, so I think I dont need to grid as much as I did - I think 5 over, 5 under would be fine. But having those blocks visually layed out - lifesaver. It would take so much more time if I had made a larger grid.
This is one night's stitching ? *stares at the pathetic amount of backstitch she's managed today and weeps* If you go on this way you'll have it finished before you know it
Amanda, when I replied originally, you hadn't included the image of your project. I'm intrigued now as to why you have taken out the background. Are you planning to replace it with something else? Just me, but I really liked having the people in the image as I thought it really helped to show the scale of the tree.
Susan
My Stitchy blog: SF Stitch
(updated 16th April 2010)
Oh, it's a beautiful piece of art, I agree! But I fell in love with the tree since it reminded me of one of my famous myths... The plan is (in theory) in the space left between the tree top and the ground, I'm going to stitch in an excerpt from a sonnet about the greek lovers that were turned into entwined trees when they died. I know it might be a little trite, but I've always loved the story and the sonnet and when I saw this design it was the only thing I thought of!
What a lovely idea to personalise it in that way, it will make it a truly unique piece! Is it the one from the Metamorphoses, with Philemon and Baucis?
No, I never really liked Ovid's rendition of it... My favorite is a french sonnet by Jean de la Fontaine from the 19th century. It doesn't translate very well either so I'm keeping it in the original French. It's beautiful!
Here's a rough translation to English: She became a tree and offered her arms to him;
He too wished to offer her his, and cannot.
He wishes to speak, the bark engulfs his tongue,
Each bids the other farewell by the strength of thought:
The body becomes only foliage and wood.
Astonished, they and the assembly lose their voice,
That instant, that spell sweeps them to their end;
Baucis becomes linden, Philemon becomes oak.
People still go to see them, hoping to deserve
The sweetness whose maidenhead Love made them taste:
They bend 'neath the weight of the numberless offerings.
As long as newlyweds rest in their shade,
They love 'til the end, despite the years' efforts.
Agi
"The world, as a colourful knot of threads, has turned into a memory, and now you cannot be sure whether it was real." (Géza Ottlik, Hungarian writer)
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If you're able to make it happen, that would be great though! I have big plans for this design!! But hey, If I get through it first, I'm sure I'll be able to give you some pointers on what to leave out by the time you get there!
? *stares at the pathetic amount of backstitch she's managed today and weeps* If you go on this way you'll have it finished before you know it