So you may have noticed that I haven’t updated the blog for a while. And I have a very good reason for this. I must confess I have been sucked back into the cross stitch cesspool.
For a while I had fallen out of my cross stitch hobby. For some reason my stitchy bug was AWOL. But that all changed when I started my latest HAED piece – the World Travel Bookshelf by Aimee Stewart.
I first saw this design sometime in 2014 and knew immediately that it would be mine someday. It is a series of travel themed images superimposed on bookshelves. Could it be any more perfect for me?
It is by far THE biggest project I have ever undertaken. And if I am being honest with myself I will probably not live long enough to complete it. Morbid much? As per my calculations, if I stitch regularly at my current pace it will only take me 15 years to complete this piece!!! Am I nuts or am I nuts?
But I have come to terms with the fact that most of my projects will languish uncompleted for years to come. Hard to avoid this fact when I keep flitting on to newer projects at every opportunity. But like most serial stitchers will tell you, we get our joy from the stitching itself. Finishing the project is just an added bonus. Or so we try to convince ourselves. Shhh… let’s not burst that happy bubble yet shall we?
Even before I acquired this pattern, I planned to make this my travel piece. I dreamed of taking this WIP along with me on my travels and of weaving in stitches from countries across the globe. I am happy to report that my dream has started to materialize.
I put my first stitch in this piece while we were on holiday in Paris. Not a bad place to begin, huh? I am especially delighted about this since Paris is one of the destinations featured in the artwork. How wonderful would it be to visit all the places portrayed in this piece! All of these destinations have now defaulted to my travel wishlist (sneaky plug for my spanking new Pinterest account).
I am also thrilled that the first destination to stitch is India because that is where I am from originally. Although the green Krishna is driving me a bit batty. Will have to see if I can dig up a blue color conversion for that.
Since Paris, I have put in a few stitches in Belgium, Netherlands and of course the UAE. Now don’t be alarmed. I do not spend my hard-earned international holidays cooped up in a hotel stitching. Some of these destinations will only get one or two symbolic stitches. But even one stitch worked in during my travels will hold umpteen memories for me of the time spent at that destination. I can’t wait to see how many countries I can cross off (pun unintended) from my travel bucket list by the time I (ahem!) finish this project.
Project Details
Company : Heaven and Earth Designs
Artist : Aimee Stewart
Fabric : 28 count Rose Monaco
Stitch style : 2 over 1 tent stitch
Started : 03 July 2016
Have you ever taken on any seemingly impossible projects? How did you feel about them and how did you cope?
Diyalogues 
What a wonderful idea! I hope you are still stitching on this when you travel 🙂
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Well, most people would choose a small project to be their travelling companion! This is gorgeous and a mammoth undertaking but it will hold many happy memories for you.
The undertakings I struggle most with are mystery SALs, I have started too many and lost interest along the way.
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Haha… yes a small travel project would definitely be wiser 🙂 But apparently wisdom is not one of my characteristics 😉
I’ve only ever hopped onto one mystery SAL – the Pumpkin Passport year-long SAL. And that is a travel themed one so I am pretty much guaranteed to love it. I don’t think I would be brave enough to join any other mystery ones 🙂
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Diya have you seen Haed chart Laxmi ( for some unknown reason I hate that ‘ x’ in the name lakshmi
) by Josephine wall ? Lol I won it. And ever since started kitting it up.. It’s driving me batty lol.
I have this chart dear. But as I do anchor conversion for all haeds I may not do it at all.
I feel you are very lucky to have a live catalogue of your travels through your cross stitch 🙂
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Hey Lakshmi! 🙂 I’m very excited about this project and am so glad I can weave in some travel memories through it 🙂
I was missing some colors when I was kitting it up too and tried to sub some Anchor that I had in my stash. But I soon realized that the Anchor conversions are not very accurate 😦
In artistic interpretations like Jo Wall and Aimee Stewart I think we can still manage to fudge the colors to a certain extent without affecting the overall look of the piece. I wouldn’t dare do it for more realistic pieces though 🙂
Laxmi is a beautiful chart! I do hope you get started on her someday. Maybe we can do our own mini SAL with you working on her and me on WTBS? 🙂
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So pretty. Love the design!
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Thank you so much! It was simply too good to resist. Now if only I could live to be a 100! 😉
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It is a lovely design. I think you should stitch what makes you happy, when it makes you happy. Stitch for the enjoyment 🙂
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Wiser words have never been spoken Ginny! 🙂 Deadlines and planned finish dates will whiz by but I stitch whatever piques my fancy 😉
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Oh I love that! It is SO you! It can be kind of like your personal Diya-logue of your travels! I think it’s a wonderful idea to put a stitch – symbolic or not – of each place you’re in, in it’s space on the design. And what great motivation both to work on the project AND travel! One day you are going to hang this proudly in your home. 🙂
Now to follow you on Pinterest!
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Thank you Vanny! You have such faith in me 😛 I’m pretty sure my interest in this piece will wax and wane so 15 years is a very optimistic target 🙂 But the joy is in the journey 😉
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What an impressive project! I miss stitching so much but have some mystery issue with my hands (maybe arthritis, ugh) and haven’t been able to manage it for a year or so. One day, maybe! I shall live vicariously through you! 🙂
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Thank you hon! It is quite an undertaking 🙂 I’m so sorry to hear about the issue with your hands. I do hope you manage to find a solution for it soon…
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