Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The Snow Has Been Conquered!

And by snow, I mean Snow Garden. Because...you know...there's no snow here. Despite the rough start, I'm really happy with how it turned out and am relieved it's finished! I decided I won't do the personalization until the end. I want to see how the last blocks turn out and assign blocks then. I know I will have extra blocks...more blocks than family to pay tribute to...so Snow Garden may be a generic but I'll figure that all out in a couple of months.
I ended up frogging the Lexington Green border because it was just a tad too green and stuck out just a little too much for my liking. Last week, when I stopped into my very close LNS, I found a skein of Parchment with green shading. Everything fell into place at that moment.

**Ok, put your readers on **

It's hard to tell the color difference in this photo but it's an example of how wacko dye lots are. (you can click on the photo to make it bigger)
These are the same color. On the left is the Parchment I started off with initially. Obviously a soft tan. The one on the right is the one I just picked up that has a very slight mint green hue to it. That's where the green in the model photo comes from.

It's 10pm so my photos are crap but I wanted to share.

So one down and uh, fourteen more to go! What did I get myself into?! Here's a little glimpse of how far I have yet to go.
wrinkles, wrinkles everywhere!

This week is so much better...and it's already Thursday! It will be a busy weekend since I have to spend my Saturday at traffic school. I don't really appreciate being gypped out of 8 hours of stitching time when I see people running red lights left and right because they are too busy yapping their heads off on their cellphones...which is a double violation in California but you do what you have to do.

On Monday, I decided to go see Country Strong. People kept telling me to not see it because of the bad reviews and then I stupidly read a couple of them and found out the ending. I decided to go anyways because I was curious. I like movies that have singing and/or dancing. And honestly, I've seen a lot of terrible movies in my life but this wasn't that bad. It was actually good. Not great or fantastic...I'm not even going to suggest that you go see it. From the trailers, you get the impression this is a feel good movie and that Gwyneth as the lead, overcomes. It is sad and tragic and painful...and amidst all that, there is good Country music. I know most people don't like Country Music and I usually have the radio dial set to Classic/Indie Rock but I grew up with a Nicaraguan dad who loved him some Country music. I have no idea why but that means I don't mind it as long as it's not obnoxious Country pop. I'd rather listen to the stuff about how the truck broke down and my lady ran out and took the dog and all I can do is drown my sorrows in this here bottle of Whiskey. But anyways, it even had an Original Song Golden Globe Nomination.

I wonder what movie to watch this coming weekend. I'm thinking Blue Valentine or Black Swan. Oscars are just around the corner.

Ok, time to start my Chrismas ornie before it's time for bed. Hope everyone is having a good week so far!

Until next time...

39 comments:

Natasha said...

I like it, glad you conquered your snow. I have no desire to see that movie, I think Tim Magraw would be my only incentive LOL

We watched easy A tonight, it was actually pretty good. What ornie are you stitching?

Have a wonderul Friday :)

Sylvia said...

Yay for finishing Snow Garden - its so pretty. It does look dwarfed on all that fabric though, but once you get if filled up, its going to look fabulous.

Black Swan is a very good movie, but pretty much a downer.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on finishing Snow Garden Valerie, it looks so pretty! I hear you on the dyelots, I think GAST in certain colours can be particularly bad. Makes it so frustrating!

Danielle said...

Snow Garden turned out fab! I could tell the difference between the threads right away. A stitcher's eye, I suppose. That is a LARGE piece of fabric there, but they will look awesome all together. Let me know what you think of either Blue Valentine or Black Swan. I have Country Strong in my Netflix queue for when it comes out on DVD.

Giovanna said...

Well done on the BBD, it's lovely!

I often do double-takes on threads from different dye-lots - sometimes I wonder why they bother to re-use a colour's name in the first place.

Margaret said...

Love the finish! I agree that dye lots are so frustrating sometimes. That's quite a difference on the parchment! Interesting about the movie. I'd been hearing bad reviews on that one. Oh, and I hate country music. lol!

Hazel said...

Love how it turned out. I think dye lots are incredibly wacky. You know, you don't have to personalise this with family members. You could use friends or reletives from the past or people that have inspired you. Make it personal to you. x

Deb said...

Just love your finish! And I'm right there with you on the dye lots. I remember going through that with And They Sinned and the grass area. I had a heck of a time finding each skeins that looked the same.

Lisa said...

Snow Garden is beautiful - you did a great job. Looks like your needles have been smoking on that side of the bay :) Bummer about the traffic school, I did one of those on-line ones which wasn't cheap, but at least no points were put on my record and I didn't have to sit in a classroom. I hope that the time goes by fast for you and you are able to find some stitching time to relax :)
Take care.

Stitchinowl said...

Snow Garden turned out so pretty and delicate. I know how you feel about the hand-dyed thread dye lots. It's very frustrating, especially when you run out of thread and have to buy a new skein.
Carolyn

Lainey said...

Congrats on finishing Snow Garden Valerie it is so pretty!

Catherine said...

Snow Garden looks beautiful! I am going to wait until all the patterns are out and then decide if I want to stitch them all as one or separate.

I know what you mean about the dye lots! I am hoping to find a close enough match to finish one I am working on.

Bummer about traffic school - perhaps you could stitch under your desk ;)

Sally said...

Wahoooo!! Congratulations on finishing on Snow Garden. It looks beautiful. I'm no where near a finish on mine as yet. It's coming out again tonight and if I can get Shores finished this weekend I#'ll be stitching two evenings a week on it after that!

Rachel S-H said...

I will wait til it comes in rentable form, but I do like that song. And I'm not a Gwenyth Paltrow fan.

I love your finish!

That dyelot difference is crazy. I get so paranoid I'll run out of a color now because of that. I had that happen with Woodsmoke once. Fortunately, I needed it for a rock wall, so some of the rocks were in one lot, the others were in the other, and it looked OK.

Carol said...

See, it really turned out beautifully in the end, didn't it? I think that is a smart plan to save your personalization until the end, too. And I thought the hunk of fabric for CatHRH was big! Gosh, Valerie--how do you handle that gigantic piece of linen? What is the size of it anyway?

I've had the same problems with dye lots on overdyeds--they look like two totally different colors! That is why I hate ordering them online (but have no choice since there is no LNS nearby!)...

Katrina said...

The King's Speech and True Grit are both very good movies too.

Love your finish and I do see the difference in the parchment ;-).

imnverted said...

Beautiful finish on Snow Garden. Im doing mine in DMC conversions and so wish I hadn't as the blends suggested are down right awful.

Right now my Snow Garden is grounded as the peacock and I had a minor disagreement and he has to be completely frogged, totally his fault if you ask me :)

Anonymous said...

Snow Garden is beautiful.

Isn't it amazing how different skeins of the same floss can be. I have some that you would swear were totally different colors, but they have the same name.

Pumpkin said...

I'm doing a HD for you Valerie :o) Looks wonderful but HOW big is that piece of fabric????

I like the idea of assigning the blocks later on. You never know because things can change.

I do see the difference in the thread and it's disappointing lately because there seems to be such a difference in the same color.

We went to see The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest last night and it was brilliant!

Edgar said...

SG is such a pretty stitch - congrats on the finish!!

Michelle said...

Your Snow Garden is beautiful! Congrats on finishing it. As soon as I get Camille finished, I'll be back to Snow Garden. How crazy the dye lots are soooo different. I really want to see Black Swan...maybe this weekend?

Melanie said...

I love it!! I think it came out very pretty.

I run into the crazy different threads all the time because I have no LNS so everything I buy is online. It would be nice to be able to pick them out myself sometimes. They just come in SO SO SO different sometimes it makes you nuts. I almost feel like I need to order every thread 2-3 at a time to cover my butt. lol

Chelle said...

Congrats on your finish! Thanks for the heads-up to look for a minty green Parchment.

Theresa said...

I love your Snow Garden!!! It is so pretty~~~ I agree on the threads, sometimes they can be so much different!!!

There are so many interesting movies coming out, after seeing the Golden Globes I've added plenty on my must see list!!! Country Strong is one of them, cause I love country music and Gwyneth~ She is such a sweetheart~~

Good luck at traffic school.... That is sooo not fun.... At lease you can get it over with and move one after Saturday....

Unknown said...

Snow Garden is beautiful!! I am in awe of the courage all you who are stitching this series have. There is no way I would have the nerve to start a project that big! Good luck with it all. Can't wait to see your ornament.

Natalia said...

Valerie, your block turned out great !!! So much stress for nothing.... I knew you would figure it out in the end :-) I can't wait to see more.
By the way, I LOVE country music... I love the stories it tells, as tragic as they are, but there are also funny ones and sweet ones, country songs talk about life, don't you think?

Myra said...

That turned out beautifully and I can see the green without my readers. :o) Of course I cheat and wear glasses all the time. I have heard Black Swan is the one to see.

Blu said...

Snow Garden looks great!

Those skeins look so different. I'd have never said they were the same.

Shelleen said...

Snow Garden came out great. I could see the dye lot difference in your photo.

I would go see Black Swan.

Angela said...

Love Snow Garden! I've heard Black Swan is very good but haven't seen it yet either :)

barbara said...

Dye lots are insane, aren't they? LOL. Love your progress, though. I would like to stitch 4 of this series together - that seems a do-able amount. ;)

Jackie's Stitches said...

What a difference between the two skeins of Parchment. I thought it might end up being the same color with a different intensity but it's totally different. I like the new version of Snow Garden. I think it's a great idea to wait until you're further in the project to personalize.

Julie said...

Snow Garden is lovely, i've read a few blogs recently that are saying about such colour difference in some threads

Sue said...

Snow Garden looks great, congrats on finishing it. Thanks for your view on Country Strong, it would have been a push for me to see it anyways, I think you saved me some money :)

Missy Ann said...

I feel so left out! Everyone I know is stitching this. Ah well... next year for me! lol

Tammy said...

Ohhh, I really want to see Black Swan too! Your stitching is incredible,and that project would intimidate a lesser woman (like me, lol). That's going to be great.

Berit said...

I Love "Parchment"! The green ones, though. When I first met the color it was a green one, and I loved it! But, Gast Dye lots are irritating. :(

Love your SG; I think it might be my favorite of the Anniversaries!

I don't like the 11th one At All--being a November Baby I had high hopes for a fallsy piece; but it's already Winter in Anniversary Town!

Meari said...

I can tell the difference in thread colors, definitely. I wondered how good Country Song was.

Nina said...

Love your finishes :)

Threads... this means hand dyed... nobody can dye exactly the same shades, only the manufactures (like DMC) can do. Hand dyeing is harder, slower, and means smaller lots. I love hand dyed fibers, no matter if sometimes the same name doesn't means exactly the same shade of colors :)
And, the company of paint makers also can't do the same paints, I discovered on those I'm using :)