What Kind of Alcoholic Beverage are you?

You're a Pint of Guinness!


What Type of Alcoholic Beverage Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Never would have guessed that one! In fact I've only drunken Guinness once, and that was on St Patrick's Day this year when I only downed the stuff to earn enough tokens to get a stupid Guinness hat. Which I've still got! lol

As far as stitching goes, I've completed about a quarter of the Mirabilia Cherub, done a few bushes on Paradise Island and today I did a couple of hours stitching on Carnivorous Cat while watching Lethal Weapon 1. I picked up the box set in Smiths today for £15.99, unbelievably cheap.

I actually had a little bit of a spending fest today, I also bought the box set of the Back to the Future films, (good old Marty Mcfly), Mission Impossible 1, Torque, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow starring Jude Law and White Guys - a comedy with Damon Waynes dressed up as a white woman cop with another fellow.

Last night I spent the entire evening working on a new blog layout for the New Year, here's a preview.

Stitching Blogger's Question of the Week: Charity Stitching?

Have you done any charity stitching, been in one, or would like to organize one?

Easy to answer this one. No.

I remember being tempted to do a Pam Kellogg design bookmark entitled Support Our Troops during the Iraq War, but I was just tempted.

Freeview - Me Too

Just browsing the net and found someone else with the same problem as me. I know several people who live locally too me who have freeview and it works fine, so I've just taken this guy's attitude and figured "what the hell" and have bought one anyway ;-)

I'll let you know if it works and if the Freeview website is spouting bollocks!

One More Day...

Only today to go at work and then I'm having a few days off while the office is being decorated. It makes sense, I've got about 10 days leave left to take at work and I don't want to be around the smell of wet paint, not to mention not really being able to get any real work done anyway.

I did consider having a short break away somewhere this long weekend, but I've got to be back at work on Tuesday for the Christmas Party (no sense in missing that one, well I say "party", probably an all day drinking session is the truth which resulted last year in four missing hours and a skinned knee - so I can't wait to see what happens this year ;-), so it would have to be a city break or something like that. I've even considered going to Paris for the Weekend, but have been put off with the fact that I will be in a strange country alone (again) and I can't speak French, and will have to worry about muggers and all the other hastles you get from being in a big city. Cornwall is soooo safe in comparison. So I guess I'll just be moping around here, but hopefully getting a bit of stitching done. Didn't really get any real stitching done this weekend. I went to see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on Sunday morning. Yawn! God, I don't know how I sat through that one - but then I thought that particular novel was a real slog to get through too.

I'm not looking forward at all to Christmas. I think it's just going to be another total non-event like last year: I spent the entire day watching the 11 hour plus epic Lord of the Rings, which was nice in itself, but not to be repeated this year. A lot of single people feel the same way about the holidays, but at 34 most people still have families that they go and spend it with - there you go, the curse of elderly parents! All the more ironic in that my Boss's stepgrandad died today at 96! He certainly had a good innings. My genetic upbringing is unfortunately though, not that of Methusaleh. At one point this year I was looking forward with a sense of hope that I wouldn't have to spend it alone again, but those hopes were dashed quite recently, hence my return in the big way to the stitching world. There is sanctity in stitching afterall.

I spent about an hour or so at work today browsing online and looking for a Christmas break, to get away in a nice warm sunny place is a good way to forget about it all - but I couldn't find a decently cheap break - all the good ones have been booked up already. I phoned Thompson's today and was told the only thing that they had available was staying in Sharm El Sheik at a 5 star hotel on a B&B basis for...... get this..... I couldn't quite believe it £1800 quid! And I'm not sure at the moment if my l/lady will be here to look after Jade for me anyway. Anyone know of a good holiday retreat where they don't mind a few stray grey hairs?

Made an Icon

I made myself a Diary Icon for you to use if you link to this blog, as I know many people do. If you want to upload it onto your own webspace/blogspace the URL to retrieve it from is: http://www.knownspace.co.uk/images/vash_diary_icon.gif

I found the little Blue Dinosaur graphic (Bob) on a blinkie making website. It's so cool that I found this little graphic because the character comes from one of my all time favourite video games, Bubble Bobble by Taito.

November/December Goals

For the most part I did very well in achieving my November stitching goals, surpassing them, perhaps?

• Complete Beading on the Mermaid Queen - Done. She was my major happy dance this month.
• Start working on the Miralibila 2000 Holiday Cherub. Karen and I agreed to do this as a stitch-a-long last year when we ended up both stitching on the Mirabilia Angel Cherub at the same time last year. - I've begun stitching, sadly Karen doesn't have the time to participate this year - anyone else care to join me?
• Do more work on "Above the Clouds". He's not a priority, but at the moment I seem to be spending most of my stitching time working on him. - I've sort of put this on the backburner for the minute.
• That Darn Cat Scissor Fob - still not touched this!! The only goal I haven't achieved, which is a bit silly really as it will only take an hour or two.
• Carnivorous Cat - I really must work on this as it is intended as a present for my l/lady. -Still haven't done any more on this.
• Find out what is happening with the Cattitudes RR. - I'm due a piece, Vikki is currently working on it.
• And finally, dig out a WIP that my Aunt Started of a Skating Father Christmas to get in the mood for the forthcoming season. She'd nearly finished him, I think it's only his face and beard to go so shouldn't take long. - I finished him off weeks ago.

December Goals

• Finish the Mirabilia Holiday Cherub.
• That Darn Cat Scissor Fob.
• Finish off Carnivorous Cat.
• If I feel inclined, finish "Above the Clouds".
• Stitch on the Cattitudes RR if the piece arrives.
• Mail on Cathy's Autumnal RR to Dawn.

Stitching Blogger's Question of the Week: Stitching Rules?

Do you have rules in the way you stitch? (i.e., Do you start in the middle? Do you determine which blocks to stitch first? Do you always start from the top or the bottom? Do you have special paths to prevent wasting thread?)

I usually start in the middle of the fabric on most projects that I begin. I generally like to start with a big block of colour and then do the odd confetti stitches afterwards. Sometimes I weave the thread through the back of the design to get to a new stitching area rather than fastening it off and beginning again, providing it is not too far. I find this tends to save me a bit of thread that is lost when I cut the loose end off.

Stitching Saturday

After finishing off the Mermaid last weekend, I was very good and instead of starting a new project, picked up my old Paradise Island project which I started three years ago and stitched on it. I had to find the odd couple of threads that have been borrowed out of the thread pouch over the years, but most of them were still present and correct.

I've been diligently stitching on it all week in the evenings and today, I can proudly post an update pic as I've finished yet another quadrant of the chart. The design is now three-quarters finished. Here is my Webshots Album which shows all my previous WIP shots of the project.

I think the last time I actually worked on this project was sitting by the pool this summer when I was in Lanzarote. This project does have an unfortunate history with pools due to an accident with a paddling pool once, here's the entry on my first stitching blog (August 23 2003, now archived on Geocites) which will tell you all about it if you've not read it already. It wasn't funny at the time but I had such a good laugh about the accident afterwards, as in the end there was no real harm done, apart from it getting a bit wet! Maybe this can be a Future Stitching Blogger's Question: What is the biggest mishap you've had with your stitching?

This design appeared in an The World of Cross Stitching's July 2002 edition and was also printed in Jill Gordon's Cross Stitch Pictures book, which I also have. The book says that this island is actually a real atoll somewhere in the Indian Ocean, I've always wondered if it were one of the Maldives?

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As I've sort of put Above The Clouds to one side at the moment, I started this Mirabilia Holiday Cherub (2000) design as my new purse project. I've not stitched much, this is what I did during my lunch hour on Thursday dinner time.


The completed design will look like this when complete:

The design is a freebie and you can download your own copy of this chart here.

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Below is the progress I did make on Above the Clouds so far.

Which Flower are You?

You are an Iris:

You are logical, analytical, dignified, and wise.
You are studious by nature and may prefer books
to people. You tend to be a serious person but
are capable of making others laugh with your
dry sense of humor. Friends always benefit from
your advice.

Symbolism: Over the centuries the iris has come to
symbolize faith, wisdom, hope, and promise in
love.


Which Flower are You?
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South Park Vash

I found this link on Carol's blog, but just about everyone seems to be doing themselves as a South Park Character on their blogs, so here goes me:



Here's where you can play too: http://spstudio.elena.hosting-friends.de/spstudio.html

Coming Through the Floor....!

A small earthquake hit Penzance today. It wasn't a seizmic movement however, it was my boss the twat skipping in his office at the encouragement of his personal trainer who he's employed to get him into shape to win a bet but honestly, skipping in your office? My desk is based two floors below his office, but it still sounded like a herd of elephants were stampeding past. The twat didn't keep it up long however, after about 15-20 jumps he came down the stairs to get a cup of water from the cooler, he was knackered already! No wonder he needs that blonde, petite, lady trainer to keep his enthusiasm up.

And now for the Stitching Blogger's Question:

Do you always sign your projects? If not, why? If so, do you use your first name, initials or what?

I only usually sign work if I am giving it away or taking part in a round robin. I always sign "Vash" rather than my real name, but as everyone knows me as Vash anyway I can't see that it matters. I will also put my Country, or location, i.e. UK or Cornwall. On the Cattitudes RR we even stitched our country flags. I sometimes put the year too.

Strange Cravings

Jade made a big fuss of me when I came home this evening, I was trying to figure out what he wanted. I opened a bottle of cream soda, and it fizzed up a bit at first dribbling out the top of the bottle and down the side. The next thing I know, Jade is licking the bottle, so I poured him a glass of his own. Yes dear readers, my cat was drinking CREAM SODA!!! lol

Mermaid Queen on the Ocean

She's finished!!!!

I've spent the entire day completing the beading, the odd missing stitch - I had to laugh at myself when I'd forgoten to stitch one of her hands, here I was facing a handless mermaid, lol. - and finally completed all the backstitch about an hour ago.

She's probably the largest and most advanced piece that I've ever attempted, and she's my second Mirabilia design. According to this blog, I started working on her on April 10th. The mermaid is stitched on Silkweaver Reflection's 32 count Ocean.

I wasn't happy after I'd attached the jewels though. The chart just left the area under the jewels blank, but there wasn't complete coverage by the gems and you could see the "holes" in the pattern under the jewels and the blank fabric behind so today I've lifted up the gems and stitched in the background colour. I felt much happier about her when I'd done that. I think the best bit of the design was completing the final gold braiding in her hair. It really brought her into focus for me.

Now... what should I stitch on next? I really want to finish "Above the Clouds" now, but as it was intended for a friend who now is not speaking to me, it probably won't be appreciated at all [in fact, even if I do finish it off and give it to him as a peace offering in the hope of renewing our friendship, I can quite easily see it being binned it in disgust], so I don't know if I have the heart to finish it off now, which is a shame because I was enjoying working on it.

So maybe another Teresa Wenzler instead? I've got her Egyptian Sampler that I've always wanted to work on and also Tapestry Cat. Speaking of Cats, and Egypt I've got a design called "Pharoah's Pet" that I've always wanted to do as it's of an Egyptian Serval. I'll have to have a look though my stash, or should I do the sensible thing and finish off another WIP or UFO?

What Kind of Love are You in?

Tragic Love
There is a lot of pain here. A lot of bitter and
bruised feelings. You love this person, but
it's hurting you. Sure, the good times can be
really good, but the bad times crop up more
frequently. Are you sure that it's worth it?

What Kind of Love are You in? (Beautiful Romantic Pics!)
brought to you by Quizilla

Stitching Blogger's Question of the Week: Frogging Mistakes?

How do you feel about staying totally true to a pattern? Do you feel that you have to rip out stitches to fix a mistake or do you feel it's acceptable to incorporate a mistake into the design?

The answer to that is how much work is going to be involved to frog the Mistake?

If I know I've made an error I generally go back and take it out maybe undoing a few hours stitching in the process, but if I don't notice the error until much later than that I will try to adapt around it.

I actually get a secret thrill about stitching a piece and knowing that I've done it stitch perfect and not made a mistake at all. But once I know there's an error there anyway I have less incentive to go back and fix another one, I tend to sort of leave it. I can remember pieces that I've balls up early on, didn't fix, and then got very creative when it came to finishing them off!

What Advanced Degree Should You Get?

You Should Get a PhD in Science (like chemistry, math, or engineering)

You're both smart and innovative when it comes to ideas. Maybe you'll find a cure for cancer - or develop the latest underground drug.

What Advanced Degree Should You Get?

Skating Santa : Before and After

One of my goals this month was to stitch on my Aunt's old unfinished Skating Santa project.

This is how it looked prior to me working on it:



Today I finished him off:



It's kinda sad in a way now that he is finished because now I only have one of my Aunt's WIPs to go (an Owl) and when that is done it's as if a part of her will be gone forever. It brought back memories of her just by opening the project wallet because the fabric still contained a hint of her cigarette smoke. I remember she started working on this project this time about two years ago, just before she fell ill with cancer. I can remember he frustration at trying to stitch the white of his beard on white glittering fabric and that's why she put him to one side.

In fact I only got around to finishing today because I've had a couple of days off work to cope with the stress and hastle of this and last weekend. Stitching is a wonderfly therapeutic tool in that respect.

Stitching Blogger's Question of the Week:Large or Small Finishes?

When comparing large projects versus small projects, which do you get more excited about finishing?

Without a doubt, stitching that last couple of per cent of a large project is one of the most addictive things in stitching.

Who's the Chicken?

Do you cluck or do you roar?
this quiz was made by Empty Dot

My weekend was like this chicken. I took on Psycho Bitches, Ex-Wives, Obese Children and still managed to go to an all night rave on Saturday evening which managed to escape being busted by the cops.

Back at work today, I feel pretty drained and of course: my boss the twat has now got me ringing around cleaning companies to clean up the aftermath of the rave......

Monthly Stitching Goals - an Update

My October Stitching Goals were as follows:

• Complete Solo the Cat on KiwiJo's Fabric for the Stitching Blogger's Round Robin ready for the mailing date of the end of the month. (I've nearly done with this, just a few missed stitches and the backstitching to go. One stitching session max.)

I completed Solo on 5th October.

• Start beading the Mermaid Queen. I bought a crafter's box from Lakeland in Truro on Saturday, it has about 9 lockable compartments, the perfect thing to organise those pesky and fiddly beads.

I've started doing this, I think I'm about a third of the way there. I don't like the way the Crystal Treasures are going on though, even though I'm stitching on 32count instead of the recommended 28 they still don't cover the holes in the pattern very well.

• Complete the Cat Scissor Fob. (Again)

Didn't touch this one at all.

• Do more work on Carnivorous Cat. On my last stitching session I discovered I'd made a boo boo and one side of the cat doesn't match up with the other. So I'm unpicking as I go now, probably a good reason why I've not stitched on it for weeks.

Or this one.

• Stitch the Dragon's head on Above the Clouds. This is tending to be my focus piece at the moment, - I stitched soley on it this past weekend. Mainly because it's my current purse project and I wasn't at home for much of the time this past weekend.

I'm enjoying stitching on this, the blends are looking really good, just very time consuming sorting out all the colours every time. Must get around to untangling the mess that the colour card is becomming before it gets any worse.

• Await the arrival of the next Cattitudes RR material. (I'm not sure who's sending to me this round - I need to check the board, but Ellene has already posted that she's received Nicole's fabric that I sent her so at last things are finally starting to move again.)

This still hasn't turned up......?

November Stitching Goals

• Complete Beading on the Mermaid Queen
• Start working on the Miralibila 2000 Holiday Cherub. Karen and I agreed to do this as a stitch-a-long last year when we ended up both stitching on the Mirabilia Angel Cherub at the same time last year.
• Do more work on "Above the Clouds". He's not a priority, but at the moment I seem to be spending most of my stitching time working on him.
• That Darn Cat Scissor Fob
• Carnivorous Cat - I really must work on this as it is intended as a present for my l/lady.
• Find out what is happening with the Cattitudes RR.
• And finally, dig out a WIP that my Aunt Started of a Skating Father Christmas to get in the mood for the forthcoming season. She'd nearly finished him, I think it's only his face and beard to go so shouldn't take long.