Cross Stitch Farm Animals

[badly_knitted]

I am so far behind with posting pics of my completed cross stitch projects, so I'll see if I can catch up a bit over the next few weeks. I can't even remember what I posted last. Anyway, these are the most recently completed set, four cute Margaret Sherry farm animals. Stitched on 18 count with one strand of thread.

 

Comments

[smallhobbit]

They're lovely. I do like their expressions!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! I thought the pony ended up looking a bit worried... Didn't switch to a sharp needle to do the French knot eyes and they... I don't know, just gave him a slightly apprehensive expression.

[smallhobbit]

He looks happy to me,perhaps a little mischievous!

[badly_knitted]

I think he looks different in real life than in the photos. Maybe he was smiling for the photo...

[mrs_sweetpeach]

They are all very cute!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! I like Margaret Sherry's designs, but a lot of them have fractional stitches which my brain can't handle. These are all whole stitches though.

[cornerofmadness]

those are so cute

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! They were fun to stitch. Except the pig, which was SO MANY long rows of white on white...

[cornerofmadness]

Pigs, always a problem

[badly_knitted]

I like pigs, but apparently not so much stitching them...

[cornerofmadness]

ha. I can see why they could be an issue to stitch

[badly_knitted]

Thankfully, I stitched while listening to great music I'd taped off the radio back in the 80s and 90s, so I got to warble along (very badly) to many old favourites, and it made the boring parts of the stitching easier to deal with.

[cornerofmadness]

well that's great I'm a huge fan of music on in the background for most things

[badly_knitted]

I have dug out SO MANY old tapes. Started listening to them while working on a Stonehenge design for a friend (I will post a pic eventually), and it's so great to be reminded of favourite songs I haven't heard in years. My mum and I used to spend Tuesday, Thursday, and I think it was Friday evenings listening to the country radio shows on our local radio station and on Radio 2 (I even sat in on the local show one time, which was fun) so on these tapes I'm forever hearing my name or mum's being mentioned. It's a sweet reminder, and I don't know why we stopped listening. Maybe the shows stopped. Country Club was 2 hours on a Thursday, the other two were 3-hour shows. I miss those days. And the music! So many great artists and songs. I have over 200 tapes of stuff from the radio, and that's not including the concerts that were broadcast.

[cornerofmadness]

that is so cool. There are devices (relatively cheap too) that can digitize all of that for you. Might be worth looking into at least for the ones with your mom on it

[badly_knitted]

Yes, it might. We were casual friends with the local DJ, through meeting him at various live events, and we often sent in requests for songs to be played for birthdays.

[cornerofmadness]

that is cool. (heck I'm in the process of digitizing my cds to get rid of the ones I don't listen to much any more)

[badly_knitted]

I have most of my CDs on my laptop, but I'm hampered by the fact that laptops now don't have disc drives. Not that I plan on getting rid of my CDs, except for a couple I don't like, but I'd like to have the rest of mine on my computer so I can listen to them more easily.

[cornerofmadness]

in America you can get a cd drive for like 12$ on Amazon. I've decided for my own sanity that if I'm not actively listening to the cds they're getting digitally archived and moving on (ditto with my books)

[badly_knitted]

I'll have to look into that. It would mean I could digitise all my Cajun CDs and the Various Artist ones I never got around to.

Books... I'm trying to thin them out a bit, but ereaders never took off with me. I like paper books. There's something about turning pages by hand that soothes me.

[cornerofmadness]

I mean if I listen to them often I'll keep them but I have so many I bought for 2 songs and the rest I didn't like, no sense in keeping that.

I love cajun music. I have a few signed CDs by Beausoliel (naturally autographed ones stay)

I do more ebooks now than I did (as publishers are now winging books at me to review for arcs) but yeah I prefer physical books. My new rule is if it is not autographed or a series I can't let go of, it's out the door. I am not a rereader

[badly_knitted]

Yeah, some CDs are like that, but I seem to enjoy them more the more I listen to them, even some I wasn't all that taken with at first.

Beausoleil are brilliant! I even have a couple of CDs by a British Cajun band, which is a weird concept, but... Lucky you to have autographed copies! Things like that definitely have to stay. I have some autographed LPs. I think I have an autographed Randy Travis, won in a radio competition. I think it's Randy anyway. I have a LOT of LPs still.

I do re-read occasionally (re-reading the original Dorsai trilogy atm), but not often.

[cornerofmadness]

that is true and some you think you'll love you're like yeah...no

that's cool about the British cajun band (yes something I wouldn't expect)


I reread when I was young (I reread my manga) but I swear I now own more books than I have years left to read the all

[badly_knitted]

R. Cajun and the Zydeco Brothers, I've got three CDs of theirs. Five of Beausoleil, and some various artist CDs, probably about 25 Cajun and Zydeco CDs.

I re-read manga (especially FAKE), not novels so often because like you, I have more books than I'll ever get through, but someone said something recently about Soldier Ask Not, and I wanted to re-read it, got it out, and it's the second volume of the original trilogy, so... They're only short volumes, if I could just stay awake long enough at night to get through a few pages...

[cornerofmadness]

That might be more Cajun than even I own. ha.

Oh I hear you about that. I usually read at n ight but since I'm working around my parents so every night everything is pushed back and I nod off before I can read

[badly_knitted]

I blame cheap CDs in ebay 10, 15 years ago. I bought everything that interested me. Now everything's so expensive, even old, used CDs, I almost never buy one.

I can't sleep if I don't read, but all too often I start reading and fall asleep too fast =/

[cornerofmadness]

ha yeah or going back further, not sure if yinz had this or if it was American only Columbia House records. You got like 12 cds for the initial dollar and then they were so cheap I was buying things based strictly on title and description. Who are they? I dunno but it's like 2.99

[badly_knitted]

One way to check out a lot of music by different artists, maybe find some new favourites.

Made a quick count of my Cajun and Zydeco collection - 33 CDs Heee!

[cornerofmadness]

it was and honestly that's what I love youtube for now for free and then buy what I love (ditto bandcamp and spotify)

wow that is a lot.

[badly_knitted]

Yes, I have youtube playing a mix at the moment. The ads are annoying, but I'm not paying to listen to music.

It is. I know one is a bit crap, kind of Cajun lite, for people who don't know or don't like Cajun, but the rest are good.

Yay!

[ysabetwordsmith]

The horse is my favorite.

Re: Yay!

[badly_knitted]

I think it's a toss up between the horse and the cow for me. Thanks!

[apachefirecat]

Adorable! I think the cow and chicken are my favorite!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you!

I like the cow and pony.

[kitarella_imagines]

how cute! I am not crafty at all so I admire people who are 😊

[badly_knitted]

Thank you!

I've been doing various crafts since I was a kid, but I didn't start cross stitch until I was in my 40s. It's easy, just following a chart. A lot easier than things like knitting and crochet. I love it.

[kitarella_imagines]

Oh maybe that is something for when I retire, and don't have to strain my eyes peering at the screen all day. Although I'm sure I'll continue writing fics 😋

[badly_knitted]

It's always nice to have options!

I can't stop writing either, lol!

[kitarella_imagines]

Oh yes I can't imagine either of us stopping our writing, it's natural for us isn't it 😊

[badly_knitted]

Really and truly. I haven't missed a day of writing in over 10 years. Not writing would make me feel weird =/

It's such a great escape from the less enjoyable aspects of life.

[kitarella_imagines]

It is definitely great escapism.

I went on a counselling course once and I said to two students "I love writing!" when we had to write notes. They gaped at me and said, "What? You like...writing?" as if I'd said I was a serial killer 😂

[badly_knitted]

Hah! Some people just don't get it!

Then again, some people don't read books either! 😧