Home is where the wine is
This stitch is one that I took on for a friend/former coworker, Kalie. The journey along the start and completion of this project has many emotions and twists and turns and lessons learned weaved within.
I started this project in February shortly after I was laid off from a job I loved. It was what I considered a “mourning stitch” - my first project that I hoped would get me out of my emotional slump.
It was also the stitch I was working on when I decided to learn how to code a mobile app (which turned into Thread Stash).
And it was also the stitch I was working on when I went into labor with my baby. In an effort to distract myself during early labor, I worked on this for an hour in the wee hours of the morning (4AM - 5AM to be exact). And then I took a (necessary) break as I adjusted to life with a newborn.
The supplies for this sat on our dining room table for the entire time. While they weren’t particularly messy or taking up much room, at a certain point, I got tired of looking at the almost-completed work and the itch to finish it overtook me, so I snatched it up and finished it between feedings over the course of another week-and-a-half.
Needless to say, from a calendar day perspective, this is the one that to-date has taken the longest to complete start to finish.
The biggest lesson I learned about this physical stitch: I should’ve focused on one element at a time
I jumped around working on different “flowers” because I was trying to focus on one color at a time. I wish I had just focused on one thing at a time, got it done, and moved on to the next. Throughout my work on this stitch, I would have two or three unfinished flowers and it really bugged me — I really am a completionist at heart.
At the time of this original posting, we are still under the Shelter-In-Place warning due to COVID-19, so I haven’t been able to gift it yet (nor have I framed it yet, either). But I am hopeful that Kalie loves it and that it will always bring a smile to her face when she sees and pours herself a glass.
My Stitch Time: 17 and a half hours
Pattern: Etsy - Cross Stitching Lovers
