A Crown, Initials, and Monsters

Happy Tuesday!

Finally getting some May sunshine here at the Castle. Some Black Eyed Susans have started to bloom, and volunteer tomatoes have decided to grow in the raised beds. Not having a good time getting my Italian Eggplant seeds to germinate, but I bought a new seed packet so hopefully those will have better germination.

The last time I shared a WIP update, the crown wasn’t finished. This time, I finished the crown, and made much more progress on the shield and that bottommost band:

Do you see that backstitch near the Unicorn’s hoof? It was such a joy to stitch! I used one strand of floss instead of two. After pondering this for a bit, I’ve decided not to stitch my initials and the year on the shield. Maybe I’ll do some tiny backstitch at the very bottom when I’ve completed it, but I’m not feeling it for seeing my initials in the middle of the finished project. It’s not that I hate the way the initials would look (they're lovely!) it’s just my personal preference on this.

It's been very busy here at the Castle, so I haven't made too much progress this month on this WIP. However, I'll be setting aside more stitching time starting this week, so stay tuned for more substantial WIP updates!

Now for something funny I saw on Instagram:

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A post shared by Nate Fakes (@nate_fakes)

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Jane Eyre, a Horse, and an Irish Harp

Paolo Chiabrando on Unsplash Happy Tuesday! It's a rainy, windy day here at the Castle. When the wind whistles past the windows, it makes me feel like I'm in Jane Eyre, looking out across a moor. Have you ever read Jane Eyre? It was required reading for me in High School. So, have you ever read a book that's so engrossing that you can't bring yourself to put it down? That's what Jane Eyre was like for me. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it! While we're still on this topic, here's a free Jane Eyre cross stitch chart that I found on one of my adventures in the magical land of Pinterest. < Slow and steady wins the race, as the old saying goes. Here's my progress on Nikolai: Russian Hunting by Riolis I've reached the other side of the horse's neck and chest! That bit of yellow peeking out on the far left hand side is the background starting to appear again. I believe that black line is one of the horse's reins. Square by

Hot Chocolate, a Horse Ear, and Bonbons

Rachael Gorjestani on Unsplash Happy Hot Chocolate Day! There's nothing quite like a hot, steaming mug of chocolate to brighten up a Winter day. And let me tell you, I need a hot drink here at the Castle. The weather has been absolutely freezing and very dark. Now, getting back to Hot Chocolate, here's a nice article I found that goes into the health benefits and history of that cheerful beverage. And if you're interested in really celebrating today, then here's a free Hot Chocolate PDF cross stitch chart that I designed a while back. The download is an ebook, so you'll get some other beverage themed freebie charts as well. Enjoy! Mind you, I haven't just been sipping mugs of Hot Chocolate and huddling over my heater (only some of the time). I've gotten in a good amount of stitching since my last post. Behold a horse ear: Russian Hunting by Riolis I'm looking forward to stitching the pinks, yellows, and blues of the sky again. In shop update news,

Meet Nikolai, and Eat Mississippi Pot Roast

Meet Nikolai Or at least, meet Nikolai's head. See that dark block of stitches in the middle? Yes, that is Nikolai's head. He has one of those warm Russian hats on, so he won't catch cold riding through this winter scene. I really like stitching in 10x10 squares, it's amazed me how much progress one can make when using this method. Russian hunting is absolutely stunning, but maybe it's time for a change soon. Here's my tentative plan: keep stitching on Russian Hunting until the end of January, then at the beginning of February put it away and start working on one of my other wips. We'll see. Mississippi Pot Roast If you've had this dish, you know it's heavenly. If you haven't had it, you're missing out. Simple as that! Beef, ranch dressing mix, pepperoncini peppers, and au jus. It sounds like a weird combo, but trust me- it is amazing. One of my all time favorite meals ever. The flavors mix together beautifully. There's r

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