Embroidery: Counted Cross Stich

Buy counted cross stitch kits at 123stitch.com

I've always done embroidery, from the time my grandmother taught me when I was little until now. Sometimes my little embroidery projects tend to become neglected, thread lost, or I completely messed up the count and I get frustrated and stop.

One of the great habits I've picked up from art school was discipline: sticking with something and seeing it through. I was lucky enough to have completed last year a large embroidery project two years in the making, and my grandmother offered to frame it for me.

The counted cross stitch embroidery is a gorgeous underwater scene, because I love the ocean and find working with many vibrant colors keeps me interested in the project. There are fish, coral, and even dolphins all entangled together in a large scene that is hand-embroidered on a light blue embroidery cloth. I used a large hoop, almost 12" in diameter, which kept a large portion of the embroidery exposed and workable. This piece actually travelled with me to Italy, where I would work on it at night when I didn't have TV or internet to keep me occupied.

The finished product needed a custom black frame, and was matted with a deep blue matte. My initials, in red, are exposed in a thin light blue strip at the bottom of the image. I'm so proud of it, and couldn't wait to have it hung in my apartment: right now, it's hung right above my framed whiteboard in my studio above my drafting table. It's such a personal, stunning accent to the room - and so nice to see that all the hard work paid off.

The most recent piece that I've been working on has been an embroidered Italian bistro scene, which has been an ongoing for about a year now. In the true "me" spirit, I've already picked out my next embroidery, from 123stitch.com, and can't wait to get finished and started again!