a Week of New Beginnings

This week I began 6 new cross stitch projects.  Teresa Wentzler's Castle Sampler is most likely going to be my greatest challenge.  Stitched on 27 ct. linen, most of the border areas are stitched over 1 thread to create maximum detailing. 

I found this kit at a fantastic price on ebay.  The previous owner had gone to great lengths to separate and organize the threads, setting up all of the blended colors and threading them on individual needles.  The linen had been hemmed and only a small portion of the design had been stitched.

I immediately realized why the previous stitcher had given up on the project so soon after beginning to stitch.  She (or he) had started stitching the castle portion over 1 thread instead of over 2, making a complex project nearly impossible.  The instructions are somewhat hard to understand ... but I did a bit of research before I began.  I frogged out the stitched area and started anew.

And here we go ... The journey of a completed project begins with a single stitch.