In my early teenage years I used to enjoy a bit of cross stitch, nothing too complicated or would take me beyond a couple of evenings to complete, but recently I’d been thinking it would be nice to try it again. When I was at the Knitting and Stitching show in Edinburgh in April I decided to bite the bullet and bought a kit which I’d been immediately drawn to, and finally made a start on it a month ago. 

The pattern is called ‘Bright Eyes’ by Hannah Dale and it’s a Bothy Threads kit, containing all the threads, Aida, needles and two versions of the pattern (one with the finishing touches/outlines and one without). The first evening I began working on it I painstakingly laid everything out and read through the pattern before eventually making that first stitch after spending an age trying to thread the needle. I’ve spent weeks on this project, checking and double checking I have the  right amount of stitches, unpicking the odd row because I’ve used the wrong thread and constantly comparing it to the photo to make sure it looks right.  After completing all the cross stitches it was then time to use a back stitch to give definition to the flowers and the eye and adding wispy bits of hair.

 I eventually finished the whole thing on Sunday, then had the scary prospect of having to clean it. After being handled for weeks, the fabric was starting to look a bit grubby so I carefully hand washed it before leaving it to dry and then gently ironing it (covered with a towel) while still damp. Thankfully, it survived the cleaning in tact!

I thoroughly enjoyed doing this, even if I wish I’d pick an easier first project. I’ll definitely do more cross stitch in the future and have been looking up patterns and kits, I really like some of the ‘modern’ patterns out there. For now though, it’s back to crochet – I think my eyes need a break from the tiny stitches!