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I love it all: embroidery, canvaswork, quilting, crochet. So much to do, so little time.





Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Two Years, Eight Months and Three Days

That's how long it took to stitch
the Prairie Schooler Alphabet.  
And, yes, it's done!
This is by far the biggest project I have undertaken,
so it deserves its own post.

Those of you reading this blog in 2016 
may remember how excited I was to get
this long, narrow piece of fabric that
I had earmarked for the project.

It's kind of hard to photograph the entire piece.
With each block measuring 70 x 100 stitches,
including the little borders that were backstitched
around each block, the piece measures a hefty
216 x 916 stitches!

You can see a bit more detail
with these close-ups.
I went lighter on a lot of the
called-for colors.

I also looked at each chart carefully
to see whether any stitches
were charted outside of the
70 x 100 parameters.
Many were, and my decision
was to edit the blocks
so that they would be uniform.
N for Nest was a challenge because
the birds' tails hung out an
extra 2 stitches on either side.
I wound up shortening their bodies.

T for Time is my favorite block.
Finishing this project was bittersweet
because I really enjoyed every stitch.

The fabric is 32-count evenweave,
stitched 2 over 2,
so the finished size is
13.5 x 58 inches.
And daylight shows the true color
of the ground fabric.

That's it from here.
We're in for some record-setting
cold temperatures here,
so everyone dealing with
weather extremes,
please stay safe.

Thanks for visiting.

17 comments:

Eva said...

What a wonderful finish!!! A great accomplishment! Now you will have to pick another really large project!

Sandy said...

very impressive, and congrats on the finish!! Stay warm and hopefully you can stay in and stitching tomorrow. here in Sunny Cal, we don't et snow/cold days, sure do miss the Midwest.

sheryl said...

so very beautiful and quite an accomplishment!!!!! Hang it proudly and enjoy it many years to come!!

wranglerkate said...

Just amazing! Thank you for sharing this with us. It's inspiring!

Rita said...

How wonderful, congratulations!

Linda said...

Congrats on the absolutely stunning finish. It is truly stunning.

Linda

Robin in Virginia said...

What a fabulous stitching accomplishment! Congratulations to you on this finish! Stay warm and stitch happy!

Astrids dragon said...

OMGoodness, that looks amazing! Totally worth all the time it took you. I don't know if I can pick a favourite! I'm looking forward to seeing it framed.
Stay warm, it's cold here too.

Keebles said...

That is amazing and wow, how that's going to be when it's framed!

Terri said...

WOW! What an accomplishment! Congrats on the finish, it's gorgeous!

Carol said...

I've been waiting for your fabulous reveal, Pat! Can't tell you how much I admire you for sticking with it and finishing each and every block. It really is such a special piece and I look forward to seeing it all framed up. Not sure I would want THAT framing bill! But, it will be worth is. Congratulations to you--and Happy February ♥

Beth said...

Congratulations to you! What an amazing accomplishment. I hope that you intend to get this framed or finished in somewhat for you to have it up and admired.

Jackie's Stitches said...

Just gorgeous! What an amazing accomplishment!

Unknown said...

Congratulations on your finish. It is beautiful, and I too lightened up some of the reds. I have been working on this piece since January, 2018, and I am determined to see my finish this year. I am stitching 1 over 1 on 28 Ct mushroom lugana mostly with the called for DMC. I do love Prarie Schooler's color schemes and the detail they achieve without a lot of shading. I have arranged the blocks in three horizontal rows. So far I have solved the over flow problem by leaving 3 threads between blocks and stitching as charted. In the beginning I was unaware that there were any variations, so now I make sure the little blocks with the letters all line up. So far so good ,and I look forward to a finish as amazing as yours.
Jennifer

Julie said...

A fabulous and stunning finish, well done on completing it, its amazing.
I've been watching the news closely as to the weather overseas. It does look bad.
Stay warm and cosy

rosey175 said...

Oh wow, congrats on this amazing finish! My favorite would probably be K for Kitty or Y for Yarn. This whole thing was totally worth all the time invested into it. That will be an epic frame.

Marie said...

Congratulations! It looks wonderful!