Happily Ever Done!

Finally, a month and a bit late, Happily Ever After is finished!  Last night I sucked it up and did all the lazy daisies around the border. (Thank you to Lisa for the suggestions for other stitches.)

I didn’t do it exactly as per the pattern.  My border is a little less fussy, and I like it that way. Overall, I’m very pleased with this design, and I think the recipients will like it too.  Hopefully I’ll be able to take it to the framers this week.   Then it is just a matter of figuring out how to get it to the States… *sigh*

To switch gears, I want to write a little bit about something that is going to go unfinished.  First, a bit of background.  I’m reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin (which I whole heartedly recommend). In it she writes that one of the commandments she sets for herself is “Be Gretchen”. She also gives “What’s fun for other people might not be fun for you–and vice versa” as one of her Secrets of Adulthood.  These two bits of advice really resonated with me, and jumped to the forefront when the announcement about the release of the next part of Castles in the Air came out.  You know what, I like the design so far, but it isn’t me at all.

I don’t like to stitch traditional samplers, I don’t like to stitch Quaker, and I don’t like to hang these things on my wall.  I like fantasy designs and figural pictures.  I do like speciality stitches, but only to a certain way.  I love Teresa Wentzler, Jennifer Aikman-Smith, Laura Dickson and Marie Barber.  I’m fond of Victoria Sampler and Lizzy Kate, to a degree. These are the things I want to stitch, and I shouldn’t be stitching something just because it seems like the thing to do. (I was totally tempted to do that Quaker Sampler everyone was working on a while back even though I don’t like Quaker.  Why? To fit in? To make friends? I don’t know.)

Be Me, not everyone else.

This now leaves me with a dilemma. I have a very large piece of hand-dyed fabric (Wind from Enchanting Lair) with the first few parts of Castles in the Air stitched on it.  So, do I cut out what I’ve done (I’m thinking mainly the centre area minus the peacock and half a fountain) and cut the rest of the fabric up into pieces for other designs, or do I pick everything out so I have a large piece of fabric to use from something else in the future.  (I’m thinking maybe Fairy of Dreams or Circe from Passionne Ricamo, neither of which I own right now).

What would you do? Would you give up, or would you keep stitching a design you aren’t really interested in because you’ve already made an investment of time and money in it?

Damn it. When I pulled it out take a picture of it I kinda did like it. I guess it gets tucked away again until I can really make up my mind.