Home is where Mum is.

Now that my brothers and I have all left home to go to University, the word home has become a bit confusing.  I refer to my University house as home, but my parents house as home as well (though sometimes, to avoid confusion this becomes 'home-home').  I feel very at home in my room at University, and there's nothing quite like being surrounded by all the little things that I've collected; but being around my family is where home is. It doesn't matter whether we get on, or whether we bicker (and with two brothers I can tell you we Bicker with a capital B!), but I'm surrounded by love and to me that's being at home.

The centre guide makes it easier to stitch in the right place

I miss my Mum like nobody's business when I'm away, she's the person I phone when I'm upset, or worried or need advice.  It's because she's only a phone call away that I feel like I can call my house at University home.  So to show her that, I made her this cross stitch for Mother's Day.

Everyone has their own way to cross stitch - lines, blocks, single stitches - I alternate but make sure all the crosses cross in the same direction. I got a bit obsessed with making it very neat and ended up having to undo whole letters after having a gin and tonic and getting a bit mixed up!

I was inspired by some posts I saw on Pinterest around American Mother's Day last year. I lost the posts (silly me didn't pin or like them) but remembered them enough to design my own version.  I haven't cross stitched since I about 12 and even then I could never finish a project, I just got bored and gave up because it looked scruffy. Thankfully, my Mum taught me to cross stitch well (she's a cross stitch demon!) and I could still remember how to do it, though I was probably a bit slower than I should have been!

I didn't quite manage to finish the cross stitch in time, but Mum got it as soon as I got back from University for Easter properly (only a week late and I had a good excuse with Brownie Pack Holiday!). I even managed to sort out something for my brothers' to get her - they paid for the frame.

Casually cross stitching at the train station

I took it everywhere with me - even knitting whilst waiting for a train. I invaded knitting society with my sewing, and had everyone being amazed by my embroidery scissors because they look like a phoenix (apparently - to me they just look like normal embroidery scissor, but what do I know). And I had to give my lacey scarf a break (don't worry I'm still doing it even though I started it on New Year's day!). I can tell you I got some funny looks, probably even more so than when I knit! 

The cross stitch even managed to survive having beer spilt on it! I'd been really careful all the time I'd been sewing it and made sure I didn't have dirty hands, then the day I finished it (in my favourite pub), I managed to spill part of my half of Archbishop's Best on it (from the Black Paw Brewery - my fave!)!

I'm really proud of how it turned out and I managed to prove to myself that I CAN finish cross stitch projects!

V x

I'm listening to: A mixture of BBC 6 Music (as normal) and my driving playlist of Elbow, Patrick Wolf and Mumford and Sons.