Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Crying in the Farmhouse

I have been crying in the farmhouse.
The tears I cry are not from joy.
I know the meaning of disaster.
I've ruined my cross stitch ornament.

Based on the song Crying in the Chapel as recorded by Elvis Presley, 1960
_____________________

Sigh!

I cannot begin to tell you how unhappy I am.  I spent a lot of time stitching a lovely ornament design for my exchange partner Elka (not her real name).  Here is a picture of the finished ornament copied from the chart ...


I have been fearing the finishing work but the mailing deadline is in just a few days so I couldn't put it off anymore.  I knew better than to try to master that cinnamon stick/cone & berry border so I decided to finish it by fringing the edges & attaching the stitched design to fabric to make a small pillow-type ornament.  I mean really ... how hard is that!  Well, I ended up making a total mess of things.  For the last half hour I have been searching through my tears to access every sales site I know of on the web trying to find someone who is selling a cross stitch ornament that meets the requirements of the exchange.  I found two.  I wrote to the one lady whose ornament I'm most interested in for further information.  Thankfully she doesn't live too far away so if I purchase it today it should get here in plenty of time for me to meet the mailing deadline.  I'll need to include a note in the package telling Elka how sorry I am that it wasn't stitched by me.  Hopefully she won't mind.  

8 comments:

TheCrankyCrow said...

Awwww....poor Shirlee....I feel so bad for you....but is it truly so bad you cannot use it?? Some prefer "less perfect" (we call ourselves "primitive lovers...") ;o) You're not even going to post a photo of it?? Well...wishing you luck in securing a replacement....(Like your song....) Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin

Trace4J said...

Hugs to you friend!
Handmade is not always perfect friend!
Made with love is what counts.
Blessings
Trace

www.grannytracescrapsandsquares.com

jennifer768 said...

Big hugs Shirlee! I am sure that your partner will understand,perhaps you should send both as you have worked so hard on it .The love put into it means so much more than perfection of the piece.Hugs,Jen

BumbleBeeLane said...

Oh girl you had me scared for a second..smile..I'm sure she'll love both.Like I said we are our own worst critics.Big hugs!~Amy

Angela said...

Shirlee, I agree with Robin. Lots of us gals don't care if it is perfect or not. A little imperfection makes it more special. I have a piece of your work girlie and it was done perfect. That is a beautiful cross stitch piece and after all that much work, I would send it anyway. I bet it is prim perfect.
Hugs,
Angela

Jessica said...

I love that pattern! Is it Little House Needleworks? I wish you'd show us your stitched piece! :) Do you think you could send both to her? Maybe she can do something with the one you stitched? Or is it really that bad? I am so full of questions, sorry. ;)

I am so sorry things are not going the way you hoped. I know that is such a huge bummer :( especially since you made a commitment to someone. I think everything will be okay though. I am sure "Elka" will understand as long as you communicate with her what's going on.

HUGS, Jessica

Anonymous said...

Shirlee: I love the way it looks in the cinnamon sticks!!! I'd treasure it for sure. I'm sure the pillow looks fine too!! Sorry you are so stressed!! Swaps should not be this stressful...Hugs to you!
patti

Robin at The Primitive Hutch said...

Oh Shirlee, I'm sure your piece was beautiful ~ you shouldn't be so hard on yourself. I would go ahead and finish it and send it on its way. It's the thought that counts.
Is there anything I can do to help you fix it???
Prim Blessings
Robin