I'm excited to be helping out my local
Can't Stop the Serenity screening (
http://www.cantstoptheserenity.com/) again this year by donating a couple of my cross stitch pieces for the silent auction. For those that don't know, Can't Stop the Serenity is an annual screening of Joss Whedon's movie Serenity, which is the continuation of the story he began telling in the TV series Firefly. Each year, on or near Joss Whedon's birthday cities worldwide host a screening of the film with proceeds going to Joss's favourite charity
Equality Now, and local area charities.
Last year my pieces raised a total of $438.00 for Equality Now and other local charities. You can see them here:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=339236.msg3927822#msg3927822 and here:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=336609.msg3894642#msg3894642.
I'm still using the same characters I designed last year, but I wanted to make sure that the pieces looked different. I felt that if I used the same layouts as last time then it would take away from the uniqueness of those prizes and I didn't want to do that.
The picture that you see above is the only one I made with all the characters, and it measures 8 X 8 inches. It was stitched on an a 16 count aida cloth, and I'm really happy with how it turned out. The characters take about 1-2 hours each to stitch so this was the most time-consuming piece. I ended up rewatching all of of Angel season 4 while making these cross stitches. Last year I think I was on a Buffy kick while stitching.
It took me a long time to decide what I would make for my second piece. I eventually decided to do another design with the "Leaf on the Wind" quote because it was the best selling of the smaller cross stitches I made last year. Wash seems to be the fan favorite, at least at our local screening, and I'm hoping that adding Zoe to the picture will make it extra appealing. This piece was stitched on the same aida cloth, but it's smaller, measuring 5 X 5 inches.
Finally, I wanted to find a way to use up some of the leftover scraps of cross stitch fabric that I had from other projects, so I came up with these Firefly minis. The hoops measure 2.5 inches in diameter and are made of rubber, although they look like wood from a distance. I made the pattern for
Kaylee in her Shindig dress last year, but I had never stitched it. I was excited to give it a try and I'm really happy with how she turned out. You can't see it in the picture, but I used pearl Krenik blending filament on the pink and peach parts of the dress to make it sparkle.
The two framed pieces will be sold in the silent auction at our Vancouver screening this year. The minis I'm going to give to our organizer to use however she wants. They may end up being part of the door prizes or in surprise grab bags that people can buy for a small donation to Equality Now.
If you're interested in stitching Firefly characters yourself the patterns are available under the My Free Patterns tab on my blog (see the link in my signature). And if you want to find a Can't Stop the Serenity event near you to attend or possiblly contribute your own crafty talents, check out the link in the top paragraph, which will direct you to the official Can't Stop the Serenity website.
Comments and feedback are always welcome. Thanks for looking everyone!
amber
