Valley of Shadow – Framed

I chose a rustic wood frame to give the piece warmth.

Valley of Shadow – Framed, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, I hold them up to You for the rest of their lives.

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Valley of Shadow – Stitched!

And here it is completely stitched!

Valley of Shadow – Stitched!, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, I pray that You stay with them and grant them peace and healing without end.

Valley of Shadow – Sky Fibers

I blended two threads of variegated fiber with four solid DMC cotton fibers to make the fibers for the sky.  This will liven the sky up and make it look more real and interesting.

Valley of Shadow – Sky Fibers, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, let Your light shine into the valley and bring them hope.

Valley of Shadow – Garibaldi’s Hand-dyed Cotton Floss

As you may know, I LOVE variegated thread!  For this project, I found some hand-dyed cotton floss on eBay!

Garibaldi’s Hand-dyed Cotton Floss, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, I pray for little joys and beauties in their lives!

Valley of Shadow – Far Hills

Here are the far hills, completely stitched.

Valley of Shadow – Far Hills, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, lift up their eyes to the hills, where Thy help comes from…

 

Valley of Shadow – Flat Horizontal Stitching

To make the flat, split texture, I have to begin a column on the left and add stitches always on the right.  To stop myself from having to start and end threads too often, I need to keep several colors threaded at once.  Tricky!

Valley of Shadow – Flat Horizontal Stitching, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Making it through the valley is not straightforward.  Healing can be painful, draining, challenging.  Father, give them the strength to heal!

 

Valley of Shadow – Under Haze

The hills on the far side of the valley are seen through streaky haze.  To give this impression, I’ve gone with horizontal stitches making a fairly flat texture.

Prayer: Beyond the valley there is land, land which is green and growing.  Although it seems far away, and maybe even inaccessible while they are in the valley.  Father, I pray that they find their way out of the valley into the life beyond.

Valley of Shadow – The Valley

Here I have stitched the valley and its walls.  Somehow when we are in the valley, it seems like there’s no possible way out.  So I stitched the wall using parallel vertical strokes to give that feeling of being trapped beneath cliffs.

The Valley, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, when they feel trapped in the valley, trapped in their grief, help them to remember that You are there with them.  Help them to walk with You and trust that You can lead them out.

Cat’s Project for Bella – Come on! – 1st Layout

Here’s a concept layout.  I think this is the photo you liked, and the font for Faith is Harrington.  The rest of the quote would be in plain block letters.

Hebrews-11-1-Come-v1, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

In 20 point, this would be 9″x6″, and is just at the limit of what I think will provide good detail on her face.

If you were willing to go finer, it could get smaller or more detailed.  Going to a larger size would also allow more detail.  Maybe standard letter size, in landscape?  Or would you want to keep the book smaller?

Cat’s Project for Bella – Hebrews 11:1

Here’s a layout of the verse for Bella.  It takes up about 175 pixels in width.   So on 20 point canvas, it would be about 9 inches wide.  I don’t know how this compares on cross-stitch fabric…

Hebrews-11-1, a photo by Carmen CS on Flickr.

Prayer: Father, we lift Bella up to you.  Please be with her, and help her to walk with you.