Andromeda's lessons

I just thought I'd do a little update on where Andromeda is so far:

As you can see, I have chosen to stitch her skin 2 over 2, instead of 1 over 1 like some of those beautiful Mirabilia finishes going around the internet, because even though I absolutely admire and applaud the stitchers who can do that, I do not have the patience to do something that intricate.

In fact, Andromeda is teaching me quite a few things. She has taught me that I should be striving for enjoying the stitching process, not the result. She has taught me that even though I love the finished result on linen, I don't particularly enjoy stitching on linen. And she has taught me that even when I feel like my stitches are all twisted and awful (like on her skin! The thread just kept twisting!) it's better for my sanity and the project itself if I relax and keep going. Because at the end of the day, no one is ever going to look at the stitches as closely as I do, or even care.

I also broke down and started using a hoop again. Part of the "enjoy the process" lesson, I guess. Ironically enough, my hand felt very stiff stitching in hand, and switching to my favorite hoop really helped. So I really enjoyed that.