Coasters Finished! Simon Belmon, Mega Man, Hello Kitty

[YeahYeahYouWere]

Hey all, new to the board - found it when looking for some inspiration for a project. I decided to make some coasters as a housewarming gift for some friends of ours, and I decided on Hello Kitty. However, to be fair to the husband I decided to go with Mega Man and Simon Belmont as well.

It's my first design. I've put together the patterns and I have stitched the first Hello Kitty and Mega Man, but I also wanted to get some input on some finishing touches. They're going into clear acrylic coasters that have a 3" by 3" design area, and I am working on 14 ct AIDA (so 42x42 stitches to work with).

Hello Kitty

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Mega Man

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My question is - do you think I should add a border or something to them? Due to time, I do not want to do full backgrounds. I'd love to hear what others think. Thanks!

[Lijnloos]

Maybe some sparkles or little stars for Kitty and some ammo for megaman (like he's shooting)?

Nice job on the stitching!

[YeahYeahYouWere]

Thanks Lijn! I guess it was a bit of a lie to say it was my first project, because my mother did teach me to stitch when I was younger. However, it is my first project in the last decade and a half

I bought some 14 ct plastic yesterday to try out with my Simon, using a half stitch with 6 strands, and I like how it is turning out. I think I am going to use that method going forward since the half stitching lets me go faster, and the plastic should let me fill in the background area more easily, and will hopefully be easier to mount in the coasters. I have to give credit to OneChordWonder (iirc) for the awesome tutorial on her blog that helped get me going. I'll be sure to post progress once I have a chance.

[YeahYeahYouWere]

So I am probably 70% done with the Simon Belmont stitching. I switched to 6 strand half stitches on 14 ct plastic and it's moving much more quickly. The only problem is that I seem to have more trouble counting stitches with the half stitch for some reason, but I am chugging along. Of course, I have yet to order the actual coasters and the store I plan to order from is not shipping this week due to vacation, so it's a ways away yet.

Here is my progress so far - any input is very welcome of course! I know there are a few gray threads on the back I will need to get pulled in. Does anyone have any ideas on how to finish the back to stay put? I will have to trim very near the needlework to get them in the coaster and I am not sure about how to finish it. Thanks in advance!

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[YeahYeahYouWere]

Never got around to getting as many WIP pics as I planned, but I have finished the first 3 of 4 coasters I am making. I have Simon Belmont, 1 Hello Kitty, and Mega Man done. I originally wasn't too happy to find out the coasters actually were very thick and had a deep lip around them that I didn't expect, but now that I have the projects mounted in them I think it actually adds some depth and looks really good.

I also added a thin border around each piece that I think really improved the look - any feedback is much appreciated!

Simon Belmont Coaster

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Hello Kitty Coaster

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No picture of Mega Man at this time, though he is easily my favorite of the 3. I am going to make a 2nd HK coaster too, for a set of 4.

[YeahYeahYouWere]

Finished all 4 and delivered them yesterday - they were quite well received, much to my relief

[Breaubot]

Love these! Especially Simon Belmont. Simon's quest was one of my favorite games growing up.

[Lijnloos]

I love how you did the background of the coasters! How did you do that exactly? It looks fantastic!!!

[YeahYeahYouWere]

I love how you did the background of the coasters! How did you do that exactly? It looks fantastic!!!

Thanks! I would love to take credit for the backgrounds but truth be told I simply 'stole' the idea from OneChordWonder - she had a great how-to on her blog, which showed a Scottish stitch for the background. I guess since she was nice enough to put it out there, it's not exactly stealing, but all the credit should go to her. She also has some amazing work on her blog done with the mosaic stitch, so once I finish up my Mario Kart coasters I am going to find an excuse to do a project with that stitch too! Here is the how-to post: http://onechordwonder.blogspot.com/2008 ... wpony.html

I figured since my coasters were 40x40, I would break the background into 8 'pixel' sections and do a 5x3 stitch. I also found it easiest to do all the squares first and then go back and fill in the lines. I was really happy with how the backgrounds turned out, and it was much quicker than doing it all in the tent stitch. I only wish I had found a better background for Simon, but c'est la vie!

[RenaeNaeMarie]

Those look really nice. Where did you get those glass coasters? Did you order them online or find them in a store?