Twenty-One years...

Do you know where you were or what you were doing 21 years ago today?
I do...
and those two words had a whole lot to do with it!!

Today is my 21st wedding anniversary, and thanks to mother nature, I got to spend it with the love of my life, my best friend, my wife! We got a little over 4 inches of snow topped with a layer of sleet/freezing rain and temps that barely reached the mid-20s today!

What do you do for your better half after 21 years? You get a little creative!
My wife is absolutely in love with cheesy horror movies and zombie flics!
Many years ago, I taught myself how to do counted cross-stitch. It's a great way to relax, and can be a lot of fun to be creative.

So with a little internet research, I located the perfect pattern. After collecting the proper materials and selecting the right colors, we begin:

Yeah, this would take a bit longer than I had anticipated!!
but, with a little perseverance, we finish.

Now to find the right frame. I know I want to try and match the colors in the piece, I was hoping for something in the red family... ie: the blood-red family...

Well, no such luck, but the two shades of green will set off the zombie theme quite nicely. But the O.C.D. portion of my brain is now kicking the insides of my skull quite profusely, screaming that there is something missing... something just not quite right...

you can do better...

come on...

think man...

think

Ok, off to the internet I go. first off to find the right color.

for those that can't quite see the label, that's color X-27, Clear Red... then the right tool/technique...

Yes, believe it or not, a simple tooth brush later and we now have:

Oh HELL yeah!! that is perfect!! Turned out as good or better than I had hoped! and after flicking the paint to create the splatter, two of the fingers on one hand were mostly red, so I had a stroke of insanity, paint the third finger and make sure the first two were good and wet to create the bloody finger prints!! Too cool!



now I have a small quandary... I've done so good so far, let's find the right shade of green for wrapping... Yeah, bright green wrap at Hobby Lobby was $10 a roll!! Let's see what the local Dollar store has... then with a little youtube research, mainly on how to create fancy bows... and what the hell, let's get a little more creative with the paint again...

damned fine job, and not bad at all for a fancy looking gift that I'm sure she will like.

and yes,
She loved it!! I am just thrilled with the way this project turned out!!
Thanks for reading!
Have a GReat night!
Dawgbones