I’ve admired Faye Whittaker’s ‘All Our Yesterdays’ cross-stitch range for quite awhile now. It’s just that with other projects waiting for my attention, I never really got around to doing one.
One morning, I was getting ready for a hospital appointment and, knowing how tedious it can be to sit around waiting for your name to be called, I decided to bring along some stitching to pass the time. I decided one of those cross-stitch gifts that come free with Cross-Stitcher Magazine would be ideal. As it happened, the issue I grabbed came with a Faye Whittaker ‘All Our Yesterdays’ sample. It seems I was destined to do an ‘All Our Yesterdays’ cross-stitch.
As I expected, the waiting room was full. So I settled myself down for a long wait and broke open my needlework travel bag and started stitching. I like doing these little Cross-Stitcher Magazine kits as they are small, portable and easy to whip out and work on in a cramped environment. Plus they are super quick to stitch. Since I like to finish what I start before moving on to something else, I knew I would be able to finish this cute, little ‘All Our Yesterdays’ sample later that evening.
I’d always liked Faye Whittaker’s artwork, but it wasn’t until I began stitching away that I really began to appreciate the design. The colours were soft and muted just like Ms. Whittaker’s watercolour palette. I found them relaxing to work with. The children are quaint, charming and embody the innocence of that time. I was amused at the demonstration of the British capacity for coping with adversity. Anyone else would have grabbed the beach ball and made a mad dash for the car at the first sign of rain. Not these plucky youngsters. They are British and they came prepared. The boy simply opens an umbrella, shields the girl from the drizzle and they carry on with their day at the beach. You gotta love it.
By the time I finished the sample and popped it in a frame, I was smitten. I have since added a Faye Whittaker cross-stitch kit to my ever-growing list of projects I want to do. I may need to ask The Powers That Be if they could perhaps grant me a 36-hour day now and then so I can catch up with this list.
Click here now to view this piece in my Needlework Gallery.
