completed christmas presents one: cross-stitch portraits

for my mother

for my older sister

for my younger sister

For Christmas presents for my mother and my two sisters, I made cross-stitch portraits of us three girls. It was originally just going to be for my mother, but after I stitched up my sample one (not pictured), I decided it was so adorable that I had to make one for each of my sisters as well. I had the basic pattern custom-designed for me by Wee Little Stitches (and they were a pleasure to order from), but I altered the design each time I stitched it to change the outfits and colors and hair styles.
I ended up making four of these - starting with my sample, then my younger sister's, then my older sister's, then my mother's. My younger sister got "sisters" embroidered on hers as well, but I decided I didn't love it and didn't like doing it (I am bad at backstitching, which is weird) and so I didn't include it for the other two.
The one for my younger sister is stitched on linen and then stretched over a small 4x4 inch canvas, while the ones for my older sister and mother are stitched on 14-count Aida and framed. I love how they turned out, and I mastered french knots (at last!) in the process. Each cross-stitch took about five hours (more or less, sometimes more) to complete. Definitely worth it. One of these days I'm going to make a fifth one for myself.
Although my family is in Wisconsin for Christmas, I got to Skype with them while they opened their presents from me, which was great. All of them seemed to love the cross-stitches, which was wonderful and exactly the reaction I was hoping to get. Hopefully these cross-stitches will always remind them of our love for each other!