PATTERN:
112x140 pixels = 8"x10"
MATERIAL:
White Aida (14ct)
COLORS (DMC):
White
Black
3846 - Bright Light Turquoise
747 - Very Light Peacock Blue
702 - Kelly Green
895 - Very Dark Hunter Green
676 - Light Old Gold
919 - Red Copper
951 - Tawny
3608 - Very Light Plum
917 - Medium Plum
902 - Very Dark Garnet
963 - Ultra Very Light Dusty Rose
415 - Pearl Gray
317 - Pewter Gray
954 - Nile Green
total colors: 16
DATE/TIME:
Started stitching: December 3rd 2014
Finished stitching: August 12th 2015
2520 (first 8 hours approximate guess) minutes = 42 hours
TOTAL STITCHES:
4620
PROGRESS LOG:
Spoiler
started stitching 12/3/2014 (stitched words and two notes)
got back to stitching 2/9/2015 (finished up black on notes and outline of heart)
[approximate time taken for words and black parts of music notes about 8 hours based on time taken for several other small cross-stitch projects around the same stitch count]
7/12/2015
5:30am-6:30am
7:30am-8:00am - got music notes and heart done
=90 minutes + 8 hours (not logged)
12:30pm-1:35pm
7/13/2015
4:10am-6:00am - got Roll done
=175 minutes
7/15/2015
4:00am-6:05am
5:00pm-5:20pm
5:30pm-7:15pm - got Princess Toadstool done
=250 minutes
[515 minutes so far = 8 hours 35 minutes + 8 hours not logged]
8:50pm-9:25pm
7/17/2015
5:20pm-6:20pm - got Flurry snowman done
=95 minutes
7/23/2015
11:45am-12:10pm - ran into a problem with the two greens used on the trees (905 and 895) blending in so much I could hardly tell them apart, had to swap out 905 for 702
12:30pm-1:40pm
3:50pm-4:05pm
11:15pm-11:40pm
7/25/2015
11:45am-1:00pm
2:20pm-2:50pm - got tree behind Princess Toadstool done
=240 minutes
3:05pm-3:25pm
4:20pm-4:55pm - got footprints in snow done
=55 minutes
1:15pm-2:45pm - got treetop behind Roll done
=90 minutes
8/2/2015
6:05pm-7:30pm
8/4/2015
9:55am-10:40am
11:10am-12:20pm
2:10pm-3:30pm - got tree between Roll and Princess Toadstool done
9:30pm-11:10pm - got mound to far left done
=380 minutes
8/7/2015
5:05pm-6:45pm
7:20pm-7:50pm
8:05pm-9:35pm
8/8/2015
3:10pm-4:05pm - got tree to far left done
=275 minutes
8/9/2015
2:20pm-3:30pm
3:40pm-4:00pm - got castle and distant snowbank done
=90 minutes
4:10pm-4:35pm
8:45pm-9:55pm
8/10/2015
7:25pm-9:00pm
8/11/2015
12:00am-12:45am
7:05pm-7:35pm
8/12/2015
10:10pm-10:45pm - got lake of ice done (finished!)
=300 minutes
[subtotal time 2040 minutes = 34 hours + approximately 8 hours not logged = 42 hours total]
got back to stitching 2/9/2015 (finished up black on notes and outline of heart)
[approximate time taken for words and black parts of music notes about 8 hours based on time taken for several other small cross-stitch projects around the same stitch count]
7/12/2015
5:30am-6:30am
7:30am-8:00am - got music notes and heart done
=90 minutes + 8 hours (not logged)
12:30pm-1:35pm
7/13/2015
4:10am-6:00am - got Roll done
=175 minutes
7/15/2015
4:00am-6:05am
5:00pm-5:20pm
5:30pm-7:15pm - got Princess Toadstool done
=250 minutes
[515 minutes so far = 8 hours 35 minutes + 8 hours not logged]
8:50pm-9:25pm
7/17/2015
5:20pm-6:20pm - got Flurry snowman done
=95 minutes
7/23/2015
11:45am-12:10pm - ran into a problem with the two greens used on the trees (905 and 895) blending in so much I could hardly tell them apart, had to swap out 905 for 702
12:30pm-1:40pm
3:50pm-4:05pm
11:15pm-11:40pm
7/25/2015
11:45am-1:00pm
2:20pm-2:50pm - got tree behind Princess Toadstool done
=240 minutes
3:05pm-3:25pm
4:20pm-4:55pm - got footprints in snow done
=55 minutes
1:15pm-2:45pm - got treetop behind Roll done
=90 minutes
8/2/2015
6:05pm-7:30pm
8/4/2015
9:55am-10:40am
11:10am-12:20pm
2:10pm-3:30pm - got tree between Roll and Princess Toadstool done
9:30pm-11:10pm - got mound to far left done
=380 minutes
8/7/2015
5:05pm-6:45pm
7:20pm-7:50pm
8:05pm-9:35pm
8/8/2015
3:10pm-4:05pm - got tree to far left done
=275 minutes
8/9/2015
2:20pm-3:30pm
3:40pm-4:00pm - got castle and distant snowbank done
=90 minutes
4:10pm-4:35pm
8:45pm-9:55pm
8/10/2015
7:25pm-9:00pm
8/11/2015
12:00am-12:45am
7:05pm-7:35pm
8/12/2015
10:10pm-10:45pm - got lake of ice done (finished!)
=300 minutes
[subtotal time 2040 minutes = 34 hours + approximately 8 hours not logged = 42 hours total]
Spoiler
October 14th last year I started work on an idea for a cross-stitch inspired by Disney's animated movie Frozen, this one based off the song "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?". I worked on it for several days, collecting the elements I wanted to create my image, the pattern created out of sprites and background images from various NES games, putting them all together to build a unique scene and to tell a story, something I enjoy very much.
As with most of my compositions, I went through a lot of revisions before settling on what I would be completely satisfied with before I began stitching it.
I started out with two girls, choosing Princess Toadstool from Super Mario Bros. 2, and Roll from Megaman 9 (she is the one exception so far for all my own cross-stitch pieces that is not from an NES game). The snowman came to mind once I had searched through a whole bunch of games (any that I could think of that had snow or ice stages), I settled on the Flurry enemy from Super Mario Bros. 2 as I wanted something that looked like it was being built, as if just the bottom of its body was done so far, makes sense as the title is a question about wanting to build a snowman.
Next I needed some scenery, some trees like pine or spruce, classic winter and Christmas tree types. Surprisingly it didn't take me long to find what I was looking for in the NES game, Cliffhanger (yeah, the one based off the Sylvester Stallone movie). I recolored them as the color choice was very drab, so that they'd match with the colorful characters.
I added the quote, the song title, but still hadn't yet figured out the best font for it, but after a few more edits I found something suitable with the font style used in Deadly Towers.
Now, to find a house to place further in the background. My immediate thoughts went to an ending screen to Megaman 2, feeling something of a cabin or farmhouse would give it that wholesome country look. But there was something about it that didn't quite sit right, first of all it looked like a postcard, but more so, made the Princess seem out of place.
I added in some music notes above Princess Toadstool to show that she was singing. A heart above Roll, being excited, happy to join in with her friend. Threw in an Albatoss in the sky, nah, shot that bird down real quick. How about some other characters snowball fighting? Placing Rash from Battletoads and the enemy snowman from that game in the foreground. These two kept appearing and disappearing from this pattern constantly before I decided as I had begun stitching that I wouldn't use them after all.
As with all my customized projects details are very important to me. An idea that hit me was similar to what I had done on an old cornerstone I had done for Nintendo Age some years ago, that one of over a dozen and a half was G.I. Joe the Atlantis Factor. What I ended up with on that one, after many edits, was to make a scene that looked like a comic book cover, and for it to really have that genuine feel I had to have every detail that should be there. I had the UPC barcode thingy, the little square in the top corner showing the company that puts the comic out, even looked up the price of comic books back when that game came out so that could be accurately represented as well. It turned out really nice.
Anyway, my thoughts going back to that sprite composition art I had done, got me thinking about sheet music for the song "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?" as I wanted the Princess' singing to be an accurate music note representation of the lyrics being sung. I found the sheet music for it, then using the music notes from Milon's Secret Castle, edited those to create the song. All of the notes are correct including their height to one another, the only thing I did differently was that I angled to bars holding them upward so it looks like the music is flowing up into the sky, plus it looked better than having them so straight. I was so happy with myself.
I needed this to look like a fantasy world though, so started looking for small castle sprites that would look good as a distant background image. I had the perfect one, the intro from Final Fantasy. I found a spot for it, including the island that it rests on. But then I had this blank space of emptiness in between the trees and that castle. Still at the time trying to add those snowball battlers in there, I had also thought up ice skaters, so I filled that void with a frozen lake. I had also thought to add more characters with the two girls, but decided against it, as with the Battletoads ones, too much unnecessary clutter, the focus needed to be on the girls building the snowman.
Still ever one for details, something still felt off about this. One cannot get across snow, at least not normally, without making footprints. I could've easily made those myself, but I try to always find sprites from games first. Only took me a few moments to think up which game to get them from, Gotcha! So I added in some footprints behind both Roll and the Princess, close together for the Princess as she is wearing a dress plus took her time trudging through the snow to the snowman in progress. Yes, Toadstool can levitate, but not today. Roll on the other hand, little girl, very excited, placed her prints further apart as she skipped up the incline between the trees.
There was one more thing off, Roll looked rather comfy, warm in her dress that in that particular sprite I chose makes it look like she is wearing a shawl or poncho or something, but the Princess would freeze her ass off dressed as she was. Okay, so in the game world it don't matter, but this was my world, cartoons and game characters need to keep warm too. First I thought of the mother from Legacy of the Wizard, removing her shawl and trying to make that fit the Princess, but even stretching it, it just didn't look right on her. I thought of Belle from Disney's Beauty and the Beast when she was out in the snow, the beautiful cloak she wore, that's what I needed for the Princess.
It took me a while before it occurred to me to look at the original Japanese game that Super Mario Bros. 2 came from, Doki Doki Panic. I had remembered that one of the characters in that game wore a hooded cape. After a few edits I placed it over the Princess' shoulders, perfect! It fit her nicely. Then I recolored her arms to give the dress long sleeves. Now she is ready to be out there playing in the snow.
As I was typing this up I just realized something wrong about the castle, somehow I forgot to get the center tower. All this time, all those edits, all that time seeing it, stitching it, I wonder how I did that? Anyway, that's what, less than 5 minutes worth of stitching, 7 more stitches. Okay, now I'm done!
Sprite elements used:
Snowman (Flurry - Super Mario Bros 2)
Princess Toadstool (Super Mario Bros 2)
Princess' winter cape (edited - Doki Doki Panic)
Roll (Megaman 9)
Trees and snow (Cliffhanger)
Heart (Super Mario Bros 2)
Music Notes (edited - Milon's Secret Castle)
Ice Castle and island (Final Fantasy)
Footprints (Gotcha!)
Font (Deadly Towers)
As with most of my compositions, I went through a lot of revisions before settling on what I would be completely satisfied with before I began stitching it.
I started out with two girls, choosing Princess Toadstool from Super Mario Bros. 2, and Roll from Megaman 9 (she is the one exception so far for all my own cross-stitch pieces that is not from an NES game). The snowman came to mind once I had searched through a whole bunch of games (any that I could think of that had snow or ice stages), I settled on the Flurry enemy from Super Mario Bros. 2 as I wanted something that looked like it was being built, as if just the bottom of its body was done so far, makes sense as the title is a question about wanting to build a snowman.
Next I needed some scenery, some trees like pine or spruce, classic winter and Christmas tree types. Surprisingly it didn't take me long to find what I was looking for in the NES game, Cliffhanger (yeah, the one based off the Sylvester Stallone movie). I recolored them as the color choice was very drab, so that they'd match with the colorful characters.
I added the quote, the song title, but still hadn't yet figured out the best font for it, but after a few more edits I found something suitable with the font style used in Deadly Towers.
Now, to find a house to place further in the background. My immediate thoughts went to an ending screen to Megaman 2, feeling something of a cabin or farmhouse would give it that wholesome country look. But there was something about it that didn't quite sit right, first of all it looked like a postcard, but more so, made the Princess seem out of place.
I added in some music notes above Princess Toadstool to show that she was singing. A heart above Roll, being excited, happy to join in with her friend. Threw in an Albatoss in the sky, nah, shot that bird down real quick. How about some other characters snowball fighting? Placing Rash from Battletoads and the enemy snowman from that game in the foreground. These two kept appearing and disappearing from this pattern constantly before I decided as I had begun stitching that I wouldn't use them after all.
As with all my customized projects details are very important to me. An idea that hit me was similar to what I had done on an old cornerstone I had done for Nintendo Age some years ago, that one of over a dozen and a half was G.I. Joe the Atlantis Factor. What I ended up with on that one, after many edits, was to make a scene that looked like a comic book cover, and for it to really have that genuine feel I had to have every detail that should be there. I had the UPC barcode thingy, the little square in the top corner showing the company that puts the comic out, even looked up the price of comic books back when that game came out so that could be accurately represented as well. It turned out really nice.
Anyway, my thoughts going back to that sprite composition art I had done, got me thinking about sheet music for the song "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?" as I wanted the Princess' singing to be an accurate music note representation of the lyrics being sung. I found the sheet music for it, then using the music notes from Milon's Secret Castle, edited those to create the song. All of the notes are correct including their height to one another, the only thing I did differently was that I angled to bars holding them upward so it looks like the music is flowing up into the sky, plus it looked better than having them so straight. I was so happy with myself.
I needed this to look like a fantasy world though, so started looking for small castle sprites that would look good as a distant background image. I had the perfect one, the intro from Final Fantasy. I found a spot for it, including the island that it rests on. But then I had this blank space of emptiness in between the trees and that castle. Still at the time trying to add those snowball battlers in there, I had also thought up ice skaters, so I filled that void with a frozen lake. I had also thought to add more characters with the two girls, but decided against it, as with the Battletoads ones, too much unnecessary clutter, the focus needed to be on the girls building the snowman.
Still ever one for details, something still felt off about this. One cannot get across snow, at least not normally, without making footprints. I could've easily made those myself, but I try to always find sprites from games first. Only took me a few moments to think up which game to get them from, Gotcha! So I added in some footprints behind both Roll and the Princess, close together for the Princess as she is wearing a dress plus took her time trudging through the snow to the snowman in progress. Yes, Toadstool can levitate, but not today. Roll on the other hand, little girl, very excited, placed her prints further apart as she skipped up the incline between the trees.
There was one more thing off, Roll looked rather comfy, warm in her dress that in that particular sprite I chose makes it look like she is wearing a shawl or poncho or something, but the Princess would freeze her ass off dressed as she was. Okay, so in the game world it don't matter, but this was my world, cartoons and game characters need to keep warm too. First I thought of the mother from Legacy of the Wizard, removing her shawl and trying to make that fit the Princess, but even stretching it, it just didn't look right on her. I thought of Belle from Disney's Beauty and the Beast when she was out in the snow, the beautiful cloak she wore, that's what I needed for the Princess.
It took me a while before it occurred to me to look at the original Japanese game that Super Mario Bros. 2 came from, Doki Doki Panic. I had remembered that one of the characters in that game wore a hooded cape. After a few edits I placed it over the Princess' shoulders, perfect! It fit her nicely. Then I recolored her arms to give the dress long sleeves. Now she is ready to be out there playing in the snow.
As I was typing this up I just realized something wrong about the castle, somehow I forgot to get the center tower. All this time, all those edits, all that time seeing it, stitching it, I wonder how I did that? Anyway, that's what, less than 5 minutes worth of stitching, 7 more stitches. Okay, now I'm done!
Sprite elements used:
Snowman (Flurry - Super Mario Bros 2)
Princess Toadstool (Super Mario Bros 2)
Princess' winter cape (edited - Doki Doki Panic)
Roll (Megaman 9)
Trees and snow (Cliffhanger)
Heart (Super Mario Bros 2)
Music Notes (edited - Milon's Secret Castle)
Ice Castle and island (Final Fantasy)
Footprints (Gotcha!)
Font (Deadly Towers)
<---- me if I could make patterns like those. And btw 
on the bionic commando one. I want to make the snowman one for my Christmas decorations....
