Friday Freebie: 50 x 50 for 2019 - January

Welcome to the first ever edition of the 50 x 50 pattern series! If you don't know what it is about you can read more here. This year it's all about patterns with a single colour that give you options - you can do it in two or more ways! Life has been very hectic this week and this afternoon and evening I was helping youngest build a new wardrobe after first making space in his room to be able to build it so I didn't get the stitching I'd planned finished.

This is the main pattern - which as you can see isn't finished - though I did start on time and should have been able to. The problem was the floss I'd chosen - its Valdani three strand thread and I must have had a bad batch or something as the thread constantly broke! Even when I used half the usual amount and got out one of the gold plated needles I have for difficult threads. It was pilled here and there on the ball, so already damaged before I even started stitching. The 20ct Aida probably didn't help but as it's Zweigart its good quality and doesn't shred thread as much as the nasty cheap stuff. Sometimes I couldn't get two stitches in before the thread broke so it can't have been wear and tear. Needless to say stitching proceeded slowly which is why I hatched the plan to stitch the alternate side instead.

This is what I'd hoped to finish stitching today - it's the alternate version you get if you only stitch the bits that have been left white. At only 555 stitches it's totally doable in a day for me IF I get to sit down and stitch - which due to the wardrobe stuff wasn't possible - ah well...

The good part about the alternate version is that you start in one place and keep going till you end up where you started! How easy is that?!

You can find the main pattern here
You can find the alternate pattern here
I'll see you Tuesday for the next new SAL: The Medieval Owl SAL!