Tale As Old As Time

Okay, are you ready for the most awesome stitching ever? This piece by VanGo87 on Craftster is our featured project and interview of the month. I just love it! It is so clever! You can see in progress pictures here.

Tell us a little bit about the piece.
This little guy was made for my swap partner in the “Can’t Get Enough of Disney Swap”. While brainstorming and googling ideas on Beauty and the Beast craft projects, the idea struck and I was whisked away on designs on how to execute it properly on a low budget and physically work.
After a week of planning and about four days of construction (and of course trial and error) this little guy finally came together. There were times I wanted to throw him at the wall (like when I realized that I bought the wrong size clock parts or that the clock parts didn’t come with instructions) but I eventually made it work and I am happy to say my swap partner loved it so it was entirely worth all the hair pulling.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I have a BA honors in Film  and a complete geek. I live in Canada with my very large family and my even larger craft, PEZ and DVD collections. I recently turned twenty-four (not like my younger boyfriend will ever let me forget) and I’ve been crafting since I could remember thanks to my equally crafty mother, family and friends.

 Do you have any other pieces like this planned for the future-what is your next project?
I have a lot of ideas for future geeky projects – too much that I don’t know how to keep track of them! I’m working on making the Cogsworth Clock tutorial (however I’m thinking of snazzing it up with wood instead of cardboard), a collection of cross stitched “sh*t happens” hoops based on movies and video games, a cross stitch Doctor Who TARDIS clock, and a “Home is where the TARDIS is” cross stitch for my sister and her boyfriend’s new apartment.

What would you tell someone just getting started?
Patience. Have a lot of it. If something doesn’t work, learn from your mistakes and keep going. I have made so many craft related mistakes that I can’t even count on my fingers and toes anymore! Also, don’t be afraid to try something new or set a goal. I thank my swap partner for not giving me any boundaries and letting my head run wild with ideas. Surround yourself with people who encourage and inspire you, you’ll never know where that support and creativity can take you!

What/who inspires you.
Not to sound cliché, but everything and everyone. I tend to look around at what others have made and ideas tend to spring from that. As for specific people I would have to say my mother, sister and best friend.
My mom has always been a creative person but didn’t take the creative path when she was younger because it wasn’t seen as a good choice. Until this day she surprises me with her unique creativity and her ability never to give up.
My older sister is someone I always looked up to. Her artistic talents were far better than my own growing up and I always pushed myself to try and make something that would make her say “wow, make me one”, which recently has started happening so I know I have her respect as an artist.
As for my best friend, she has an amazing artistic work ethic that I would love to have. She knows what she wants and will keep trying until she gets it right. Without her support and encouragement, I don’t think I would have branched out artistically. Not to mention that they are all as geeky as I am so whenever I make something related to our favorite fandoms and they like it, it really inspires me to make more!