I had this 4 opening mat and frame and needed something to put into it. I searched a very long time to find four motifs small enought to fit each of the openings in the mat. I have a lot of Celtic motifs and I finally! found three that would work. I used my initial to fill the fourth space. It's framed in an antiqued gold frame. These motifs used DMC cotton floss, Mill Hill seed beads and Kreinik blending filament. Each motif measures 1.5" X 2.5". Framed, it measures 13" X 5". 
These are the gifts I gave to my sister and her husband for Christmas. Coming from the mid-west, I have always loved Cardinals. I found an alphabet that features this beautiful bird and used my sister's (and those of her husband) initials to make these little pieces. They were done on 28ct antique white linen and stitched with DMC cotton floss. They measure 3" X 4" with the frame. I found these frames at a local Hobby Lobby.
The "Fairy Queene" is finished. It took about four months but it was worth it. It features two colors of Mill Hill Beads and DMC Light Effects floss. It measures 8 x 17 inches. Surprisingly, this is almost all full cross stitches--very few fractional stitches at all! Now, what will be my next project?
This is my current WIP. It's called "The Fairy Queene" designed by Claire Crompton. Just as the earthly world has its rulers, so does the magical realm. The Fairy Queene is a powerful figure throughout mythology and has many names: in the Celtic tradition she was Queen Mab or Maeve, a warrior queen. Maeve means mead, a rich red wine that she offered to kings and rulers to signal her approval of them. She has appeared in fiction throughout the centuries, often as a less dark and dangerous character, notably in Edmund Spenser's (1552-1599) epic poem The Fairy Queene and as Shakespeare's mischievous Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream. In this glorious cross stitch picture she is represented as a sensual fairy set against a night sky filled with the light of a full moon and twinkling with stars. She emerges dramatically from an intricate Celtic knot framework, perhaps to bring dreams to us sleeping mortals.
This is called "Irish Christmas Visitor". It's 8 X 10 and has lots of beads (of course) and Kreinik metallics. I am of Irish descent so I try to find and stitch as many Irish/Celtic designs as I can. I even used the small Celtic crosses in the corners in greeting cards. This was stitched on aida but someday I hope to re-work it on 28 ct. Irish linen. The curtains at the window were done in a technique I had never done before. It was similar to "tweeding". The bottom part of the stitch was dark blue. The top part of the stitch was white. I really enjoyed stitching this one! From the designer: While the Irish don't have a tradition of a gift-giver or a Santa Claus, they have a number of customs related to the Christmas season. On Christmas Eve, a lighted candle is placed in the window, a loaf of bread with raisins and caraway seeds (soda bread) and a pitcher of milk are left on the kitchen table, and the door remains unlatched to extend hospitality to the Holy Family or to any traveler who might be on the road. Immigrants from the south of Ireland brought the idea of holly wreaths with them to the United States; therefore, holly appears on the border of this design. Also, what tribute to the Irish would be complete without shamrocks, celtic crosses, and an Irish harp? This Santa also carries a golden cage with a wren inside because on Dec. 26, young boys go from house to house carrying an artificial wren, singing a simple verse, and expecting a gift of pennies for "Feeding the Wren," a custom similar to our "Trick or Treat" on Halloween.
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