Nutcrackers!

Since neither of my potential quilt-holders are up yet (Jazzy is, but he's not tall enough to hold the donation quilt top up for display), I thought I'd post a couple pictures of the embroidery project I've picked up.

This is from a magazine from 1990 - Better Homes and Gardens Creative Ideas Cross Stitch Christmas.  The project was all done up to the point of the leftmost nutcracker's head.  He still doesn't have a face, technically, because I don't have the right shade in my stash.  I need to go buy sixteen skeins of embroidery floss later today in order to finish this work.  I only have six of the colors... and I definitely don't have enough black!

And here's what I was complaining about on the back:

Thread city, baby!  You can very easily tell where I took over on the hat and the second nutcracker's boots.  Having all those loose threads just hanging about is untidy and runs the risk of them showing through the white Aida cloth.  Not sure yet what I'll do about them.