Cross Stitch Skull and Crossbones!

For my birthday, I went to the craft store, and blew the $30 that my grandparents gave me on crafty crap.
Among the craft items was this terrific, blank, black tote bag...that I could decorate HOWEVER I WANT. WooHoo!
So, I cross-stitched this super awesome skull and crossbones onto it:



I got the pattern for this at supermitten.com.
I had a few problems in the beginning stages - mainly, with the waste canvas, which doesn't seem as easy to use as the package (and many cross-stitching websites) would lead you to believe. The combined thickness of the fabric and the waste canvas, as well as the inflexibility of the canvas itself, led to the impossibility of getting the fabric + waste canvas stretched over the damn hoop to make it easier to work with.
I ended up abandoning the hoop and the waste canvas, and went for my 14 aida. It was easy enough to apply, the stitches look uniform - and when finished, it actually LOOKS like the pattern. Unfortunately, it was a bitch to remove out from under the stitches. I'll make sure to attempt the waste canvas again - although, I'll definitely have to plan better.

A little off the subject...
I really can't figure out what to do with this tote bag. I have a couple ideas:
1. Run with the pirate theme, as I love pirates, and they are awesome and stuff,
or
2. Make it an 'Audrey Awesome' tote bag, covered in everything that I love: frogs, Folk Art Hearts, Happy faces, crochet patches/pockets, Peace signs, guns...you know - all the stuff that makes me ME.
OR (this just occurred to me)
3. Make a theme on either side (e.g. frogs on one side, pirates on the other)

I love themes, and I'm willing to run with one - but an amalgam of the awesome things that I ♥LOVE♥ really brings out the artist in me!

My 100th post - Tapestry Crochet Heart Square, and Random Rambling

Woohoo! Celebrate - It's my one hundredth post! Feel free to do any of the following: drink a margarita, sing "We Are the Champions", do an intricate "End Zone" dance, or scream "AUDREY IS AWESOME!" at the top of your lungs.
Oh, and all you loyal followers: thanks for hanging in there with me. You're awesome, too!

MEANWHILE, at the crappy one bedroom apartment that temporarily suffices as my living quarters:

Here's a Tapestry Crochet heart square that I did!



I'm getting quite interested in tapestry crochet, and the myriad methods used to create these terrific works of art. I have found 4 methods so far, and I'm playing with all of them. This heart was done in an afternoon at my mother-in-law's, when I had to stay and watch the dog while my hubby and his brother took their mom out to dinner for some quality time...because it's her 50th birthday! Oh, and if someone didn't watch the dog, he'd howl, bark, and tear off the molding around the door - so that someone had to be me. And also, because I eat gluten free and they were going to a hamburger joint (i.e. Absolutely NOTHING on the menu that I can eat).

Okay...FOCUS! (I'm talking to myself again. Almost as worrisome as going off on tangents. Oh. Right.)
This method required that I attach small balls of yarn at the top of the heart (3 blue, 2 white) instead of carrying the opposite color underneath the working color. You may remember this method from the video that I posted in my previous post, Loki's Tapestry Crochet Kerchief. I think this method looks much more uniform, and the colors are bright and vibrant - not broken up by the color of the carried yarn showing up underneath (as it inevitably does, if you carry the yarn).
All in all, I'm happy with the results. This method might become my standby!

So - what will I do with it? Many ideas have occurred to me, including: a pocket on clothing, a pocket/patch on a bag, the front panel of a sachet bag, a center square for a throw pillow, and a random square to be used in an afghan. That's about as creative as I get at the moment, as I am trying to MASTER A SKILL, rather than complete a project.
If you have any ideas for this square, feel free to leave a comment. Oh, what the hell - you could even just leave a comment if you think it's really awesome, and you have no ideas for it whatsoever. Anything goes on Auð's ArtBlog...I'm a rebel.