Let’s get into it — my latest project is a full-on, festive horror show and I absolutely love it.
I’m calling it Peppermint Cthulha, and yes, it’s as weird and brilliant as it sounds.

Tentacles, candy swirls, eldritch madness with a Christmassy twist — and I’m stitching it in full chaos mode.

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🧾 The Stitch Details

Chart: From ➡️➡️ Unconventional Cross  Stitch ⬅️⬅️, based on artwork by the fantastically twisted Echo Chernik

Fabric: 32-count evenweave

Technique: 1 strand over 1 — tiny stitches, ridiculous detail

Method: Extreme cross-country — one colour stitched across the whole piece before moving to the next

Stitch count: 360,000 total / ~30,000 done

Colours: 14 down, 86 to go


Here’s where it gets interesting — I don’t choose my own colours.

Instead, I ask people on Facebook to pick a number between 1 and however many colours I’ve got left. I’ve stacked the remaining DMC threads in order using Pattern Keeper, so when someone gives me a number, I count down the list to find out which thread is up next.

It’s completely random. I never know what part of the design will start appearing next — peppermint swirl? Tentacle? Madness? Who knows.

And honestly? It’s bliss. No faffing about deciding. No second-guessing myself. Just thread, stitch, reveal. Chaos in the best way. As I’ve already started this, I’m just going to drop all my progress pics thru this post and then from here on only show pictures when a colour is finished.

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👻 Stitched with a Side of Spirits

While I stitch, I’ve got paranormal YouTube on in the background — the weirder, the better. Lately, I’ve been binging:

Ghost Theory

Ghost on Trent

The Paranormal Files

Dark Arts TV


There’s something oddly peaceful about stitching a cosmic peppermint beast while someone walks around a haunted ruin saying, “Did you hear that?”
The spooky vibes are strong — and strangely calming.


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🎧 Oasis on Loop — Music, Memory, and That Night

The soundtrack to all this chaos? Oasis. On loop. Pretty much exclusively at the moment.

My autistic brain does this thing where something just clicks, and right now, it’s Britpop season. The reunion talk, the nostalgia — it all hit hard.

Favourite album: Definitely Maybe — raw, loud, real

Favourite track: Cast No Shadow from Morning Glory — reflective and haunting in all the right ways


Then came that night — the first reunion gig.
I stumbled across a TikTok livestream — someone in the crowd, streaming it raw and shaky. I jumped on WhatsApp with my younger brother and 17-year-old son, and we watched it together, each of us in our own space, but completely in sync.

From the first distorted chord of “Fuckin’ in the Bushes” to the final crash of the closing track, we were buzzing.
We were shouting, swearing, laughing, ranting about how tight they sounded, how unreal it was to see them back — every song a punch to the chest.
Noel’s voice, Liam’s sneer, the wall of sound. We kept talking the whole way through — sharing thoughts, throwing random “OH MY GOD”s, or just sitting in stunned silence with the occasional, “Jesus Christ, listen to that.”

A dad, an uncle, and a son, completely lost in the noise.
Different perspectives, different generations — but held together by the same chords, the same tunes, the same nostalgia-soaked joy.
That’s what music does. That’s what Oasis does.


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🎤 Setlist Highlights — Proper Chills, Every Time

The reunion gig wasn’t just good — it was unreal. Here are a few moments that absolutely floored us:

🎸 “Hello” as the first song back
 Like they’d never left. First lyric? “It’s good to be back…” — you couldn’t write it better.

🌫️ “Cast No Shadow” followed by “Slide Away”
 Straight-up emotional carnage. Two of the most powerful tracks, back-to-back — raw, epic, no let-up.

🛋️ “Talk Tonight”
 Unexpected. Stripped back, vulnerable. Made the whole stream feel personal.

🚬 “Cigarettes & Alcohol”
 Still hits like it did in the 90s — rowdy, loud, pure Oasis energy.


From opener to encore, every track was like a reunion punch to the ribs.
It wasn’t just a gig — it was a memory being stitched together in real time.


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🧵 Progress So Far

Tentacles: Writhing into place

Peppermint swirls: Spinning up nicely

Current stitch count: ~30,000 / 360,000

Colour progress: 14 out of 100 (randomly chosen by Facebook crew)


This piece is going to take ages, and I’m fine with that. It’s not just a WIP — it’s a weird little time capsule of everything I’m into right now: ghosts, guitars, randomness, and ritual.

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🗣️ What’s in Your Hoop?

Are you stitching in silence or chaos? Do you let the threads decide, or are you a planner? Listening to old favourites or discovering new obsessions?

Leave a comment, tag me on socials, or shout into the void — I want to know what keeps your needle moving.


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Until next time — stay haunted, stay focused, and keep rockin’ that needle.
— Tattoo’d Cross Stitch Man