Ooh, yay! It does take a while for sealer to dry fully, but it should be a slightly tacky dry after about half an hour or so, and if you wanted to try taking a hair dryer to it then, I think it would be set enough that you wouldn't have to worry about bubbles forming. I lock mine up in a room without my cats and just leave it to dry overnight, but I know that can be an impossible thing for some. (Especially if any of your cats are like mine and have some sort of vendetta against closed doors. It took a while for them to get used to having shut off rooms when we moved from our tiny studio.)

That's not a misprint! There are a LOT of colors, so the color associated with a given symbol can differ from one kit to another. Like, the fish I'm working on now has blue/gray colors on symbols that were red/orange for the deer. The only symbol I've had that usually stays the same from one kit to another is black (color code 310), but that's only for the three that I have that are the same brand; the first one I did is a different brand and used a different symbol entirely. It can be a little confusing at first, but I've found that labeling my drill containers with the number and the symbol for my current diamond painting is a pretty handy solution to help avoid mix-ups. (I use the same trick for cross stitch and embroidery, which uses the same kind of color and symbol system, so I don't have to spend so much time sorting out, say, different shades of brown.)

Oh, so yours is kind of like applying clear nail polish? I imagine that will have a bit of learning curve to figure out how to apply without missing spots, but a bit of touching up until the technique for it is mastered should do well enough. The sealer I use goes on kind of milky but dries clear, like white glue. I apply it with a paintbrush that is probably meant for wall trim, one and a half to two inches wide or so. Makes quick work of the bigger pieces I've done.

Sounds like a good plan with your drills! I did something like that with my first painting, actually. Just labeled my containers with the numbers and kept the physical copy of the table thing I got with the kit with them. And 60, wow! The box I use only has 24 or 28 containers in it, so I only keep my current palette stored in it; all my spares go into baggies labeled with their code that I keep in a different box. It's worked out so far, my biggest kit JUST fit in it with one container to spare, but if I do anything much larger or more complicated, I'll definitely have to consider how to upgrade my storage. And yes, the codes are usually DMC, which is the same system used for most embroidery threads! As far as my experience goes, DMC is the most popular color sorting system in the US when it comes to hobbies like needlecrafts and diamond painting. There are other systems, though, at least for thread, so I still make a point of comparing the actual drill colors before storing two colors with the same code together.

If the pens that come in the kits are uncomfortable to use, I'd probably suggest trying a cushy pencil grip on them first since it would probably be less of an investment, then trying a different style of pen if that still doesn't feel right for you. I like the basic pens from my kits pretty well, though, so I don't have experience with anything else, and I don't see myself upgrading any time soon. I have been tempted by the wax pencils I've seen online, though. I get so tired of refilling my pen sometimes.

Yeah, it probably would be a bit of a reach to try to finish a Christmas kit in time for this Christmas. They'll be a fun way to get into the holiday next year, though! Honestly, I'm struggling enough getting my fish done in time so I can finish and ship everything off to my mom in time for it to arrive before Christmas. It's almost done, though! I think I should be able to finish it tomorrow night, and then I'll have to put a pause on DP stuff to crochet a quirky Christmas tree hat I was asked to make. Shouldn't take too long, though, hats usually go pretty fast.

You're much better at easing in than I am! I've kind of just been going full steam ahead the whole time and figuring everything out as I go. Like, I didn't realize there was a difference in the two sets of multi placer tips I have (one set from my first kit, another set from my tool pack) until last night when I decided to use a five from the tool pack instead of the three that I've been using since the beginning. Turns out the set I had yet to use is much easier for me to place drills because of how I hold the pen, go figure. Oh, so you'll be able to find out pretty fast if a squishy grip is right for you or not, convenient! I feel a bit basic being so attached to my standard pens when some of the resin ones look so pretty, but short of finding one in an actual store to test its feel, I worry that they'd be too big or heavy for me to use comfortably.

I also did not know you could get gallstones if you've had your gallbladder removed. The more you know, I guess. I hope everything will go well and your mom has an easy recovery afterward, though!

Multi placers can take some getting used to using, but they can make large areas of a single color go by so much faster! I have to spend a little extra time straightening the rows and columns of drills after I place them, but I think I actually managed to save time on my fish by using them. Still haven't used any of my tips bigger than a five, though; getting enough drills to line up in my tray to pick up at once is something I'm still struggling with. Oh, those wax tips sound similar to the wax pencils I've been eyeing! I've seen some of the fancier pens online with wax cones on one end (as opposed to the empty barrel end for mounting the multi tips), too. I have enough spare pens for multi tips now that something like that could be worth investing in, haha.

Water for cleaning off some surface debris, noted! I'm sure I'll need to use that tip eventually. If my cats don't knock something into the floor, I'm sure my clumsy self will manage it all on my own at some point. I know how removing cat hair goes when one of them decides you need a helper, though. One painstaking strand at a time.

I finished my fish the other night! (Picture here, if you're interested.) I stayed up late so I could finish it and seal it and be able to store it the next morning. Now I have a pile of yarn waiting for me; dug through all my yarn bags to rustle up enough colors, hopefully I have enough of the main color since I'm using skein leftovers from other projects. Really don't want to get most of the way through and have to rush to buy more.

Yeah, trying to get straight lines on a round design like that would have been difficult for the pattern creator to engineer. But Winnie the Pooh will likely provide plenty of opportunity to try the multi placers out! Doing large swathes of color a single drill at a time is incredibly tedious. Perfectly doable, as I did exactly that with my first painting so I could just get used to the pen and not have to worry as much about placements being slightly off, but it takes a lot of time that way.

Oh, good, so I'm probably not completely off with my guess of what kind of fish it is! Back where my family lives, most of their fishing is bluegill, so that's the only fish I have much experience with. Though I doubt I'd recognize a picture of a bluegill any better, hah.

Oh, yes, adhesive putties like Blue-Tack, and even some sealing putties, can easily be used in place of wax! I think the biggest benefit to it is that it lasts longer than wax, so you wouldn't have to refill your tip as often. My wax lasts plenty long enough, especially in my multi placer tips, though (I've only just gotten into my second square of wax), so I haven't bothered trying an alternative yet. I've also read that there are liquid/gel adhesives that work, too, but I've never actually seen them. Multi placers aren't too hard to line up, but they take a little getting used to, in my experience. It's harder if, like me, you tend to hold your pen at an angle, because then just getting the tip in the right place next to other rows or columns of drills can be tricky. You'll have to fight against the drills basically shoving your tip slightly out of place (which leads to the straightening tool getting a lot of use), or you'll have to train your hand to hold the pen mostly vertical. I expect it's not much of a problem if you already don't hold the pen at too much of an angle, though.

I know besides bluegill, there were some places with perch, too, and I think crappie? Up at the lake there was some bass fishing to be done, but that was just a summer thing, and mostly only my grandfather did much of that. And in some places people liked catching carp to eat (which I think is a good way to tell a place is really out in the boonies, hah), but it'd have to a cold, barren winter for most of my family to resort to putting those bottom feeders on a plate.

I haven't actually framed any of mine, but I imagine it would be similar to framing needlework where you mount the piece on mounting board, folding the edges around to the back, tacking in place at the corners if needed, then place in the frame. Looking online, they say you can trim an inch or two from the edges of your canvas, too, to help it fit in a frame, though I'd be hesitant to do that without basting the edges afterward since it could cause the canvas to fray.

I only ever had one aquarium fish, and that was when I was I really young, before I was even in school. He was a cheap little goldfish that lived through a lot of tank cleaning mishaps, right up until we left him with my uncle to care for while we were away from home and he forgot to feed him. We never got another because I wasn't really interested in tank cleaning. If I wanted to look at fish, my parents could just sit me in the aquarium aisle at Wal-Mart. All of the fun, none of the hassle.

70 books for the year, that's awesome! I'm not sure how many I've read, I'd have to go through my library checkout slips to count them up. It's been a fair amount (at a guess, I'd say 50-60), I always have a book near at hand. Sorry things have taken an unexpected turn with your mom! I'm sure it must be scary and stressful, I hope things get better for her, and you!

Finally finished that hat I was working on (link out to the deviation page on DeviantArt, if you'd like to see how it turned out); been a while since I spent much time crocheting, so I wound up bruising my fingers on my hook before the end of it. One of these days I'll work up a solution to that particular problem. I have it all boxed up, just have to get it sent out. But now I can work on something else, like my Jack Skellington kit, maybe! Or the puzzle I've had hidden, box open, under a blanket but have yet to put even two pieces together. (Not that my cats have minded, I have one asleep in each half of the box right now.)

Thank you! I'm glad to hear that. I don't think I could wear this particular hat, either, to be honest, too heavy for me, but it does look nice sitting upright! If I rework the pattern a bit to eliminate the holes that are left behind the 'leaves,' I could probably turn it into a proper plush. Have to take stock of my yarn stash, see if I have enough of any green to do it for Christmas next year. Or maybe I'll make a quirky pink tree, or snowy white, who knows, haha. I'm honestly not sure if the ergonomic hook handles would solve my penchant for bruising my fingers while crocheting. All of the ones I've seen would require more investment than my hook collection, and the ones I've tried didn't feel right in my hands. (I don't know anyone else that holds a hook the way I do, and it's kind of a curse.) I've been thinking something like a sort of single finger glove (like a finger puppet without any of the puppet bits) with thick yarn might provide enough cushion to prevent bruises. In theory, at least, it'd be like a cushy thimble. I certainly have enough scrap yarn kicking about to try it, I just have to remember to actually make it before I get wrist deep in another project.

Holidays have been going pretty well! My beau has been REALLY busy with work, but that's just how the service industry is this time of year. We never do anything extravagant, but I managed to make time and rustle up enough ingredients to make cake for us.

Hope the holidays have been treating you well, too! And may you be blessed with good health and many good things in the new year!

Oof, dietary restrictions for the holidays are not fun, I've been there before. But you still got to have a nice dinner together, it sounds like, which is what really counts, I'd like to think! The beau's parents sent us a box of goodies for Christmas; some chips and homemade fudge and cookies. I'm hoping to make some cookies or fruitcake or something to send back in the containers they sent. Late gifts are better than no gifts, right? What a terrible time of year for the phone line to be on the fritz, though! I haven't used a landline since, gosh, primary school, I think? But I doubt telephone companies have gotten any better to deal with since then. I hope you can get it fixed quickly without having to put up too much of a fight with whoever has to do the work!