Author: Anne S

I’ve decided to get back to a formal rotation again, because I struggle to decide what to stitch on inbetween WIP Warriors challenges. Some challenges allow me to use one project for multiple challenge prompts, which is great for making good progress, so I’m hoping between the two I’ll see more progress going forward.

I’ve always had printed rotation sheets with ten-square blocks that I can tick off manually as I’m working through my 10-hour rotation slots, but I’ve decided this time to try using a digital version (using Trello) instead to see if that’s easier. An example of my manual sheets if I’m ticking things off physically on paper:

This is how the Trello board rotation looks like, including 10 checkboxes where I can tick off every 1 hour or 1,000 stitches of stitching, depending on the project type. It means I don’t have to have a clipboard next to my stitching chair, and it’s on my phone all the time, plus I have the ability to drag columns around so the current rotation slot is always first on the screen. The app also syncs beautifully between the desktop version and my iPhone. Fingers crossed it works well – it seems to be going well so far 🙂 I’ve since added the project photos to every piece that I’m currently working on each column to make it easier visually to grab the next project in my rotation.

Stitching progress:

And finally here’s my progress through the month of October.

First up I had a **finish** during the month! Creepy Pincushion by Shepherd’s Bush

Egyptian Garden Mandala by Chatelaine

Working very slowly on the bottom right corner – the fabric is so difficult to work on, it’s taking me a long time to make progress. I did manage one full rotation of 1,000 stitches on it, though, this month … although I was super happy when the rotation slot was finished and that I don’t need to look at it again for a number of weeks.

Cabana Beach by Mill Hill

Really loving this piece to work on – my fabric substitution of a 28ct linen was such a good choice (I really dislike stitching on perforated paper), and the colours are such a joy to work with. It’s actually really hard to put this one down, I have to admit. Maybe once Halloween is over, and Three Kings is finished, I might move this to be my focus piece to get it finished.

Supernatural by PixelsStitches

I made some progress on Dean this month, as well as making some great progress on starting Bobby Singer. Just one more character (Crowley) not started yet, and I don’t think it’ll take long to finish. Doing 100 stitches here and there as part of group challenges has really made a dent in the stitching.

Three Kings by Mill Hill/Jim Shore

The beading of the borders has commenced, with two colours completed so far (purple petites and turquoise) – I’m halfway through completing the gold petites in the side borders. This is the most stunning project I’ve worked on in some time, it’s such a pleasure to look at, I’ll miss it when it’s finished.

The Boys Are Back In Town by JABC

I want to change the colour of the grey wording as the colour blends too much into the background fabric – just not sure which colour to go with, a darker black/brown from the vampire, or a green or brown from Frankenstein … oh decisions, decisions!

Girls Night Out by JABC

Great progress on this one thanks to a challenge where I was able to choose this project multiple times. Really hoping to have this one finished before Halloween – fingers crossed!

Prairie Schooler – When Witches Go Riding

I almost completed the wording this month – just one ‘b’ left to go. I ran out of the original hand-dyed thread I used in the header, then used 3371 as charted instead which is vastly different, so in the future I’ll need to unpick the header and the tree and start again before I can call this one finished. In the meantime I’ll keep chipping away at it until that’s necessary.

Periwinkle Promises – Stitching is the Berries

Those queen stitch borders are the death of me, it’s soooo slow going. But I did at least manage to complete one round of colour, and I just have the one inner border of queen stitches left to go before I finish the bands. I’m forcing myself to get the queen stitches done first so the rest is like a treat at the end 🙂

Nora Corbett – 2024 Mirabilia Retreat Mermaid

Only about 230 stitches progress on this one this month, but she’s a real joy to stitch using mostly silk threads and beautiful teal colours in the mermaid tail.

Luca-S: Sea View

What retreats or stitching events would you love to attend someday?

I have to be honest I’ve decided for now that stitching retreats just aren’t for me. I’ve been to some wonderful ones over the last 25 years, but I find some personalities at our local ones too stressful to be around, so I tend to avoid them now for my own mental health. It’s a real shame, because I used to get a lot of enjoyment out of attending them. I do have to admit, though, I’d dearly love to attend one of the cardmaking events in the US, but won’t visit there until the current administration isn’t there.

I finally got back into stitching again in September by joining in with a few stitching challenges in the WIP Warriors private group. Progress is only 100 stitches in some cases, but that means 100 stitches closer to a finish! 😀 Photos below are before and after progress during September.

Egyptian Garden Mandala by Chatelaine

Cabana Beach by Mill Hill

Supernatural by PixelsStitches

Three Kings by Mill Hill/Jim Shore

The Boys Are Back In Town by JABC

Girls Night Out by JABC

Finch Song by Shepherd’s Bush

Creepy Pincushion by Shepherd’s Bush

Sea View by Luca-S

2024 Mirabilia Retreat Mermaid by Nora Corbett

Prairie Schooler – When Witches Go Riding

Needle Delights Originals – Color Delights-Seafoam

Indigo Rose – Catherine Agnes

Forget-Me-Nots in Stitches – Raphael’s Raspberries

ByGone Stitches – Quaker Christmas II

Periwinkle Promises – Stitching is the Berries

Do you have any sort of record for your finished pieces? Tell us how you record their information.

Honestly I’ve been quite slack in recent years, but in the past I’ve always kept a Word doc every year for all my finishes. These contain a photo of the finished piece, along with key information about the stitch count and fabrics etc used for it. I also include some notes about who I gave the piece to or any challenges I faced during the stitching etc. I then printed the pages out and keep them in ringbinders. This year I started on reworking the format so I could reduce the number of pages if possible, with the intention of having them printed into a book format instead so I can look back on them all in later years 🙂 I also keep a photo in my Flickr albums of each finished piece.

For my WIPs I tend to rely on my blog to keep track of them, and have them all listed on a Works in Progress page. I try to update the page annually, updating the ‘starting image’ for any projects where I made progress in the previous year, but once again have been pretty slack with keeping that updated on a regular basis! I think I’ll probably improve once I gradually get more consistent with doing actual stitching each year.