Challenges & SALs – Page 2 – Feather Stitching

WIPocalypse – Jan 2020

5 January, 20205 January, 2020 Anne S

Introduce yourself, your projects, and any goals you have for the year!

About me

I’m in my 50s and work full-time as a web publisher for an airline. I currently live in Sydney, Australia, which I’ve started to love thanks to having a great friendship network with fellow stitchers, but my home will probably always be Auckland, New Zealand where I grew up and spent most of my life.

I’ve dabbled in lots of crafts over the years, but cross stitch remains my one constant and which makes me the most relaxed at the end of a long work day. I love learning new things, so I like to dabble in specialty stitches and other techniques. I haven’t focused on this area of my crafts for a long time, though, so I’m hoping 2020 will be the year to kick-start my energy and enthusiasm for that again – I’m always happiest when I’m learning something new.

Goals for 2020

This year I’m kicking the year off with 56 craft WIPs/UFOs, which includes needlework and crochet projects. After last year’s pitiful efforts, I’m trying to learn from my mistakes and keep my goals simple (and hopefully achievable) this year.

Progress on 12 WIPs/UFOs (aiming for a different one each month)
Finish Quaker Diamonds
Finish Three Kings
Make progress on three canvaswork projects (WIPs or new starts)
Start a bed quilt
Make progress on a crochet blanket
Finish at least three projects from Crate Crochet
Finish at least one project from Crochet Society
Finish at least one project from KnitCrate
Complete 12 ornaments for Just Cross Stitch ornament SAL (Facebook)
Complete 12 ornaments for Hallowe’en ornie SAL
Finish-finish at least 12 items in my finishing pile
Stitch at least one charity quilt block
Finish and frame the Ronald McDonald charity stitching
Make some bat wraps and joey pouches for wildlife rescue
Sew an item of clothing
Make progress on/start at least three projects with specialty stitches or non-cross stitch techniques (eg stumpwork, hardanger, etc)
Start a HAED

I also intend starting a rotation again this year to keep me more focused. This year, though, I want to ensure I have a rotation slot or monthly time allocated to new starts for gifts – I have a number of projects I’ve been wanting to stitch as gifts for years now, so it’s time to start getting those stitched. I also want to ensure I give myself time to enjoy other pursuits and not just cross stitch and crochet.

And to kick off the year, here’s my list of current WIPs and their approx status (rounded up to the nearest 5%) – some of these I may scrap and start again, especially those at 5% for various reasons, and some may be offered up for rehoming. But for now, this is where they’re all at …

My WIPs – status @ 1 Jan 2020

Designer	Project Name	Main type	% Done
Ursula Michaels	Ronald McDonald charity	Cross stitch	95
Nora Corbett	Mia Mermaid (retreat project)	Cross stitch	85
CA Wells	Sailors Valentine	Cross stitch	85
Teresa Wentzler	English Garden Sampler	Cross stitch	80
CA Wells	Cottage Etui	Cross stitch	75
Rosewood Manor	Quaker Diamonds	Cross stitch	70
Stoney Creek	Nature’s Resting Place	Cross stitch	70
	Mediterranean Village scene	Cross stitch	70
Mill Hill	Three Kings	Cross stitch	60
Chatelaine	Egyptian Garden Mandala	Cross stitch	60
CA Wells	Pyramid Etui	Cross stitch	50
Prairie Schooler	When Witches Go Riding	Cross stitch	40
ByGone Stitches	Quaker Christmas II	Cross stitch	35
Teresa Wentzler	Noah’s Ark	Cross stitch	35
Shepherd’s Bush	Finch Song	Cross stitch	20
Country Threads	Paris	Cross stitch	20
Lorri Birmingham	Butterlies and Hearts needleroll	Cross stitch	20
Just Cross Stitch	Le Jardin Silk Sampler	Cross stitch	10
Anita Diamond	Quaker Flowers strawberry emery	Cross stitch	5
Textile Heritage	Topiary tree bookmark	Cross stitch	5
Mirabilia	Bluebeard’s Princess Mirabella	Cross stitch	5
Martha Schmidt	Hussif	Cross stitch	5
Lavender & Lace	Celtic Summer	Cross stitch	5
CCN	The Tea Room	Cross stitch	5
Drawn Thread	Almost Halloween	Cross stitch	5
Marg Low	Make a Christmas Wish	Non-XS	90
Monica Hunt	Hussif	Non-XS	90
Cindy Valentine	Apricot Elegance	Non-XS	65
–	Berry Delightful Bag	Non-XS	60
–	Wool hot water bottle cover	Non-XS	50
Inspirations	Summer fruits pincushion	Non-XS	40
Inspirations	Wool beehive needlebook	Non-XS	35
Moss Creek	Schwalmwork Pinkeep	Non-XS	25
–	Bullion rose facecloth	Non-XS	20
–	Goldwork pea	Non-XS	15
FMNIS	Rachel’s Raspberries	Non-XS	5
–	Long stitch frogs	Non-XS	5
–	Vicki’s cot quilt	Quilting	75
Jane Nicholas	Stumpwork needlework accessory – thimble pip	Stumpwork	80
Jane Nicholas	Dragonfly	Stumpwork	70
Jane Nicholas	Honesty and Heartsease	Stumpwork	70
Jane Nicholas	Oriental Poppy	Stumpwork	40
Jane Nicholas	Pomegranates and Beetle	Stumpwork	35
–	Beaded fish	Beading	50
Laura J Perin	Lahaina Breezes	Canvaswork	30
GCC	Ornamental Delights	Canvaswork	5
Crate Crochet	Beginners beanie (box 6)	Crochet	95
Lululoves	Granny Square pincushion	Crochet	90
Hooked on Sunshine	Atlanticus blanket	Crochet	70
Maria’s Blue Crayon	Coastal Indoor Rug	Crochet	50
Crate Crochet	Crate Crochet Hook Roll	Crochet	50
Crate Crochet	Ripple Tote	Crochet	20
Crate Crochet	C2C Bag	Crochet	15
	8-day kid blanket (blues)	Crochet	10
	Teal-coloured beanie	Crochet	10
Hooked on Sunshine	Phoenix blanket	Crochet	5

Goal tracking

To help me keep track of progress this year, I’ve updated my monthly craft planner (all just done in Microsoft Word) and created a checklist of all my 2020 craft goals with space for me to write in any details. These are now all printed off and about to get hole-punched to go into a dedicated ringbinder. Other than being disorganised and lazy, I have no excuses now for not tracking my progress this year! 😉

Challenges & SALs, Goals, WIPocalypse

2019 WIPocalypse year in review

4 January, 2020 Anne S

This post is a summary of my progress over the year, along with how I went with my 2019 goals. Because of personal circumstances (major project at work meaning extra-long working hours, and Dad’s hospitalisation and then passing away meaning 3 1/2 months of carers/compassionate leave), my goals were far from met this year, but as long as I managed to get some craft time in during the year I still think of it as positive progress.

WIP start/finish stats (includes stitching, crochet, quilting):

54 = Number of WIPs/UFOs @ 1 January 2019 (yikes!)
– 6 = Number of WIPs/UFOs completed in 2019
+ 7 = Number of new WIPs added in 2019 (ie started in 2019 but not finished)
—-
55 = WIPs/UFOs balance (oops – not my finest hour!)

WIP finishes:

The 6 WIPs I managed to finish in 2019 were:

Glendon Place: City Sidewalks ornament (cross stitch)
Elizabeth’s Designs: Ladybug (cross stitch)
Nora Corbett: Mirabilia Retreat dragonfly (cross stitch)
Marg Low: Hearts & Berries (embroidery and patchwork)
Michelle Marvig: Travel Cord Buddy (patchwork)
Simple ribbed beanie (crochet) (I can’t find the finished photo)

New starts in 2019:

Started and finished:

Blue Ribbon Designs: Two Stags and a Star ornament (JCS ornie SAL)
The Sweetheart Tree: Sweet Valentine
Dimensions: Stacked Tea Cups
Keslyn’s: Santa Hat & Boots ornament (JCS ornie SAL)
Laura J Perin: Flying Geese canvaswork
Knotted Tree NeedleArt: To All a Good Night ornament (JCS ornie SAL)
Cherished Stitches: Christmas memories (JCS ornie SAL)
Misty Hill Studio: Left Behind (JCS ornie SAL)
Elsa in a heart (charity quilt block)
Elsa with snowflakes (charity quilt block)
Crate Crochet: Spontaneous Shawl
Crate Crochet: Sweet Pea Mandala
Crate Crochet: Whimsy scarf
Dragon Dreams: What now? (JCS ornie SAL)
Elizabeth’s Designs: Under the Sea
Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery: Christmas morning goodies (JCS ornie SAL)
JBW Designs: Noel 2018 (JCS ornie SAL)
Leisure Arts, Big Book of Dishcloths: #32 dishcloth
Leisure Arts, Big Book of Dischcloths: #70 dishcloth
Rosewood Manor: The Heart of Christmas (JCS ornie SAL)

New starts that are still WIPs:

Out of all of the new starts I had in 2019, six remain as WIPs at the end of the year:

Maria’s Blue Crayons: Coastal Indoor Rug
Hooked on Sunshine: Phoenix blanket
Laura J Perin: Lahaina Breezes
Crate Crochet: Hook Roll
Crate Crochet: Ripple Tote
Drawn Thread: Almost Halloween
Ronald McDonald house charity piece (just needs personalisation to be added at the bottom)

Other progress on WIPs:

While I didn’t manage to get these projects finished this year, I did manage a bit of progress – not sure they’ll be finished in 2020 either, but I’ll eventually keep chipping away at them slowly but surely.

2019 Goals – Review

Cross stitch and embroidery

Cross stitch WIPs:

X FAIL Quaker Diamonds by Rosewood Manor – I’d love to finish this one – Update: I didn’t finish this one, although I did make a tiny bit of progress.
X FAIL Egyptian Garden Mandala by Chatelaine – Entirely finish the stitching of at least one full corner (ie one full page of the chart) – This was a major fail because I decided to scrap it and start all over again on different fabric.
X FAIL Red Lace Sewing Case by The Drawn Thread – add the felt/beads and do the finishing … and finally gift it to the intended recipient. Update: not touched.
√ DONE Three Kings by Mill Hill/Jim Shore – finish the three kings in the centre
√ DONE Quaker Christmas II by ByGone Stitches – finish the Let There be Peace on Earth motif in the centre
X FAIL Progress on at least three other WIPs/UFOs
X IN PROGRESS Ronald McDonald House charity XS – managed to stitch everything except for the personalisation for the retreat house. Now I’ve heard back from the NZ Head Office, I’ll complete this in January 2020.
X FAIL 19 in 19 – Start a new HAED and stitch 19 colours on it – didn’t start one
X FAIL 19 in 19 – 19 new starts. Update: I managed 18!
X FAIL 19 in 19 – 19 finishes. Update: I managed 18!
X FAIL 19 in 19 – some progress on 19 existing WIPs carried over from 2019. Update: I managed 4
√ DONE Stitch a charity quilt block
√ DONE Stitch 12 Christmas ornaments

Other needlework WIPs:

√ DONE Travel Cord Buddy by Michelle Marvig – I’d like to finish putting this together
√ DONE Hearts & Berries by Marg Low – I’d like to finish putting this together
X FAIL Make a Christmas Wish by Marg Low – I’d like to finish putting this together and framed before Christmas
X FAIL Stumpwork – choose one old stumpwork UFO and make some progress
X FAIL Start a new project from Inspirations magazines
X FAIL Make some progress on one of the 2018 patchwork retreat projects

Crochet

X FAIL Make a 1920s-style hat for the Napier Art Deco Festival
√ DONE Complete three crochet projects from “Crate Crochet”
√ DONE Start a shawl
X FAIL Finish my Atlanticus (mandala) blanket
X FAIL Restart my Spice of Life blanket
X FAIL Start a Briar Rose blanket
X FAIL Start a top (clothing)
√ DONE Start a crochet hook case
X FAIL Start a blanket for Brenda & Nigel
X FAIL Make a charity blanket for SPCA
X FAIL Start the Nuts About Squares CAL

Quilting/Sewing

X FAIL Make a small pincushion
X FAIL Start a queen-sized bed patchwork quilt for myself
X FAIL Start the Piece and Plenty BOM quilt
X FAIL Make a sewing machine cover
X FAIL Make a summer nightie
X FAIL Make a top (clothing)
X FAIL Choose three Pinterest projects to try (eg Project bags, Purses/pouches)

Stitchalongs/Challenges

I think the two SALs that I did do only lasted 2-3 months for me – my intentions were good, but life just got in the way this year. Hopefully 2019 will be the year where I do much better!

√ DONE JCS Christmas Ornie Facebook SAL – yay, completed all 12 ornies, which is a record for me, I think!
X IN PROGRESS WIPocalypse – I managed to post some months, but not all.
X FAIL Hallowe’en ornie SAL
X FAIL Gifted Gorgeousness
X FAIL Stitch from Stash on Facebook
X FAIL JK’s Groupies (AU/NZ) on Facebook – “19 in 19” (my choices are 19 new starts, 19 finishes, and use 19 colours in a project)
X FAIL JK’s Groupies (AU/NZ) on Facebook – monthly challenges

Crochet, Mill Hill, WIPocalypse, Works in Progress

WIPocalypse November

2 December, 2019 Anne S

Belatedly adding my update for November, even though I only have one small update to share. I decided to keep on stitching on Mill Hill’s Three Kings until I got that third king finished … thus ticking one more item off the ‘to-do-list/goal’ for the year. It’s now being put away until 2020 again, unless I get an urge to keep going on the border – never say never!

Question of the Month: What new stitches or techniques did you learn this year ?

This year hasn’t been a great year for learning stitching-wise, however I just started doing a couple of older subscription boxes from Crate Crochet and learning some new stitches and techniques in crochet. It’s been a nice change learning something new, and not being too stressed at work to enjoy some decent down-time on evenings and weekends. I’m hoping next year will see me doing these projects on time each month again, seeing as I’ve just resubscribed for another 12 months 🙂

Here are some of my projects I’ve been working on this last week or two – I even managed a mandala finish that I’m super proud of!

ByGone Stitches, Canvaswork, Christmas Ornaments, Elizabeth's Designs, Finishes, Just Cross Stitch, Laura J Perin, Mill Hill, Prairie Schooler, WIPocalypse, Works in Progress

WIPocalypse October

6 November, 20196 November, 2019 Anne S

Belatedly adding my update for October, although it’s the first WIP update I’ve made for quite some time. I’ve gone crazy stitching quite a bit since my return home – it’s helped me to take my mind off Dad’s passing and Mum coping on her own. So without further ado, here are my WIP updates and some other finishes.

Just Cross Stitch ornament SAL

I managed to finish all the remaining ornaments for a 12-month long ornament challenge using the 2018 Just Cross Stitch ornament issue – I used my two wild cards to change out two of the ornaments where I didn’t like one or didn’t have all the required threads and nothing to substitute with. The ornies I finished in October were:

Works in Progress / UFOs

I dragged out a few older WIPs/UFOs that were in my to-do-list for the year but that I hadn’t touched yet … I’ve failed my goals this year miserably, but at least I’ve managed some progress on a few projects for the year, even if it’s really small progress …

Before: When Witches Go Riding by The Prairie Schooler

After: Three Kings by Mill Hill/Jim Shore

New starts

When I first came home I decided to start a new canvaswork project – I managed great progress until my fingers got too sore to keep yanking the threads through the canvas, so it’s been put into time out for a while, and I’ll probably pick it up again in 2020 to finish it off, if not before.

After I finished my JCS ornie SAL challenge, I decided to pick up a quick project that’s been kitted up for years – and finished it in a couple of days.

Question of the Month: Do you prefer to stitch on a rotation or one project at a time?
It depends on my mood at the time, to be honest – I work well with a rotation when I’m in the mood, it helps me to progress through projects quickly as long as I have them all set up together ready for me to work through the order of projects without having to hunt for items, or frames, or threads etc. I’ve been doing a screaming rotation of sorts for a while now – just stitching on what I feel like stitching on and not counting the hours at all. I’d like to get back to a formal rotation again, but I think I’ll wait until the new year for that.

Marg Low Designs, Mirabilia, Nora Corbett, Quilting & Sewing, Stoney Creek, WIPocalypse

WIPocalypse – April 2019

28 April, 201912 October, 2019 Anne S

Progress on my WIPs had been very minimal during April until the Easter weekend. Still getting over that dratted virus (close to two months now it’s been hanging around!) – and at crunch time of a major project at work meaning some long hours and not much mental capacity left over at the end of the day. My poor old crafts have been neglected majorly, and I knew if I attempted any I’d just end up frogging at the end of it … then Easter weekend arrived and that all changed!

Over Easter I decided to have a binge weekend watching old movie DVDs and stitching. That saw me putting the final stitches into the Mirabilia retreat dragonfly from last year. I stitched this one differently to how I’d normally stitch – I did it as a rough mirror image, starting from the same starting point on each side for each strand of thread (particularly the overdyed silks). There’s a bit of variation in places, but it’s pretty symmetrical and I really like it. The darker silk actually has a heap of deep pinks and purples in it, but I managed to get a couple of strands of just the green and grey-blues and cut out the pinks.

I made a couple of small changes to the design as it was charted – I only used one strand of thread for the lettering and moved the lettering down slightly on the fabric. I also chose not to stitch the swirly date as charted so it didn’t take away from the dragonfly itself – instead I just added a smaller ‘2018’ in one strand of 310 to match the lettering above it. It’s a great memento of the weekend away, and the photos will never do it justice, it’s quite sparkly in real life.

This is how it looked at the start of the month, and in it’s finished glory 🙂

**2018 Mirabilia Retreat dragonfly by Nora Corbett / Mirabilia**
Stitched with kit fabric and threads
Started 10 February 2018 – Finished 22 April 2019

And I just quickly snuck in one other WIP update today before publishing my post! I recently had a small windfall from work, and my biggest splurge for myself was the purchase of a brand new Janome sewing machine. To christen it I dragged out a retreat project from 1 1/2 years ago that just needed to be turned into the actual bag (I finished the stitching a year ago) – one more WIP into the finish-finished pile, woohoo!!

**“Hearts and Berries” by Marg Low**
Project from Linen & Threads patchwork retreat 2017
using my own choice of fabric and threads

Question of the month:

Talk to us about your longest-running WIP or UFO.
Ah yes, my oldest UFO … I have so little love for this thing, I’m not sure it will ever get finished. I have made so many mistakes, it’s not funny! The first time I ever attempted stitching on linen, and the first time I’d come across a chart that didn’t use two strands of cotton for all stitches.

I stitched the top in two strands instead of one, which I can live with … but then I made a massive mistake on the big tree log or duck at the front, and I think I pretty much need to frog the entire section. Add to the fact that it’s using old threads that have since changed during the dying process and I don’t have enough old thread to restitch that log again anyway … yep, it’s a hot mess! I suppose I could always start stitching from the top down again and try to fudge the bottom, but I’m considering doing the backstitching of the parts I’ve already stitched, and cutting it up to have the deer or something else the focal point in a wee frame instead, or add it to a tote bag pocket or something.

Either way, I’m not sure this design will ever see the light of day as a fully finished piece! I don’t love it enough to worry about it – and it’ll never be framed and put on my walls (my tastes have majorly changed over the years) … the poor thing is a bit of a lost cause! Mind you, I guess I could finish it and give it to the SPCA to fundraise or something – maybe someone else would love it … maybe …

Nature's Resting Place by Stoney Creek — Nature’s Resting Place by Stoney Creek

Mirabilia, Nora Corbett, WIPocalypse, Works in Progress

WIPocalypse – March 2019

2 April, 201911 April, 2019 Anne S

Yet again progress on my WIPs has been very minimal during March. Mainly due to feeling unwell for so long, and when I returned to work I just didn’t have any energy for stitching at the end of the day. I did manage to get a tiny bit of stitching done during the month, though, on an older WIP so at least I have something to post this month! 😉

This is the free chart we received at the 2018 Mirabilia Retreat on the Central Coast. I’m not entirely sure I like how the date appears so I decided to start my stitching session with unpicking the existing stitches. I’ve decided to stitch both sides at the same time and in the same stitching order, so the wings are going to turn out (hopefully) relatively symmetrical. Here’s the progress I’ve made so far, but I’m ready for a change, so I think it’ll be rotated out with something else in April.

Question of the month:

What newer designers and product creators (fabric or floss dyeing, etc) out there have you discovered and recommend?
Truthfully I haven’t really been looking for new designers or artisans, I’m a bit stuck in my ways and happy with the ones I already know – that’s not to say I don’t see the odd design that someone is stitching in one of the Facebook groups and might have a quick glance at their Etsy shop etc if I like what I see. I have to say, though, I haven’t found any so far that I’d add a “favourite” tag to. My favourite fabric dyer still remains as countrystitch.com, and my favourite designer this year is probably Needle Delights Originals (Kathy Rees) because I’ve bought a truckload of her canvaswork designs this year and kitted them up.

Challenges & SALs, WIPocalypse

WIPocalypse February 2019

24 March, 201926 April, 2019 Anne S

I’m very VERY late posting my WIPocalypse update for February (and January), due to illness and very little to share, so it’ll be a quick update …

It seems 2019 seems to be the year of the new starts for me so far, with the only WIP being worked on in February being Ladybug by Elizabeth’s Designs. The only thing that had to be done to this one was to add the little ladybird charm to the stitching … five minutes later and I had another finish under my belt 😉

Since then I’ve been doing a bit of stitching on another WIP, a free dragonfly design by Nora Corbett from last year’s Mirabilia Retreat in Sydney, Australia – but that update will come next week in the March WIPocalypse check-in 🙂

Questions of the month:

January: What SALs are you participating in this year?
Other than the WIPocalypse again, I’m trying to do the following primarily in Facebook groups:
– JCS Christmas Ornament SAL
– Hallowe’en Ornie SAL (although haven’t started any yet!)
– JK’s Groupies monthly theme SALs (managed to do Jan and Feb so far, with Mar not far away from being started)
– Gifted Gorgeousness SAL

February: What do you listen to while stitching?
I have to say I prefer to sit in front of the gogglebox and catch up on pre-recorded TV shows or rewatch movies I love, but I also love to listen to Audiobooks while I’m stitching too – it all depends on my mood on the day and how much I need to concentrate on what I’m doing.

Canvaswork, Challenges & SALs, Christmas Ornaments, Dimensions, Elizabeth's Designs, Finishes, Keslyn's, Laura J Perin, Works in Progress

A lack of crafty updates

24 March, 2019 Anne S

Sadly I became quite sick in early February with some virus that has had me nauseous and wanting to be physically ill on and off for six weeks. Sadly that meant a few weeks of annual leave were spent laid up in bed or on the sofa apartment-bound. This all coincided with the final visit from my Mum, which sadly meant no fun road trips for us on this trip, and our all travel plans had to be cancelled. On the positive, though, we had plenty of girlie one-on-one time at home watching TV and movies and just generally chatting. Mum has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and these types of days will gradually become less and less, and she’s no longer able to travel on her own. It breaks my heart to see her memories disappearing, but I try to stay positive and just respond the same way for the 5th time I’ve heard the same story on any given day – I still treasure the conversations and the laughter that we always have 🙂

As for crafts, my gigantic plans for the year became scuppered very early on, and I’m very behind with blogging and crafting. I did eventually manage a bit of stitching while I was on ‘holiday’ though once the nausea started to wear off, and this has been the result so far …

Dimensions: Stacked Tea Cups

This kit was a gift from a dear friend in the US, and I’ve been itching to stitch it ever since it arrived. I decided the colours were exactly what I wanted to work on and made a start on it before Mum arrived for our holiday. This was also my chosen project for “New start January” in an Aussie Facebook group called JK’s Groupies. Eventually I managed to finish it during my recuperation. I really need to take a better photo in daylight without all those ugly shadows! I also want to stitch this one more time but on a 36ct linen next time with DMC – I’d love to see the comparison, because I hated stitching on that awful cardboard-like Aida and I have more Dimensions kits to stitch up.

“Stacked Tea Cups” by Dimensions
Stitched on 18ct white Aida (hideous kit fabric)
with kit threads
Started 12 January 2019 – Finished 15 February 2019

Elizabeth’s Designs: Ladybug

This was a WIP from 2018, and all I had to do was to stitch on the ladybird charm … five minutes later and it was all finished! 🙂

“Ladybug” by Elizabeth’s Designs
Stitched on 32ct natural Belfast linen (I think)
with recommended threads
Started ? 2018 – Finished 15 February 2019

Keslyn’s: Santa’s Hat & Boots

Next was the April Christmas ornament in a Facebook JCS Christmas Ornament SAL. I really struggled with this one initially because of my ‘fuzzy head’, but I persevered and managed to finish it eventually – but oh boy it wasn’t much fun, and it took me a fair few days to complete it!

“Santa’s Hat and Boots” by Keslyn’s
(from the 2018 JCS Christmas Ornament issue)
Stitched one-over-one on 28ct white Lugana
with recommended DMC threads
but I attached small bells instead of the ‘Bead Landing Sticky Gems’

Laura J Perin: Flying Geese

After I finished all that over-one stitching, I started a new canvaswork project – Flying Geese by Laura J Perin. I thought the larger threads and canvas would be easier for my head to manage. It’s been a bit slow going, but hopefully this will be finished over the next couple of months.

19 in 19, Finishes, Sweetheart Tree

Sweet Valentines

9 January, 2019 Anne S

The great thing about taking an extra week off work after Christmas is having more time to stitch and have a general overdue tidy-up at home. I came across this wee chart that has been kitted up for about 12 years as I was tidying up a pile of stitching ‘stuff’ – I figured rather than putting it back in it’s storage box where it belongs, I’d just suck it up and get it into the Qsnaps to get it stitched up. It took me two days to finish, but I really love it. And that also means another new start and another finish ticked off my 19 in 19 challenge for the year … bonus!! 😀

“Sweet Valentines” by The Sweetheart Tree
Stitched on 28ct white lugana (I think!)
Changed the red thread colours to be 309 and 816 instead of the chart colours (which were 316 and 3726)
Started 6 Jan 2019 – Finished 8 Jan 2019
Stitch count: 40H x 40W

Goals, WIPocalypse

2019 WIPocalypse and craft goals

6 January, 20198 January, 2019 Anne S

It’s that time when we start to plan out the year and plot out all those wishlists of lofty goals for our crafts. Mine are no less mental than normal and I’m already laughing heartily inside at all the items I want to tick off my list this year. In a nutshell, though, it all comes down to wanting to whittle down some older WIPs/UFOs while still having the flexibility to add some new projects into the list to provide continued interest and motivation.

I’ve just created a planning document mapping out all my SAL due dates and details, and information for upcoming face-to-face stitching groups … all I need to do now is to not let life take over and to actually remember to fill them in each month 😉

Anyway, here are my lofty goals, along with piccies to make it more interesting (while also giving me a visual kick in the pants as to how long some of these pictures have been around for without changing in the slightest) {hanging head in shame}.

WIP start/finish stats:

Stitching/needlework:

45 = Number of WIPs/UFOs @ 1 January 2019 (!!!)

Crochet:

6 = Number of WIPs @ 1 January 2019

Cross Stitch goals

Quaker Diamonds by Rosewood Manor – I’d love to finish this one
Egyptian Garden Mandala by Chatelaine – Entirely finish the stitching of at least one full corner (ie one full page of the chart)
Red Lace Sewing Case by The Drawn Thread – add the felt/beads and do the finishing … and finally gift it to the intended recipient
Three Kings by Mill Hill/Jim Shore – finish the three kings in the centre
Quaker Christmas II by ByGone Stitches – finish the Let There be Peace on Earth motif in the centre
Progress on at least three other WIPs/UFOs
Ronald McDonald House charity XS
19 in 19 – Start a new HAED and stitch 19 colours on it
19 in 19 – 19 new starts
19 in 19 – 19 finishes
19 in 19 – some progress on 19 existing WIPs carried over from 2018
Stitch a charity quilt block
Stitch 12 Christmas ornaments

WIPs as they look today:

Egyptian Garden Mandala by Chatelaine as at 24 Nov 2018
After: Three Kings by Mill Hill/Jim Shore
Quaker Diamonds by Rosewood Manor

Quaker Christmas II by ByGone Stitches
Before: When Witches Go Riding by The Prairie Schooler
Mia mermaid by Nora Corbett

Before: Paris by Country Threads
Cottage Etui by CA Wells
Pyramid Etui by CA Wells

Apricot (Blue) Elegance by Cindy Valentine
Topiary Tree Bookmark by Textile Heritage
English Garden Sampler by Teresa Wentzler

Schwalmwork Pinkeep by Moss Creek Designs
Raphael’s Raspberries by Forget-Me-Nots in Stitches
Nature’s Resting Place by Stoney Creek

Noah’s Ark by Teresa Wentzler
Mediterranean Village Scene
Butterflies and Hearts Needleroll by Lorri Birmingham

Hussif by Martha Schmidt (class kit)
Before: Finch Song by Shepherd’s Bush
Frog longstitch

Bluebeard’s Princess Mirabella by Mirabilia
Before: The Tea Room by Country Cottage Needleworks
Before: Celtic Summer by Lavender & Lace

Sailor’s Valentine by CA Wells

Embroidery (non-XS) goals

Travel Cord Buddy by Michelle Marvig – I’d like to finish putting this together
Hearts & Berries by Marg Low – I’d like to finish putting this together
Make a Christmas Wish by Marg Low – I’d like to finish putting this together and framed before Christmas
Stumpwork – choose one old stumpwork UFO and make some progress
Start a new project from Inspirations magazines
Make some progress on one of the 2018 patchwork retreat projects

WIPs as they look today:

Make a Christmas Wish by Marg Low
Hearts & Berries by Marg Low

Berry Delightful Bag
Wool hot water bottle cover
Beaded Fish

Oriental Poppy by Jane Nicholas
Pomegranates and Beetle by Jane Nicholas
Honesty and Heartsease by Jane Nicholas

Stumpwork Goldfish (EGA Group Correspondence Course)
Dragonfly by Jane Nicholas
Stumpwork Thimblepip by Jane Nicholas

Goldwork Pea
Before: Hussif by Monica Hunt
Beehive needlebook

Summer Fruits pincushion
Bullion knot facecloth

Crochet

Make a 1920s-style hat for the Napier Art Deco Festival
Complete three crochet projects from “Crate Crochet”
Start a shawl
Finish my Atlanticus (mandala) blanket
Restart my Spice of Life blanket
Start a Briar Rose blanket
Start a top (clothing)
Start a crochet hook case
Start a blanket for Brenda & Nigel
Make a charity blanket for SPCA
Start the Nuts About Squares CAL

WIPs as they look today:

Quilting/Sewing

Make a small pincushion
Start a queen-sized bed patchwork quilt for myself
Start the Piece and Plenty BOM quilt
Make a sewing machine cover
Make a summer nightie
Make a top (clothing)
Choose three Pinterest projects to try (eg Project bags, Purses/pouches)

Stitchalongs/Challenges

JCS Christmas Ornie Facebook SAL
WIPocalypse
Hallowe’en ornie SAL
Gifted Gorgeousness
Stitch from Stash on Facebook
JK’s Groupies (AU/NZ) on Facebook – “19 in 19” (my choices are 19 new starts, 19 finishes, and use 19 colours in a project)
JK’s Groupies (AU/NZ) on Facebook – monthly challenges