Well, I should have posted this last week during my days off, but I decided not to, as Mum checks this blog every now and then, and my finish was a gift for her. Since talking to her, I find I’d actually already shown her the chart I was going to make for her ages ago, so it’s not really a surprise anymore 🙂 That means I can post a wee piccie. This is the first time I’ve ever put together a needlebook, and I’m sorry to say I’m really disappointed with the finishing I did on it – the stitching is fine, but I didn’t manage to get the mitring of the corners done too well with the aida fabric. I decided to use a small bit of batting as well as template plastic inside the cover, and it was a bit awkward sliding around – in hindsight I’d leave the batting out next time, or glue it to the plastic somehow. Oh well, it was OK for a first attempt, I guess – I just need to make some more to get more practice in haha. This was a kit I bought in the UK as a souvenir a number of years ago – called “Rose Arbour Needlecase” by Textile Heritage Collection.
Didn’t get much sleep last night, so my day is being replanned today, as I don’t feel too crash hot. Am getting my hair cut at lunchtime tomorrow, then I’ll pop over to the Guild exhibit afterwards instead of today. That means today I’m having a lazy day playing with my blog, watching DVD’s and stitching! (ah, bliss…) With any luck I’ll have more to post later today – I think I may be able to finally finish my beaded sampler … well, that’s the goal anyway!
The weekend’s here!
OK, in fact it’s only Thursday morning (very very early) – you see, as a shift worker there is no such thing as a weekend for me anymore … whatever day comes up before my days off, that’s then Friday for me. Well, last night was Friday, so I’m now free to do what I please for two days – which after my shifts this week might just end up being sleeping haha.
In actual fact, I plan in attending the exhibit at my local Embroiderers Guild, of which I’m a non-attending member at the moment. I started going to the new members meetings last year/early this year, but then I started full-time shift work, and it’s been difficult fitting anything in since then. Oh well, I’ll still keep trying. It will be nice to go and see the exhibit, as I always get great pleasure in sharing other people’s stitching triumphs – and going to these exhibits always stirs up the creative side in me again, and makes me want to hurry home and get back to my own stitching.
So that’s my entire plan for my two days off – going to the exhibit, and perhaps getting my hair cut, followed by my work chores etc … not very exciting … but then I intend sitting myself down in my stitching recliner tomorrow night (sorry, I guess that’s now tonight!) and having an hour or three relaxing and stitching. At least I’m on reasonable shifts next week – 8am-4pm – so I can get back into the swing of stitching a fair bit again.
My well thought out rotation has gone out the window before it’s even begun … I’m now committing myself to a new SAL with the StitchNZ yahoo group, on the 1st week of each month. This will only be taking place on the run up to Christmas, as we’re all going to be working on a Christmas project, whether it be a large XS piece or Christmas ornaments. My choice is a Mill Hill chart called Treasured Christmas Trees, and fits in well with my “only stitch from stash” plans – I start buying the required MH charms and treasures years ago when I first bought the chart, so it’s about time I stitched this up and put them to good use. It looks like it could be a relatively quick stitch (albeit relatively boring, as it’s just green thread as the tree background, decorated with beads and charms etc), so I should be able to get the stitching completed before Christmas – and possibly add a Christmas ornament into the mix as well, as I’ve never stitched one before, and figure it will be a new challenge for me …
Well, better hit the hay again – I’ve finished my wind-down post-work, and eyelids are getting heavy … and I need to be up relatively early for the exhibit to make sure I don’t run out of time for drooling 🙂 Hopefully next time I post I’ll be able to post some sort of progress photo of my stitching – as I’ve been very slack at that this week, and haven’t picked up a needle. Plus I really want to build this blog site up a bit more, and need to work out the technology of adding photos to the sidebars etc … that’ll keep me out of mischief for a week, though, not 2 days!!!!
In a stitching slump
Well, after going great guns for a week, my stitching exploits have dwindled to a big fat “zero” … I managed to get a few stitches put into Chatelaine’s Egyptian Garden, but ended up with a migraine trying to see the holes in the 32-count hand-dyed Opalescent Lugana – the air was turning blue while I was trying to stitch over-one! In the end, I’ve decided it’s just not worth the heartache … and have decided to opt for getting the 32-count belfast linen instead – not sure what I’ll use this lugana for, but I’m sure something will come to mind eventually – hopefully something with very little stitching, and lots of background showing haha … hmmmm, something in blackwork, perhaps???Part of my slump has to do with my work shifts this week. Unfortunately (or fortunately, in some cases) I work for a call centre, which is open 24 hours, 7 days a week. There are some horrendous hours, but it has its benefits, such as driving home in 5am traffic … sheer bliss! This week I’m on what I think is the worst shift, for some reason – 6pm to 2am. I’m not sure what it is about it, but I find myself extremely tired during the day, and not sleeping properly, and I don’t have the energy to get up and do ‘things’ before I go to work. Mind you, it’s a full moon at the moment, and the callers have been a bit ‘feral’ at times – people are really cranky with you, and it takes its toll on your by the end of 8 hours. I’m on the Supervisor Hotline at the moment, where we have to take escalated complaint calls from our staff, and for some reason when the full moon hits the complaints are much more irrational and time-consuming, not to mention draining! Oh well, it’s paying the bills … and luckily I only have one more 6pm-2am shift to do for the week, then I have one day of 3-11pm then 2 days off. It will be sheer bliss to only work a 5-day week this week, as it’s mostly 6 or 7 days straight on our roster.
I have to say I haven’t posted for a while – but yesterday I must say I felt really positive about life in general. Can’t explain why, but I just felt ‘at one with the world’. I recently moved out of a negative flatting situation, into a flat on my own, and am loving it most of the time. Where I have moved to is just a short 10 minute walk to the beach front, where I can make the most of the walking track and get some exercise in before or after work (or at least that’s the plan haha). Unfortunately of late the weather here in Melbourne has been shocking, but yesterday there were blue skies and no gale force winds, so I donned the walking shoes and made an effort to get moving. Here is a photo of ‘my’ beach – I find it really calming to walk by the ocean … yesterday it reminded me why I was overjoyed to move to this area 🙂 Well, better hit the hay – almost 4am and tiredness is settling in finally … fingers crossed for a better night’s sleep tonight, as I want to attend the Embroiderers Guild exhibit tomorrow before work … anyway, here’s the beach …
Going cross-eyed with grey XS
Crikey, the last couple of days I’ve been stitching up a storm – I’ve been exceptionally lazy today, as I had the day off work … I’ve just been sat in my recliner, watching old DVD’s (or rather, listening to old DVD’s), while stitching my heart out on Vicki & John’s dolphins XS. Made a pretty hefty dent in it, but ready for a break now. I thought I’d keep stitching right up to the time I go to bed tonight, then would have a break and work on something new tomorrow – but I ran out of DMC 318, which is the next colour I wanted to stitch with … I figure that was a sign to call it a day. Here’s a piccie of progress to date:
So, now the decision is on for what to start next – my Mirabilia SAL starts next week, so I should probably wait before starting that one … I can either start something new that will be quick and easy to finish, or try and complete one of my nearly-finished old UFO’s, or complete the finishing of one of my pincushions that just has to have the cording added … ooh, decisions, decisions haha. I know I ‘should’ be doing one of the latter, but my greed and selfishness in starting something quick might just win out haha. Anyway, tomorrow is a new day, and I’ll see what direction it takes me when I get out of bed …
The heavens have opened
Today was an uneventful day at work – the phones were flat out, which made the day go a lot faster, and a good group of people at work today. Last night we had a dreadful thunder and lightning storm, which kept a few of us awake during the night – not helpful when you’re starting work at 5 or 6am!! It was quite spectacular driving to work at 5.30am today, though – the lightning was still lighting up the sky in the distance, and was interesting to watch. It’s now almost 4pm, and back at home again just in time before a torrential downpour is about to hit … the thunder and lightning has commenced again, and the last two claps of thunder feel as though they’re right over the top of my building!
Two days ago, I received an envelope from Strand NZ with some more wool, so I finally managed to put the remaining few stitches in my canvaswork piece today while I was on hold at work. On a 6am start, sometimes the first hour or so is quieter than later in the day, so I packed a couple of small items of stitching ‘just in case’ – I’m glad I did, although very little stitching time was to be had. Anyway, here is the finished product – it just needs to be stretched, which I haven’t tried before.
Spring is truly arrived in Melbourne – our temperatures have been very moderate, and in fact quite warm at times, causing a couple of sleepless nights in the heat. My flat is two stories up, on the top floor of the building, and my front window looks out into the street. What I see, though, instead of street frontage because I’m raised up, is the branches and foliage of the large trees that line both sides of my street. It’s been fascinating to watch closely the transformation of those branches as the days have gone by – in just a few days there have been blossoms forming and new leaves have sprouted from what seems like nowhere! I can’t wait until autumn, when I get to watch the large leaves turn their golden colours before they fall – it’s one of my favourite times of year, and something I didn’t usually get to enjoy in my old hometown of Auckland, as autumn/fall colours weren’t common.
Today, however, nature is venting its fury at something, and it’s a nice excuse to curl up with my embroidery and do a few stitches before I turn in for an early night, and my final 6am shift for the week.
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Bone Carving on Woven Flax – canvaswork design/kit by Strand NZ
Starting a XS rotation
I’ve decided it’s time for me to start a rotation, so I can spend some decent time stitching on some larger projects. Hopefully this will help stop boredom setting in for those I don’t enjoy stitching, and any boredom that does still creep in will be balanced by those projects that I get great joy from. I’m going to try stitching each project for one week at at time – depending what shifts I’m on at work, this might mean one project gets more stitching time than others, but it will no doubt all balance out in the end.
I started thinking of doing a rotation after agreeing to participate in a Mirabilia SAL, which is taking place the 3rd week of every month – I figured why not dedicate the same period of time to other projects too, hence my current rotation idea. My rotation pieces are planned to be as follows:
- Days 1-7 – Dolphins XS
- Days 8-14 – Chatelaine’s Egyptian Garden
- Days 15-21 – Mirabilia’s Winter Queen
- Days 22-29 – TW’s Noah’s Ark
Tuesday night is my UFO night, where I have to choose one of my other UFO projects and put a few stitches into it, regardless of how much time I have to spend stitching … I figure even 1/2 dozen stitches is a bit closer to finishing than it was previously, and eventually those 1/2 dozen stitches add up! I’m also thinking that I may allow one of my days off each week to be ‘free day’, where I can stitch anything I feel like – the same goes with the last day or two of the month, eg day 30/31, these will be free days too.
Hopefully this will be a good way to focus on some of my bigger projects – and also a way to get some projects finished over the next 12 months or so. I guess only time will tell … !!
Why does a UFO become a UFO?
The last two days I’ve dragged out an old UFO from the box, and managed to put a few stitches into it. Now I remember why this particular project became a UFO (UnFinished Object) in the first place!! It is the most dreadfully boring piece to stitch – mainly greys and drab blues, it really doesn’t inspire me to pick up the needle. But pick up the needle, I must …
I am giving this piece to my lifelong best friend Vicki, and her husband John, as their wedding present. I originally joked for them not to expect it until their 10th wedding anniversary … I didn’t think it would be a serious statement at the time, but as time is marching merrily along, it’s getting closer and closer every year. Well, I decided it was high time that I put some serious effort into this piece. I’m sure the finished project will be nice to see, but boy oh boy it’s hard going to find the enthusiasm I need to stitch this!
I’m about to start a Mirabilia SAL (stitch-along), which takes place the 3rd week of every month, so that should give me enough of a break from this project. Not sure if I’ll keep going until it’s actually finished, but every stitch put into it is a stitch closer to the final product, and I’ll keep going until I’m ready to slit my wrists from boredom ;-P
I’d never get a job in a zoo!
Today was a grim day healthwise, succumbing once again to a cold that I’ve been fighting off for over a month. I managed to get a bit of stitching done, though, both starting and actually completing this wee project in the same day, yippee.
Don’t ask me why, but I always thought this was a giraffe, with it’s long eyelashes etc – only when I typed this info up did I realise it was actually a zebra … oh well, it will always be my giraffe in my eyes!
I think I’ll try stitching one of my old UFO’s next while waiting for my Strand NZ wool to turn up, and my Mill Hill beads to come out of hiding … I’m forcing myself to stick to my guns – I’ve decided not to stitch anything new until I’ve finished, or at least made good headway, on one of my bigger UFO’s. Then I’m going to treat myself by starting a new BIG project – probably Winter Queen by Mirabilia.
Destined not to finish anything …
… I’m having a real spate of bad luck stitching-wise this week. I moved house about 4 weeks ago, and just getting things in order in the new place … my real joy was finally getting my stitching station together, and curling up with some quick stitching projects that could be started and finished quickly to give me a sense of achievement after moving.
Well, that was the plan – and it was going pretty smoothly … I almost finished a Strand NZ little canvaswork kit, Bone Carving on Woven Flax (it always reminds me of home) – when I say “almost” finished, the only thing that stopped me is that I ran out of the background thread, hmmm. Anyway, a quick email to Strand NZ and apparently a strand of wool is being sent over … oh well, I’ll just have to start something else quick, me thinks …
So the last couple of nights I’ve been stitching a Mill Hill chart called “Beading in Needlework – Basics and Beyond” – basically a stitching and beading sampler. I was going great guns, before realising my 40123 beads didn’t feel like showing their face in the new flat, and have gone into hiding. Seeing I’ve had the day off work today (due to shift work roster), I drove 1/2 hour out to the local Spotlight and picked up a packet … came home and yet again have got within a hair’s breadth of finishing … only problem is that I’m just short of 8 whole petite beads to finish it!! Aaaarghhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don’t usually need any help from outside influences to keep a huge pile of UFO’s sitting there, but conspiracy theory is starting to spring to my mind … mutter mutter mutter. Oh well, back to Spotlight in a few days, I guess, so I can finish it finally … I suppose in the meantime I’ll just have to start something else LOLOL.
Feather Stitching 