November WIPocalypse

WIPocalypse is a monthly check-in SAL hosted by Mel over at measi(dot)blog – click the icon on the right to be taken to her blog. You can now also find us on FB!

Stitch From Stash is also a monthly check-in, hosted on FB by Stephanie, Ms Oh Sew Crafty on IG, blogland & YouTube.

 

Nov-17
Allowance $25.00
Fabric from Lynne -38.00
LHN Bethlehem -10.57
Classic Colourworks * 7 -24.50
DMC * 5 -6.09
SELL L&L * 4 40.00
   
Rollover -$58.93
Total Available Budget -$73.09

I have virtually NOTHING to show you all for the last month’s work. There’s a little progress on Fairy Idyll, a little more beading on Jamaica, I picked up Mill Hill Believe for a road trip & am nearly done with the last third of the stitching, Honey  Pot *may* have seen a little more action but November has kicked my butt. Last night, I finally finished the greenery of Rose of Sharon for Becca’s piece so at least I got to something!

20171127_053952November goals:

  • Leave Fairy Idyll as the focus piece – YES or at least until the round robin piece arrived
  • Bead & FFO both Jamaica Santa pieces – NO
  • Bead & FFO Mill Hill Autumn Harvest Honey Pot pieces (started yesterday at work) – NO

December goals:

  • Complete Rose of Sharon for the round robin
  • Finish the uncompleted portions of Ashley’s Roses & Lady of the Mist
  • Bead & FFO both Jamaica Santa pieces
  • Stitch some Rhianna Fendi slippers for my work secret santa (plastic canvas ornie)

Question of the Month: What finishing style have you never tried but would love to do? I’d like to do a wall hanging for something a little different. Or a stocking. I’ve planned to do a couple but I haven’t even begun any.

WIP Wednesday #199

I have done HEAPS this last week and I am so excited! My parcel has been in Miami for the last two days and I want it to HURRY UP but in the meantime I am pretty excited to continue with my two July WIPs.

Number One is the Mill Hill Christmas Island Santa, from their Tropical Santas line (2012 series). I am re-working parts of this as I go. You’ll note that he no longer has a coconut – I have elongated the shape to an oval and stitched it all in 434, which is the colour of the aged pig-skin rugby ball we have at home. Back story is that Santa played for the All Blacks (the national rugby union team) in his youth, & he still loves a bit of beach touch rugby. Today I’ll hopefully get that bird re-charted or stitched as a seagull, which is found on nearly every NZ beach. This pack has already been spoken for, & will be going off to Michelle #sprinklestitchykindness Garette, hopefully next week!

At home I have Andromeda on the lap stand. I finished her arm last night, and all the back stitch is done for the whole piece (both Kreinik & DMC) except her face, as I still have hair to complete in that area first. At this point I will stitch her hair in the charted colours. I am not yet sure what shade of green I will use for the ribbon in her hair but I think I found the perfect beads in my stash last night. I can tell you I’m adding an extra five bucks to the Stitch From Stash tally just for the frogging portion alone. I also decided that my Andromeda wasn’t going to be placidly waiting out the Fates. Eyes open & looking straight ahead. I looked thru my other Mira pile, found the eye I wanted, reversed it and re-charted to fit the 15 stitches high face (Cassiopeia is 18 stitches FYI).

Now, you’ll note that I now have a post count in the header. I’ve been blogging for nearly 10 years, so it took a while to average out the WIP Wednesday posts (I ignore the FB only ones) & I made an executive decision. Next week, being #200, calls for something special. Keep your eye out for #passthestash & a wee competition!

WIP eh..Thursday. Yay, it’s Thursday!

So far, so good. I am swimming along at work (have counted to 10 a few times, but yesterday didn’t hit my self-imposed swear limit, so getting better) and at home. Great amusement is had by the adults of the house, removing critical pieces of the children’s equipment like laptops they try to hide at night…I am also upping the “mean mum” stakes in expecting the boys to monitor their own cell data useage – they do not have the password to the WiFi! Oh, this is fun!

On the stitching side, I am hitting my goals and then some. For the first week of the year, the StitchMaynia 12 Days of Christmas SAL continued, so I worked on the Hands On Design chalkboard Christmas, completing the first trilogy with Be Merry & Believe:

This week is my Magazine SAL week, as hosted by Heather Stitches on Facebook (that link is to her blog, BTW). Because the 12 Days SAL finished on the sixth, I started this piece a bit early, but I have a finish. This is Country Cottage Needlework‘s  Merry & Bright from the Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornament 2010 issue (as I brought myself the DVD via 123 Stitch in December, I’m planning an ornie for each of this SAL’s entries). I’m planning on a cube finish with present buttons added:

img_20170109_055847_880

I did not use the threads recommended (Stitch From Stash, people!). If you want to copy, I did this 2 over 1 on 25ct ivory Lugana with the following DMC changes:

  • the circle is 3364
  • @ is 347
  • the square is 434
  • the dot is Kreinik 032
  • and the half circle is 895

And as that took me only 3 days, I pulled out one of my existing WIPS, Arezzo. All that 1 over 1! Add on Nora’s doctor’s scrawl of a chart, and it can be heavy going. I find it takes me a few moments to adjust even tho I have blown the chart up and use a high-lighter. I have frogged the error that caused me to put her away and made a lot of progress over about 4 hours. I don’t know the original stitcher of this version but she did a beautiful job. Me? I’m plodding along:

And at work, my focus is to finish the stitching part of the second variation of Mill Hill Fireflies. I’ve sorted out the blue thread, and expect to have this ready to bead for Saturday:

20170111_080415