Big Finish #3

 Hello lovely people! I'm finally back for an update, and I've got some good progress to share.

March was a pretty hectic month for me, and my stitching was all over the place trying to meet the challenge in FCF (which I did, by the way). I kinda wish I had stuck to my planned rotation, but it was also nice to touch on so many of the projects I did, even if for just one day. Most of those projects are scheduled to be worked on again, so I'll share pics when I get to them.

In the meantime, I finally managed a huge finish I've been working toward for quite some time. Yup, I finished Elizabeth Oliver:

I haven't added up my total time and stitches yet, but she did take me 162 days to stitch. This was the second sampler I ever started, and there's a lot I would do differently if I were starting her now. For starters, I'd have stitched her on a higher count to make her smaller (she's 22.5" x 25" on 32ct). And I would have changed some of the colors, particularly the yellow and pinky brown. (Fun fact: 407 is my least favorite DMC color.) She does have some blended colors, and I love the way they look, but a variegated thread might've been just as nice.

Overall, I'm thrilled with how she turned out, and I actually took her to the framer's the same day I finished her. It's still kind of surreal though. I finished her on April 10th, but I could've finished her a bit sooner. Unfortunately, when projects I love are nearing a finish, I actually find I don't want to work on them, probably because I don't want to let them go. And also, I let myself get totally distracted by a new start.

So I have finally caved in and started the Modern Folk Embroidery sal. I really thought I could resist, but I've been seeing it everywhere and the fomo is real. So I spent a couple days trying to pick out some colors and just started:

I think my palette could use a little tweaking, but I was way too impatient for that. The purple isn't as light as I had pictured in my head, and the brown isn't as dark, but it's the only brown that wasn't too dark or didn't clash with the purple. And of course there's more than 2 colors there. I just couldn't decide! So I'm using a handful with two darks, two lights and a mid tone.

This arrangement was purely happenstance as I was sorting colors. They ended up in a pile, and I went with it. So it's DMC 30, 31, 32, 779, and 451. The fabric is 40ct Latte by XJuDesigns. And if you haven't noticed, it's an uneven weave, and I actually kind of like it. I counted it out, and it's 41 threads in width, but 44 threads in height. So my octagons will be a bit squished.

My focus piece for April is Luna and I've already managed to finish off page 20 (and yes, her hair is finally complete!):

I've got a good start on page 21 now, so a row finish is in my near future. :)

Lastly, here's my Temperature Library for March:

Had a warm start (highest was 77) but mostly 50s and 60s. The painting on the shelf adds a really nice touch, doesn't it?

Ok, I think I'm mostly caught up now. Hope you all are enjoying the changing seasons. Until next time!

Hi's and Lo's

 I didn't do quite as much stitching last week as I would have liked, but honestly, isn't that always the case? I did try my best to get some good progress on my current Frosty Forest block (which I started last February) but it was much more work intensive than I anticipated. So instead of finishing off this block and getting a good start on the next, I didn't even manage to complete the one:

In all honesty, this project started to drag me down after a few days, and I found myself not wanting to work on it. Nothing against the project, but it's on that very stiff Wichelt, and it after typing all day for work, it was a bit hard on my hands. I had been really looking forward to stitching the house (love stitching houses!) but stitching that variegated thread one stitch at a time is not my favorite, but I liked the effect too much to stitch in rows. Plus, I found my thread a bit tangly, so I used my trolley needle for most of the house. It looks much nicer, but slows me way down. So I hope I can find more time for this one later this year and finish off a couple blocks. That house needs to be done!

I've also put a few more days into Elizabeth Oliver to meet my goal for the month:

I am so happy to have most of that green block done, and I've got her name in! That makes her officially official in my mind, and she's in the home stretch. I'm really hoping to finish her in March, or at least early April. Fingers crossed!

When I didn't want to work on Frosty Forest, I turned to my Temperature Library instead and surprised myself by catching up:

I added 4 colors for that very cold week we had (a new color every 3 degrees) and chose a really pale purple down to the very dark gray-purple for our 0 day. That way it's easy for me to spot. Then a week later we hit 69, so I got to stitch my first yellow. I really thought about trying to mark the days when it snowed, but my official weather station doesn't record trace amounts, and I haven't been keeping track. But next time I do a temperature chart, I may find a way to indicate some weather.

So that's all I worked on last week. My March plans are a bit all over the place, and I have a crazy notion I'll be participating in the Full Coverage Fanatics challenge for History Sprints. It involves switching to different projects almost every day to match a prompt, so we'll see how that goes. I'm kind of excited to try though. Guess that's all for now. Happy stitching!

Switching Gears

 Hi all! I didn't think I'd have much to share after just one week, but I guess I was wrong. Last month, I worked almost exclusively on full coverage projects, so this month I'm focusing on a few samplers and other designs.

I kicked off the month with a new start, because how could I not start something on 2-1-21? I had originally planned to start Amethyst by Carolyn Manning, as it ties in well with February (it's the gemstone for the month) but I couldn't wait, and started that last year. So, in search of something else purple, I settled on Purple Passion by The Silver Lining. They have tons of fabulous charts for flowers, but I'm partial to purple and irises.

It's suggested to stitch this chart over 1 on 28ct, which I almost did, but in the end I went with 32ct Taupe Lugana over 2. My mother actually bought this for me a few years ago, but I was so intimidated by all the confetti (and backstitch!), it's taken me this long to start it. One of the things I love about this chart is that it's charted for both DMC and Anchor to get all the purples possible. I'm really impressed with the purple hues Anchor has to offer, and I love how this is stitching up, even if I'm stitching it really slowly. This is about 5.5 hours of work.

My focus project for this month is Ann Barson Loughbro by Plum Street. My goal is to finish her this month:

When I pulled this out last year, it felt like I had lost the love for this piece, though I don't know why. I love the verse, but stitching on her felt like a chore. So I was kind of dreading pulling her out again. But the love is back! I'm really enjoying this now, and I feel really motivated to finish, probably because I've decided to reward myself with more of Grand Vierlande if I get her done before the month is over. :)

Last, for posterity's sake, here is my Temperature Library with the January shelf all done:

I'm already excited to continue with the February shelf as it has the first of the few knickknacks that are scattered about. Also, we're in for a deep freeze this week, so I'll probably get to use my coldest colors. I may even need to add a color if it gets below 10 for a high. We'll see.

I guess that's all for this week. Next week I'll be working on Elizabeth Oliver, as I really want to get her done by the end of March. Hope you all are enduring (or enjoying) the weather wherever you are. Happy stitching!

Kickstarting 2021

 Hello all! Welcome back to another long winded stitchy ramble. :)

I don't know about you, but I love making plans, especially about cross stitch. I usually start planning for the new year around September as I'm always so anxious to see what all I can accomplish and what my goals should be. For this year, I'm actually trying to plan a bit less than my normal obsessive self would like and be a bit more flexible. It's hard. I'm one of those people who doesn't like surprises at all. I'm at my best when I have a scheduled itinerary for the day, and a nice to-do list so I can check off tasks. But last year, what I wanted to stitch started to butt heads with what I was "supposed" to stitch, and the result was usually me sulkily playing games on my tablet instead. 

So this year, I'm being more flexible. Trying to be. I haven't done my usual weekly planning of wips for the year. Instead, I'm making loose plans from month to month based on a handful of goals, and I'm letting myself be more open to changes that pop up in facebook challenges, sals, or just my whims. Right now, my plans for February are pretty solid, but I've left a little wiggle room here and there. I also have definite goals for March, but no definitive plan. But April? That's still completely open. I'm hoping I can have a bit more fun with my stitching this year and stitch on what I'm enjoying at that moment, even if that means some of my goals will not be met. Because that's ok! 

I've already embraced a bit of whimsy by taking on 2 new SALs, both completely unplanned, but both amazing projects. The first is from Quiltify Designs, called Grande Vierlande. 

When I first saw this on Etsy, I just gasped. There's something about they way those circular motifs are arranged that I absolutely love, so I had to have it. This one is a very large project at 493x467. But I think what truly makes it amazing is that you actually get 3 versions of this chart, which he's colored as Red, Blue and Green, so you can pick your favorite motifs to stitch and make your sampler truly unique. I can't imagine how much work must have gone into charting all that, but it's a fantastic concept. Of course, I haven't made near as much progress as I would've liked, but I almost got my first motif done:

My alphabet is from the Red version, as are the first 2 crowns. My first motif is from the Green version. It was really hard to pick which ones to stitch, as they are all lovely. I had some Silks4U in my stash and thought these colors worked very well together, PR132 and PR021. The design is so large, I decided to go with 46ct Latte from XJuDesigns. I know I can't keep up with the sal, but I hope to get back to this regularly.

My second sal is another temperature chart. I really liked Stitchin' Mommy's temperature tree last year, and I may do that next year, but when I saw this temperature library from Kristi's Corner Needle, I thought it was pefect:

I didn't start this until the 12th, so I'm a bit behind, but I love how this is stitching up. Some people have opted to backstitch their books to make them more distinct, but I'm rather enjoying the blobs of color at the moment. Plus, the books are usually different shapes and sizes, so telling them apart isn't difficult.

I've updated my colors a bit from the last temperature chart I did. Aren't they all so lovely? :)

I suppose I should move on and talk about what I did plan for this year. I plan to make a bit more significant progress on a few select wips. I've picked 8-10 of my full coverage pieces, and about a dozen smaller pieces. I'm hoping to get in 6 finishes this year, and maybe 15 page finishes. We'll see. To help with this goal, I've decided to have a focus project each month to work on every day. I don't think I can be monogamous, but at the same time, working long term on a project seems to make me want to stitch more on it, not less. At least, up to a point.

My first monthly project was Kabuki. I had just finished a 30 day rotation on her in December, but I really couldn't wait to pick her up again. I only worked on her for 25 days this month (12 Days of Christmas got the first 5) but I've added 2,931 stiches, and I think she's looking pretty good:

I've almost finished her neck now, just another couple rows until her kimono starts to sweep around her. Once again, I am sad to put her down, but I'm also excited to see how much progress I can make on my other projects. I'm think Kabuki will be out again in June, but no firm plans yet. :)

I've also decided to pick up one of my most neglected wips again this year (although I have quite a few, sad to say) because it just breaks my heart to see these projects languish year after year. I actually picked this up in December and got a tiny page finish, and that has helped to fuel the fire for this year. This is The Favorite Bird from Golden Kite, art by Charles Hue:

I don't really like showing this one because there's nothing to look at yet, and the camera doesn't like all those dark colors. I've started in the bottom right corner, so it's just the floor and the beginning of a couple table legs. But one has to make a start somewhere, and my brain does not like center starts on full coverage, so floor and table it is. My goal is to complete at least 4 pages this year, although I might aim for 9. I've already completed 1 page and started a second, but I doubt this will be out every month since I'll still be focusing on Luna. It'll be a push, but I do love this image, so I think a push is needed.

I haven't decided yet if I'll be focusing on Favorite Bird every year now or if I'll rotate through my other neglected wips. I do have quite a few that are calling to me. I'll likely set a certain goal for each project and rotate when that's done. Probably. Which one would you work on if you were me?

I hope you are are making some good stitchy progress. Until next time!