Welcome to 2016 ...

Hello all and welcome to 2016 ...

... I can't believe I haven't posted since October. I do need to be better this year (blogging is one of my 10 New Year resolutions), so here we go off to a flying start with a sum up of a year and setting up goals for the year ahead.

I have only completed 3 of my goals in 2015 ... so hopefully 2016 will be better.

1) Christmas Candle - HAED

Before:

December 2014

After:

December 2015

The goal was to complete the last two pages of the top row, which as you can see I have not managed.

The plan for 2016 is therefore the same goal as last time ... complete the two top pages. 

2) Ember II by Maia. Complete this project ... COMPLETE!!!

Before:

May 2014

After:

April 2015

3) Yiota's Xstitch: Fields of Poppies. Complete one page ... COMPLETE!!!

Before:

January 2014

After:

April 2015

Seven more pages to go ... so I think I will set myself a target to stitch another one.

4) Literate Dragon HAED. Complete the bottom left page... COMPLETE!!!

Before:

April 2014

After:

December 2015

Guess what I think I will go for the top right this year ... that way we might finish this by 2017!

5) QS Poisonous Beauties (complete page 1) - not stitched. Ditto for 2016.

6) Harmony by Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe (goal complete) ... some progress made here, but not quite enough.

Before:

November 2014

After:

December 2015

Lets get this one complete in 2016!!!

7) Venice by Michael Powell (goal: complete the first triptych) ... again progress was made

Before:

December 2014

After:

December 2015

Ditto for 2016.

8) Spring bouquet by Margaret Sherry (goal: complete). Very small progress:

Before:

After:

Ditto for 2016.

9) I feel a bit light headed by Judy Rossouw (goal complete)... no stitching

10) unassigned as Xmas chums was scrapped.

11)  'Tending the Flock' (goal: complete 2 colours) ... no joy ...

12) Making Lickle Wishes (goal: 1 colour) ... ditto ...

13) Cabin Fever by Dimensions (goal complete the cabin) ... I think I stitched about 2 crosses before giving up.

14) John Clayton - Venice (goal complete) ... this is becoming slightly monotonous.

15) 'Picture of elegance' (goal complete) ... ditto

16) Good Heavens by Margaret Sherry (goal complete) ... finally I have some progress to share (and see how good my new camera is ... the fabric actually appears blue):

Before:

December 2013

After:

December 2015

I then scheduled some starts ... but what I started and what were schedule are slightly different.

Starts:

17) Iris by John Clayton (Connections)

December 2015

18) Autumn Glory by Snowflower Diaries

December 2015

19) Twilight & Magic by Suzanne Gyseman HAED 

December 2015

20) Sheep SAL (LHN designs) So far in this SAL I should have had 6 sheep ... instead I am slightly shy of 6 ...

But I have Gratitude complete!!!

December 2015

I will try to get Faith done shortly so that I am officially caught up...

December 2015

Now I feel fully ready for 2016! With 10 New Year resolutions set and stitching plans made I just now need extra hours in a day. (To see my 2016 stitchy goals check out the wipocalypse tab)

Till soon,

TUSAL #4 & Wipocalypse #4 ... some progress and new starts

Hello all,

and here is finally me with a stitchy update. I finished work early this afternoon and came home with a full intention if sitting down and posting. Instead as it was nice weather I have repotted three orchids. I have separated mum and baby (one of my orchids had a baby, or keiki), last time I potted them together, but I thought maybe they want their own pots. I could have left them for longer before repotting but the mum had two new roots one of which was growing straight into the cable tie support. I also finally braved cutting off flowers from the third and repotting it (it got left out last time). Since one of my others is in bloom (3 huge purple flowers) I am not as upset with the repotted one. I recently bought a sixth orchid to my collection cheaply thinking I could save it. But I do not know. It is very different to my others and I found 4 spiders on it so far. So at the moment it is in quarantine in the bathtub. I will try repotting it the next time.

orchid that lost its flowers and a biscornu (I might have forgot to share this finish with you)

But I promised cross stitch, so ...

Tusal:

2014 and 4th lot

2014 so far

I definitely need a bigger jar. Though I must admit some of the threads were not from stitching but the sort of my thread shopping from a charity shop (I mentioned it a while back) ... so finally got to it. But more on it in the next Stitch from Stash update.

Wipocalypse:

Christmas Candle:

March 2014

April 2014

Alright this actually looks like no progress whatsoever hmmm. I promise you I did do a few night of stitching on it.

QS Literate Dragon:

March 2014

April 2014

Slightly more progress than on the previous piece. Need to get this one out again soon. I have missed it.

Lean on Me:

March 2014

April 2014

A bit more backstitching done.

Okay now onto real progress. I have started two new projects. The kit was from stash, and the HAED was started using stashed threads and chart, fabric bought last month, and the frame my mum got me for Christmas.

So the new starts are:

QS Poisonous Beauties by Jasmine Becket-Griffith (9 pages)

April 2014

and

Ember II by Maia

April 2014

One flower is almost fully stitched.

closeup

That's all for now. I need a small finish for next week's update ... and I am at a loss. I have completed the kit my sister gifted to me on Christmas ... but as I stitched the grass in columns of 6 crosses using hand dyed floss ... it looks slightly wrong. So I do not know whether I should unpick and start that area again.

Till soon,

P.S. Almost forgot to answer ... how do I keep my stash organised? [edited to include photos]

in the cupboard on the right ...

1 shelf full of progress in individual folders/pockets (and a box of winded thread)

1 shelf full of stashed kits, free kits from magazine in the purple box, and bits and bobs including needles in the yellow one

In the centre set of drawers:

1 drawer of fabric and hand dyed floss

a bit ruffled

Then ...

1 drawer (this one in my desk) of current haeds as in box of winded threads and printed charts

the bottom box with umbrellas has buttons, needles, etc, transparent box on top has all my finishes, and behind the picture ...

2 boxes with a total of 4 drawers full of dmc threads

1 cardboard box of anchor threads under bed (top one)

2 frames next to drawers with stitching

and under drawers 5 bags of threads and some fabric ... you can see one of the bags here

and 3 boxes of cross stitch magazines:

the one in the centre ... the rest is some of the knitting ones ... I have more of those

half the box on the bottom

Mind, there is also a binder with magazines, which I forgot to photograph.

TUSAL #3 and Wipocalypse #3 ...

Just sat down to do a belated (yet again) post and realised how long it has been. I am sorry for the lack of posting, but I am back now. Just had a few crazy weeks, so did not get much time to update anything (not just my blog). Sadly, I also have been stitching less and less. I blame the doll making personally.

Dolls you ask, it is a small project mum and I have been working on. She is in charge of the cutting and sewing them up, I am in charge of needle sculpting, face drawing, and hair at the moment. I am currently sewing hair on strand by strand, which I am estimating is taking me 15-30 hours per doll. I am almost finished the second. I will definitely time when I begin on the third to get a better number. Hopefully, I will feel confident to share some photos in my next post.

Anyhow, onto the updates, TUSAL:

last month

last month next to year so far 

2014 including last month

And Wipocalypse update seen me stitching:

Christmas Candle:

January 2014

March 2014

Oh dear, I felt I was doing great progress until I put these two pictures next to each other. Quite a few nights went into this one!

Lean on Me

February 2014

March 2014

It is not very noticeable but I have completed all the backstitching in light grey. Onto dark grey next.

QS Literate Dragon

February 2014

March 2014

March 2014

The project that has seen the most of the stitchy hours input. 

I am participating in a 2014 HAED goal challenge over at their official forum board. The goals I set myself for the year are:

• Complete page 4 on Christmas Candle
• Stitch approximately a page on QS Literate Dragon
• Start and stitch 1 page on QS Poisonous Beauties

QS Poisonous Beauties will hopefully be my next start. I had the needed threads back since I purchased DMC for the dragon, but I decided to try some pregridded fabric for the project, which has recently arrived. More on that in the Stash update later in the month. 

Speaking of the delivery ... I have also bought the needed threads for some other projects, including the Margaret Sherry SAL I am participating in this year. The bigger question is: why do I sign up to so many things?

Also I solemnly swear that I will limit my spending on cross stitch and other craft supplies even further, as I am beginning to save up for a new printer. I know, there is nothing technically wrong with my current one. But once you spend about £160 in ink cartridges (and that is just the last 2 months or so and I do search for online bargains and rarely buy them full price) you realise that an inkjet printer is only suited for those that print less than I do. Laserjet is the way forward and although costs 5 times more to get, and ink cartridges same, it prints about 10 times more according to google. So not only I think this will be a great investment ... it will also be good to the environment (less cartridges and packaging material wasted). The problem is I need somewhere between £100 - £300 to get one, and then I'd guess about £200 for ink. The total comes higher than my standard monthly salary, most of which goes to pay bills, food, student loan ... So onto saving, and I do hope it will take less than a year to come up with this money. 

Anyhow till soon,

P.S. Thank you for all your lovely comments, sorry if I did not get around to personally responding to all of them.
P.P.S. To be updated with the photos of where I like to stitch.