Goodbye February

Well January flew by, just as I predicted. And there was no blog post. It was a busy month. Lots of snow days for the kids. My husband and I sneaked away for an adult only long weekend. And it seemed the month was full of taking down Christmas and packing and unpacking for our trip. I managed a decent amount of stitching but I did not have any finishes.

Then came February. Luckily a needle on fire does not actually burn the fabric. Because my needles were on fire. I had 4 finishes. One big, two medium and one small.

My first finish was my road project. It's an old Bent Creek Zipper project.  This was started when my oldest was about a year old. So give or take it was about 12 years old. Time to get it done. This was a fun projects. A few specialty stitches. Fun colors. And sheep. I have a thing for sheep. Plus it was on 18 count fabric with pearl cotton and small in size. Easy to juggle in the bleachers while watching basketball or while waiting for music lessons.

My second finish was the Theresa Lamperis Greek sampler from Salem, Massachusetts. This was a fun stitch for the most part. But because it’s a reproduction there were a couple of areas that weren’t symmetrical and tripped me up when I didn’t pay attention to the pattern. Oops. I did this with HDF and some random piece of 40 count linen. Likely Zweigart. This was my Olympic project.  I was going for endurance and I think I nailed it with finishing it.

I finished this sampler the morning before I went to a cross stitch retreat. Stitchers Hideaway in Sturbridge Massachusetts. If you ever have a chance to go to a Stitchers’s Hideaway retreat definitely go. Wonderful food. Nice stitchers. Relaxing environment. And a wonderful break from reality. This retreat was a build your own length up to five days. I was able to sneak away for two. Which was a nice break. It was my children’s school vacation week and my husband took them to visit his parents. Perfect time for me to sneak away for a couple of nights.

While I was there I finished "Teachers Row" by Bent Creek. I had started this when my middle daughter was I preschool for her amazing teacher. Obviously I never finished it. She now has an another wonderful teacher for the last two years so that teacher will be getting it this year. More appropriate for a 4th and 5th grade teacher anyway so it worked out. She’s a young teacher too so I think she will appreciate it in her classroom. Just need to iron it and get it framed. This was a fun stitch and I have no idea why it took me so long to finish.

My last finish was a Blackbird Designs loose feathers pattern. I finished it on the night of February 28th. Determined to get one last finish in this month. Done with Weeks and Sampler Threads. The sampler has some nice little details. There are specialty stitches in the bird for texture. I did the stars over one because it sounded good after a glass of wine one night. Yeah...I was regretting that decision on every other star I stitched but it does look nice on the finished product. Don't wine and stitch people.

I also did a little work on "Baby Garden" January and February but not as much as I should have.  This is it at the end of the month.  The fish pond is all over one on 28 count and that took the wind out of my sails after the over one stars on the Blackbird designs that I (willingly) subjected myself to.

I decided to take a full inventory of WIPS because having finished SIX since December I was on fire and wanted to figure out how big of a pile was left.

I estimated between 20-25 mixed between sizes and stages of completion. I was close. 26 WIPS are left. While that’s a big number it’s much better than the 31 I started with in December. I took pictures of all of them in their current state too. I would like to end the year with sub 20 WIPS with at least one big finish.  But I would also like to start a few new things so I’m going to try to push through and finish a few more things before I start anything new. It’s going to be a struggle but I’ll do my best to avoid temptation.

My plan for March is to finish "Baby Garden" by Just Nan. I’m halfway through band 4/10 but it’s really the halfway point of the sampler. I just want to get this one done so I can frame and hang all three girls baby samplers. Soon. Because it’s way overdue.

I would like to work on "Join Your Hands" also by Lila's Studio. It's a big one and I have a good amount done.  Plus it's already on the scroll rods!   I think I can finish this one in the next few months.  Ir's only two colors and I have finished a lot of the over one already.

My new road/small project will be "Sunny the Frog" by Sunflower Samplings.  I should be able to finish this quickly as well. Luckily I have a large amount of small WIPs to fill this category for the foreseeable future.

The question of the month is what gadgets do you use.  I don't feel like I use a ton of gadgets but Im specific about what works for me after years of stitching.  I do like a needle threader because sometimes I have difficulty threading a needle and it just makes it easier.  I'm a needle purist.  I really like Mary Arden petite (size 26) because they are smooth going into the fabric and I don't wear the finish away like I do on other needles. I also find the eyes robust and I don't break as many needles when I use those.   I always use a Q-snap to stitch and I just got a Lowery stand which I am enjoying.  I also keep handy a seam ripper and tweezers for frogging.  Which I try not to do.  But they do make the job easier when it must be done.  But I try to keep the frogs away.

Maybe I'll do a mid month post with pictures of all 26 WIPs.  If I can remember!

The best laid cross stitching plans of 2018....for now.

January is already moving at a fast clip. I always have grand plans for New Years resolutions and goals but typically by the time I'm finalizing them it's February and I now only have eleven months to accomplish them. And I inevitably fail.

This year it's not quite the end of January so maybe I have a better chance this year. My first goal is to plan 2019 goals in November and December of this year.

I'm going to break my goals up into different posts. This one will be just for cross stitching. I've joined a few Facebook groups for stitching accountability and motivation so its easier (and more on point) to link one post that's topic related.

As I stated my last post I recently organized my cross stitch stash. And I have a lot. And a lot of projects that are already started. I would like to stitch mostly from that stash pile this year and I would really like to cut down my number of projects that are started..known as WIPs to us cross stitchers (Work In Progress). I think I've located all my WIPs and I think I have between 30-35.

I know. It's shocking. That's a lot of started projects.

They range from just a few stitches in to almost finished and I'm size from small to a BAP (Big *ss Project). When I went through my stash I found about 3 things I realized I would never finish that are in a bag labeled as UFO right now (UnFinished Object). I was actually surprised it was only three. So that was a good shock. There are two WIPS that almost made it into the UFO bag. They are my oldest two unfinished projects. They may still end up as UFOs but I kept them in the WIP pile for now. I figure once I get the WIP pile down to a more manageable level I'll reassess those two.

One of the groups I joined is WIPocalypse. It's about finishing all your WIPs by the time of the apocalypse. Started by a fellow Stitching friend of mine Melissa. And when I learn how do do links I'll link her blog. As I have over 30 WIPS and we may be closer to the end times than ever this year, I better get started.

For 2018 I have decided I would like to pare down my WIPS by 5-10 items. I have about 5 things I would like to start so I really need to finish a few before I start any if I don't want my WIP pile to actually grow.

Currently I have 4 WIPs in rotation and I picked out a few more to add to the rotation as I finish the current ones.  I will get into more details in my January stitching plans post.

These are the WIPs I would like to focus on in 2018.

This is about 15% done.  It is for my 11 year old daughter,  Yes....11 years old.  I have the birth samplers done for my other two children but they are not framed.  I would like to frame and hang all three together.  This is a high priority to finish this year.  Hopefully before August when she turns 12.

About 12% finished (1/8 pages) however the last 3 pages are just the bottom border.  I would like to finish this to pass the chart on to a friend and maybe enter it into The Topsfield Fair.

About 75% done.  I would really like to finish this early in the year and frame it to give to my 4th grade daughter's teachers.  She has the same pair of teachers as her older sister and they are amazing.  Need to have finished and framed by June.

My travel/car project.  Its a Bent Creek Zipper kit.  The count is huge so it's easy to work on while I'm waiting for bassoon, basketball, swim, theatre, etc as my job as an unpaid uber for my children.  When I finish this I have other similar projects lines up to fill this slot.

This is barely started.  I love this pattern but I find it a challenge to work on as its one over 32 count.  I'm hoping to get into a groove with my new magnifying lamp so I can make some significant progress this year.

Just a bit of the border is done.  But it's cute and small and should be an easy finish.  One of my daughters loves frogs so it will be cute in her room before I miss that window.

Once again, barely started (do we notice a theme!) but its really cute and I love the colors.  My youngest would enjoy this and I think I would put her name on the bottom instead of "Mermaids".  Once again I would like to finish it this year before I miss that window.

This is probably one of my oldest WIPs.  I think I started it before I had children and my oldest just turned 14 so this WIP is getting close to voting age.  My husband and I were engaged in Ireland and I would love to frame this and have it in the entry way.  I have the top part done and backstitched (thanking my younger self for having the foresight to do that!).  I would like to make progress on this but it has a low priority to be finished this year.

 

This is another sampler that is barely started.  I love this sampler and the colors but I'm stitching it on 40 count and I started it when I started to have a hard time seeing 40 count.  Now that I have progressive lenses, a magnifier and OTT light hopefully I can get back to stitching this.  I have about 4-5 BIG samplers started.  This one was screaming the loudest so I chose this one for 2018.

I have a love hate relationship with this pattern and all my Blackbird Designs.  I love the patterns and I have about 12 of the OOP Loose feathers kitted up.  However I do not love stitching them for some reason.  This one as been giving me trouble.  I'm almost 50% through and I decided it's not coming out of rotation until I finish it because I'm not sure I will pick it up again.  I've decided I need to either stitch these kitted up patterns to pass them on because they are highly desired or just un-kit them and sell the charts and fabric.  I'll decide after I finish this one and the next one in my line up.

New Starts...because I haven't stitched in almost 3 years there has been a lot of new patterns that have come out that I want to stitch.  Or ones I have in my stash.  I'm not letting myself start anything new until I finish something because I would like my WIP pile to decrease.  Or at the very least not grow.  Hopefully I can stand strong against the temptation..

I love this pattern.  I love quaker samplers and I really need to drink coffee before I do anything in the morning.  I have all the materials for this so it will likely be my first new start of 2018.  It's in a project bag waiting to go.

I grew up in the Salem, MA area and I have mixed feelings about all the Salem and Salem Witch inspired charts of late.  I can get into that at a later point in time!  But this chart I love.  I find it very respectful and a nice memorial to those who lost their lives in 1692 in the area where I grew up.  These individuals have helped shape Salem to what it is today and partly who I am.  So I would like to honor them and remember them.  I do not have the materials for this but will order them soon.  I am trying to keep my purchases to a minimum this year but this is a planned purchase for 2018 so I can pass this OOP chart on.

I know I just said I have mixed feelings about all the Salem charts of late and here is a second one!  This is another chart I love and have no mixed feelings about.  I worked for many summers as a tour guide at The House of the Seven Gables in Salem.  I met some of my closest friends there and it is a place from home that remains very close to my heart.  It is another reason I have called this blog Gables Stitcher.  I spent many hours stitching and chatting in the guides room and gardens there while working there over the years.  I will likely do just the house and not the characters.  I have the chart and materials for this project.

And that is it.  My 2018 cross stitch plans.  No problem....I should be done with everything by September!  And as always....plans are subject to change.  There are a couple of other projects I would like to start this year but I'm holding off even planning that until I get more WIPs done.

There needs to be a beginning......

This is new territory for me. I'm starting a blog and I have no idea what I am doing. Learning happens through trying and doing, so off I go.

I have wanted to keep an "cross stitching journal" of some sorts for the many years. Many of the cross stitchers I know and follow have blogs and I decided I would try one too. It is a good way to keep track of projects I have started, plans to finish, and display pictures for myself and others to see. Many of the cross stitching blogs I have followed have motivated and enabled me so maybe mine will do the same for others. At the very least it will be a good record of my cross stitching for me.

I have been cross stitching since I was an early teen. Maybe before. I can't remember when I started my first counted cross stitch project but I remember it was from an issue of a magazine that my mother had a subscription. Family Circle is my guess. My mom did some needle work and set me up with Aida, DMC and a hoop to keep me busy one summer. The love of cross stitching was ignited and has been a part of my life since then.

I have stitched off and on over the years. I stitched some in high school and college. I actually had several friends who cross stitched in college and we would watch "Friends" and "ER" while stitching on Thursday nights.

I took a break in my early twenties and picked it back up again when friends started to get married. I made so many wedding samplers as gifts over a number of years. Maybe why I don't have my own wedding sampler...I burned out stitching ones for others!

After I was married my husband and I bought a house and it happened to be very close to an amazing LNS store. I was introduced to the world of cross stitch outside of Michaels and Joanne's and I haven't looked back since. Linen, silks, and Q-snaps...oh my! I also met an incredible group of stitchers there who were great role models and fun to be around. I went to weekly stitching nights and yearly trips to Celebration of Needlework in Nashua, NH.

Over the next fifteen years (and three children later) I stitched off and on. Life often intervened and kept me too busy (or tired) to stitch. The LNS sadly closed. Weekly stitching nights became a thing of the past because I was juggling three kids extra curricular activities and their school schedules. I missed a few Celebration of Needleworks because once again, life was happening. But I typically had a project or two going and I seldom went too long without cross stitching.

Then about three years ago we moved. I packed up all my cross stitching supplies and projects in boxes, sealed them tight and moved them carefully into the new house. I had plans to turn a bonus gabled closet in the master bedroom into my stitching nook. I had never had a closet to myself to organize my crafting and stitching supplies and I couldn't wait to have this area organized and used.

Fast forward two and a half years and the closet was still all boxes. None of my cross stitch items were unpacked and even worse my future craft closet became a dumping group for all the other boxes I wasn't sure what to do with after we moved. I hadn't stitched since we moved and I missed it but I was overwhelmed by the thought of unpacking  the closet and turning it into a functional space for my cross stitching.  I didn't organize or purge my supplies before we moved because of time constraints so I knew this was not going to be a quick project. And I kept putting it off.

This summer, when we hit the two year point in our new house I decided enough was enough. I either needed to start stitching and unpack my closet or get rid of all my cross stitch stuff that was taking up a lot of room in a perfectly good closet. I opened a few boxes, fished out a couple of projects and what I needed to stitch and closed the closet door again for a few months.

What I discovered when I started stitching again is I missed it. A lot.  And I loved stitching. It was so good to be back in my zone. I also discovered the world of cross stitch groups on Facebook and Flosstube on YouTube. So much enabling!  So many fun projects!  So many other stitchers out there. I'm not alone!

Of course all was not rosy and perfect in this new cross stitch enlightenment. My eyes were only three years older but big changes had happened. Our new home had very poor lighting for cross stitching. And that closet was still an avalanche waiting to happen.

Little by little this fall I unpacked the closet. I bought a new Ott light (with magnifier!) so I could see to stitch. I organized my supplies. My wonderful husband helped me plan out how to maximize the storage space in my gabled closet and braved Ikea with me twice to get the necessary supplies. He assembled the furniture too. And was patient with pile of boxes I had in the bedroom and hallway for weeks (okay maybe months) while I was sorting and purging and planning.

But it's done. The closet is unpacked and organized. I have so many projects to stitch. Both started and not. I have light and magnifiers. I have Q-Snaps and needles. I have Facebook groups and flosstube to see other stitchers work.

And now I have a blog. Bring on 2018.