Crazy Making

There is a new challenge making the rounds in stitching circles: the Crazy January Challenge of 2011. The plan is to start a new piece everyday from January 1st to January 15th and then complete those pieces in the course of the year. My first thought was that with all my UFOs [see sidebar] I really don't need another 15 WIPs on my conscience. But then I realized that the 2011 goals I am already formulating include working on and completing one medium sized project a month and a few more ornaments for my January Anniversary/February Valentine's Day ornament tree display ... and that's not even counting my goal of stitching one Town Square SAL piece a month as well. So what's to stop me from starting 15 of these projects at the very start of the year and then completing them as the year progresses? Let's be honest here: I have a two inch binder filled with charts that I have optimistically labelled Current Stitching, meaning stuff I intend to do this year whatever this year happens to be. The binder never seems to empty out though I faithfully remove charts from it as I stitch them and I have been careful to limit my purchases of new charts these past few years.

So I can do this ... at least, the starting part ... the finishing part of the challenge, well, that remains to be seen.

Now for the list:

We'll start with the first four of the Town Square SAL pieces I wish to do ... I don't want to load the list entirely with these pieces ... that would be boring.

***Knotted Tree Needle Art's Post Office

***La-D-Da's School House

***WDW's Town Hall

***The Trilogy's Church

And then there is my personal tradition of stitching a Christmas piece in January to extend the mood a wee bit. Since for the past several years I have chosen a Sue Hillis or Prairie Schooler piece for this purpose, this year's choice will be
***Sue Hillis' Cookie Santa
And two more definite must-stitches, just because I love them and have been itching to start these:
***Homespun Elegance's The Stitcher
***Barrick Sampler's The Gilded Cage
Next up, The Workbasket Quaker Animals I am stitching and collecting for a quilt.
***the Squirrel from Quaker Acorn and Squirrel leaflet
***the Bear from the Polar Quakers leaflet
***the Owl from the Quaker Halloweens leaflet
That makes 10 for certain. Now things get a bit more problematic. Lots of great choices but only five more slots.
So, moving on, some Halloween/Fall pieces. I'll need to choose three of these:
Alexandra Adelaide's Zucca
Ink Circles' Celtic Beasties: Halloween or Knot
The Cricket Collection's The Great Pumpkin Conspiracy
The Primitive Needle's Black'd Skie
Hands To Work's Harvest Blooms
La-D-Da's Something Wicked
Homespun Elegance's Witches Stitch, Too
And I'll want to choose two of the following dragon charts.
Teresa Wentzler's Tracery Dragons
Dragon Dreams' Dragon of the Winter Moon
Dragon Dreams' A Dragon's Tea Party
Dragon Dreams' Dragon of the Summer Sky
Dragon Dreams' The Ice Dragon's Kingdom
Dragon Dreams' Here Be Dragons

Anyone wishing to help me choose the charts from these last two sections, please leave a comment. I am leaning toward Homespun Elegance's Witches Stitch, Too [as a companion piece to The Stitcher] and Alexandra Adelaide's Zucca [just because I love pumpkin charts and this will work for Thanksgiving as well] and The Primitive Needle's Black'd Skie [jut because I love it, eccentric faux olde spelling notwithstanding] in the Halloween category. In the dragon category, I want to stitch them all, especially the Teresa Wentzler piece.

My stitching in 2010 was dominated by ornaments and other smalls for some reason so it will be nice to concentrate on medium to large pieces in 2011. Fewer finishes, to be sure, but the satisfaction of having accomplished something substantial ... and not nearly as much sewing/assembly finishing to tackle.