Assessing 2015 Goals

For 2015, a 50-50 s[lit.

• 01. My Own Crazy Challenge: work on unfinished class pieces from 2005-date.  I have whittled the list down  by one class ... not exavtlu stellar progress.
• 02. Complete two BAPs: Stitch stockings for Piper and Rocco.  I got involved in other BAPs and didn't get to these.
• 03. Stitch a few more Spring/Easter ornaments for the tree as well as a half dozen more Town Square ornaments. DONE.
• 04. Stitch one ornament a month from the Prairie Schooler Year Round leaflet  DONE.
• 05. Continue to work on UFOs and WIPs list going into 2015  DONE,
• 06. Limit stash purchases to fabric, fiber and tools needed to complete charts on hand.  Pretty close.  I bought just twp Mill Hill beaded Easter Egg kits [see Goal 3].  Otherwise, I only bought tools and fiber and floss.
• 07. Continue to blog regularly, aiming for every other day.  Between poor vision during slow healing from cataract surgery and adjustment to the very different schedule since retirement, this didn't happen.
• 08. Make an effort to catch up on sewing and frame 2 or 3 pieces professionally. Not so much.
• 09. Inventory and declutter existing stash.  DONE.
• 10. Change EGA membershIp  I let this lapse instead.  I'll ask for a renewal as an anniversary gift in January.

Setting goals for 2016

• 01. My Own Crazy Challenge: work on unfinished class pieces from 2005-date.
• 02. Complete two BAPs: Stitch stockings for Piper and Rocco.
• 03. Stitch a half dozen Celtic/St. Patrick's Day ornaments for the tree.
• 04. Continue to work on UFOs and WIPs list going into 2016
• 05. Limit stash purchases to fabric, fiber and tools needed to complete charts on hand.
• 06. Continue to blog regularly, aiming for every other day..
• 07. Make an effort to catch up on sewing and frame 2 or 3 pieces professionally.
• 08. Change EGA membersh

Marking Time

I still haven't decided on my next new BAP start and have been marking time with a few smaller projects while I consider my options.

I finished up the Jeanette Douglas Halloween Acorn House: truly a small at just 2 inches square.  Surprisingly it took three days stitching time [about 6 hours] to finish.  What slowed things down was working the over one fence, cat and owl on 36ct. Silkweaver linen.  I am not sure whether I will finish it as an ornament or as a scissor fob yet.  I make that decision when I sit down to sew.

The next piece is a French style sampler that I am working on a 14 inch square of 28ct Blue Wing Jobelan.  I have used Belle Soie Blue Lagoon for the alphabet and the plan is to use it for all the cartouches, as well.  I'll use soft pastel silks for all the animals and flowers that fill the cartouches.    My linen isn't quite large enough for the whole chart so I'll be eliminating and rearranging motifs to suit my needs.

Weekly WIP Status Report

I started the week with 10 projects on the WIP list, added three, finished three and ended back at 10.

• The Jacobean Elegance afghan - with 15 more squares to be stitched.
• Making Waves needlepoint project - with more than 3/4s of the bargello rows and more than 2/3s of the eyelet area to be stitched.
• My own design, Fertile Circles needle book, the back panel needs finishing.
• My own design, Beach Find Pansies, to be completed and incorporated into an embellished crazy quilt square

• The Victoria Sampler Mystic Smalls class project - I need to stitch the needle book and the biscornu
• Another needlepoint project, Rice Pudding, using many variations of the rice stitch.
• Yet another needlepoint project, an Owl, again a project using lots of specialty stitches.
• Piper's Christmas stocking  adapted from a Dimensions kit.
• HAED's The Tangle Fairy, barely started
• The Goblin Market:  FINISHED!

• Morning Glory The Sheltering Tree.  JUST NEED TO FINISH THE OVER ONE LETTERING.

• Jeanette Douglas Christmas Tree Ornament.  FINISHED.
• Jeanette Douglas Halloween Acorn House. FINISHED.
• S. Donnelly Stitchers' Hideaway Ornament.  FINISHED.

A BAP and Two One Day Wonders

I finished The Goblin Market and here it is in all its glory.  The spider web took forever or so it seemed.  I added a little Krenik 032 blending filament to the web  to make it shimmer as webs do in nature.   This piece was a lot of fun to stitch with all it's cheerful colors and its multitude of motifs.  The variety within the piece itself kept ,my interest.  The eagle-eyed observer will note a few counting errors but they didn't really detract from the overall design.  So I am satisfied.  The next project from the WIP list that I'll be tackling: The Mystic Smalls.

While rooting about in my stash for the next new big project, I came across three small charts: Jeanette Douglas' A Christmas Tree Ornament, Sue Donnelly's Souvenir Stitcher's Hideaway Ornament and Jeanette Douglas' The Halloween Acorn House.  I also found a few scraps of mystery linen on which to stitch them..

I paired this antique rose linen with the Jeanette Douglas chart, adjusting the color way to pale and non-traditional tints including Belle Soie's Creme de Menthe, Fern Frond, Beanstalk, Lily Pad and Cabbage Patch for the tree and GAST Pink Azalea for the tent stitched vertical strips in the background.  I am very pleased with the result, so much more subtle than the usual bright Christmas reds and greens.

The second one day wonder was this souvenir Tree Ornament from The Stitcher's Hideaway Retreat in 2013.  Better late than never.  It's pretty straigh forward stitched on raw linen in Dinky Dyes silks.

The final small resulting from my search is this little Halloween Acorn House.  I'll be using as many of the suggested WDW, GAST and Crescent Colors as I have on hand, making appropriate substitutions when necessary.  I have WDW Trick or Treat, GAST Straw Bonnet, Crescent Colors Blackbird and Hickory Sticks.  That leaves me needing replacements for CC Colonial Copper, Just Rust, Plymouth Rock and Tufted Yellow.  As soon as I have posted  this blog entry, I'll search online to see what those shades are and then I'll pull equivalents from my GAST or WDW stash, both of which are mych moe extensive than my CC stash.  Since this a two sided piece, it'll probably take three days to stitch.

And I still haven't selected my next new large project start!  Nothing is really pulling at me at the  moment.  That's probably a goof reason to stick to the WI[P list

And Startitis Strikes Again

It seems that every time I get close to finishing a large project [in this case, The Goblin Market],  I feel th need to start a new small.

So, I pulled this Morning Glory Designs complimentary chart, Friendship is a Sheltering Tree, from my stash and kitted it up using 36 ct raw linen and most of the recommended WDW flosses: Blue Spruce, Chesapeake, Curry, Frosted Teal and Ivy.  I lacked Camellia [Light Dusty Rose] and Romance [Dusty Rose] for which I will substitute some similar GAST cotton over dyed floss when I reach that point.  At present, I am enjoying a stint of over one stitching using the two blues to create a shadow effect.  The full title sentiment will take up the bottom third of the design and the pink flowers will complete the arch of the two trees.

It is a simple yet pleasing design with a motto that is not overly sentimental.  It'll work up nicely as a gift bag to hold a Christmas gift for one of my fr.ends