Schedule Derailed

One of the occupational hazards of working in education is the constant exposure to all sorts of germs combined with immune system lowering stress and long hours ... so it had to happen ... I got sick just 6 days before my son and his little family is due to arrive from the West Coast. No cleaning, no polishing, no moving furniture back into place, or re-hanging paintings/wall knick-knacks now that the painters are sort-of done ... except for all the spots they missed.

Did get a little listless stitching done on Angela's towel ... just have to finish the back-stitching ... but it was supposed to be done yesterday. Oh well, after I get back from the tests my doctor ordered maybe I can try and catch up a bit.

Adjusting the schedule

I have decided that, instead of stitching one Yule towel for Angela [daughter] and two everyday towels for Christina [daughter-in-law] with herbal motifs, I shall stitch one Yule towel for Ange and one Christmas towel each for Christina and for Sasha [youngest son's significant other]. I started Angela's Yule towel yesterday using the free chart of mistletoe from the chart shop and I have completed about 2/3rds of the cross-stitching and have the backstitching to do. I have also chosen to do the Dragon Dreams Santa ornament chart from JCS 2007 for Christina's towel and the Crossed Wing Collection Cardinal ornament chart also from JCS 2007 for Sasha's towel. It will only require minimal adjustments ... mostly a matter of substituting nice color-fast DMC for any specialty threads called for in the charts. I expect to be done with Angela's towel today and maybe even get a start on Sasha's. The key was to find charts that fit within the 50hx58w parameters of the Charles Craft Green Gingham towels I had in my stash. Also on the schedule for today: assemble the four cross-stitched Christmas ornaments from the sewing basket, finish all the laundry, scrub the hall and living room floors and polish all the furniture before reassembling the rooms now that the painter's are gone, shovel snow as it accumulates [we are expecting 6-8" between 11am and midnight] and make a batch of chocolate pudding and prepare chicken stroganoff for dinner [from a recipe of my mother-in-law's that is typical of the 50's - the sauce is Campbell's Golden Mushroom sauce doctored with sauteed onions and mushrooms and with sour cream to finish]. With so much to do, I'll cut the blogging short and get started.

Christmas Schedule

Deadlines are getting closer: all housekeeping and decorating must be done by Dec. 19; all shopping must be done by Dec. 23, all cooking and wrapping must be done by Dec. 24 ... and still have three tea towels and two ornaments to stitch as well as doing the sewing finishes on two gifts and four ornaments already stitched.

Finished the Knotted Tree Needleart Santa ornament [JCS 2007 issue] this morning though I had hoped to finish it last night. I will kit up Angela's tea towel this morning and take it to work to start stitching during the lunch hour. On the way home from work I will pick up everything I need for the housecleaning frenzy. Tomorrow is a day off and we are expecting 3-6 inches of snow. Friday I have a sick day since I have to have some tests done in the morning and I hope to use the afternoon for finishing up the cleaning. And, somewhere in there, I am hoping to have two hours to assemble and finish the four ornaments already stitched. Saturday, I'll be working till 2pm ... after work I would like to get a new Christmas tree ... one of those apartment sized, tall, skinny, folk-arty ones. Since we are expecting snow again Saturday night into Sunday morning, I plan to spend some more time on sewing finishes of stitched gifts, wrapping already purchased gifts and making a list of gifts still to be purchased ... and perhaps decorating. Also have to remember to send Bill out to my brother's for the portacrib and to buy a dark green area rug from Sears for the living room floor ... we'll move the area rug up to the bedroom once we get the new wall-to-wall carpeting in the living room and dining room in January.

I am already exhausted just thinking about it ... I'll have to think about the rest of the schedule later ... after the weekend, when I'll know just how much of the above I have managed to accomplish.

Plodding along toward Christmas

I am still working on getting the house back into shape now that the painters have left ... though they will have to return. In moving the bookcases to clean the floors, I discovered that while they primed one side of one of the six floor to ceiling units, they neglected to paint it the same lovely Hunter Green as the rest. Instead it is a disgusting turquoise-y green primer ... ugh! This morning, before work, I managed to get two loads of laundry done and swept done the upstairs/downstairs hallways and staircase prior to stripping, scrubbing and waxing the same. Also, cleaned the green curtains and got the curtain rods back up on the living room windows ... but I think I'll switch out the green curtains for the barn red ones now in the master bedroom [which I'll have to wash tonight after work] since they will work better with the new accent colors in the living room.

On the needlework front, I have nearly finished stitching the Knotted Tree Needleart Santa ornament, having only the bottom fur on Santas robe, his boots and half the frosted teal single x brder to x-stitch, and the Rhodes stitch accents on the fur, the backstitching and beading left to go. Hope to finish stitching it tomorrow and then I'll have four Christmas ornaments to finish assembly line style. If Bill ever gets to my Photobucket tutorial I should have pictures to post. I believe I will try to finish the Cross-Eyed Kat dragon next and then on to the tea towels for Christina. I found a lovely mistletoe chart to use for Angela's holiday towel. And, of course, there is the Cardinal ornament to stitch for Angela Kelly.

I'll be giving Liz her Imaginating Santa Christmas ornament today and expect she'll like it ... she really needs a lift right now given all the teen angst in her home right now.

Turning over a new leaf - I hope

I intend to blog with greater regularity this month ... and thus I have to report that yesterday I finished the Workbasket Quaker Swan and started the Knotted Tree Needleart JCS 2007 Christmas ornament. Although I had been doing the Designer Series Santa ornaments for my sister Kate for the past several years, I had to pass up this year's entry in the series ... it was just too bizarre with all that "stuff" seemingly growing out of Santa's head. I chose to do the Knotted Tree piece instead, with a few notable adjustments: first, I drastically reduced the size of the boots; second, I regularized the pattern of the beads in the sack to make it look a little more like the Designer series I had done in the past; third, since I don't have the called for JABCo button, I will stitch a Rhodes Star in tarnished gold in its place and fourth, I am thinking of adding some backstitching to delineate the sleeve ... I am not sure about this and will wait till I have done all the other stitching to decide. Also, having reduced the size of the feet, I can finish the border as a square and may end up finishing the entire piece as a biscornu ornament, maybe even with a beaded edge. Next in the rotation will be finishing the red dragon in Cross Eyed Kat's Snow Fight series. I don't think it is worth starting Liam's stocking this year ... one doesn't rush Teresa Wentzler designs ... so I think I'll just do a quick little Baby's First Christmas type deal ... ornament size ... this year. That way I'll be able to concentrate on the last few gifts I need to make ... Mom's needlecase, Angela K's pillows and Christina's tea towels and maybe, time permitting, a tea towel for Angela. Anyway, it is good to have a plan even if I end up modifying it along the way.

November was gone in a flash

This is a very busy season for me professionally: I counted the number of major events I had to stage between the dates of Nov. 19 and Dec. 18 and the total came to 15. Since I also have to complete my annual report and conclude the biggest fundraiser of the year during the same time frame, I have been left with little time for stitching or blogging. And, of course, it was also during this time frame that the painters finally came ... the same painters who were supposed to have painted my entire downstairs as well as the upstairs hall and all of our bookcases in October. Then, of course, there are the little details of shopping for my grandson, Liam's first Christmas ... and, incidentally, shopping for the usual crew.

In any case, I did manage to complete another band of my Thea Dueck Mystic Stitcher's Pocket from the Mystic Stitcher's Hideaway as well as the Prairie Schooler 2007 Limited Edition Santa, Let It Snow and the Workbasket Quaker Frog. And I am more than halfway through stitching Workbasket's Quaker Swan. I have also noted that Workbasket has come out with two more Quaker animals: a cow and a sheep. I will have to get those sometime in the new year.

As this year draws to a close, I am inclined to plan for the next ... and, as usual, set unreasonably optimistic goals.
Goal #1: Limit the purchase of new charts until I have caught up with the 50+ I currently have in my stash. I realize I will succumb to a few "must-haves" like the Workbasket leaflet mentioned above but I will try to limit the total new purchases of charts to 10 for 2008. Fiber and fabric will be purchased on a "as needed" basis ... as needed, i.e., to complete charts already in my stash.
Goal # 2: Participation in two SALs. The first is a 123 stitch SAL for Crabby All Year Round piece from Raise the Roof. I have all the charts but will be checking this week on fabric and fiber needs. The second is a committment to stitch all my Halloween charts along also with a group from 123 stitch that will be doing the same with their own Halloween charts. At last count, I had 16 Halloween charts to stitch.
Goal # 3: Then, of course, there are my own WIPs, UFOs and sewing finishes. The WIPs: the Teresa Wentzler Autumn Faerie [to be followed by the Christmas and Summer Faeries] and the remaining projects from the Stitcher's Hideaway in Mystic: finishing the pocket, stitching the tuffet, scissor case, scissor fob and needlebooks. The UFO's: Midnight Moogies and the Celtic Tarot. Last count the sewing finishes were hovering at about 20 in the sewing basket.
Goal # 4: Learn to use the digital camera doo-hickey to download photos, to mangae a Photobucket account and to post photos to the blog and groups.
Goal #5: Keep up with sewing finishes ... this means no more than 5 completed cross stitch pieces in the sewing basket.

Mystic Stitcher's Hideaway

It was a fantastic experience ... This was a whole new venue for me ... small [about 30 stitchers] and intimate, with approximately 15 hours devoted to stitching one project, having the time to actually learn and practice a new skill and actually getting to a point where the project is at least half done. In the past I have gone to two CATS events with it's one or two hour classes where one merely sees a stitch or technique demonstrated and, at best, gets to stitch it once or twice on a doodle cloth before moving on to the next class. The end result is that two years later, I have still completed only half the CATS projects from 2005 and 2006. But I am literally itching to finish my hardanger pocket and get started on the other pieces in the kit: a tuffet with lots of hardanger, a scissor case and fob, and two needlebooks. I actually learned how to do hardanger weaves, wraps, dove eyes, Grecian Crosses, Kloster blocks and blanket stitches ... and was able to cut my threads successfully ... a minor miracle, so far as I am concerned. Okay, so I had to go and wash my hands immediately after the cutting ... talk about sweaty palms ... but it worked and it actually looks presentable. Thea Dueck was a fantastic teacher: the epitome of clarity and patience. I would take another class with her should the opportunity present itself. And I will definitely want to go on another Stitcher's Hideaway ... meeting stitchers, enjoying the project, eating some very nicely catered meals ... it was all a very lovely break from the end-of-year madness at work.

Off to Mystic Stitcher's Hideaway

My husband and are packing ... we leave today at noon for Mystic Ct where I will be attending the Stitcher's Hideaway and he will wander the seaport meeting up with me [and the other stitchers and their tag alongs] for meals. I am looking forward to this and have been working diligently on the pre-work for the past two days. I am the sort who always works to deadline - I turned in my bachelor's thesis the day before my wedding. That was 37 years ago and I am still a down to the wire kind of person ... it's not that I procrastinate, it's just that I take on more than is reasonable and then juggle everything till it all works ... or crashes about my head. Most of the time it works.

Anyway, this time, at least, I probably should have started the pre-work earlier. The whole reason I signed up for this class was to learn hardanger. So what do you think the assigned pre-work is? That's right: all the Kloster blocks and blanket stitching on the pocket and, time permitting, the Kloster blocks on the tuffet pin cushion. So it is all very slow going ... very paranoid stitching ... stitch, count, stitch, recount, stitch, count yet again, frog, stitch, count, frog, count, stitch, re-count, pray, curse effusively and creatively, stitch ... well, you get the idea. But the finished project will be worth it ... a whole set of Thea Dueck [Victoria's Sampler] stitching accesories ... the design references the locale with all sorts of 19th century tall ships, ladies, lighthouses, etc.

I am looking forward to this immensely ... partly because I will be meeting some people I "know" only through stitchery message boards, partly because I will enjoy the project/classes/teacher, and partly because my professional life has been a mad whirl since mid September and will not let up till January ... so this provides a much needed break halfway through the career-related insanity.

Shall report on the hideaway upon my return.

A small finish

Well, I have finished the Glory Bee blackwork ornament and though I have no shortage of stash, I take an inordinate degree of pleasure in using up the odd little bits and pieces of fiber and fabric left over from other projects. I was able to stitch this piece using up the two lengths of green cotton floss left over from my Shamrock bookmark and a small scrap of 35ct linen that I had received in trade for some charts. It just warms my frugal little heart. And now, I have picked up the Cross-Eyed Kat Red Snowfight Dragon again and am moving along nicely on this piece: the head, right arm and wing as well as a really good start on the snow. But I really must get to work on the pre-work for the Mystic Retreat ... I leave for Mystic on Thursday.

October Goals

I always think I am going to accomplish so much more than I actually do and consequently set impossible goals for myself whether it's school work, administrative paperwork, housework, reading or stitching. The stitching goals for October were no exception.

I did finish my designated "freebie of the month": Star Light, Star Bright from LHN and even managed to stitch it up into a rather attractive throw pillow. And I did finish three of the Workbasket Quaker pieces for my Quaker quilt [that makes 10 down and 4 to go]. This month, I stitched the Cat, the Mouse and the House. That leaves the frog, the swan, the tortoise and the hare ... but they will have to wait until after Christmas ... I have a number of gifts and ornaments left to do. I finally finished the Passion de Croix SAL for the 123stitch board ... the last to do so. And I stitched a Trick or Treat bib for my grandson, Liam. Furthermore, I managed to complete a number of sewing finishes: made up the 2006 JCS Imaginating Santa & Sue Hillis Merry Christmas into Christmas ornaments with beaded trim, made throw pillows of Glory Bee's Home Sweet Home and LHN's Summer Place and Starlight Starbright , as well as stitching up the Waxing Moon Checkerboard Pumpkin [with my additions] into a trick or treat bag for Liam and assembled two biscornus and a name tag. I took Heartstrings Bittersweet Season to the framer and brought home Dragon Dreams Stormbringer.

But I did not do any work on the TW Autumn Faerie or Crosseyed Kat's Red Snowball Fight Dragon, and only a little work on the 2007 JCS Sue Hillis Spool Tree ornament, nor did I even start the Prairie Schooler Ltd. Edition Santa and the current year card Santa as I had hoped ... the Santas were supposed to be finished and at the framer by Halloween. Also not started is the TW Woodland Angel stocking for Liam [supposed to be done by this Christmas]. Nor did I start the pre-work for the Mystic Stitchery Retreat [8 short days away]. My other goal, to transfer all my photo files to Photobucket so I can learn to add pictures of my work to my blog and to some message boards I frequent has yet to be achieved ... I have been taking pictures of finished work faithfully but still need my husband's help to download them to my personal files and need a tutorial in then transferring them to photobucket.

One of November's goals will have to be to set more reasonable goals.