February WIPocalypse check in

 I know it’s March, but it’s still early March so close enough, right? Right! 

So I finally managed to get my Night Spirit Studio ornaments stitched up and sent off to friends. The highlighter seems to have come out and I’m pretty happy with the finishing. 

I also managed to get my components finished and assemble Threadabead’s Cardinal box. I’m very happy with the way it turned out and will have to make another for myself someday. 

I was also able to get a fair amount of time in on my HAED. Coppervein’s wing is really starting to take shape. I really wanted to get a page finish but February was just a bit too short. Maybe I’ll aim for two in March to make up for it:)

And last but not least for February is a replacement project for the finished box. I started another Threadabead box, this time an Easter one that is going to be mine. Not far yet but a couple Easter eggs is a pretty good start for a few days of work on it. 

March should be an interesting crafting month. The boys will be heading back to in person classes at school mid-month so I’m not sure if that means more or less crafting time yet. Hoping it means I’ll have a few mornings a week to blaze through a bit of housework and then a few hours to really focus on that dragon and his wing before they get back but we’ll see how it goes. Hope everyone has a warm, safe and crafty March! 

January 2021 WIPocalypse

 Made it back for the end of January, that’s a good start for 2021! Thank you all for all the kind words about my projects. Cross stitch is my first love but beading has a special place in my heart too. I’m not the best finisher but beadwork takes care of that by incorporating the finishing into the pattern. I have enjoyed looking at all of your work too even if I haven’t been able to comment on all of the posts. 

So I didn’t work on a variety of projects this month but I did start a new Threadabead box, the cardinal and snowman one. It’s my go to during virtual kindergarten and is just pieces at the moment but that snowman is adorable! Hoping to finish him off in February so he can move on to his new home.

Next up is Coppervein who got a lot of love in January. Now would probably be a good time to answer January’s question of the month too which deals with a project I’m struggling on. This one is definitely it, or was at least. That white/blue water and wave mix at the bottom is the reason I put this down after the last time I worked on it. It just seemed endless and difficult because of all the similar colors and confetti. When I picked it up this time though I used an alternating approach and did a thread length of white/blue and then a thread length of any other color. It was still hard but I pushed through and am now happily working through the reds of the wing on toward the sky. My goal is to put a good dent on this one in 2021. I’d love to finish but I know I don’t stitch that fast. It needs to be a top priority though as it is a gift promised to my brother when finished and it’s been hanging around the WIP pile for several years now. I’m at 7/45 pages complete now. 

One last bit of progress to report. I did get my ornaments partially finished only to discover when I turned them right side out after stitching the backing fabric on 3ish sides that they had met the highlighter at some point. Of course it was green highlighter on white stitching so they’ve spent a couple days soaking and I believe I got it all out. Phew! Hoping to stuff them and send them on their way in February too. See you all at the end of the month! 

January WIPocalypse

I made it back for a check-in, already doing better than last year! And I mostly kept to plans, even better. 2020 is definitely off to a promising start, I feel like I can accomplish quite a bit this year. As promised I finished the last snowflake pod for my son but sadly forgot to snap a pic before it got stashed away with the Christmas decorations until much later this year. Fear not though, it was a replica of the purple/gold/white one in last month’s pictures so you’re not really missing anything new. I also worked on both Coppervein and the Russian sampler. Coppervein is slow going at the moment as I truly despise the almost white on white stitching in the current section but I will slowly force my way through it. The Russian sampler, on the other hand, is coming together quickly. I managed to finish off the letters and am so close to a border finish.

I also managed to bead a Star for my Mom, Dimarca’s Heart Star. It is a free pattern on her site. Gave it to Mom as part of her birthday present and she loved it. Still working on adjusting my pics so they’re not sideways! 

Sadly the holly boxes did not get any love this month but there’s always February and I hope to make them my beading focus in the coming month. I have a feeling the Russian sampler is going to command most of my attention as I’m coming up on the fun part, the St. Basil’s center, and I hope to work on Coppervein a bit more as well. My other goal for the month is making it around to all the other blogs, missed you all last year and hope to have more time for blog hopping this year. 

In answer to Measi’s monthly question about SALs for 2020 I am participating in none. Too many WIPs and not a lot of crafty budget make it an easy choice for the most part except for a certain FB beading group that insists on posting gorgeous BAL projects. I’m trying hard to print them and tuck away for later and am succeeding so far but I never did spend my birthday money so maybe one day. 

See you all in a month!

WIPocalypse 2019 Recap/2020 Intro

So blogging didn’t happen in 2019. Had some image hosting issues at the beginning of the year and then work and family stress took over. Had two major family deaths- my mother-in-law, who was a big supporter of my craft, and also my grandfather. We also lost our 12 year old American Bulldog who occasionally appeared here. Somehow we’ve made it to the last day of 2019 and I’m sorry to see that my last check in was January but I’m grateful to be here now and hopeful for a much brighter 2020. 

Looking back I don’t actually have a lot of cross stitch to show but I did make a little progress, had a couple new starts, and did a bunch of beadwork. My goals for 2020 are pretty modest- annual Christmas ornaments for the kids, handmade Christmas presents for close family, and mostly stitch/bead from stash. 

A look back at 2019’s work-

DiMarca Halloween stars

Christmas pods

Tale of Beads Christmas star

DiMarca kaleidocycle

Tracy Lorraine Holly boxes

Plaid destined to eventually be a spider from my EGA

Sam Sarah pieces from JCS issues

More Christmas pods

Lady Lunar Cat Easter stars

My first kaleidocycle 

Coppervein 1/2019 and 12/31/19

Russian nights sampler

Mill Hill sleighs 

I’m not sure why Blogger opted to randomize and rotate some of my pics but we’ll go with it today and aim to fix it next time. My first goal for January is to finish off the 2019 pod ornaments for my boys. I started them before Christmas but needed to borrow a couple to use as presents and promised the boys remakes in their chosen colors. Hoping to put a bit of work into my own Holly box as well as one for my father-in-law. Also planning to put some more stitches into either Coppervein or the Russian sampler. January also happens to be my birthday month so all plans subject to change depending on gifts received. The DH has my crafty wishlist and knows where to buy.

Hope everyone has a bright and peaceful start to 2020. See you all at the end of January.

January WIPocalypse

The respiratory viruses and assorted sinus and ear infections that sometimes follow have hit our house pretty hard since Christmas and to be honest I’m in the middle of my second round of it at the moment so though I’ve been thinking a lot about it I haven’t made an official 2019 craft plans post. As far as stitching goes I have a big storage bin full of WIPs of various sizes and in various states of finish so I’m really not planning a bunch of new starts to add to it. I’m hoping to spend a lot of time on Coppervein with some deep dives into the WIP bin and maybe even a finish or two. The new starts I do have in mind are a Russian alphabet sampler I meant to start last year and some Christmas ornaments for the kids. Haven’t made a final ornament decision yet but I’m leaning toward the Mill Hill sleighs.

I have some more definite beading plans. I fell in love with Julia Pretl’s snowman box and have the beads to make at least 3. I’d like one for myself and my mother and mother in law. Might be persuaded to make them for the boys instead of ornaments if they decide they like them and the pattern works up relatively easy. I will attempt to up my skill level and tackle the Threadabead Ombré Star. I’ll decide on how many points once I get going, the pattern has directions for 6, 7 or 8. In my continuing attempt to decorate for holidays other than Christmas I also have plans for some Easter stars and have purchased Lady Lunar Kat’s egg and flower stars. 

So that’s what I have in mind and so far I’ve done pretty well in January. I pulled Space Traveler out of the WIP bin and did about half a page...

Also about a half page on Coppervein...

And a finished star, my colorway of a free pattern shared in a beading group I belong to...

And one more star, almost finished. This one was my pattern.

That about wraps it up for this month. Hoping to get around to seeing everyone else’s progress soon. Keep warm everyone! 

December WIPocalypse- Recap time!

I’m sure you’re shocked that I missed November’s check in. Nothing crazy happened except for the normal dash to the end of the year through the holidays. It was fun but I’m tired and have had way too much good food and am ready for some quiet, snowy days to craft and recharge.

I feel like I didn’t stitch near as much as I planned this year but I fell deep down the beading rabbit hole and did craft a lot overall. Glad I didn’t really set specific goals since they would have been completely out the window. I do wish I would have gotten round to the Russian sampler I had kitted at the beginning of the year so I think I will try to alternate it and HAEDs in my 2019 stitching. I don’t plan on much in way of goals since I’m apparently easily distracted but want to spend some time in the WIP pile for sure.

For now, how about a WIP/finish recap for 2018? I tried to find the earliest 2018 pics on the WIPs for a before/after. See you all in 2019!

August WIPocalypse

So I blinked and time has jumped from those first days of summer vacation to all the kiddos back in school. Yes, all of them.

I now have a fourth grader and two preschoolers which means lots of extra driving since preschool is only half days but also a bit of really quiet time in the house. It completely confuses the dog and is a tempting stitchy break when I happen to be home for it. I’d like to say I worked on lots of projects since my last post but I haven’t, just two in fact. I have continued the beaded stars and finished several over the last couple months. It probably helps that we’ve had some long car trips and the warped squares that form the stars are easily done while riding in the passenger seat. I work with a small amount of beads at a time in a plastic bowl nestled into a small blanket or jacket on my lap to help steady it and so far no spills.

The other project for the summer has been Coppervein. Just looked at the last post pic and I’ve come a long way since May. I think I’m on track to finish off the first column by the end of the year if I keep going, maybe the first partial page of the second column to meet back up with the random second column page already finished.

I almost never remember to look at the question of the month but today I did so... Question of the Month:Which is more satisfying to you and why – the process of stitching a piece, or the finish? Both, actually. Finishing a quick project is quite satisfying especially if I can actually finish it off into a usable object quickly too but there’s something about the process of working through a large project and watching the small elements come together and gradually form a complete project that is also very satisfying. Been thinking about September plans and I think it’s going to be more of the same. I really want to finish off a few more stars because Christmas is starting to get uncomfortably close. I’d also like to work through close to another page of Coppervein while it is still interesting. I know I’ll eventually get bored with it and have to rotate to something else for a bit but I want to get through as much as possible until then. See you all at the end of September!

May WIPocalypse

Back after a month’s break and a trip to Celebration of Needlework at the beginning of the month. I had an excellent time and stitched with old friends and new, brought home some goodies too. Four days was too short though, there were still a few people I only got to say hi to in passing and didn’t really get to spend time with. Next year!

 I took two classes while there- a crown sewing basket from Simona Bussiglieri and a Battenburg lace angel with Sue Blomley. Both were amazing teachers though the basket will take much more courage to finish than the angel. Pics below of the basket model (mine is still in the package!) and my lace angel which is almost ready for decorative stitches.

 And onto WIPocalypse- I did pretty much what I hoped since I’ve been gone. I completed not one but two beaded boxes. One has gone to my Mom (who loved it!) and the other will go to my mother-in-law shortly. I’ll just show one since they are the same, design is by Katie Dean.

I pulled threads and started My Christmas List at Celebration. I found the perfect size cut of Silkweaver Chocolate Vanilla Swirl sparkly evenweave in my stash and changed a few colors around to brighten it up an extra bit. I’m happy with the results so far...

Since I’ve been home I’ve been alternating Christmas List with Coppervein and I’m so close to a page finish!

June goals- I don’t really have a beading project in mind but it would be nice to complete the green star I’ve got almost done and finish another. I’d love to finish another page of Coppervein and another page of My Christmas List but that’s a tall order with all 3 kids home for summer so we’ll see.

Can’t wait to see what you all have been stitching!

WIPocalypse 2018: The introduction

Hi all! In case you’re landing here for the first time I’m Sara and I’m a stitcher, wife, Mom to 3 little boys, and retail pharmacist (gotta pay the bills and buy the stash somehow). I am participating in Measi’s WIPocalypse SAL again because it’s fun and my goal is of course to stitch all the stash. I have a bit of a BAP problem and apparently have quite a few more projects kitted and started than I realized before I recently combed through them all, unkitted the ones I’m not interested in any longer, and organized what was left. It would take years to finish the current WIPs if I stitched nothing else and I’m mostly ok with that because I’m not on a time limit except for one that is a gift.

So let’s get started. First off, my helpers...



That’s Christopher, Joshua, and Benjamin (L-R). The twins are 3 and Josh is 9. They love that I stitch and are convinced that all pieces belong to them. They also love to help and are finally all old enough that I can stitch when they’re all awake though my progress is sometimes slower than I’d like.

The current favorites in the house also happen to be my two focus pieces for the year, Watergarden and Coppervein. Watergarden is a Chatelaine and was started forever ago. It is mine despite Christopher’s claim that it is going to live in his room. It is likely destined for my living room wall and I kind of fell in love with it again recently so I’d like to get it done and hung sooner rather than later. I’m stitching on opalescent white even weave with most of the called for fibers except I did swap out the NPI silk for DMC and am happy with the results. I am a little farther along on the right side now but this is the most recent pic of the full piece.



Coppervein is a HAED I’m working on as a gift for my little brother. I promised him I’d stitch him a big piece when he graduated high school and moved out on his own. He took some time and picked it off the HAED site and I’ve been slowly working on it. I’d like to make some good progress on it in 2018 but I know it’s not feasible to finish it.



And then there’s the bin.



It holds quite a variety of unfinished projects including but definitely not limited to...

The Jim Shore angel I started and really should finish for my MIL.



The Shepherd’s Bush ornaments I never finished for my tree.



The class projects from last year’s Celebration of Needlework.



And so many more which hopefully you will see in 2018. I’m not doing a strict stitch from stash year but I’m trying to work on WIPs more than new starts. That said, I do have a few new starts planned.



They are some of the Mill Hill sleds from last year and Russian Nights Sampler. These are actually for the kids. I try to stitch them an ornament each year so that they will have some of their own when they eventually leave and move out and this year they picked out the sleds. The sampler is an old, out of print design gifted to me by a dear stitchy friend (thank you Darla!) for my Josh who we adopted from Russia as a toddler. I have a few other Russian themed pieces I’d like to eventually stitch for him but at the moment he is fascinated with the look of the Cyrillic alphabet and St. Basil’s so this piece is perfect. I do have in stash Chatelaine’s White Nights of St. Petersburg, Terry Nolan’s Enchantment of Winter, a Thea Gouverneur (I think St. Basil’s), as well as a couple of kits we picked up while in Russia but please feel free to comment and point out any awesome pieces I may have missed. I hope to do a Russia wall someday and if Josh wants some of the pieces he will be welcome to take them when he moves out.

I think that’s a pretty good intro for today. Looking forward to seeing what everyone else is up to and getting some work done on Watergarden so I ave new pics for you next time.