December WIPocalypse check-in

So life kinda got in the way and I missed a few month but January is just round the corner and it is all about resolutions so I will try again and hopefully life will cooperate. Nothing particularly bad happened just got busy with kids and school and work and soccer.

Anyway since it is still December, how about a look back at what I've accomplished? My first big accomplishment was actually making it out to Celebration of Needlework in New Hampshire last May. It was a stitcher's dream to have so many teachers and vendors and stitchers in one spot and to meet in person so many stitchers I've gotten to know online over the years and some new ones too. The DH and I both took trips for our hobbies last year and had originally planned to alternate years but I think we've found a way to make Celebration 2018 fit into the budget😊

As for the actual stitching, I didn't do so well blogging toward the end of the year but I was stitching. The finishes of 2017...

Sleeping Baby (Vervaco)


Lovebirds (CCN)


Some Bunny Loves You (CCN)


America (LHN)


Joe's Garage (Mill Hill)


Chalkboard ornaments (Hands On Design)



You Were Hatched (TW)


Mill Hill ornament


Teddy Bear Birth Announcement (Vervaco)
 

I actually finished quite a lot more than it felt like during the year but none of them were the old WIPs, the ones that have birthdays and are older than my kids. I've got several of those and am hoping to clear out at least one or two in 2018. But we'll get into all that next time in the 2018 kick off post. I've been working on revising the WIPocalypse page of this blog for next year so check that out if you'd like a preview. For now, I think I'm going to go check out everyone else's blog and get some stitching time in while it snows and the kids are semi-quietly playing. Happy New Year, may it be a good and stitchy one.

August WIPocalypse

How did it get to be last Sunday of the month again? Feels like we just posted July yesterday! Lots has happened in the last month. Had a family reunion, trip to WI, another big family party, Josh went back to school and soon soccer and birthday/holiday season will be upon us. Can't believe we're about to have a 9 year old and not one but two 3 year olds in the house! Here they are last month at Mars Cheese Castle in Wisconsin.

 

On to the stitching. It feels like I didn't get a lot done last month but looking at the pictures I did manage some progress. First, a new start- Joe's Garage, a Mill Hill Button & Bead kit.

 

Made the tiniest amount of progress on my chalkboard ornaments.

   

And gave the Vervaco teddy bear a face.

 

Hoping to finish off Joe's Garage this month and maybe the Vervaco piece too. Fingers crossed the trio of snotty boys decides to camp out in front of the TV so I can get a couple hours in this afternoon before Erich comes home tonight. He's been gone this weekend for a gaming tournament and the boys decided to all catch the same cold at the same time so they could use a quiet day before get to Monday. Happy Stitching all!

July WIPocalypse

I think I've got my photo storage and linking problems solved with Flickr, still a little annoyed at the lack of notice from Photobucket on their policy change but I'll continue on with Flickr for now and maybe go back and redo old links as I get a chance. Good thing is the old pics are all still there at Photobucket, the links from here just don't show it because they don't want to do third party hosting without a hefty fee.

Anyway, on to the check in since it is once again last Sunday of the month and WIPocalypse time. I actually feel like I accomplished quite a lot this month. I managed a finish and work on several projects. First up, I finished LHN's America for my Mom. I stitched on a scrap of some unknown evenweave from my stash with the recommended DMC. I was hoping to get it backed and finished off before the 4th but just haven't had the time or been in the right mood.

 

I was also in the mood to stitch over one so I got some work done on Coppervein too. I'm getting close to a page finish but the light colored confetti on the right side of his wing tip goes on forever.

   

The ornament pile grew a bit too with a few additions to the chalkboard ornament pile. Hoping that by starting early I won't be scrambling in December but I'm sure I'd get sidetracked at some point, seems to happen every year! 

 

And finally a birth announcement start. There's a little one coming in October and he needs some teddy bears so I'm going to give him a Vervaco I've had for awhile. I can't find a name for it but I've got the kit# around here somewhere if someone wants to try to find it. This is my second time stitching it so I converted the leftover kit floss to DMC and bought some ivory 32 count Lugano to stitch this version on.

That's it for my July progress. Planning to continue on with ornaments and the teddy bears in August and hopefully finish the bears and replace them with Teresa Wentzler's You Were Hatched. We've got a trip to Chicago/WI planned in a couple weeks so I'll probably pull out some Mill Hill kits for the car that weekend. I've only got a bin full of them waiting to be stitched so not too many to choose from! With the trip and school and soccer starting up again August is looking like a busy month already. Hope you all are having a good and stitchy Summer too.

June WIPocalypse

Hi there, sorry about last month. Life got kind of crazy for a bit but is hopefully settling down again. We had kind of a blur of First Communion, Celebration, end of school, soccer season, and Mom had knee replacement surgery all combined with extra shifts at work to help cover summer vacations. 

I did make it to Celebration and had a wonderful time. There is definitely no other event quite like this around me. I came home relaxed, with new friends, new stitchy ideas, some new stash, and a definite stitchy bug.  I had a chance to meet such stitching celebrities as Erin of  Fairy Tales and French Knots, Abi of you tube fame and last but certainly not least Measi herself. There were tons of other awesome stitchers too but those are the ones I know of off the top of my head with an online presence. A couple quick pics I took since I'm sure everyone has shared bunches already-

I've got lots of WIP pics since I skipped last month so let's dig right in. I got my birth
announcement framed just in time to start another soon for another cousin due in the fall...

There's Dragon Master, where there still is no dragon or master but I did achieve flame...    

 

Then there's Country Cottage Needlework's Love Birds which I stitched mostly at Celebration
and finished shortly after...

One of my stash acquisitions at Celebration was a fat half of Slate linen from Hand Dyed Fabrics by Stephanie which I'm using part of for the Hands On Design Chalkboard ornaments that came out last year. I'm thinking of adding real jingle bells to a few instead of stitched ones so Be Jolly isn't quite done yet. Here's where I'm at now.

And finally I'm almost finished with Little House Needlework's America, just in time for July 4th though I don't know if I'll have time to get it display-ready this week. 

Lovebirds and America are part of a series of seasonal smalls I'm hoping to finish for my Mom.
My parents just downsized into a condo and she's gotten rid of tons of her old decorations (non-stitched pieces) so I bought her a small easel for her new mantle (which hasn't been installed yet but will be) and have planned a number of pieces to finish flat to display there throughout the year. I've started another CCN piece too but it's in timeout for being off a single stitch that's going to cause me to frog a bunch to fix. I'll show you that one later when I'm not angry at it anymore. 

Finally, my stitching space. It isn't really all that exciting since I have to hide the stitching stuff from my twins until I'm ready to stitch but this is my recliner in the family room with my favorite fleece blanket since our family room is in the basement and it gets cold down there.
I've got a decent floor lamp with a small adjustable light and a side table big enough for coffee and a WIP.

That's all until next month, stay cool and keep stitching! 

February WIPocalypse check-in

February may be the shortest month of the year but it has definitely been a good month for stitching despite some very Spring like weather that has had us spending an unusually large amount of time outside for this time of year. Hoping the stitchy trend continues in March, but for now on to my progress for Measi's WIPocalypse SAL.

First up is a finish- Baby Max had arrived and I have finished his birth announcement and sent it off for framing. The piece is Vervaco's Sleeping Baby and was stitched on 32 count evenweave (Lugana?) from my stash. The chart is from a kit and I have stitched it before so I actually converted the kit floss to DMC and used that. Framing should be done in a week or two, in time for an update pic next check in.

I also made some progress on my HAED challenge. I've been slowed down a bit on Coppervein this month because of a new start but I think I'm still on track to finish my page before the April deadline if I keep at it while the boys are sleeping instead of my new start. Here's where my dragon stands...

And the new start is a magazine piece from the now out of print Cross Stitch & Needlework, January 2009 issue. I can't remember what they called it but it's based on a Jim Shore angel. I'm stitching her on 32 count linen with the recommended DMC. It will have some beading and treasures and I'm thinking of beading the tree garland too. For now, holy quarter stitches! I'm hoping they pay off with some awesome detail when the back stitching is done. I'm trying to use this as my WIP when the boys are up as it is relatively simple but I've been picking it up at night when I should be stitching HAED lately. 

I think I've got my lineup of smallish 2017 projects somewhat set. I'll try and update my WIPocalypse page by next time. My plan is to have 2 main WIPs, a smallish and simpler one for when the boys are awake and playing or watching TV and something a bit more complicated for nap time and after bedtime. I'm planning BAPs off my WIP list for night time and ornaments and smalls for daytime stitching. I've got several smallish gifts I'd like to give this year as well as a pile of ornaments to stitch. The angel I've started is to be for my mother in law's Christmas as she has a Jim Shore collection. 

And before I forget, Measi has a question of us this month- What is your favorite stitch other than the standard cross stitch?  (bonus points if you provide a how-to link or diagram it on your blog post!)

So many good stitches out there but I think I will go with the Rhodes stitch, particularly in the heart form. I had a project that used borders heavy on these a few years before I got into blogging and the online stitching community and they were a lot of fun and added a little 3D to the piece. Here's a how-to link in case you've missed out until now.

And finally, I'm excitedly watching for updates over at the Celebration of Needlework page because I am attending the May conference for the first time. I've been talking about it for a few years and the time is finally right. The boys are old enough to leave with one parent so I'm going to Celebration in May and Erich is going to a gaming tournament in August with some family weekend and day trips in the works instead of a big family vacation this year. So if you too will be at Celebration in May and want to meet up please drop me a comment or email at justanotherflamingo@yahoo.com and we will try to make that happen. 

January WIPocalypse Part 2

It's the last Sunday of the month and that means time to check in for Measi's WIPocalypse SAL. First off, thank you for all the kind words about my projects and helpers too:).

I've managed to make good progress on two projects this month. I'm almost done with the Sleeping Baby birth announcement, just a bit left to go and the personalization but we're still waiting on baby to arrive too so I'm kind of on hold here for at least a few more days. Baby is due Feb. 1 but I'm sure he will arrive just when he is ready.

I also have put in some hours on Coppervein. I usually stitch in columns straight up the design but I wanted to participate in a HAED challenge on the official FB group so I had to find a nearby page with no stitches done. The challenge runs through April 7 and the task is simple- complete 1 page. I think I've got s good start and am on track to complete in plenty of time to make the deadline especially since the birth announcement is nearly done.

I've also been slowly putting together supplies to make a birthday gift for my grandmother. She will be 83 in August and is the reason I started stitching so I'd like to do something special for her. I've
chosen the Spring Box from the Victoria Sampler Beautiful Finishing series. I'm converting the solid silks to DMC and I think I've got the colors as I want them, just need to settle on a fabric. I should add that I am going to get the variegated Gloriana silk, just can't justify subbing such a pretty color that is used so much throughout the designs. Here's what I've gathered so far...

And finally, Measi's question for the month- What SALs are you participating in this year?

This one, of course, and I may pop in and out of the TUSAL over at It's Daffycat if I can remember to check in. With all the little boys in the house it's hard to get regular stitching and blogging time so some months I get bunches done and then some months not so much so it can be hard to keep up and feel like I'm actually contributing to too many groups. Maybe I'll add more in a few years when everyone is a bit more independent. I'm just happy to get a few stitches in occasionally while they're all awake for now.

With any luck I'll have a finished birth announcement and maybe even a finished HAED page to show off next month. I may add in a new small project out of my pile too so I have something simple to work on while the boys are awake. Can't wait to see everyone else's progress, hope it was a very stitchy January!

Happy 2017!

New year, fresh start. Time to empty out the 2016 orts and start over. 2016 wasn't the best year for me but not the absolute worst either. We lost some family members, dealt with some illness (extended family), but also took some fun trips, spent good times with friends and had a little more free time for hobbies. My 2016 ort jar is definitely more full than the last couple despite being shook up and dumped a few times by my favorite helpers. The boys are all a year older and have grown so much since last January.

I'm excited for so many things in 2017- more soccer for Josh, a trip to Celebration of Needlework for me in May, and of course another year of Measi's WIPocalypse SAL. My blogging and stitching has been spotty over the last couple years with babies in the house but I'm hoping to improve on that this year. 

So welcome if this is your first visit and here's a short intro- I'm Sara, wife, Mom of 3 boys, retail pharmacist and stitcher of BAPs (note that does not read finisher!). I love the big pieces but I stitch
plenty of smaller things too. My taste in designers ranges from tiny Mill Hill kits to Teresa Wentzler
and Heaven and Earth designs and lots in between. 

My goal for 2017 is simple- stitch. As I said, I have 3 boys in the house, an 8 year old and twin 2 year olds, so my stitching time has been limited to nap time and after bedtime. The twins will sometimes
allow me to stitch on something simple while they play and watch cartoons lately though I am getting lots of "help" while I do. I guess I will have to organize my stitching by complexity this year- ornaments and small pieces during the day and HAED and other larger pieces at night. As far as specific pieces I don't have a solid list for 2017 but there are 3 main HAED pieces I'd like to make progress on...

Coppervein, my main focus as it is a gift for my brother-

Space Traveler, pretty equally for me and my husband-

Dragon Master, definitely for me-

There are a number of smaller pieces I'd like to work in as well. The only must is the Vervaco birth announcement I'm working on for my cousin who has a baby boy due in February. Here's my current starting spot on that...

The rest of my very fluid list includes but is in no way limited to

-a yet to be determined block from CCN's Frosty Forest set for my Mom

-a Mill Hill Christmas village kit

-maybe some of the chalkboard ornaments from Hands On Designs

-a possible start on Death By Cross Stitch from Long Dog Samplers

-some things I haven't even thought of yet but will see at Celebration

I'm off to a good start at the very least since this should be posted on time (writing on 12/31). I'm also excited to be part of Measi's Facebook group this year. I'm on FB every day anyway so it's a great quick place to check in though I love the idea of keeping the blog for goals and longer check ins. See you all at the end of the month for the first check in! 

December WIPocalypse

So I've been a blog slacker this year and there are lots of reasons- busy with the kids, busy with work, busy with work, busy with family. Both of Erich's remaining grandparents passed away this year and my Mom had a cancer scare (100% removed with surgery and she is fine now).  But 2015 is almost over and I'm hoping to get back to a few things I love in 2016, both stitching and participating in the online stitching community.  I've already got some stitching time back.  My little guys are all in bed by 8:30 or earlier so I've reclaimed the evening as stitching time but for some reason it has been harder to get back into the habit of checking blogs and posting and I miss it so I'm doing something about it.

I guess I made it here at a good time as it happens to be WIPocalypse SAL check in time and time to talk about the year's progress too.

I did have a few finishes this year. I finished a couple ornaments for the boys from 2014 (don't ask about ornamentifying, it didn't happen)...

And I stitched Vervaco's Sleeping Baby not once but twice for two new babies in the family...

My final finish for 2015 is Bluebird Cabin by Country Cottage Needleworks as a Christmas gift for my Mom.

I also made some progress on a couple WIPs like Space Traveler...

And Fish City...

Even started a few 2015 ornaments for the boys but ran out of stitching time before Christmas. This is  Magical Santas and they have appeared in both Cross Stitch & Needlework magazine and one of the Better Homes and Gardens Christmas books. They're much brighter in person than the finished pics with the chart would lead you to believe but I like them, they're very fitting for my boys. 

That's about it for my 2015 stitching. I'm working on Space Traveler at the moment and trying to make some 2016 plans. I was lucky enough to get plenty of stitchy things for Christmas including a chart and some supplies for a photo of my boys that my cousin had converted to cross stitch for me so there are plenty of new starts and WIPs to choose from!