August WIPocalypse and SAL updates

It's a full moon and time for the WIPocalypse update!  The topic this time is: "Tell us about your oldest and newest WIPs."

My newest WIP is Wedding Tango, a Riolis kit, which will be a gift for my daughter's friend's wedding in September.  I've known her at least 10 years.  The color of the shoes and bouquet will be changed to match the bride's colors.  I'm also stitching it on 28 ct white linen instead of the 14 ct white Aida in the kit, and I will add their names and date at the bottom.

Wedding Tango

Wedding Tango

Since I recently finished my oldest WIP (Stained Glass Nativity, started in 1980), my oldest WIP now is Universal Unity by Dimensions Gold Collection.  I started this one in 1998 and was making great progress on it for a few months, then it got put away and never touched again until 2012.  Now I have cross stitch friends all over the internet encouraging me to keep stitching until this one is finished!  I post an update on this one in the YOTA SAL on the first Saturday each month.  Here is the pic from the last post, when I started stitching the zebra stripes.

Universal Unity update #19

Since the last WIPocalypse update, I have had 3 more finishes, but the list of WIPs on my WIPocalypse page is still at 90.  I finished Stained Glass Nativity, Mary Mouse, and Boo!

On my Saturday SAL with Linda and Kaye, I stitched 5 rows of the basket on Fall Welcome.

Fall Welcome update #13

On my Sunday SAL with Linda and Kaye, I finished the 6th day of Santa's 12 Days of Christmas!  Now the whole project is officially halfway done!  We have more members in our Prairie Schooler Santa's 12 Days of Christmas Sunday SAL Facebook group, too!

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 6) FINISHED!

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Days 1-6)

"Santa's 12 Days of Christmas" (Day 6)
Book No. 126
Designed by Pamela Byrd Smith
The Prairie Schooler
28 ct mushroom evenweave
Started 5/4/2014, Finished 8/11/2014

In the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL, I reached the bottom left corner of Cut Thru' North Pole House and stitched some water.  I'm looking forward to using the variegated floss in the water, which is the same color floss that I used for the water in Cut Thru' Igloo.

Cut Thru' North Pole House udpate #12

Be sure to check Measi's blog for a list of other bloggers with WIPocalypse updates this month!

June WIPocalypse and a finish!

Happy Friday the 13th and it's a Full Moon so time for the WIPocalypse update!  The topic this time is:  "Have you ever been to a stitch gathering such as a retreat or a festival?"  No, I haven't but I would love to go!  Our Southern California Cross Stitchers Yahoo group is trying to plan one, but in the meantime, we are happy to meet at the food court in the mall or outside on the patio or at a restaurant or a member's house to sit and stitch together about once a month!

Since the last WIPocalypse update, I have had three more finishes, but two of them were new starts, so my WIPocalypse page is slowly shrinking down to only 93 WIPs now.  I finished Frank-N-Stein, Peter Polar Bear, and The Sorcerer!

The Sorcerer - FINISHED!

"The Sorcerer"
Dimensions #6689
14 ct Ivory Aida
Started 1/13/2011, Finished 6/12/2014

My plan is to get him framed together with The Sorceress before July!

The Sorceress update #1

I've also stitched more background on Alice from Resident Evil and hope to finish her by July, too!

Alice from Resident Evil update #6

I only work on this one during our stitching GTG (get-togethers).  I did the acorn tops on Very Scary Mystery Sampler, almost done with part 1.

Very Scary update #12

On Cut Thru' North Pole House, I stitched the mailbox and pole down to the water.

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #11

For my Sunday SAL with Linda and Kaye, I started stitching Santa's red sleeve and the green branches on Santa's 12 Days of Christmas by The Prairie Schooler.

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 6) update #3

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 6) update #3

Be sure to check Measi's blog for a list of other bloggers with WIPocalypse updates this month!

May WIPocalypse and SAL updates

The full moon was last week and the WIPocalypse topic this time is:  "What designs or themes do you really wish you could find?  What do you think is missing among stitching designs?"  I think it would be great if there were more designs based on movies, TV shows, actors, actresses, singers and bands; not just a computer generated chart that's a copy of a photo, but an actual design!

Be sure to see the list of other bloggers with WIPocalypse updates this month on Measi's blog, too!

Since the last WIPocalypse update, I have had three more finishes, but two of them were new starts so my WIPocalypse page isn't getting smaller yet.  I finished Happy Easter, "O" is for Owl, and Winter Witch, which were all small designs.

I started the 6th day of Santa's 12 Days of Christmas by stitching a goose!

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 6) update #1

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 6) update #1

The scarecrow girl on Fall Welcome has a face now!  I really enjoy backstitching!

Fall Welcome update #11

Fall Welcome update #11

I started stitching the red and white pole and mailbox on the Cut Thru' North Pole House.  I want to get to the bottom of the design so I can start stitching the pretty water!

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #10

Since the last WIPocalypse update, I finished Alice's jacket, her hair, and started stitching the background on Alice from Resident Evil.

Alice from Resident Evil update #5

I also made some progress on the Very Scary Mystery Sampler by stitching the green vines and the blue row on the bottom.  After the acorns and rest of the border are stitched, part 1 will be finished!

Very Scary update #11

I'm really looking forward to a stay-cation next week so I can stay home and stitch! I'm not going to tell my friends and family that I'm on vacation, either!  HA!

SAL updates and videos!

I've been so behind in my SALs with Linda and Kaye but I'll really try to keep up now! My Saturday SAL is Fall Welcome.  I finished her sunflower hat and her face will be next!

Fall Welcome update #10

Fall Welcome update #10

My Sunday SAL is Santa's 12 Days of Christmas by The Prairie Schooler.  I started the 6th day by backstitching the border.

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 6)

My Monday SAL is the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL with almost 50 other stitchers!  There are so many different Cut Thru' designs to choose from!  I stitched a blue blob on North Pole House.

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #9

I'm in several Facebook groups about cross stitching, and in one of the groups, we posted videos of our WIPs or stash to show each other.  I made these 2 videos of some of my WIPs.  Teddy started barking so I stopped the video and then made a part 2 instead of starting all over again.

"I like to bark during videos."

WIPs video #1

WIPs video #2

Great news about Teddy!  He started taking hypothyroidism medication and his weight has gone down from 132 pounds to 120 pounds!  

Three SAL updates

My Saturday SAL is Fall Welcome with Linda and Kaye.  I stitched part of the scarecrow girl's dress and the word FALL.

Fall Welcome update #7

My Sunday SAL is Santa's 12 Days of Christmas with Linda and Kaye. I stitched more red on Santa's coat.  I'm going to need to buy another skein or two of red DMC 321 to finish this!

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 5) update #4

My Monday SAL is Bothy Threads Cut Thru' North Pole House.  I stitched the wall and part of the red shutter and pole outside.  I used sparkly blending filament with the white for the snow!

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #8

There are 40 other stitchers in the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' SAL now.  You can join any time!

February WIPocalypse update and a finish!

There's a full moon, so it's time for a WIPocalypse update! This month's topic is "How many projects do you generally feel comfortable having in progress at a time?  Tell us about your one-at-a-time or rotation habits!"

I stitch on about 20 different WIPs each month (except for last month, when it was 62; 31 new starts and 31 WIPs).  I'm in 3 SALs (stitch-a-longs) where I stitch a certain project on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.  I also chose 10 WIPs for the Turtle Trot SAL and post before & after progress pics once a month.  The YOTA SAL also has a before & after photo once a month.  I'm in the Smalls SAL and Hallowe'en Ornie SAL and try to finish one a month for each of those.  When I meet with the Southern California Cross Stitchers Yahoo group once a month, I usually stitch on 2 Lizzie*Kate designs.  I might stitch on a few more from my WIPocalypse list to fit the theme for the Theme-a-licious SAL each month.  I'm also in several cross stitch groups on Facebook that have different challenges each week!

I like to stitch a few hours every night while I'm watching TV, even though I would get more done if the TV was off!

You can see current photos of all of my WIPs on my WIPocalypse page.  My goal this year is to move half of them to the Finishes 2014 page instead!

My Sunday SAL with Linda and Kaye is Santa's 12 Days of Christmas by The Prairie Schooler.  I stitched the 5 golden rings.

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 5) update #2

My Saturday SAL with Linda and Kaye is Fall Welcome by Diane Arthurs.  I stitched the bottom of the scarecrow girl's skirt.

Fall Welcome update #6

My Monday SAL is Cut Thru' North Pole House by Bothy Threads.  There are almost 40 stitchers working on different Cut Thru' designs.  See all their progress photos on the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL page.  I finished the yellow wall and did all the backstitching on the presents.

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #7

I finished Mary's Sampler II, the free Mystery SAL from Plum Street Samplers.  Part 9 was words, border, and another crown.

Mary's Sampler II - FINISHED!

"Mary's Sampler II"
Designed by Paulette Stewart
Plum Street Samplers
18 ct Fiddler's cloth
Started 9/30/2013, Finished 2/14/2014

Check in on Measi's Musings blog with a link to your February WIPocalypse blog post, too!

More framing finishes!

I found these frames at thrift stores and my framing friend stretched and mounted my finished cross stitch pieces for me.  They didn't need mats.  Jolly Jack fit perfectly into this black wood 6x6 frame.

Jolly Jack - framed!

Cut Thru' Igloo also fit perfectly into this metallic green 9-1/2" square frame.  I love how she centered it so precisely.  I even counted the holes in the Aida and it's exactly the same on both sides! :-)

Cut Thru' Igloo - framed!

I also asked her to fix BBQ Queen.  I framed this one myself with a piece of sticky board but it bugged me every time I looked at it since it wasn't centered.  She took it apart and mounted it with pins and now it looks perfect!

BBQ Queen - framed!

Nancy at Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe is having an 11th day of Christmas giveaway of fabric, the winner's choice of 32 ct Belgian linen that she dyes herself or 18 ct Aida in different colors.  Drawing on December 23.  Enter HERE and tell Nancy that I sent you!

Her 12th day of Christmas giveaway is a $50 gift certificate for her eBay store!  The lucky winner will be drawn on December 24.  Enter HERE and tell Nancy that I sent you!

December TUSAL and more stitching!

For the Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long (TUSAL), we show a picture of our ORT jar each month.  My cat Blueberrie is posing with the jar this time!  He is 10 years old and my coworker bottle-fed the whole litter.  I took him as soon as he could eat cat food.  He's the boss of all the other cats and dogs in the house.

TUSAL 2013 #12

I stitched more border on Quoth the Raven, which will be a gift for my nephew.  I also bought him a nice Edgar Allan Poe book to go with it!

Quoth the Raven update #5

For the Monday SAL, I stitched more presents and yellow wall in the gift wrapping room on Cut Thru' North Pole House.

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #6

Nancy of Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe is having her 3rd Day of Christmas giveaway!  She will give 10 skeins of her 20-yard over-dyed floss to a few winners on December 16.  Enter HERE and tell Nancy that I sent you!

Christmas stitching!

I backstitched Santa's elf in the gift wrapping room in the Cut Thru' North Pole House. Isn't he a cutie?  Linda, Justine, and Eva are way ahead of me on this one.  Check out their progress on the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL page!

North Pole House update #5

I'm almost caught up with Mary's Sampler II, the free Mystery SAL from Plum Street Samplers.  For part 7, I added 7 stars, the heart, flower, and leaves.  Part 8 will be quick, just two crowns and a cross.  This Sunday will be the 9th and final part!

Mary's Sampler II (part 7)

Happy Holiday Stitching, everyone!

November WIPocalypse update

Another full moon and time for another WIPocalypse update!  Check in on Measi's blog with your November update, too!

I won't have this one ready to hang up for Autumn this year, but definitely next!  This is Fall Welcome, a Saturday SAL with Linda and Kaye.  I stitched the post of the scarecrow, the stems of the pumpkins, and most of the squash.  I am using 14 ct Aida Lambswool and it will be about 4" x 15" when it's finished.

Fall Welcome update #3

Here's another one that I haven't touched in a few months.  This is Santa's 12 Days of Christmas by The Prairie Schooler, a Sunday SAL with Linda and Kaye.  I started Day 5 with the backstitched border and part of Santa's hat.  I should have this done by Christmas 2014.  I'm stitching them all together on one piece of 28 ct Mushroom evenweave and the finished size will be about 12" x 22".

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 5)

I finished parts 5 and 6 of Mary's Sampler II, a free Mystery SAL from Plum Street Samplers.  I added 6 more stars and 2 angels for part 5.

Mary's Sampler II (part 5)

Then a shepherd and another star for part 6.

Mary's Sampler II (part 6)

I was missing DMC 611, the color for the shepherd, so I went to my brand new JoAnn's which is only a mile from my front door, and bought just ONE skein!  It was on sale for 35 cents so I couldn't use a coupon.  Next time I'm sure I'll have a bigger purchase.  LOL!

Another Christmas design is Santa Hang-Up, which Linda already finished.  I stitched a lot of white for his beard, trying to get up to his face!  This is stitched over 2 on 20 ct sparkly Valerie fabric and the finished size will be 5" x 12".

Santa Hang-Up update #6

I stitched more yellow walls on Cut Thru' North Pole House.  I'm going to backstitch the elf next, so we can see him more clearly.  Check out all the great Cut Thru' designs everyone is stitching on the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL page.  I just bought another Cut Thru' kit from the UK for the Vintage Car!

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #4

I had already finished the Cut Thru' Igloo, but it didn't have the stars yet.  Now I've added the 12 sequin stars.  I found a frame for it at a thrift store and will get it framed soon.

Cut Thru' Igloo - FINISHED!

Thank you so much to Ingrid of Mii Stitch blog!  I was a winner in her giveaway of this great chart. It flew very quickly from the UK to my California doorstep in only a week!