End of Year Wrap-Up ... and Plans for 2013

I'm not happy with my completion rate in 2012. I had several, but all but 6 were small needlepoint stitch exercise pieces (I was working several Janet Perry exercises:  learn-a-stitch stockings, the Bargello Club,  the Stash Busting Club, Mini-Socks & Mittens, and Color Through the Ages) as well as three sets of Christmas ornaments.. I did complete the 2012 Bead Journal Project (although each piece needs to be "finished" into a wall hanging), the 2012 Color Palette Challenge and the 2012 Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2013, all of which were combined into 12 individual crazy quilt blocks, and I also attempted the Take a Stitch Tuesday 2012 Challenge as well (51 weeks of freehand embroidery stitch, exercises, many of which had me totally defeated!).  I finish-finished several projects in the beginning of the year as well!  My 6 entries in the county fair won 4 blue ribbons, 1 red and 1 white (and I sold one of the blue-ribbon winners!)!  

As for accountability, I participated in the WIPocalypse 2012 Project and the International Hermit & Stitch Weekends, both of which required regular accounting for my works-in-progress! 

 I am still a full-fledged, non-quilting member of the local quilt guild (and their webmaster as well!); maybe one day I will actually quilt something! And I'm the "detail angel" for the 2013 Bead Journal Project blog! So I guess I didn't do so badly after all.

I end the year with no real WIPs, which is a first for me! But… I started a new piece on December 30: an Elizabeth Almond blackwork design called "Red Thai Mandala":

I STILL  have the same four UFOs in the cupboard that I had at the beginning of the year: 

• "Angel of Love" - started before we moved to England in 1992!
• "Celestial Angel"  - started before we moved to England in 1992!
• "Map of England and Wales" - started in Saudi
• "Nature's Song" (excerpted from a larger chart) - started in Saudi

to say nothing of that ancient crewel-work pillow (I'm sure the moths have  done in the wool by now), all the top work on six or seven needlepoint pieces that all predate 1992, and a slew of piece-worked tops from quilting classes in Saudi...  And then there is my Round Robin piece from 2006 --- I still need to finish that off. 

Three BJP years, all those Janet Perry needlepoint exercises, and a slowly growing stack of "finished" cross stitch and needlepoint BAPS need framing or assembly into wall hangings or cushions or books or… : finish-finishing is my weak point, as you can see...

So 2013: 

I have re-upped with the Bead Journal Project 2013; signed up for challenges at Take a Stitch Tuesday 2013, the Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2013, and the 2013 WIPocalypse; as well as signed up for two short online courses: Sharon B's "Encrusted Crazy Quilting Class 2013" and "Sumptuous Surfaces Embroidery Class" as well as paid for three classes on Craftsy: A block-of-the-month class with Amy GIbson, "Free-Motion Quilting a Sampler" with Leah Day, and "Sumptious Stitching" with Carol Ann Waugh (these latter, once paid for, remain available for eternity which doesn't put a lot of deadline pressure on me…). There are the ongoing exercise pieces in Janet Perry's "Mittens & Mini-Socks" and "Color Through the Ages" classes as well.

In addition to my regular weekly progress reports, there will be specific WIPocalypse postings on the full moon of every month and special postings for TAST 2013 (Tuesdays), CQJP 2013 (monthly), and BJP 2013 (monthly). Blogging will be keeping me as busy as stitching, I fear!

This sure doesn't leave me a lot of room for starting anything "new", and that could become a problem because I've been feeling a case of start-itis coming on forever a year now...