2013 - Reconnect to My Stitchery, Week Thirty

Saturday, I took my fair entries to the check-in booth, and they were either judged yesterday or will be today. SO I will be able to find out tomorrow, on the fair's official opening day, what, if anything, I won. 

Otherwise, the only stitching I did this week was a little beading on my June BJP butterfly. 

What is more, I fear I don't have enough of the silvery grey to finish it. Plan B? I may have to order some online as the local shops have a very slight supply of Mill Hill... Clearly, I will NOT be caught up with BJP this month...

Take a Stitch Tuesday 2013 - Stitch #74

This week's stitch was the Zig-Zag Chain - a fairly easy stitch which will come in handy the next tine I want to couch rick rack! I like this one! Here it is --- the start of the next "page" in my TAST sample book:

Wipocalypse, July 22, 2013.

This month's themes are : Designer – Glendon Place, Style – Animals, Colors – Red and Yellow.

Well, I have stitched two Glendon Place designs, but none of their designs are in my WIP bad. Similarly, no animals, unless you count the itty bitty blackwork insects on "Midnight Garden". As for Red, well there was the July Crazy Quilt Journal Project block  --- it was ALL red, with a touch of white.  But nothing yellow...

What I have stitched on since last WIPocalypse check in is as follows:

Completions: 

• Take a Stitch Tuesday stitches: Wrapped Coral Stitch and the Portuguese Stem Stitch
• A "Pink" crazy patch block for submittal to the fair in a special "Pink" category
• That July Crazy Quilt Journal Challenge Project block

Still in progress:

• "Midnight Garden"
• My June butterfly for the Bead Journal Project

I'm sad to see how little I've accomplished this month. My stitching mojo seems to have gone on holiday while I'm stuck here in this heat...

International Hermit and Stitch Weekend, July 19 - 21, 3103

I hate to admit it but most of this weekend was taken up watching the entire series 1 of "Endeavour". As my husband said, it's addictive! And I LOVE that theme music. 

2013 - Reconnect to My Stitchery, Week Twenty-Nine

Only a couple of nights beading on the June butterfly this past week --- and not a lot to show for it:

Spent my free time watching the entire series 1 of "Endeavour" from start to finish... and am chuffed that there will be a series 2! But it sure plays havoc with my stitching time!

2013 - Reconnect to My Stitchery, Week Twenty-Eight

Progress is slow this week. I did get the weekly TAST finished and the July CQJP block as well... but ontherwise, only a few beads were stitched on the June BJP butterfly:

Coming up in the near future is submittal to the fair (July 27,) Quilt Day at the fair (I volunteered to help set up, on August 1), that "Messy Beading" mini-class in August sometime, and another quilt guild work day September 14. Also, at quilt guild Thursday night, I picked up the charm square that needs to be part of the challenge block for retreat (that's October 11-12-13) and I sat down over the weekend and pulled fabrics to create a suitably "blinged-up" block for submittal (the retreat theme is "Bling it On"). Today, I placed an order for some bling to add to it as well. I also placed an order for a full yard of hadn-dyed fabric (it WAS pricey) to stitch the "Roll Your Own" InkCircle mandalas on, as well as the thread I was missing for the color way I chose (would you believe more blues and greens on a blue/green/purple fabric called Iris Garden which I have used before, for the Sumptuous Embroidery class; Tropical Ocean is the color palette I chose to work with! I must really like that color combination, after all last year on "Birds of a Feather" and "Kimono - Revisited"!!!).

Quilt guild also issued another block challenge for January 2014 --- and handed out the instructions. I think I might just tackle that, using fabric and the like from my stash, although who knows, I may fade when that deadline rolls around. After all, it requires applique...

Otherwise, this week, "Midnight Garden" never got out of it's project bag and the 2102 color palette/crazy quilt journal/bead journal project wall hanging is gathering dust as well. Thank goodness, there is no TAST this week and I have all the crazy quilt blocks for the rest of this year's CQJP pre-assembled and planned out. Otherwise, I'd despair of ever catching up!

Take a Stitch Tuesday 2013- Stitch #73

Here is a close-up of TAST 2013 Stitch 73, the Portuguese Stem Stitch:

and here is page 3 of TAST 2013, which includes, in no particular order,  Buttonhole Bar, Coral, Fancy Hem, Slipped Detached Chain, Buttonholed Double Chain, Crested Chain, Bullion Buttonhole, Wrapped Coral   and Portuguese Stem Stitches:

Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2013 - July Block

Got the July block finished on Monday - yet another monochromatic red block!

2013 - Reconnect to My Stitchery, Week Twenty-Seven

Gosh, am I ever sick of rain! 14 out of the last 16 days its rained at east a little, leading us to the 8th wettest June in local history (but July is still behind on water, possibly because the airport met station is in one of those "scattered shower" dry spots --- it sure feels wet enough here!). You'd think that would lead to more stitching on my part but mainly, it's insomnia coupled with the inability to keep awake during the daylight hours. So I have little progress to report on this week.

Oh well, here is "Midnight Garden" as it was on Friday:

And I did get BJP two butterflies kitted out - the late June one in purple:

and July's in red and white stars:

The July Crazy Quilt Journal Project block is underway --- with stitchery and beading started simultaneously:

I started kitting out the Roll Your Own Mandala charts, only to find that I didn't have a piece of fabric large enough to do them all on one piece and I need a lot more fabric if I want to do all seven of them individually but have them match. Also, I don't have enough thread to do seven right now (man, they call for a lot of DMC!). SO I have my shopping list made out and will visit the local Hobby Lobby to see if I can satisfy thread and fabric requirements. Otherwise, it's online to order something VERY pricey...

Husband insisted on getting two of my framed pieces tweaked (both had some lint caught on the sittches!) so that was done Friday and now I have to get around to filling out the application form for the fair and get it in before the deadline Saturday.

Take a Stitch Tuesday 2013- Stitch #72

The wrapped coral stitch was this week's TAST:

2013 - Reconnect to My Stitchery, Week Twenty-Six

I don't know where this week went! I KNOW I stitched but I don't have a lot to show for it. I seem to have gotten sidetracked into reading and sleeping late (because I can't get to sleep until late.) Oh, and the local HOA Girls' Night Out on Thursday didn't free up much stitching time either...

Oh well, I did get in one completion --- the "pink" quilt block for the special "Pink" category for the fair:

It's not as encrusted as I would have liked but I was stumped as to what to put on it. I have some pink (and green) buttons and beads but they looked too heavy for what I was aiming for so I left it rather simple. What I get for using such a bold print, I guess... it sort of set the scene and I couldn't match it with buttons or beads. Hope it qualifies...

I also got back to stitching on "Midnight Garden":

Borders are set and I'm starting on the backstitching and blackwork in the inner borders now, with the parts that are in black... Doesn't loom like much but it's like confetti stitching in those inner borders. I'm hoping to get started on the blue this week.

I'm so far behind on other pieces, though. The basic block for the Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2013 is made up but now it needs embellishment.  I have yet to kit out a June butterfly for Bead Journal Project and it's already July (which means two in one month! AAARGH!). The sashing hasn't been touched on my 2012 color palatte/CQJ/BJP wall hanging. I have two "Roll Your Own" mandalas to select a color scheme for and kit out, to say nothing of the Sharon B weekly TAST (which starts up again this week after a week's hiatus) and background stitch guide. Oh yes, and in one month, there will be the "Messy Beading" Purple Daisy for L. Perin coming! I really need to get my stitching mojo back!