"What was the first project you ever stitched? (whether you finished or not)" My answer depends on what kind of stitching you mean! I was in graduate school at University of Florida and was into crewel embroidery at the time. I don't know how I got started on this and I can't remember my first stitched crewel. Meanwhile, a friend had purchased a kit for an eyeglass case with purple pansies in the design to make as a gift for her mother but decided it was too much for her and could I do it? I taught myself to needlepoint with that kit. No idea whether or not it was ever given to her mother! I switched to needlepoint after that and never went back to crewel until we were in San Francisco, nearly a decade later, when I was traveling by air a lot for work and my needlepoint and crewel projects were too fiddly/bulky to do on the plane so I went to the little card shop on the ground floor of our office where they had little "card kit" size cross stitch kits. I purchased one of a cable car and stitch it on the plane to Atlanta. No idea where this one is, but this one converted me from needlepoint to cross stitch. Needless to say, no photos of any of these pieces! ~~~~~WIPS~~~~~ I haven't stitched at all on Elizabeth Almond's "Save the Stitches" since November, 2020. I have made progress on the Glendon Place sampler "Hope & Strength". I have been fitting this into the down times of the SALs I have committed to and so I usually only get in about three days in the month for this piece. I really am enjoying stitching with the silks, however.  ~~~~~SALs~~~~~ Besides this WIPocalypse, I have two (mystery) SALs in progress: 1. The Faithwurks/Just Cross Stitch Christmas Quaker, which now has three parts complete. Ne fort installment is due out in the next issue of Just Cross Stitch. 2. The Stitchonomy 2021 Sal series, part one of which is "Homely Houseplants II", a partner to the "Homely Houseplants" sampler completed in 2020. First installment was April 16 although I signed up for early access (April 9th). It is now complete:  Below is Homely Houseplants V2 next to the Homely Houseplants V1 from last year. I'm thinking that, in order to make the two a true pair (despite the fact that the fabric color isn't the same, is to re-backstitch the yellow pots to match.  ~~~~~Travelling Needlepoint~~~~~ Not having travelled since the pandemic, I have not been motivated to stitch on "Butterfly on Scroll" since February 2020. No progress to report. However, there will be a road trip to Illinois in July, pandemic willing, and I may get in a few stitches in while my husband is doing his daily "thing"! ~~~~~~ In the Pipeline ~~~~~ While my stitching mojo seems a little low, my interest in new charts is not. In addition to the two Elizabeth Almond blackwork pieces in the February ("Frosted Windows") and April ("Spring Celebration") issues of Just Cross Stitch, the latest Linen and Things annual SAL, and the LongDog monster "Pandemic" which I have more-or-less kitted up, I ordered the kits for two Lakeside Needlecraft SALs ("Time to Stitch", 11 of 12 installments are released, and "Steampunk Musical Instruments (three installments so far) and a kit for a sampler called "American Houses" from the German company Werkstatt für Historische Stickmuster (I just need to translate all he instructions!), all of which are now i hand. Also on order are two London Abstracts charts by Artecy from Lakeside Needlecraft in england and two Bothy Threads kits (Love Paris and Love London) from Stoney Creek.com. I just can't stop ordering! AAARGH! Meanwhile, if you are vaccinated, congratulations and enjoy the "new normal". If not, stay safe and healthy out there... |
