And of course, I'm a day late!
Not that I have much to report on... this was another month without stitching, And it didn't help that my Husband had cervial surgery this past week, followed by an ER visit for a serum and subsequent three day hospital stay. He's home now, but my "free time" is pretty much broken up with medication distribution, meal prep, etc. At least he's more or less mobile now, although not for extended periods of time.
Question of the Month – How did you begin stitching?
I truly do not remember what came first. I learned to knit in college (1958-9 or so) --- a roommate and I were taught by her friend. But knitting didn't last long.
We moved to Florida in 1967 for our PhD studies. I think my next attempt at needlework of any kind was needlepoint. A friend had purchase an eyeglass kit for a gift for her mother but didn't have time to finish it, and she asked me to attempt it. I taught myself and, not long after, someone taught a week-long needlepoint class at the university and I took it. Was a needlepoint (tent stitch) from then on, until...
We moved to California in 1972, bought our first television set and, at that time, on PBS, Erica Wilson taught a crewel embroidery class. I bought the class books and followed along and added crewel to my repertoire.
I was working at the time, and traveling quit a bit and neither needlepoint nor crewel were well adapted for stitching on an airplane so I bought a little card-sized kit from the Hallmark store near our office to stitch on the plane. It was a San Francisco Cable Car and I have no idea what happened to it but that was my first cross-stitch... self-taught from the little "instructions sheet" in the kit but it really wasn't a major step from needlepoint tent-stitch to cross-stitch. And at this time, I added some specialty crewel stitches to my needlepoint as well.
Blackwork was a natural follow-on, with my first pieces being two small kits I bought in Wales when we lived in London (1992-96)...
Back in the US (2003), I started taking online classes and developed my needlepoint a little, using specialty stitches and finer meshes. And I took up knitting again, sporadically and only flat rectangular things like scarves and afghans...
And there you have my stitching history.
Now, as for my stitching, I do have the right size stretchers now and am working on hand strength so I can hold a frame to stitch. Maybe this next month?
Monday, October 30, 2017
Sunday, September 24, 2017
WIPocalypse check-in - September, 24 2017
This month's question is Which floss (or color of floss) do you absolutely adore and want to stash constantly?
I'm not sure how to answer this one as I don't really stash floss for color reasons. I BUY floss for color reasons --- that is, I NEED that color for a project and it isn't in my stash.
OK, I said I had a stash of floss and that is true but it does come back to my reason for buying. I do have a habit of wanting EVERY color in a floss type (e.g Anchor, Gentle Arts, Dinkie Dyes, etc.) but have failed miserably on that EXCEPT for DMC, where I am pretty close to having every color in most every floss type (cotton, linen, rayon, metallic, etc.) - I bought a complete range (from Herrschners) back when we lived in China (the 1990s), mainly because there was no place one could buy embroidery floss there (odd given the tradition of embroidery there but it appears not to be a hobby so there are no craft stores, needlework shops, etc --- or at least there weren't when we lived there), and I have added to it (and replenished it when needed) ever since. I do have a potential "surplus" of black (310) because it is the most often used for backstitch, and it is ALWAYS used for Blackwork and I was, at one time, doing two or three blackwork projects at a time!
Now, as for a color I absolutely adore... I never actually think of that in terms of floss. My favorite color is orange but I don't think I have associated that with stitchery in any way.
So, I guess my true answer to this question is there is no color that I absolutely adore and was to stash constantly!
And while I did find a source for the stretcher frames I need for three needlepoint kits I bought last October (would you believe, Hobby Lobby is no longer selling them?), I have yet to get out my needle and fabric and floss and start those new kits, or work on my WIPs... Lack of motivation (and possibly inertia) is the main problem here...
I'm not sure how to answer this one as I don't really stash floss for color reasons. I BUY floss for color reasons --- that is, I NEED that color for a project and it isn't in my stash.
OK, I said I had a stash of floss and that is true but it does come back to my reason for buying. I do have a habit of wanting EVERY color in a floss type (e.g Anchor, Gentle Arts, Dinkie Dyes, etc.) but have failed miserably on that EXCEPT for DMC, where I am pretty close to having every color in most every floss type (cotton, linen, rayon, metallic, etc.) - I bought a complete range (from Herrschners) back when we lived in China (the 1990s), mainly because there was no place one could buy embroidery floss there (odd given the tradition of embroidery there but it appears not to be a hobby so there are no craft stores, needlework shops, etc --- or at least there weren't when we lived there), and I have added to it (and replenished it when needed) ever since. I do have a potential "surplus" of black (310) because it is the most often used for backstitch, and it is ALWAYS used for Blackwork and I was, at one time, doing two or three blackwork projects at a time!
Now, as for a color I absolutely adore... I never actually think of that in terms of floss. My favorite color is orange but I don't think I have associated that with stitchery in any way.
So, I guess my true answer to this question is there is no color that I absolutely adore and was to stash constantly!
And while I did find a source for the stretcher frames I need for three needlepoint kits I bought last October (would you believe, Hobby Lobby is no longer selling them?), I have yet to get out my needle and fabric and floss and start those new kits, or work on my WIPs... Lack of motivation (and possibly inertia) is the main problem here...
Monday, August 28, 2017
WIPocalypse 2017 - August Check-in
This month's question is "How do you get yourself out of a stitching drought?" and I really wish I had an answer!
I have been in a stitching drought since October 2016 --- initially becsaue of a broken wrist (that was roughly 4 months stitchery-free during healing and therapy) and then because my hand wasn't strong enough to hold my Q-snaps for any extended period of time without cramping or shaking. I think I am better now but... getting the motivation to pick up those two WIPS/wannabee UFOs is really, really hard. The "Love Is..." sampler is simply way to late for my niece's first anniversary and I don't like it enough to keep for myself. The Elizabeth Arnold blackwork sampler is way to big to attempt right now: even with my wrist totally healed, I hesitate to try blackwork on such a large handheld piece. I am tempted by three small needlepoint canvases I purchased a year or two ago but it is a matter of actually picking them up and starting one of them, know what I mean?
Anyway, I think you can guess from the above paragraph that I didn't stitch at all again this month. Sorry...
I have been in a stitching drought since October 2016 --- initially becsaue of a broken wrist (that was roughly 4 months stitchery-free during healing and therapy) and then because my hand wasn't strong enough to hold my Q-snaps for any extended period of time without cramping or shaking. I think I am better now but... getting the motivation to pick up those two WIPS/wannabee UFOs is really, really hard. The "Love Is..." sampler is simply way to late for my niece's first anniversary and I don't like it enough to keep for myself. The Elizabeth Arnold blackwork sampler is way to big to attempt right now: even with my wrist totally healed, I hesitate to try blackwork on such a large handheld piece. I am tempted by three small needlepoint canvases I purchased a year or two ago but it is a matter of actually picking them up and starting one of them, know what I mean?
Anyway, I think you can guess from the above paragraph that I didn't stitch at all again this month. Sorry...
WIPocalypse 2017 - July check-in
It's that time again, and I still haven't a thing to report on the stitchery front. My wrist is better but the hand cramps if I try to hold on to my Snaps for any length of time. Still I will preservere!
This month's discussion topic is: "What are your oldest and your newest WIPs?"
Well the answer to that all depends on what you call a WIP! I'm going to arbitrarily define WIPs as what I was working on when I had to stop stitching and here are the photos:
Oldest: Plan Tree Elegance, my needlepoint traveling project which was started on a cruise (I think in the fall of 2011 but I'm not really sure). My earliest photo online is July 2014 and the last stitches were taken on a road trip in July, 2016.
My most recent WIP was started in October, 2016, intended as a first anniversary gift for my niece but, broken wrist got in the way and it was last reported on in February, 2017.
As to whether these will maintain their status as WIPS or revert to UFOs, that is anyone's guess.
This month's discussion topic is: "What are your oldest and your newest WIPs?"
Well the answer to that all depends on what you call a WIP! I'm going to arbitrarily define WIPs as what I was working on when I had to stop stitching and here are the photos:
Oldest: Plan Tree Elegance, my needlepoint traveling project which was started on a cruise (I think in the fall of 2011 but I'm not really sure). My earliest photo online is July 2014 and the last stitches were taken on a road trip in July, 2016.
My most recent WIP was started in October, 2016, intended as a first anniversary gift for my niece but, broken wrist got in the way and it was last reported on in February, 2017.
As to whether these will maintain their status as WIPS or revert to UFOs, that is anyone's guess.
Monday, July 3, 2017
WIPocalypse 2017 - June Check-In
A little late here --- we were working the admissions table at Crosby Festival of the Arts yesterday and were exhausted after our four-hour shift!
This month's question is "Show us your stitching space! Where do you sit, and what is going on around you while you stitch (TV, audiobooks, etc)?"
My stitching space is my bed, I'm embarrassed to admit. I have my basic supplies in two storage cupboards in my crafting area (these photos are four years old and they are a lot more messy now):
This month's question is "Show us your stitching space! Where do you sit, and what is going on around you while you stitch (TV, audiobooks, etc)?"
My stitching space is my bed, I'm embarrassed to admit. I have my basic supplies in two storage cupboards in my crafting area (these photos are four years old and they are a lot more messy now):
But when I am working on a project, I take project bags with all supplies up to my bedroom (you see my project bag on the floor there next to my dresser in the photo on the left), move my Ott light over to the bedside and sit there while I stitch:
I wing the magnifier are of the lamp around so it is between me face and the fabric in my q-snaps or hoop and focus the light on the fabric. And I stitch...and rip... and swear sometimes!
As for what is going on around me when I stitch... at the foot of the bed is my television with the satellite hook-up and DVR and I tend to have it on while I stitch.
As for what is going on around me when I stitch... at the foot of the bed is my television with the satellite hook-up and DVR and I tend to have it on while I stitch.
Sometimes, one or more cats are also on the bed... so I suspect that the odd cat hair ends up incorporated in my stitching, but I try to keep them at some distance from the floss (which one loves to chew on) and charts (which another loves to sit on)!
This area hasn't had a whole lot of stitching, however, since I broke my wrist last October. It is getting better and every once in a while I tell myself I'm going to get out a WIP and work on it but... my mojo isn't awake yet and I don't. Maybe this month?
This area hasn't had a whole lot of stitching, however, since I broke my wrist last October. It is getting better and every once in a while I tell myself I'm going to get out a WIP and work on it but... my mojo isn't awake yet and I don't. Maybe this month?
WIPocalypse 2017 - May Check-In
Another WIPocalypse check-in where I can't report a single stitch placed in fabric. This wrist is taking longer to strengthen that i had expected!
The question of the month is: "Which designer’s projects do you absolutely love, but are too intimidated to try?"
Not sure I'd call it intimidated. More like reluctant. I have the complete series of charts for the cats by Kats by Kelly (no longer being produced in cross-stitch; despite the promise for more in 2016 on the website, there weren't any issued to my knowledge) and I haven't stitched a single one because I can't decide which one(s) I want to do, and to do them all is a VERY impractical idea (for one thing, I have no place to display them!). How's that for a run-on sentence?
See y'all next month, hopefully with better stitching news.
The question of the month is: "Which designer’s projects do you absolutely love, but are too intimidated to try?"
Not sure I'd call it intimidated. More like reluctant. I have the complete series of charts for the cats by Kats by Kelly (no longer being produced in cross-stitch; despite the promise for more in 2016 on the website, there weren't any issued to my knowledge) and I haven't stitched a single one because I can't decide which one(s) I want to do, and to do them all is a VERY impractical idea (for one thing, I have no place to display them!). How's that for a run-on sentence?
See y'all next month, hopefully with better stitching news.
Sunday, April 30, 2017
WIPOcalypse 017 - April Check-in
Another month without stitching. My wrist is getting better but I still have flexibility and strength issues in my left had so holding a frame steady for any length of time is dodgy at best. I live in hope!
Meanwhile, the topic for the month is “What projects are in your UFO pile?”
Sadly — a lot.
Back in 2012, I itemized the UFOs in my cupboard. They were
Not itemized, but hiding out in a bin were a crewel-work pillow and six or seven needlepoint pieces needing backstitching and other “top work”, all predating 1992! And there were a slew of piece-worked tops from quilting classes in Saudi that required backing and binding... And then there is the Round Robin stitchery piece from 2006, were all the participants finished their parts but I have yet to finish it off...
Currently ALL of these pieces are still unfinished, stitching-wise.
And this doesn’t begin to count the two major pieces languishing in my project bag: the Elizabeth Almond “Save the Stitches” sampler and the “Love Is..” wedding sampler. Also, back in 2012, a WIP was Palm Tree Elegance, my traveling needlepoint piece and that is still active! And also in my traveling back is a "small" piece from a trip to North Carolina back in August 2014 ...
OMG, that wrist has to heal faster, or… because I’m not getting any younger!
There are also projects finished since then that lack the finishing touches, all itemized in early 2017: at least four quilt tops need to be backed and bound and one needs to be pieced (it’s roughly 3/4 put-together right now), backed and bound; my first Bead Journal Project needs assembly as does my Take a Stitch Tuesday sampler, and there is a “slew” of bargello and Learn-a-stitch needlepoint exercise pieces (freebies from Napa Needlepoint - she has pasted many more but I am resisting starting any until I clear my cutting table of the finished ones!) that should be sewn into ornaments! These don’t really require wrist strength — just the courage to turn on my machine or get out my sewing kit, rethread the needle(s) (and the bobbin on the machine -my LEAST favorite thing of all time), and sit down to work. But that means I need to motivate!
Any tips?
Meanwhile, the topic for the month is “What projects are in your UFO pile?”
Sadly — a lot.
Back in 2012, I itemized the UFOs in my cupboard. They were
Not itemized, but hiding out in a bin were a crewel-work pillow and six or seven needlepoint pieces needing backstitching and other “top work”, all predating 1992! And there were a slew of piece-worked tops from quilting classes in Saudi that required backing and binding... And then there is the Round Robin stitchery piece from 2006, were all the participants finished their parts but I have yet to finish it off...
Currently ALL of these pieces are still unfinished, stitching-wise.
And this doesn’t begin to count the two major pieces languishing in my project bag: the Elizabeth Almond “Save the Stitches” sampler and the “Love Is..” wedding sampler. Also, back in 2012, a WIP was Palm Tree Elegance, my traveling needlepoint piece and that is still active! And also in my traveling back is a "small" piece from a trip to North Carolina back in August 2014 ...
OMG, that wrist has to heal faster, or… because I’m not getting any younger!
There are also projects finished since then that lack the finishing touches, all itemized in early 2017: at least four quilt tops need to be backed and bound and one needs to be pieced (it’s roughly 3/4 put-together right now), backed and bound; my first Bead Journal Project needs assembly as does my Take a Stitch Tuesday sampler, and there is a “slew” of bargello and Learn-a-stitch needlepoint exercise pieces (freebies from Napa Needlepoint - she has pasted many more but I am resisting starting any until I clear my cutting table of the finished ones!) that should be sewn into ornaments! These don’t really require wrist strength — just the courage to turn on my machine or get out my sewing kit, rethread the needle(s) (and the bobbin on the machine -my LEAST favorite thing of all time), and sit down to work. But that means I need to motivate!
Any tips?
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