The question for the month for WIPocalypse is: " Do you prefer to stitch on a rotation or one project at a time?"
I really don't have a preference. I have done both and both have their advantages.
Rotation removes some of the boredom that can arise when stitching on a single LARGE project. It is particularly helpful to intersperse stitching on a large BAP with smaller pieces (which might give on the felling of accomplishment when the small piece is finished), a piece with different stitchery demands (like speciality stitches, beading, etc.), or even a different BAP which, depending on how long the original BAP has been "in progress", may have a design more in tune with my taste (although this is usually why a piece becomes a UFO in my stash --- I started something new that appealed and all of a sudden, the old piece is no longer to my taste!)!
Often, when I do stitch on a large BAP, I can get on a roll, and it hurts my stitching mojo if I interrupt that roll by stitching on something else: I often lose my place (no matter how carefully I mark the charts). And sometimes I find that once I get onto something new, I really really have to work HARD to go back to that BAP--- it's appeal gets lost in the thrill of finishing smalls, etc.(see also above re UFOs!).
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Again, in October, no stitching whatsoever. Sorry...
The topic for discussion this month is:
"How do you keep your stitching stash organized?"
Well, I'm not sure it IS organized, at least not completely I posted several times this year about my organizational attempts, starting in January and fizzling out in May. I have gotten quite a bit put away where it belongs but there is probably just as much that needs doing. Especially floss --- my DMC is untouched and needs a massive amount of time to put right and teh contents of my two embroidery cabinets need rearranging so everything can be contained....
At any rate, for embroidery, I use a number of binders (patterns), baskets (floss), bins and boxes (needles, beads, buttons, charms, etc,), all of which reside either n one bookcase or two large cabinets in my craft space. For my quilting, its two more cabinets... You can see photos of these areas in those five posts between January and May.
For embroidery projects in progress, I have a large tote which holds the listed up patterns, hoops, Q-snaps and small notions while my traveling projects are in two Yazzii zipped bags, all in my bedroom.
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Again, no stitching this month. I did, however, buy two kitted up Glendon Place patterns. Who can resist a sale?
This month's topic for discussion is:
"Which is more satisfying to you and why – the process of stitching a piece, or the finish?"
That's a tough question for me to answer... it's almost like those polls which don't give an answer that is right for you!
For me, the satisfying part is the beginning: the picking of the chart, the floss, the fabric and embellishments (if any) and setting up for stitching. (can you tell I'm a stash builder? I love browsing the designer sites and the needlework supplies stores online, and when I was actively stitching, my budget was often screaming. Even now, when I'm not stitching, I'm still acquiring the latests charts and kits from my favorite designer...)
As for the stitching itself, the start is fine but, if the piece is a big one (and for me, it usually is/was), I soon tire of the piece and it becomes a chore to stitch... until I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Part of that is due to the fact that there are now pieces lined up in my head which I would rather be working on (the results of that original stash-building exercise overlapping with a slow-moving piece which shows little "progress" despite the amount of time spent o it. You know the kind --- the ones that don't look like anything at all until a certain amount of stitches have been put into it).
So I guess finishing is the most satisfying part, even though it is sometimes a let-down after all that work (sort of like that let-down when you finish a really good book and discover that it is the last one in a series and the author is not writing them anymore - that is, the author is dead!).
Can you tell I'm conflicted?
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Progress this month? None, although I have been thinking about it. I even went so far as to buy a special project bag for the needlepoint pieces I want to start AFTER I finish the two WIPs/UFOs in my project bag...
" Half-year recap: How are you doing with your goals so far this year?"
I'd laugh if it weren't so sad. No progress. Not a stitch. Even my attempts at organization ave stalled out at the bin of DMC floss that needs putting away. I'm really having difficulty getting motivated. Heck, I have even spent several hours this weekend updating out financial records, which I absolutely HATE to do. And in two days, I have brought six months of arrears in my entries to Quicken for four credit cards and one checkbook. Only once create card and four bank accounts to go!
On her blog, Mel said:
"So if you’re feeling stuck, try that challenge on whatever you’re working. One stitch per day. Just do one. By itself, it may not seem like much. But one stitch leads to another, and to another… and then once you relax and accept that your one stitch per day meets the goal? Everything else is a reward. It’s such a simple thing..."
She's so right. If it works for my financial records, it SHOULD work for my stitchery. I am going to try this!
She went on to say:
"I’m genuinely thinking of running it as part of this challenge next year (giving the HAED project designer credit for the idea, of course). Pick a stubborn UFO or the one you really, really want to finish, and stitch at least one stitch per day for 100 days."
What a GREAT idea!
The question for the month is: "Tell us what you think the ideal stitching retreat would include."
Well, I have been to a few quilting retreats and paper crafting retreats but never an embroidery retreat so I can't say for sure that I know what such a retreat would require.
Like I said, I can't speak from experience other than three quilting retreats, two or three paper-crafting weekends, a card-making cruise (Yes, a cruise, to Alaska!), and a few local guild-sponsored quilt workdays, and I have to say I have one major issue: I never seemed to have the right supplies with me to accomplish much of anything and so I accomplished little, despite a car trunk filled with possible projects and a lot of tools! Of course, many retreats are actually teaching events and, for a fee, one gets fully supplied kits as well as the services of a teacher or teachers so the need for supplies is lessened (but the cost is usually increased...).
I know that, when I stitch, I need to be comfortable, and I usually stitch in my bed, with my back supported by cushions and my feet up! Therefore, a comfy chair with back support and a foot stool are the minimum. This is NOT a folding chair or a dining table chair or the like.
Also, I need light, good light, preferably that can be focused on my stitching, and magnification (my old eyes need at least 3x magnification to work on anything finer than 12 or 14 count AIDA)! I totally rely on my Ott Lamp (floor model --- NOT a table lamp) with a magnifying arm that can be arranged to work over my left shoulder. Too big to travel with unless the location is close enough to drive to.
Price is an issue for me. I am retired, no surplus income, and the cost of travel, housing and meals (and any class charges) can add up to a major expense.
Which brings the real need, for me, and that is location --- I simply cannot justify flying as the luggage requirements would be horrendous (even enough clothing for the duration in a carry on and my stitchery supplies would mean surcharges for luggage with most airlines these days). And I really can't see driving more than an hour or two away from home as I am not a confident driver. Carpooling is not an option because there are no stitchers anywhere near me and even if there were, my experience with fellow quilters and paper crafters is that they bring so much "stuff" that there really isn't room for more than two people in a normal mid-sized car. Besides, car-pooling means I'm dependent in the scheduling needs/wants of others so I can't leave early or ... You get what I mean, right?
But, to be honest, I probably would never go to a stitching retreat anyway as I need to concentrate to stitch, and people prevent that --- my experience is that quilters chat and knitters chat and crocheters chat and papercrafters chat when they get together, so I have no doubt that stitchers chat as well!!! Sure, I could find a quiet corner, but that would mean I was being anti-social and why would I want to be marked as such when I can get the same solitude at home for free?.
I know, that answer is a bit snarky but, as a solitary stitcher (when I CAN stitch again), retreats really don't appeal to me.
*****
Now, as for this month's report... nothing. nada. zilch. zip.
I did pack my stitchery travel bag when we went to Myrtle Beach for the national daylily convention but I never opened it. The two-day drive down aggravated my bad shoulder and arm and it took two of the three days available in Myrtle Beach for the pain to subside, only for it to recur on the drive home. I am doing my physical therapy exercises, twice daily (UGH) and have begun to wean myself off triple-strength ibuprofen to find that even so-called "pain-free days" really aren't totally pain free (there is a nagging hint that the pain is there, waiting to surface again if I'm not careful).
As I said, I'm being good, doing my exercises and hoping for the pain-free periods to reach that magic two weeks so I can cut back on the exercises and maybe even pick up a needle again. The question is, will I be able to find my stitching mojo again?
The WIPocalypse question of the month is: Where do you love to shop for stash?
When I can't find what I need in my stash, I shop online for anything needlework-related - we don’t have any needlework shops within driving distance so online is really my only option. I have a few places I do like to shop… tops on my list is Needle in A Haystack in Alameda, CA. I have read that others aren’t happy with the service there but I never have had issues. It’s been a while since I did any shopping for stash, although I did order two Michael Powell charts last month (I’m addicted to Michael Powell and have nearly all of his charts, even though I've only stitched two or three of them!). If I ever get back in stitching mode, I have enough thread to last a while but I will be running out of large cuts of fabric soon. Then I will have to be on the look-out for some good deals on linen and even weaves. Progress this month? Nil. Didn’t even organize. Spent a great deal of time i physical therapy trying to remedy the bad shoulder and arm pain that struck back in March and while I “graduated” from therapy last week, I can’t say I’m up to stitching yet, pain-wise. I had three or four good days this past week and woke up again on Saturday in pain which has yet to abate. Coming up? Road trip in early June so I have my needlepoint packed and hope I feel well enough on some days at least to stitch on that.
