Mid-December catch up and WIP progress

Hello Everyone!

It's almost the middle of December and I can't believe that this month has gone by so fast.  2017 will be here soon and I think I just recently caught on to write 2016 when dating something, lol.  We haven't been doing anything major around here, just normal day to day stuff.  We've got our trees ups and have started watching some Christmas movies.  The kids and I have really been enjoying playing board games in the evening.

Oh wait!  Yes, we *have* had something major going on!  I spent many years homeschooling my kids and they are both now **DONE**!!  They passed all their exams and did great and I'm so proud of them.  Now onward and forward to the adulting, lol.

I've managed to get some stitching in, which is great.  Let me share my progress with you.

The last time you saw my Mira, The Rain Queen, she looked like this.

Now she looks like this:

I have to say, all of those leaves falling around her have not been fun to stitch at all and they're still not done.  After that, they also get beaded.  It has definitely been a labor of love with this as of late.  But I'm pretty far along on her, so hopefully it won't be too much longer before she is done.

Next, on to the dragon wall hanging I'm working on for my son.  The last time you saw it, I was working on the tail.

I have now finished the tail and moved on to a wing:

I really love watching this come to life.  Here is another picture, with it help up by my son so you can get a sense of the scale.  He's over 6' and is holding it up above his head and it ends below his knees.

One more close up that I took a couple of days ago.  Do you see how some of the squares are wanting to fade a bit as the fabric gets used, touched, and generally handled over time?  I don't think they will fade to the point that it presents a huge problem for getting it finished, but it is definitely giving me some motivation to not let this piece languish for too long!

Now, on to 272 Words by Primrose Needleworks that I'm stitching as a SAL in the Patriotic Stitches group on FB.  I started this on it's official start date of October 29.  But my husband and I were in the mountains that weekend, so I only got to work on it a tiny bit.

I tried to work on it some more in the car on the drive home, but it's a 32ct fabric and between all the bumps in the road and my eyes not being happy, I had to give up.

I worked on it a bit more after getting home but had to stop because the called for fabric I was using was stiff as a board, coarse to the touch, and I just couldn't stand the feel of it.

So at this point, I took it off the snaps and washed it and ironed it.  Much better.  Softer and more manageable.  It still won't win any awards for being soft and cuddly, but it's now good enough to handle without wanting to crawl right out of my skin.

I'm working on finishing up page one, which is why the words cut off at odd places.  But I'm going to work it page by page.

One last thing I wanted to share with you is a tiny bit of haul.  I forgot to share these earlier.  They are fabrics I purchased at the big trunk show in Kentucky I went to in October.  I didn't buy this with specific plans in mind, but rather simply because they appeal to my taste and I know I'll be able to use them for something.  I'm thinking about using them for back fabric on pillows, pin cushions, things like that.

That's all I've got for now.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

My intentions for Stitch from Stash 2017

I'm in the Stitch from Stash 2017A group on FB.  I just wanted to go ahead and publicly put my plans out there for how I plan to participate in the group.  

I don't feel that I have over spent on my stash.  I have a ton of stash, but about half of it was gifted to me by a few different people.  Up until about 3 or 4 years ago, I probably only spent about $30-$40 per year on stash!  I'm not kidding.  I did project by project and only bought what I needed.  I was working on a couple of larger kits, so they took time but didn't take much money.  Then I made the deliberate decision to take a year or two and purposely purchase a lot to create a much larger stash.  My main purpose was to end up with a full set of DMC because I was tired of needing a color and not having it on hand.  So for a year or two, I bought a lot.  Threads, patterns, and kits.  But it was on purpose and planned.  Then about that time I ended up with a bit of a windfall of stash from three separate people and all of a sudden my stash was huge.  At this point I decided to stop spending on charts and kits, with a few guidelines.  I made a rule for myself that I could spend whatever I wanted stitching related at thrift stores.  Because truly, at my thrift stores I can spend $3 and end up with an armload of stuff.  I knew that would in no way hurt my budget.  I also let myself spend whatever I wanted when I was on vacation (going to an LNS) or when I was at a retreat.  Both times when my spending would be planned out anyway.  So for two years, I worked this plan and it worked out great.  I got some new stuff, but not so much that if felt overwhelming or messed with our budget.

This past year I decided to just spend what I wanted to spend.  I did and it wasn't too bad.  I even managed to get a few pricey things I had really been wanting during sales and they were half off.

So I don't feel bad about my spending.  But I do have a ton of stash and there's not a lot of room or reason to allow it to grow uncontrolled.  That's where Stitch from Stash 2017A comes in.

I want to share my intentions here for how I plan to work the concept of this group and make it work for me.  I'm doing this because when I do purchase something, I generally share about it here on my blog and on my Flosstube channel as well.  So I don't want folks who see me in the group and then see something here or in my videos that doesn't seem to add up with Stitch from Stash thinking mistaken things.

First of all, if you follow the guidelines of the group to a T, there is a nice give away at the end.  This involves using a group spreadsheet, keeping exact track of spending, etc.  But lots of the members are opting to not use the spreadsheet and thus, are not putting ourselves into the running for the give away.

So first thing ~ I'm not going to use the spreadsheet.  So I will not be entering the give away.

I will keep track of my spending, but if my figures get off by a few cents or a dollar here or there, it's not hurting anyone.

I don't plan - at this time - on giving myself a, "credit," for finishes because honestly, finishes are not going to put money in my bank.

I will not be including spending on gifts for others in this challenge at all.  What I spend on gifts for others is personal and not something I would ever share publicly.  And if you have read my blog, you know that I have a friend I exchange with quite regularly and I share about these exchanges here and on my Flosstube.  That will not change.  So when you see me sharing what she gave me or if you see her sharing what I gave her (I won't link her here as I'll let her address this on her own blog if she chooses, but many of you know who she is (wink)) then please don't get upset or think we're cheating on the Stitch from Stash.  Because I'm going into this with the full intention of not including these exchanges and I'm being honest about it by posting here.  I also commented in a thread this morning on the group saying the same.

So there you have it.  :0)  My Stitch from Stash plans for next year.

Happy stitching everyone ~ keep those needles flying!