WIPocalypse 2012 - August Blue Moon Report

Hey Blog Buddies,

The dog is done!  Yes, I'm talking about Boris by Plum Street Samplers.  Once I got all of the frogging out of the way, he seemed to go very quickly.

He gives everyone a menacing stare

because he'd like to be thought of as a bad-a**,

but you know he's in touch with his feminine side.

Why else would he have gotten that

lovely sunflower tattoo?

I substituted green for the ecru in the bone,

so it would show up.

(The ground really is ecru and not pink, like in the photo.)

The top piece of "fruit" in the bowl was originally charted as ecru, too.

I decided not to stitch his whiskers

because I thought it made him look too much like a cat!

I bought a frame for him, and I'm going to attempt to frame him myself.

The frame is only 8" x 8", so how hard can it be?

(You probably shouldn't answer that!)

I did some work on Crabby all Year, too.

Here's April:

Imagine that you see long, straight stitches on the tax form.

(The folks at Raise the Roof advised stitching them last.)

The entire Crabby design is very specific not only to the USA,

but also to areas that have a humid continental climate,

like northern Illinois.

So to those of you not living in the USA I ask,

do you pay income taxes in April like we do?

If not, what month are they due?

I even finished August!

We use an herbicide on our pathetic little lawn

so we don't have dandelions there,

but they actually grow in the cracks in the sidewalk!

Here are the five months which I've completed thus far:

The piece won't look wavy once it comes off the scroll frame

and gets mounted and framed.

But I can't not show you my monthly progress (heaven forbid!),

so you'll be looking at waves for quite some time!

I also started and finished the third LJP ornament

which was featured in my last post--I won't make you look at it again.

Only two more of those ornaments to go!

One finish and three mini-finishes from my WIPocalypse list:

 "I done good" this month!

To check out everyone else's WIPocalypse progress,

click here.

Until next month, have a fun and safe Labor Day holiday

if you're a USA blog buddy.

To all my international blog buddies, have a groovy weekend!

And thanks, as always, for visiting!

August IHSW: Another Finish .. and Ground Shock

Hey Blog Buddies,

I didn't get quite as much stitching time as I would have liked this weekend (isn't that the way it goes for most of us?), but I did manage to finish the Laura J. Perin ornie that I started on our trip:

I didn't really have too much more to do on it

by the time Friday rolled around.

Three of these ornies are done now--

two more to go to make my holiday cube.

Here's a pop quiz for all you sharp-eyed stitchers out there.

I do have a little mistake on this one--

didn't even notice it until I looked at the photo.

(And I made the photo nice and large for you, too!)

It's not horrible, and I'm on the fence about

whether or not it needs to be fixed.

Can you tell where it is?

Be honest--my feelings won't be hurt.

Who knows, you may find another one that I missed!

I worked a little on Plum Street Samplers' Boris, too.

Here is where the ground shock comes in.

My LJP ornie was on 18-count canvas,

and Boris is on 36-count linen.

It was a challenge to pick him up

on the same day that I finished the ornie!

Here's where I left off...

I still have to redo the letters and everything that isn't

"the dog" because they were stitched with one strand.

This photo is more representative of the linen color.

That's it for now.

To see my fellow hermitters' progress,

go here.

Hope you had some time to stitch this past weekend.

Thanks for visiting!

WIPocalypse 2012 - July Report

Hey Blog Buddies,

The year is half over, but am I half done with my WIPocalypse list?  Uhhh, no.  Here's what I accomplished last month:

This was a quick start and finish.

(And see, it did get framed!)

I have had this Lizzie*Kate chart for several years.

Here is another start of a chart that I've had for a while.

(Raise the Roof's Crabby All Year)

The finish on this one won't be quite as speedy.

If I can complete two squares per month,

it should get done this year.

Rainforest Revisited got a tiny bit of love.

Here's where I was at last month:

And here's where I'm at now:

I stitched the three squares in the current top row,

which is actually the second row of the piece.

I also recently started Plum Street Sampler's Boris.

That didn't turn out too well (see previous post).

But here is the new and improved Boris:

He looks so much better (IMO).

The area of the fabric that I frogged

almost looks like aida cloth now (heheh)!

But those puny-looking letters have to be redone, too!

Will everything on my list be completed

before the end of the year?

Realistically, no.

I have a fair amount of commitment stitching

staring me in the face.

And there are two or three recently-purchased (cough, cough) charts

that are just begging to be stitched.

But I'm pretty certain Rainforest will get done.

And there will be other finishes from the list, too.

Stay tuned...

Click the dragon on my sidebar

to find out more about this SAL.

Hope your month has been productive.

Thanks for visiting!

Theme-a-Licious: Jumanji June

Hey Blog Buddies,





We're almost halfway through 2012 and I have finally decided to jump in to Heather's Theme-a-Licious SAL!  There is a different theme for each month, and participants either follow it closely or somehow convince their readers with stories about how what they stitched matches the theme!  No stress, just fun.  The theme for Jumanji June was to stitch something animal-related.  Since it was my first time out, I decided to stick more or less closely to the theme.  I had my rabbits from Crabby All Year for the first half of the month, and for the second half I decided to start Plum Street Sampler's Boris.  Besides, he was on my list of things to stitch this year.  But instead of an adventure with Boris, I had more of a misadventure!

First, I decided to baste the fabric into 20 x 20 grids to help with the placement of all the letters in the sampler.  It took a lot of time, but was worth the effort.

The fabric is 36-count, and the instructions were to use one strand of floss.  That was OK for the letters, but I didn't like the way Boris (my little Russian dog) was turning out, and he was the reason I wanted to stitch the design in the first place!

I started stitching his face (oh, that face!)

and wasn't pleased with the coverage of the floss.

But did I stop and frog?  No!

It was hoping that the "effect" would grow on me.

When will I ever learn?

I got all the way to...

 ...here...

...before I decided to cut my losses.

(This may be the most embarrassing photo

ever published on this blog!)

If you look closely at the bottom two rows of his body

just behind the leg, you'll see I finally tried using 2 strands,

just to see what it would look like.
That was more like it!

I wanted him black, not tweed!

He was looking like he had a

bad case of dandruff!

If I hadn't taken so much time basting,

I would have just tossed the entire piece at this point

and started over.

So I decided to frog instead.

Let me tell you, when I decide to bury a tail of floss,

it pretty much stays buried!

As of now, after much ripping, cutting, pulling and

dark muttering,

all that's left of him is his muzzle

and a tattered flower.

(Sorry, I'm not going to waste a photo on that!)

Quit giggling!!

The theme for next month is Jolly July.

"It's a jolly holiday with your WIPs. 

You can concentrate on Christmas designs,

ornaments, or even pick a different holiday

to render in stitchy goodness."

I am going to need something jolly

after this little nightmare.

But Boris will get done ... eventually.

He has so much personality, how can I not finish him?

Hope your projects are going more smoothly.

Thanks for visiting!

WIPocalypse 2012 - January Report

Hey Blog Buddies,

Are you as stoked as I am about the 2012 WIPocalypse?  Not that I'm hoping that the world will end in December, but if it does, there are over 300 of us who will have our WIP's (hopefully) all finished!  And there's something to be said for that.
I haven't actually showed photos of my 2012 to do list before.  And since I can't seem to get this Blogger page thing figured out, I'll do it here.  Some are WIPs, and other are just things I want to do this year.  But since this is a picture-heavy post, I'll stop blabbing and go straight to my WIPocalypse list:

Here she is, our old friend,

Libby Sturdy's Uptown Stitcher.

She's nearing completion.

There should be no reason that she remains a WIP.

Alessandra Adelaide's CT13--

the zany red Christmas tree.

I'm really hoping it will be up on my wall

for Christmas 2012.

This is Indigo Rose's Winter.

It's probably my oldest WIP,

started in 1998 or 1999.

The project benefiting autism research

that my Guild offered in April 2011.

The multi-colored row that I'm doing now

is really... interesting.

Another stocking from

BBD's 'Tis Halloween booklet.

I'd like to get at least one other one stitched, too...

..this one.

I've got two of these designs finished.

I want to do three more.

(Yes, I'll be stitching one twice.)

These will look cute finished as a cube.

Plum Street Sampler's "Boris."

He is just too cute for words!

Milady's Needle "Christmas Elegance."

You can never have too many holiday ornies!

(I want to do at least one, hopefully two.)

Raise the Roof's Crabby All Year

This is such a fun design!

Once I get all the buttons and some linen,

look out!

I found this free chart while

rummaging through my stash today:

Calico Crossroads'

"I Stitch Therefore I Am" band sampler.

How cute is this?!!

And I didn't even remember I had it!

Gotta do this one soon!

This was a Guild project,

a freebie blackwork design from Laura J. Perin

that I'd really like to get done this year.

This is another guild project:

cross-stitch pinwheels

from Calico Crossroads

worked on perforated paper.

Everyone needs a cross-stitched pinwheel, right?

Right???

This is Rainforest Revisited

by Needle Delights Originals.

I'd like to start this right now, except

the short ends of the stretcher bars

are being used by Uptown Stitcher.

(Just another reason to finish her soon.)

I want to do 2 or 3 of these

for my spring display....

This Victoria Sampler ornament

was in the 2010 JCS Christmas issue.

It's all kitted up and ready to go!

And wonder of wonders, I have a finish!

Lizzie*Kate's January Flip-It.  Woo hoo!

And here is my latest start.

Snow Patches from the Cross-Eyed Cricket.

If you've made it through the end of this list, congratulations!

Hope your weekend was fabulous.

And thanks for visiting.