WIPocalypse Check-in

The WIPocalypse check-in for February was on the 26th but I am still within the Timeframe in my eyes.  This month I finished Pretty Little Toronto by Satsuma Street.

Other than that, I didn't work on any of my projects. I was able to have 2 other finishes - Celtic Twizzle and Paris.

My Hope for March is that I will have time to work on some other projects and make some noticeable progress :)

The Question for this month is : What is your favorite Stitch besides the standard cross stitch?
Answer: This one was funny for me as I haven't done a lot of Specialty stitches. But I have done variations on the Algerian Eyelet and loved it. This link will take you to the Krenik Website that has some nice diagrams in their How-To Section.

I was going to say half cross stitch as I love the variations in color/texture it gives to a piece but that seemed to be a cop-out.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

WIPocalypse Jan Check-in!

The January Check-in for the WIPocalypse SAL check-in was on January 29th. I was unable to check-in that day as I was just released from the hospital after emergency surgery. Needless to say, I was super tired and really didn't have the gumption to get online. That being said I am on the mend and Checking in only a few days late.

The topic for this month is: What Stitch-a-Longs (SALs) are you participating in this year?
The only SALs that I am participating in this year is this one and the Smalls SAL where we stitch 1 thing that is small every month. I am intrigued with other SAL's but have not jumped into that pool yet.

Now for the Progress on my list thus far (I do not have very many WIPs so some of these are will be new starts):
Cirque Des Cercles - Started but not pic
Cirque Des Carreaux - not started
Pretty Little Toronto - Focus piece. Here was my start after the stitching retreat weekend.

Pretty Little Toronto - Called for DMC on 32ct. Tarnished Silver UTS

Noah's Submarine - not started
Pinocchio - Did not work on but here is where I left it the last time I worked on it

Santa and Westie Stocking - did not work on it.
The ABC's of Family -  did not work on it but here is it's progress

 Snowman ornaments - did not work on these but I think I am going to use them for the Smalls SAL to get them done this year and finally off this list for good.
Brigid's Shamrock - Worked a little on this. Need some good downtime to work on this as it is a large project. - over a yard of fabric.

All in all, with the surgery involved, a lot of good stitching was done.

The focus for the rest of this month is Toronto and a small.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

2017 - WIPocalypse Check-in

This is the initial 2017 WIPocalypse Check-in. Each month we are to check-in with our progress on certain stitchy projects. I will be updating the Side bar to the left with my projects as I work through them. The prompt for this month is to introduce ourselves, our projects, and any goals we have for ourselves.

My Name is Katie. I am a mechanical engineer by training with a Ph.D. in my field. I continue to work as an engineer by day and craft when I get the chance at night. I am married but have not been blessed with children at this time so that does give me more time to craft :). My dear husband is very good at putting up with my crafting addiction and loves to see what I can create.

As for my Stitchy goals for this year, I would like to be better at check-ins for WIPocalypse 2017. The projects that I want to work on are half new starts and half WIPs.

New starts:
Cirque des Cercles
Cirque Des Carreaux
Toronto of the Pretty little Cities series
Noah's Submarine
USA - Thea Gouverneur

WIPs:
Pinocchio - When you wish upon a star
Santa and Westie Stocking
The ABC's of Family
Snowman Ornaments
Brigid's Shamrock - HAED - 3 pages for the year or more complete

I also have goals of only stitching from my stash except for the 10.00 budget I have given myself.

Let's hope this works out to accomplishing a lot!

Happy Stitching!

September WIPocalypse Check-in

Well, I spaced totally on the August Check-in but am not on a plane for this one! The topic is to talk about a Journey with a stitching Piece. And of course to show progress on projects from my list. I haven't really worked on anything from my project list. So nothing to show in that respect.

The piece I want to talk about from my Journey of Stitching is the one as follows:

It was the first significant one project that I completed for a gift and the first with a lot color shading. It also had a lot of personal significance due to the subject matter. The work was a gift for my Father-in-Law that did 2 tours of duty in Vietnam as a medic for the 101st Airborne. It gave me a range of emotions in both my proficiency in stitching and subject matter.

June 2016 WIPocalypse Check-in

I realize that it has been a very long time since I checked in for WIPocalypse. As a matter a fact, January was the last Check-in for me. In that time, I realize how important monthly goals and check-in's like these keep me on task and productive. So I am going to use this time to get caught up on what I have done stitching wise and the always delightful questions:

February 2016
Question: If you have any of your pieces on display in your home which attracts the most plaudits?
Answer: I do have a few things hanging in my house. The one that always attracts attention is the ABC's of Food.

ABC's of Food

I think it captures the attention because it is in my Kitchen which is always where people come first.
February Stitching: Completed Pretty Little Washington DC

March 2016
Question:  Do you use hoops, stretcher bars, lap stands or Q snap frames and why?
Answer: I typically use Q-snaps unless they are small ornaments pieces where I use a small Hoop. The Q-snaps are light and easy to hold. The hoops are as well. I tried a lap stand in the past and I felt very hunched over while using is.

March stitching: Completed Pretty Little Chicago

April 2016
Question: What do you listen to while stitching?
Answer: This is a funny one. It is rare that I listen to any music or any books. If I do Listen to music it is typically musical theater casts albums, rock or country music so I can sing along. My favorite thing to do while stitching is to catch up on my TV shows that are recorded on my DVR - in the summer that is usually reruns of Criminal minds, CSI New York, NCIS franchises or Law and Order Franchises. I think I have seen everyone so I don't watch I just listen for background noise.  I also watch movies I have DVR-ed. 

April Stitching: Completed Pretty Little New York

May 2016
Question: What were you stitching this time last year and have you finished it?
Answer: I was working on a cross stitch stocking for a friend and it is definitely completed. I finished 2 of them last year.

May Stitching: A big Fat Nothing.

June 2016
Question: Do you find yourself more productive with stitching in summer or winter?
Answer: In General, I am more productive in the winter. This spring and summer are especially rough as I am traveling a lot for my day job and have not found to balance quite yet to be crafting a lot. There are some changes in the day job that I hope will help but they will not be happening until August 1st. I am going to just keep trucking until told otherwise on my crafting.

June Stitching: I am currently working on the last 33 bottles for Ink Circles "99". My hope is to have it completed by the end of the week. The rest of my finishes can be seen here and here.

January 2016 WIPocalypse Check-in

I am also a few days late for the WIPocalypse (sponsored by the wonderful Measi) Check-in but I do have a finish to show: ONE NATION is complete!!!!!!!

There is an interesting story to go along with this one. My Dear husband chose this pattern for me when we stopped at a stitching store in Osage, IA on the way to MN for his grandfather's funeral called The Stitchery Nook. It was our anniversary and my husband wanted to make sure that I had a special experience as we both knew the week was going to painful. the pattern choice was easy because with the military history of both of our respective families we tend to gravitate to something patriotic like this. I used the called for DMC and some linen from Picture this Plus. I would have probably chosen a different color than Ecru but It does have a great antique feeling.

I started stitching on this pattern at a stitching day sponsored by my local needlework store Keepsakes in July. They are also the sponsor of the stitching retreat that I took part in over Martin Luther King weekend which is where I finished the pattern.  It was very fitting to have that happen for me. Also, I was one of three women who were working on this pattern at the retreat. In july, there was a women who kept commenting on my working on this and she was one of the others working on it at the retreat. But the cool part is that a few groups are going to start it as a stitchalong which was fun. I can say I was a trendsetter.

Now for the WIPocalypse question of the month!
Topic: Introduce yourself, your projects, and any goals you have for the year!
 HI! My Name is Katie. I am 35 and live in Cincinnati, OH. I am an engineer where I have my Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering. I am married with no children as of yet. I refer to myself as crafty and creative as I love to Crosscstitch, knit, Quilt, and Crochet.

I tend to collect somewhere between 5-10 WIPs over each year but my goal is to get more things stitched this year. My projects for this stitchalong are at the left. With One Nation down, I am thinking "99" may be the next one on the frame. I do plan on working what I want and not be kept to specific goals. I do have the cities pattern by Satsuma street that are also calling to me. We shall see.

My yearly goals for all crafts are in the tab at the top!

Happy stitching everyone!

WIPocalypse Check-in: February 2015

Happy Wednesday everyone! It's time for the next check-in for WIPocalypse. I was able to work on three of the projects that are on the list on the left side of this page.

1.) Santa's Office - This was a new start for me over the holidays that I had kitted up for over a year.  Between the initial check-in and now, I added some more stitching to his bag(about 100 stitches) but of Course I forgot to take an updated picture :( here is where he was on the January check-in.

 

2.) 99 - this was a new start since the January Check-in. I took 2 progress pics:

99 - After 1 hour of stitching

99 - progress as of January 16th

I still have this one on the frames and will continue to work it until the first three shelves are completed.

3.) Flower cards - These have been a WIP for going on 2 years. I have decided that this is the year that they get completed as I am tired of knowing they are 3/4's completed. When I checked-in for January, they were here:

Flower cards - Susan Bates  - January Check-in

I have spent some solid time on these and finished the 4 that were almost completely stitched (including Backstitch) and continued working on the other 2.

I feel like I made some great progress on some WIPs.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

 

WIPocalypse Check - in January 2015

I decided to take part in the WIPocalypse 2015 - hosted by Measi. In this post, we are supposed to introduce ourselves, projects and Goals for the upcoming year. This is my second time taking part in the SAL.

As for myself, my Name is Katie. I am an engineer by training and continue to work in the field in my day job. I am stitching, knitting, crocheting, embroidering, and quilting in my spare time.

For 2015, I highlighted my overall crafting goals in the post here. But for WIPocalypse 2015, my list is below. I have included progress Pics if I have them.

1. Pinocchio - Wish upon a Star

    

2. Santa and Westie Stocking

      

3. The ABCs of Family

      

4. Flower Cards - Susan Bates - The World of Cross Stitch

     

5. Snowman Ornaments - Herrschers

     

6. Nativity Set - Janlynn - this has too many parts to put the pics up here but there is a lot of back stitching left.

7. Santa's Office - Joan Elliot

    

   8. 99 - Ink Circles - will be a new start
9. Mug ornaments - Kit - will be a new start
10. Brigid's Shamrock - will be a new start.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

Check on 30 Days of New Starts

I had planned on making new starts every day from 12/25 - 1/24 in honor of Deborah Faris Bryant who passed away earlier in 2014 unexpectedly. She was the first blogger I came across when I started blogging and wanted to do something to honor her memory. I wanted to check in on the things I have worked on/completed since Christmas:
12/25 - Dishrag (easy travel crafting for me)

12/26 - Dishrag (again easy travel crafting)

12/27 - Table runner - I started piecing together the block following a pattern from Jenny Doan at Missouri Star Quilt company.

12/28 - Santa's Office - I worked on this one from 12/28 until today so far. I really enjoy it so I am keeping it on the Q-snaps. This is the picture as of Today. :) I have had this one kitted up ready to go for over a year.

Joan Elliot's Santa's Office
World of Cross Stitching Magazine from my stash
16ct. White AIDA and called for DMC

12/29 - Dishrag

12/30 - Dishrag - I decided to start working through a dishrag pattern book from Leisure arts that are quilt block patterns. This is the first one that I completed - Amish Diamond

Amish Diamond - Lily's Sugar and Cream Yarn

12/31 - Dishrag - Block #2 from the book. - 9 patch

9 patch - Lily's Sugar and Cream cotton

1/1 - Dishrag - Block #3 - Dutchman's Puzzle

Dutchman's Puzzle - Lily's Sugar and Cream Cotton

1/2 - Dishrag - Block #4 - Variable Star

Variable Star - Lily's Sugar and Cream Yarn

I have a few things in the plans for the upcoming days. It will be a lot harder when I go back to my real job on monday but I am really liking the production and seeing my cotton yarn stash reducing.

Happy stitching Everyone!

Stitch from my Stash - 2014 Final Post

Here is my final Report from Stitch from my Stash!

Carryover from November: $70.62
December budget: $25.00
Amount spent in December: $0.00
Amount left in the bank: $95.62

New Starts: Ornaments and Liz Almond's "Naomi Elizabeth" Black Work

WIPs and UFOs: one of 2 Noel's

Completed: Bound Quilt and finished "finished" Ornaments

Stash Used: random scraps of fabric for ornaments and floss remnants.

What I wanted and Didn't Buy: The Christmas Fabric Deal at my local quilting stores are Killing me! I have seen a lot of things I wanted but did not partake in. Instead I organized my fabric into a wonderful bookshelf my dear husband bought me so that I can truly see what I have. :) Cured the bug right away and inspired me to plan a few new creations.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

December WIPocalypse and TurtleTrot Combined!

It's time for the final check-in for both the WIPocalypse SAL and the TurtleTrot SAL. Technically the WIPocalypse was on 12/6 but I decided to combine them together.

My original list for them were as follows with my progress, etc:
1.) Pinocchio - Wish Upon a Star: This was a new start this year so I ended up at this point when I put it away for this year.

Pinocchio - December SAL check in

I worked on this one a lot this fall and made some really great progress. I would estimate I am a little over 1/4 complete on this one.

2.) NOEL - This one is a finish. you can see it finished into an ornament in the upper right of the picture below. For some reason I cannot get it to rotate at all. The pic below captures all of the ornaments that I completed this year. 

2014 Ornaments completed

3.) Santa and Westie Stocking - No progress at all

4.) ABC's of Family - No progress at all

5.) Flower Cards - I don't have a picture but there is only backstitching left to do on this one.

6.) The Lady and the Flag - This was a finish this year!

Completed and Framed
The Lady and the Flag - November 2014

7.) Dream Catcher - this was a total redesign from a stamped Lab Blanket kit into a counted project on AIDA. It was a relatively quick stitch for its size. It was finished in the fall and my FIL had it framed below:

Completed and Framed
Dreamcatcher Redesign - November 2014

8.) Snowman Ornaments - These need back stitching completed and are different than the ornaments pictured above. I should have them done by the end of this week.

9.) Nativity Set - Still need to completed Back Stitching on the camel and a wise man.

10 and 11.) Winter and Fall Mandala - This were so much fun to stitch. Here are some un-framed and the whole set framed for your enjoyment.

Winter Mandala

Fall Mandala

Seasonal Mandala's unframed

Seasonal Mandala framed
November 2014

 
So I made a lot of progress on the goals I set for myself which I set for myself. I am planning on take part in the WIPocalypse next year and am determining if I will do the TurtleTrot soon.

There are still a few things that I need to complete before the end of the year so I better get back to stitching.

Happy Stitching!

November Stitch from my Stash!

November Stitch from My Stash!

Here is my check in for Stitch from my Stash hosted by the wonderful Mel. L of Epic Stitching:
Carryover from October: $45.62
November budget: $25.00
Amount Spent in November: $0.00
Carryover to December: 70.62

New starts: 2 new ornaments


UFOs and WIPs: Seed Stitch Wrap, Hitchhiker Shawlette, Pinocchio, Boys Baby Blanket,


Completed: 2 ornaments, 2 quilt tops

Stash Used: 350 yds for seed stitch wrap, 375 yds. for Boys baby Blanket, some fabric for the next quilt top I am working on.

What I wanted and didn't buy: I have avoided ads this year for holiday deals :)

Happy Stitching!

November Turtle Trot Update!

My Turtle Trot Update this month is rather small. I only worked on one project on my list: Pinocchio's  - When you which upon a star. At last check in I was here:

Pinocchio - When you wish upon a star
MCG textiles Kit from Thomas Kinkade Print
October 15th, 2014

At the time of my picture, this morning I was here:

Pinocchio - When you Wish upon a Star
MCG textiles from Thomas Kinkade
November 11, 2014 

I have moved the q-snaps to the Upper right portion of the pattern. I had hit a few issues with the Floss in the kit in that it was the wrong color and I didn't have enough of it but the customer service at MCG was AMAZING! From the time of first email to replacement floss received was less than 4 days. They were always so polite when I heard from them. This month I am planning on working on Christmas ornaments and hopefully some other WIPs.

Happy Stitching Everyone!

November WIPocalypse Check in

Well this past month has been a little crazy but I am taking the time to get back to basics of Blogging and checking in for WIPocalypse is step 1 for me. I started with 10 Projects in my list, added 1 and finished 5. That leaves me 6 left and I have spent the last bit of time working on the Pinocchio - When You Wish Upon a Star Kit.

September 30, 2014 Progress

I started with the above picture sometime at the beginning of October.

October 15, 2014 Progress 

I got as far as above in by October 15th. I haven't take a recent picture but I have moved to the Top right portion of the Pattern and found problem. Some of the Floss that was supposed to be in the Kit was missing. I contacted the supplier's customer service line and they were the nicest folks with which to interact. The Missing floss was sent out and I was off again. Then I found a problem again where the colors that were sent didn't match the colors of the floss I was missing for one color. Again, I sent off an email to the Supplier and the floss is in the mail to me. I hope to get it by the weekend so that I can keep working.

In the meantime I have been working on a few other projects:

Bottle Bag - Completed October 20, 2014

A dear friend from work moved into a new home. I was not able to attend her housewarming party but my traditional housewarming gift is a bottle of liquor. I didn't have a bag to wrap it in so I made one from a 1/2 of fabric I had sitting around in my stash. It was super easy and gave me a great sense of accomplishment. I also finished 2 pillows for my mother in this time but I didn't take a picture. :(

GB Baby Blanket
Size 10 needles, Caron simply soft

I have also been hard at work completing the Green Blue (GB) baby blanket for a co-worker and friend. He and his wife are due in Mid-december so I am hoping to finish time one tonight. I apologize for the flash but since the time change it is getting dark so early these days.

So that is my progress report...now on to the prompt for this month;

November 6 - What are your favorite and Least favorite materials to use in your stitching?

I am a huge fan of 18ct/36ct fabric. If I and to choose I would stitch on that almost exclusively. I also like floss from DMC (color palette is immense) and Weeks Dye Works. As for least favorite...I am not a huge fan of evenweave. It never feels like my stitching sits right on it. I am also not a huge fan of metallics. I love how they look but the process of getting there is painful.

Happy Stitching everyone!

November Goals!

I realized that I do much better with monthly goals at staying on task! So here are my goals for the month of November:

November Goals:

1.) complete boys baby blanket (and think of a name while I am at it)
2.) complete seed stitch wrap
3.) complete 2 Christmas ornaments for niece and nephew
4.) blog twice per week including about the Santa from He** project I am finishing.
5.) decide on yearly goals for next year
6.) work on 2 other WIPs

The knitting is daunting but I know I can get it done. Happy stitching everyone!

Long Time...no Blogging - WIPocalypse and TurtleTrot check in

Well...It's been almost 3 weeks since I blogged last and I am going to try to catalogue what has been happening.

First..the week of September 29th, I went on Vacation with my entire family to Florida. We went to Ormond Beach which was delightful. The weather was manageable, the niece and nephew handled the plane rides like champs and I even explored a local yarn store in the area called "A Ball of Yarn." I did manage a few stitches on a Christmas ornament Whimsies pattern but it wasn't even worth taking a picture. My dear SIL's father took a turn for the worse so she left and it was all hands on deck with the kids. I can say it gave me a much greater appreciate for the innocence of kids. :)

Then, once I came back, I have been a working fool at my day job. I am an engineer and have been putting in 10-12 hour days. That is not to say I haven't been stitching when I have time but the progress is not the greatest unfortunately. Here are some progress pics below:

1.) Pinocchio's When You Wish Upon a Star

Last Check in - February 2014

September 30, 2014 Progress Picture

October 15, 2014 Progress Picture

You may notice that I changed how the grid was marked between the January and October Pictures. I found that the Soluble blue pen is better for this design. Also, I received an award at my day job that lead to an amazon gift card. I used that the purchase a few of the Thomas Kinkade Disney Kits I didn't already have: Lady and the Tramp, Peter Pan, and The Disney Castle.

I also worked on a new Quilt top and finished piecing it entirely. I just sent an email off to my long armer about when I can drop off the one pictured below:

Riley Blake - Evening Fat Quarter Bundle

My Goal is to give it to my grandmother for Christmas this year.

I also have been knitting on the seed stitch wrap. The color order was brown, taupe, cream, red, cream, taupe, brown. I have completed the transition from Cream to taupe and have done about 3 inches on the Taupe. I forgot to take a picture of this one as well as the baby blanket that I am halfway on.

My hope is that I can use this post to check in for WIPocaplypse and TurtleTrot to get up to date thus far. I also need to get back into the Monthly goals realm because it keeps me accountable to finishing things.

Here are my answers for the WIPocalypse Prompts I have missed:

August 10 – Topic:  Tell us about your oldest and newest WIPs.

    My newest WIP is the Pinocchio project early this year. My oldest WIP is the Resting Tiger that is referenced on my WIP page. 
September 9 – Topic: Who is your favourite person to stitch for, or do you prefer to keep your stitching yourself?

  My favorite person to stitch for is either my grandmother or one of my parents. They love everything I do so that makes it enjoyable.October 8 – Topic:  Are you a Halloween or Christmas stitcher?

   I am a huge Christmas stitcher. I love the small satisfaction of finishing Christmas ornaments.

 

Happy Stitching!