Nothing like a little stash...

...to get that mojo flowing again. And when I say a little stash, what I mean is...yah, I went a little nuts. :P

I made my first ever trip to an LNS today! I hit the Lazy Daizy in Raleigh this afternoon and wow! How cool it is to have an entire store dedicated to stitching instead of a teeny aisle stocked with cheese.

I picked up a few charts - most of which were on sale and nice and small. I picked up a whole bunch (for me) of WDW and Sampler fibers that I'm totally in love with! I can't wait to dig into something new.

I've also made a bit of progress on my Dad's piece. I've stopped referring to it as my BAP, because it's not actually all that big ass compared to many of you ladies' projects!!

Long time no see!

I don't know what the reason is, but I have not been in a stitching mood at ALL lately! I haven't even been checking my favorite stitching blogs. I logged in to Google Reader today and found 72 posts waiting for me! So at least you guys have been busy. :)

I did pick the needle up a few times here and there but I haven't made much progress on anything. I've gotten a little done on my Dad's piece. And I cut and stitched the border for the gecko. I started sewing him on to the velcro for my son's backpack and I just couldn't make myself do it. I think I'll take him in to an alteration shop and they can just sew it on there for me. It won't be perfect, but it will be done!

July/August Goals

Here's the progress I've made on my Hawaiian quilt ornament.

I ran out of WDW Turkish Red, so it's on the back burner now until I either make a trip to Raleigh or place an order online. I'm a little worried about getting fiber from a different dye lot, but we'll see what happens.

I really wish you could see the sparklies in the fabric because that's my favorite part of this piece! :)

On to the goals...

July Goals

1. Complete, finish and mail little Nemo. Check!

2. Work on my sadly neglected BAP. Technically, I did work on it. Since I restarted it, I'm actually behind where I was before, but I'm still considering this goal met. :)

3. Start and complete one Hawaiian Quilt ornament. I would have finished this if I hadn't run out of thread. So, unmet but with good intentions.

4. Start, complete and finish a surprise project for a mysteriously unnamed recipient. Check! This was the needlebook I made for my friend Alicia.

5. Take a few more babysteps in the direction of an actual rotation. Check! I definitely have been rotating projects. Not with any set schedule, but rotating nonetheless.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with my first month's goals! Now to set more...

August Goals

1. Complete and finish the first Hawaiian quilt ornament.

2. Complete the stitching on my co-project with Alicia.
3. Catch up to where I was on my BAP.

4. Finish Gecko number 1 as a patch.

5. Stitch Gecko number 2.

SBQ July 29, 2007

To answer stitcherw's question - My BAP is a pattern from Solaria Galleryfor my Dad. Click here to see the many starts and restarts of this BAP. :P

Today's SBQ was suggested by Dani and is:

Have you ever thought of getting a rider on your household insurance to properly cover your stash (some of us have quite an extensive stash that an average household policy wouldn't fully cover) in the case of some sort of damage to your house that would destroy/ruin charts, fabrics, floss, etc?

I don't have anything approaching the amount of stash I would feel needed insurance protection. But it's a fabulous idea to consider for the future. For now, I'll content myself with envy over those of you who do have such copious stash! :)

A Finish and a (Re-)Start

I missed a question from Kathryn in an earlier post. Yes, I'm switching to an evenweave for my BAP restart. The gridded Aida came with the chart, but I've never really been partial to it.

Also, thanks to teageeare for schooling me on my flower. :) I feel much better knowing that I haven't taken my plant killing abilities to new levels. And it has bloomed a few more times already!

I finished the stitching on gecko #1! I'm going to make him into a patch for my son's backpack and then I'll get started on gecko #2 to hang here. I'm glad they sent me enough fabric to stitch him twice!

I also got a small start (or should I say restart) on my BAP. It took me a while to get it all kitted up - which I hadn't done the first time around - so I haven't put much stitching in yet. I'm doing it on a tea-colored monaco since it's a solid pattern that I intend to mat and frame so the fabric won't be visible anyway. No sense wasting a pretty hand-dye!

My Very Amateur Needlebook

First, to answer a question. Chiasmata - I'm using 3 strands of black on the gecko, per the instructions. I think they're right that 2 might not be enough coverage.

Here are the pics of the needlebook I made for my friend Alicia. This was definitely a learning experience! I didn't measure accurately enough which made the front and back designs offcenter. And, I handstitched the hem around three sides and then turned it right side out. I *should* have used a slip stitch along the last side, but I thought it would look bad against the lining fabric. I didn't realize backstitching along the last edge would totally flatten that edge! Argh! Oh well. I'll make a nicer one next time. :) Oh, and poor Alicia had to sew the seam down the "spine" of the book herself. lol I really need to get a sewing machine and learn how to sew...

I really like the chart I used for the cover, though. I think I may do it again for myself as a redwork piece!

Ornaments and Geckos and Lilies Oh My!

Thanks to all of you for the great tips and tricks in my last post!! I'm a self-taught stitcher and most of the time I'm just winging it. :P I'm learning so much reading all of your blogs and your comments here! So...thanks!! :D

I've made some progress on my Hawaiian quilt ornament. I decided to try the spiraling thing with the overdyed thread and I really like the look. I can see how stripes would be better for certain things, but for this I like the spirals. I'll just have to flip the design so the stripey corner is (hopefully) not very noticeable on the bottom.

I think for the next ornament, I'll stitch around the outline and then confetti the insides, just to see how that looks. I'm running out of Turkish red, so I'll need to order a few more skeins!


I also got a start on my tribal gecko. I'm loving this little guy! I'm having to be very careful of where the thread sits on the back of the piece, but other than that the little guy is easy peasy. And so cute!



We also planted a few lilies in the yard and one of them bloomed! And then promptly died the next day. lol I think I need to move them. I'm not sure they're getting enough sun where they are.