WIPocalypse 2012 - Wrap Up

So, what is the skinny on how well this worked this year?

I started the year with 7 projects in my WIP pile. I am very pleased to say that 6 of them are done and I've worked on the 7th. Of course, this is the internet, so if there are no pictures, it didn't happen so here we go.

1. Swirly Sampler
January 2012

January 2012

2. On Grandmother's Quilt
January 2012

January 2013

3. Rosebud Lullaby
January 2012

January 2013

Quick story bout the last two - they were for my nephews who are now two. When I was at their place at Christmas I saw them hanging in their bedrooms for the first time. So I told Curly I had stitched them and he thought that was cool. Then later I told Easy I had stitched them and we went and looked at Curly's and Easy said "you colour that one too?" I told him I had and asked him if he had seen Stinker's? So we went and looked at that one and he asked me the same question again. I thought it was so cute how while I told him I stitched it, he interpreted it as colouring. Which is a pretty logical leap to make.

4. Newborn Joy
January 2012

January 2013

Picture now added - thanks M for taking this for me.

5. Blackwork Pansy
January 2012

January 2013

6. My Way
January 2012

January 2013

7. Once Upon a Time
January 2012

January 2013

So in summary 6/7 done, 4/7 framed, 3/7 given away. I also managed to post every month even if it was to say I hadn't stitched. And as they say - that's not all. Let's take a look at what from the New Starts list got done. (All of these pictures indicate current status.)

1. "M" is for Mother
Not much, but it is started

2. Fairy Moon

3. Lost in the Garden - not started
4. Victorian Garden - not started
5. Oh Look Shiny! (let's see what wasn't on my radar at the beginning of the year that got worked on)
a) Boys T-Shirt - although these are a yearly stitch so even if I wasn't thinking about it in January, I usual am working on them in April/May of every year. In fact I'm starting to look for light blue t-shirts in size 5 and up.

b) Happy Go Lucky

c) Lily of the Valley - I think this one will have the honour of being the first one finished this year

d) Seasonal Rays

 

That wraps up the year. Stay tune to see if I participate in WIPocalypse 2013.

Full Moon - Twelfth Month

Okay, let's get this last entry before the end of the world. The last couple of weeks have been consumed by Christmas crafting - I'll show pictures later.

Finished
Nothing new is done.

In Progress
1. Lily of the Valley
This one is so close, but I ran out of thread I needed for the border.
Last Month

This Month

2. Fairy Moon
No more blob - it's starting to look like something.
Last Month

This Month

No Progress
1. My Way
2. Happy Go Lucky
3. M is For Mother

Just Started
1. Seasonal Rays
Yep, I was bad, but I thought I would be done Lily of the Valley by now.

New Starts
1. Lost in the Garden - no change
2. Victorian Blooms - no change
3. Stars of the New Millennium

Oh, Look Shiny!
Nothing in this category this month, but I have plans for new January starts.

Until the next update, Happy Stitching!

Full Moon - Eleventh Month

So let's chart the progress for the past month. Well more like three months. I could be saying that to make me feel better about the amount of progress this month, or lack thereof.

Finished
I took a stitching workshop one weekend this month that my stitching guild holds once a year. There were two different projects, a canvas piece and a Hardanger/blackwork piece. Right now I don't consider the Hardanger/blackwork piece a WIP since I don't have any immediate plans to work on it. However the canvas piece isn't WIP either, since it is done.

I will finish it as a scissor case (eventually). But for now it's done. It is designed by Carol Storie (who was our instructor for this workshop) and you can find here webpage here.

In Progress
1. Lily of the Valley
This one is coming along nicely, just the fill (started tonight) and outer border to complete.
Last Month:

This Month:

2. Happy Go Lucky
No real change, just a few more French Knots on the poodle. I didn't even take a new photo this month.

3. My Way
Filled in some more border. This piece has also been re stretched since something in the last month the frame came loose.
Last Month:

This Month

4. Fairy Moon
The only change is it went from being a one colour blog to a two colour blob.
Last Month

This Month

5. M is for Mother

Another one that didn't see any stitching this last month (and no new picture). The only change is that I had a friend serge the edges so that it no longer frayed.

New Starts
1. Lost in the Garden - no change
2. Victorian Blooms - no change

3. Stars of the New Millennium - I ordered another overdyed to see if I liked it for this project. I'm hoping to have it this week so I can take it with me on holidays next week.

Oh, Look Shiny!
Nothing this month, but I plan to do some shopping while on holidays next week.

I've mentioned my holidays. I'm going to spend the week with my cross stitch buddy and we plan to watch TV and stitch all week. Maybe the progress will be epic in next month's update.

Until then, happy stitching.

Full Moon - Tenth Month

I've got an old monitor hooked up to my computer so quickly before I finish setting up my new computer and de-commissioning this one I thought I would get my pictures uploaded and this update posted.

Finished

Nothing again this month. I mostly started things this month. When you consider everything that has been completed this year, it makes sense that at some point I would have to start things so that I would have things to stitch.

In Progress
1. Lily of the Valley
I continue to make progress with this one. The part I like about this is if I get stuck during the week working on it (mistake made, can't figure something out) I just put it aside knowing that I will take it to Thursday stitching and it will get jump started again. The boxes are also great for gratification while stitching these - a few hours and you have completed something.

Last month:

This month:

 Close up of the latest completed square (well, almost, this square gets beads on the centre of the pink stitches).

2. Happy Go Lucky

Once again slow progress as this is my take to meeting piece.

 Close up of latest square completed (I did this when I was sick of doing French Knots).

 Close up of Poodle still in progress.

3. My Way
Well, now my options on this piece are really easy and somewhat tedious or need to think a lot. I have to either complete the border (tedious) or the 2 squares I'm designing. You can see that I've made progress on both of these, but it will continue to be slow as they are both time consuming.

 Close up of completed square (maybe my favourite square on this piece -  I like the density).

 Close up of square that I'm designing. Don't get too attached to the blue bit in the centre, it's going to get ripped out.

 Closer up of the stitch I chose for the squares on this piece. Doing this made me happy - I've loved the stitch since I saw it somewhere on the Internet and it worked perfectly in the space I wanted it to go.

Just Started
1. Fairy Moon
I started this on my retreat last weekend. It's at the typical blob of stitching in the middle of the fabric stage right now.

 Close up

2. M is for Mother

I started this at a stitch in hosted in the common room of my condo for all the representatives from the western region of the national stitching guild I belong too. More progress was made at the stitching retreat. This one avoids the blob aspect by having small motifs that look like something after a couple hours of stitching.

 To give a sense of scale:

New Starts
1. Lost in the Garden - hope to have canvas ready for this soon
2. Victorian Blooms - hope to have canvas ready for this soon
3. Stars of the New Millennium - have the canvas. I have also made my overdyed thread selection. Now I need to pick all the colours/threads for this. I need to find a few hours where my head is in the right spot. This SAL (stitch-a-long) has started this month, so I will be a bit late, but I won't be the only one.

Oh, Look - Shiny!
A couple things may fall in this category. First of all is the project for my guild. It's a small canvas piece that should be fun and quick to do. The second is a pattern I've fallen in love with and hope to procure in the near future - Starburst Flag of Canada (you will have to scroll down - it's the 3rd one).

That's all for this month folks. Now I'm off to install more RAM in my new computer and get it set up.

Happy Stitching! 

Full Moon

As I said in my last post I was at a stitching retreat and I got this great picture of the full moon. It's not my WIPocalypse update, but it is a full moon post.
(sorry the picture is sideways, apparently I'm having technical difficulties with posting from my phone)

WIPocalypse Apologies

Normally I would be posting my monthly update, but my monitor on my computer is dead, so I don't have access to my normal computer. I have taken pictures, but need my computer to download them. I was really looking forward to this month's update because I just came back from a weekend stitching retreat and started some new things. So stay tune. Once I get a new computer and get it up and running, there will be pictures and a real update.

I'm still liking how well this WIPocalypse process has been for me. I've completed most of the WIP's I had at the beginning of the year and now I'm having fun starting new projects. Stay tune for more entries this month. Sorry for no pictures - I know I'm breaking the cardinal rule of blogging that requires having a pictures for every blog entry.

Full Moon - Ninth Moon (Blue Moon)

Wow - this has been the year of special moons - there was a Super Moon in May and now a Blue Moon. This is also the second time this blog has acknowledged a blue moon. The last time was in January 2010.

As always - enough blather onto the stitching update.

Finished
There is nothing in this category this month, the closest a came was a "mini" finish on one of my WIP's (more details below).

In Progress
1. Lily of the Valley
This one saw some ups and downs this month as it took some re-counting and ripping to get the squares in the right spot and the right size. I also spend an entire evening this week ripping out one colour of the left hand leaf as it was one stitch over. This will really come alive this month, because once the centre panel is done, the razzle dazzle starts and it comes together quickly

Last Month

This Month

2. Happy Go Lucky
This one saw very little attention this month - I worked on during one meeting this week. This is the perfect project for meetings as it doesn't require following a pattern and there is no counting.

Last Month

This Month

And close up on the square I'm currently working on

3. My Way
You have no idea how happy I am to be working on this. The colours make me happy. The silk thread make me happy. The stitches make me happy (mostly - right now I'm not too enthusiastic about the wrapped fan stitch that I've just started). This is the one that I just about had a mini finish on in that if I had done the wrapped fan stitch, I would be finish the last square designed by the designer. I have to design the final two squares.



Last Month (and last year)

This month

And close up on current square (and maybe my new favourite one)

New Starts
1. "M" is for Mother -  no change
2. Fairy Moon -  my fingers are starting to get itchy to start this, so it may be part of next month's update.
3. Lost in the Garden - hope to have canvas ready for this soon
4. Victorian Blooms - hope to have canvas ready for this soon
5. Stars of the New Millennium - have the canvas. My order arrived, the only thing missing was the overdyed thread I needed for this project. Need to call the store and find out what is going on (and why they are ignoring my e-mail)

Oh, Look - Shiny
  Nothing in this category this month - again. Which is good because I'm looking forward to starting the projects listed above.

Now I should go. I'm tired and there are "miles to go before I sleep"

Happy stitching.