Category Archives: Goals

Fabulous, Focused, 2014

Posted on August 2, 2013 by Terri | 7 comments

WARNING: This post may contain rambling, confessions, grammatical horrification, a little guilt, and hopefully a few thought-provoking plans for 2014.

If you were to make a list of all your crafting/hobby Works in Progress (WIPs) or Unfinished Objects (UFOs) would it scare you, or cause you to be disappointed in yourself? Are you still in love with every single one of them and want to finish them all? Are you overwhelmed by that number and do not know where to start to get them all done?

That pretty much describes me. I have ADD. No, really, I do. (I will give you a minute to get over your surprise.) Because of that, in order to get practically anything accomplished, I have become a list maker in many areas of my life. Sometimes I have more than one list covering the same thing. In other words I have to stay focused to get things accomplished.

For my needlework, if it is not in my face it is off my radar. I know I am not the only one who suffers from that.

Someone will mention they are working on a project and I am reminded that I have something similar that I started eons ago so I go looking for it. I start digging through my WIPs and almost immediately start feeling guilty about all of my long-lost, and much-loved, projects that I want to finish.

Or a new something comes along and I jump on that bandwagon and I am adding 2 (or 5) more WIPs to a list and the guilt starts all over again. (Of course, sometimes there is no guilt involved, but I still get a few heart palpitations over the amount of WIPs I have.)

Throw in having more than one hobby, craft, obsession, whatever you want to call it, and it really starts getting out of hand and the numbers go from single digit, to double-digit, and for some people, triple digits.

Well, I am determined that 2014 is going to be a FABulous year in a great many ways but for my hobbies it is going to be a FAB4FOCUS year.

I am going to focus on 4 projects at a time – for 4 quarters – in 2014 – in each of my two favorite obsessions – Quilting and Cross-stitch.

I have not worked out all of the kinks yet, but it will go something like this:

For my cross-stitch I am going to pick 4 WIPs that I want completely finished and either hanging on my wall or show-cased in my house somewhere. I will ONLY work on one of those 4 projects until they are finished and by finished I mean take it to the framer, or stitch it up, make it into a box, whatever it takes to call it F.I.N.I.S.H.E.D.!

I have not yet decided on my cross-stitch projects. I started a private sampler stitch-along yesterday that is goal-based. It will be completed over 6 months so it will be the first item on my list and thus will be the first thing I stitch on each month until I stitch to our goal. I am also hoping to finish And They Sinned before the end of the year but my two-month long stitching slump put me behind, so it may be on the list as well.

I also have a huge box of items that are completely stitched that need to be finished. Many of them need to go to the framer, but many are ornaments that need to be finished. Yup, they are going to make the list, too.

If I were to choose my 4 cross stitch projects today, my focus list might look like this:

1. Elizabeth Sheffield (stitch toward goal)
2. And They Sinned (20 hours a month and focus on this piece if everything else is finished)
3. And A Sampler Grew – finish out pin pillow and scissor fob
4. French Alphabet Sampler – find it, frog error in border, order new fiber to re-stitch border

I am also going to pick 4 quilting projects, but this list will be a little different from my cross-stitch list.

I have 2 Blocks of the Month (BOM) starting – one at the end of 2013 and one at the beginning of 2014 and they will count as one item. If I keep them on my list that will help me stay on track to have all of the blocks stitched and 2 large quilts finished. One is a 9-month program and one is a 12-month program.

I also have several Jo Morton Little Women club quilts that I want to finish so they will be one item on my list.

Another item will be the quilts I am making for my son, niece, and seven nephews – for a total of 9 quilts.

The last item will be determined closer to the beginning of the year, but I have plenty to choose from. So today my example list would look like this:

1. BOM
2. JMLW club quilt
3. Son’s quilt
4. Sampler quilt table topper binding

I am a “quilt with your checkbook” gal, except for the JMLW quilts, so I still have some figuring out to do when a quilt is out for quilting and that slot is temporarily empty.

If I have finished something I will add something else in, but not to the neglect of what is already on the list.

I plan on doing 4 reviews during the year to see how I feel about my projects. I will decide to keep them on the list if they’re not finished, or I will get them OUT OF MY HOUSE. I am a member of enough online groups that I know I can find someone who might love my project if I no longer do.

So why am I sharing this in August? Well, since misery loves company I am hoping someone will either volunteer to ride roughshod over me to help keep me going, or will want to play along, too – which will also keep me going.

I am sharing this in July hoping others might share it on their blogs/forums and to give anyone who wants to play time to think about how they want to organize their own 4 projects.

And, I am sharing this now because once August gets here my year is over in a minute!

Last but not least, it is a list 😀

You do not have to have multiple hobbies to play. Nor do your hobbies have to be cross-stitch or quilting. Scrapbookers, card makers, knitters, crocheters, chain maillers, needlepointers, beaders, and any other hobbiest I might have left out, please come share!

Right now the plan is share a list on Sunday what was accomplished the previous Sunday-Saturday and what to accomplish the next Sunday-Saturday. Review at the end of the quarter for any adjustment that needs to be made for the next quarter, i.e., get rid of something no longer loved, add in new start, etc.

No sign up will be necessary if anyone wants to join me. Just jump in whenever you start, post your goals for your first Sunday – Saturday, and link up to my blog so we can encourage each other. Each week after that post your goals for next week, your accomplishments from last week, and link up so we can continue to encourage each other.

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Posted in FAB4FOCUS, Goals, Quilting, Stitching

Beginning of the end

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Terri | 4 comments

July always reminds me that the year is half over and I need to get serious about what has been on my annual to-do list.

By this time of year, for the past couple of years, I’ve been working on patriotic designs. The first year, I stitched Memorial Day through September 11. Last year, I stitched Memorial Day to just past July 4th before switching to Mary Wigham. This year, I’ve been doing so many other non-stitching things that I never got around to starting patriotic stitching! It has been in the back of my mind to start something on July 4th, but now that it’s on top of me I don’t want to. I have so many xsWIPs and I know I shouldn’t be starting anything else, but (there’s always a but) I’ve decided to join an Elizabeth Sheffield (Scarlet Letter) stitchalong on August 1. This means I have a month to get all the supplies together and get my stitching act together. For the past 6 weeks or so I’ve only stitched when I’ve been at the LNS for our open stitch-in and that needs to stop if I want to get And They Sinned done.

I’m also becoming more and more involved with quilting instead of stitching and wonder if I should just give up stitching altogether for awhile, but then I realize how much I love it and figure I’m just going through a little slump. If I wanted to give it up altogether I wouldn’t look forward to Thursday nights and the stitching I do then, right?

So, I’ve decided to go through my to-do list I made at the beginning of the year and clean it out of anything that I know I realistically won’t get to. The rest of the things that are on that list (2013 Jul-Dec) are going to be stitched on in a mini-rotation. If no other stitching happens, I’m at least going to rotate taking them with me to the LNS on Thursdays.

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Posted in Goals

Get it done in July

Posted on July 1, 2013 by Terri | Comments Off

I never made a post about what I wanted to accomplish in June, but I did have a written list. I wasn’t 100% successful, but got a lot done.

1. ~~Move all fabric from drawers to cabinets~~
2. ~~Rearrange bookcases~~
3. Finish organizing studion- still need some shelves
4. ~~Organize quilting projects~~
5. Finish quilting gift project – just need to finish binding
6. ~~Cut 160 squares for Son’s Quilt~~
7. Sew Scarlet House pin pillow – didn’t even pull it out
8. ~~Continue on And The Sinned~~
9. ~~Prepare Caramel Corn for sewing~~

For July, I’m keeping it easy since I’ll be traveling and I’ve started working part time:

1. Finish organizing studio
2. Finish binding gift project
3. Start cutting sashing for Son’s quilt
4. Sew Scarlet House pin pillow
5. Continue on And They Sinned
6. Finish applique on Caramel Corn
7. Cut fabrics for hexagons

Comments Off on Get it done in July

Posted in Goals

I bet you’re wondering…

Posted on January 24, 2013 by Terri | 3 comments

…now why don’t she write? (brownie points if you know where that’s from.)

What happened to Wednesday? I managed to tick a few things off my to-do list, but not near as many as I thought I would. Getting back into a routine is always hard for me and between getting off of it over the holidays, and then last weekend’s trip, I’m struggling more than usual. While I think I’m completely over whatever ailment I had I have now caught a case of the lazies or the I-don’t-wannas.

I did manage to get the kitchen back in order and the laundry started, among other things, but I never made it into my craft room yesterday, other than to fight with my laptop, so no new progress photo to share.

I don’t know what I’ve done but for some reason my ActiveX Control doohicky is not working on Explorer. I’ve “googled” and followed written and video direction and it still won’t work. I’m using Chrome for now but I can’t access any of my bookmarks and this old bird doesn’t like change — at all!

Mister had class all day/evening so he wasn’t there to fix it so I soothed my frustration somewhat by stitching more on And The Sinned while finishing off the first season of Eureka and starting on the second season and setting my timer between episodes and working on the house (and probably muttering about the computer the whole time).

The weather here was unbelievably wonderful yesterday so I left the slider open while I was downstairs and the puppies were in and out so much they wore themselves (and the birds they chased off) out.

Mister only has 1 class this afternoon. I’m supposed to head to Attic for open stitch night but I haven’t decided whether or not to go. I haven’t seen him very much since last Thursday and it might be nice to have a night on the couch with him and the puppies catching up on the DVR.

Tomorrow is the first Friday that I’ll be accompanying Mister to campus. We’ve scheduled to get his Beemer worked on (a strut or something is leaking) and My Shiny gets her first oil change. I’ll probably read while he’s in class and whatever else we do will be decided later.

Gotta get off this contraption and get something accomplished!

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Posted in Goals

Minutiae

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Terri | 10 comments

Don’t you hate it when you go to bed and your brain won’t shut off!?!?! Sometimes, hitting “publish” on my blog has the same effect. This post could probably be a result of both of those events.

While the title of this post is “Minutiae” the post is very long and tedious to probably everyone but me 😉

Goals

I’ve been trying to figure out a “theme” for myself this year. For some reason in my mind I think if I have a theme it would be easier for me to stick to some goals I want to meet or improve on what I’m already doing. The word “control” keeps popping in my mind. I need to better control my weight-loss. I need to better control my finances. I need to better control my housekeeping. I need to better control my hobby stash. Okay, maybe my theme should be “better” since that keeps preceding “control.”

Health

I never discuss my weight-loss efforts here. I don’t know why. I know there are other people out there trying to fight the battle of the bulge. I use the online Weight Watchers plan so I can use the eTools. I do not attend meetings since you have to pay for each one and there are no monthly passes here which automatically give you access to eTools.

My hobbies are very sedentary and I know they don’t help but I refuse to give them up. I’m going ~~to try~~ to focus more on my weight-loss efforts in 2013. I weighed less for my first 2013 weigh-in than I did for my first 2012 weigh-in but I’m not happy with that. My 2 large hurdles are activity and Mister.

Right now it’s too cold to me to walk in the mornings and when the warmer afternoons get here I get too lazy because I’m enjoying snuggling with the puppies and a cup of tea while stitching. Then the evening arrives and the cold comes back. I do not have clothing (bottoms) to walk in cold. I’ve been searching for sweatpants but am surprised at how hard it is to find any right now! 😆

Mister and I have one day over the weekend where we eat out. In the past it was usually Friday since her didn’t have class and we’d go to the movies and out to eat. Last year on that day I’d ask first thing in the morning where we would be eating so I could plan my points for the day. It became quite evident very early on that the answer from him would be very unreliable as he’d quite frequently change his mind and it would be somewhere that was very hard for me to track points on. I gave in and gave up too easily. I don’t think he’s doing it intentionally because I know he’s concerned about potential health problems from my weight so this year I plan on being more assertive and in control. Of course right now he has class 5 days a week 😉

Money

I know. It’s not polite to talk about money. Nothing too lower-class here, though.

Once I stopped working and started getting an “allowance” I quit balancing my checkbook. I am trying to get back into writing checks for two reasons. First, it helps retailers (who still accept them) save money since they don’t have to pay a fee if I write a check. I used to offer to use my debit card but these days so many banks charge fees for debit purchases too. Second, I balance my checkbook religiously when I write checks and I keep a better handle on how I’m spending my money.

I got into a really bad habit this past year of charging things on my credit card and then transferring to cover. There’s no need for me to be doing this when I don’t get any type of reward for charging on my CC. I’m also going to increase the amount I’m putting on that CC and get it gone!

I’m also going to start putting some of my “allowance” into savings for “stitchy travel.”

It’s been a bit of a blow to my psyche to become “dependent” on Mister’s retirement pay. I think doing the above things will help me feel a little more independent and in control.

Homekeeping

I can remember in the not so distant past that every time someone would ask me what I wanted to be when I grow up I would answer a stay-at-home-wife. I did get to be that for a very short time while we were stationed in Okinawa and I loved it. Such a shocker since I was raised to be an independent woman (by my father). This past year has been such a learning experience for me and I can’t wait to see what I learn in 2013.

One thing that I absolutely swear by is FlyLady. I don’t follow her routines or zones exactly the same as she publishes but I have taken what she’s given me and modified it to work in my home, which is what I believe she wants all of us to do.

Our new home — I guess I should stop calling it that now that I’ve lived here for a year — Our home is twice the size of any house I have ever lived in. I knew immediately that I would have to change my housekeeping ways if I was to stay on top of utter CHAOS (can’t have anyone over syndrome) in such a huge place. My home is not perfectly clean or perfectly decorated but I am not ashamed to invite anyone into it nor do I freak out if my doorbell rings.

When I lived in California my house was small enough that I could follow FlyLady’s zones fairly closely as to how they’re published. This gave me the anchor I needed and the time I needed to learn the mindset. In this house I’ve changed it. I have a different “zone” every day, instead of changing zones each week. Every Monday – Friday I do my daily routines and I “do” one room of my house. Saturday and Sunday I do my daily routines but I don’t “do” a zone, and I rarely do laundry on Sunday.

For example: Monday – Friday I do my daily routines (make my bed; shower and dress; swish and swipe master bath; take dirty clothes downstairs; start laundry; swish and swipe downstairs powder room (next to laundry room); eat breakfast while watching the news). It takes me less than 20 minutes to make my bed, swish and swipe both bathrooms, carry the laundry down and start it, and make my breakfast and start unloading the dishwasher — I usually have oatmeal for breakfast so while that’s nuking I’m unloading the dishwasher. It all sounds and looks like a lot when I write it and read it back but I’ve been doing it so long now that I don’t even think about it anymore. If I’m going out of the house it’ll take me longer since I’ll be doing more than slapping on some moisturizer.

Then I spend approximately 30-60 minutes each morning on my zone; rebooting the laundry; plan/start prep for our evening meal; and, spend 2 15-minute sessions decluttering. These days the decluttering is strictly in my stitching room. The length of time in a room depends on that room. If it’s my living room then I dust my furniture and shutters and vacuum. This might take me 30 minutes if the dogs are in there helping by bringing me toys. Same goes for my dining room. If it’s my kitchen it can take me an hour since I have to also damp mop the floor, wipe out some of the shelves in the refrigerator, etc. while I’m purging leftovers. Plus, it’s a much larger room than my dining room or my living room. It only takes me more than an hour if I don’t stick to my routines. This is how I get so much stitching done. I feel guilty if I sit down to stitch and I haven’t done anything in my house.

Where I can improve is starting myself a control journal as suggested on FlyLady’s site. She publishes missions (chores) to do in each zone and I think I’m going to start printing them out and putting them in a control journal so when I get to that room in my house I can do them. There are some things she talks about doing that slips my mind (like dusting the ceiling fans and baseboards). The nice thing about these missions is they never take very long to do and make a huge difference.

By this time are you (if anyone is reading this) thinking I’m anal or OCD? I’m not, but I do have ADD and this helps me from being overwhelmed. If you’re not familiar with ADD, sometimes tasks get so overwhelming that we don’t know where to start, so we don’t start, then the task gets even more overwhelming and it’s a vicious circle that will cause a melt-down. When I start on a room I start at the left and work clockwise around a room. Every single time!

Hobby Stash

We sold a commercial grade ladder on a local Facebook group on Saturday. It was like winning the lottery! Our first piece of “clutter” gone in 2013. Mister has started gathering the bike parts he no longer needs/wants to sell on eBay. I have been decluttering my own hobby stash for over a year, but haven’t put any of it up for sale. That’s about to change.

I have been stitching for 35 years and rarely got rid of any of the designs that I’ve already stitched. I currently have 3 copy-paper boxes full of patterns, kits, etc., stuff to sell. I’ll be listing it on my blog first, then on a couple of Facebook groups (and my own page), then I’ll go the eBay route. I did think of opening an Etsy shop so I’ll have to look into fees, etc., for that. I have blogged this before, but I also have very few of my stitched pieces hanging on my walls. I’m going to first use whatever funds we generate to finish buying the framing supplies I need and get a lot of those pieces framed.

Getting rid of excess stash and having my beautiful crafts on display will help me control the clutter in my stitching room and not be so overwhelmed by how much stuff I have that I don’t use.

Blogging

This last bit is hard. I want to blog more and share more photos of what I’ve been doing. My computer is upstairs in my stitching room. My stitching is done downstairs, but all my other “crafting” is done upstairs in my stitching room. I’m trying to figure out a way to get myself in front of the computer more. I actually miss blogging!

10 Comments

Posted in Domestic, Goals, Life, Stash, Weight

2012 Year End Review

Posted on January 5, 2013 by Terri | 3 comments

My 2012 Goals were:

■Get back to blogging more frequently. I think I did blog more frequently, but still feel guilty that I didn’t blog more than I did.

■Get back to rotating my stitching and tracking my time. I started out really strong on my rotation then lost my watch 🙁 I did continue to track my time, but more in the number of days it took me to stitch something than the actual length of time.

■Stick to my WIPocalypse goals and keep my page updated. Not 100% success.

■Post to the Theme-a-licious challenge as often as my rotation works into it. I was doing rather well in this, too, until I hit a “snag” then just couldn’t get myself back in it.

■Post my monthly TUSAL. I don’t think I ever did this. It was laziness on my part because I certainly kept up with it at home!

■Participate in at least 6 3 Fair and Square exchanges. (changed 1/8/12) 1 finished 2/12 I had every intention in participating in the 3 exchanges. Once I finished the first one I never saw notification of any others. I’ve since figured out what I did wrong so I can see when the new exchanges come up.

■Finish out all 6 3 received Fair and Square exchanges. My received item is sitting on my finishing table waiting on me to finish it. I’ve already decided what I want to do, I’m just having trouble finding a suitable finishing item for it.

■Stitch a Santa ornament for my Santa display. I stitched 3 Prairie Schooler Santas for my display…but they never got ornamentified 🙁

■Take at least 1 stitching related class. Oh, joy, oh, yes! I attended the Attic’s Summer Soiree and had a blast! The projects we received in class are at the very top of my finish list for 2013.

■Finish logging my charts into my spreadsheet. I am 90% finished with this!!!!

■Start organizing my freebies. Didn’t get to them or the magazines since I didn’t finish with the charts.

■Organize my magazine designs.

The first half of 2012 found Mister and I holding our breath and living a wait and see life. His retirement on February 1 scared us both a little. It was such a huge change for us going first from two incomes, down to his, then down to 75% of his. I was so thankful that I remembered how frugal I had to be when we first married. Of course back then there was no internet to peruse to find hints and secrets of how everyone else was doing it 😉 It took awhile for his disability pay to kick in, but once that happened we both felt the relief those funds could bring.

I traveled in January to Las Vegas and had a blast with Melissa, Annette and Annette’s mother, Pat. There was a lot of stitching, and laughing, and a good bit of gambling that occurred and I actually came home richer than I arrived.

I enjoyed as many open stitching nights as I could at Attic Needlework. There were several Bag Ladies stitchins, and I loved, loved, loved the Sampler Sundays I attended. I feel so blessed to be living near Attic, getting to know so many designers that live nearby, and stitching with some wonderful women.

I found a really nice quilt shop and started the first of 3 quilt classes in January. I still haven’t finished the two quilts (one needs binding, one needs quilting and binding) but I did manage to finish what I think is a beautiful quilted bag that I tote all over the place with my stitching.

I read more books than I can remember and feel bad that I didn’t keep track of just how much I read.

And stitching! Lordy, did I stitch this year! I have been having so much fun with it! I had 11 stitching pieces on my WIPacolypse list. I finished 3. I also started 7 more, and finished 5 of those. Not bad 😉

Petite Mexican Sampler – The Samplar Workes – finished
Peacock Tapestry – Teresa Wentzler – (started 9/99) stitched on for 10 hours
Harmony – Serendipity Designs – started 11/23/97 — this had about 10 stitches in it. I took it with me to Vegas and unstitched it, then gridded the bottom of the fabric. Fortunately, I measured before I started stitching again and discovered there would have only been a one inch margin all the way around my fabric. I have put it aside, and taken it off my WIP/UFO list for now since there’s nothing but a gridded piece of fabric.
Haiku – Dimples Designs – started January 2004 – finished
Fairy Moon – Mirabilia – started October 27, 2004 – this saw a lot of stitching. I am almost finished with the stitching and will keep her in my 2013 rotation until she’s finished.
QS Letting Go – HAED – November 19, 2005
Red Desert Scissor Pocket – The Cat’s Whiskers – started October 11, 2006 – needs finishing out
Quaker Needlework Treasures – With My Needle – originally started October 2006; picked back up January 11, 2010
Le Marquoir de Justine – started January 4, 2007
Hannah Beeby – finished 4/15/12
Houses of Hawk Run Hollow – Carriage House Samplings – started January 18, 2010
New Start – Rose Quaker Sampler – Wiehenburg – (Started 4/25/12 stitchalong on Wednesdays)
New Start — Hannah Gilpin 1800 – Needleprint
Mary Wigham – Needleprint – New Start 4/26/12 – finished 9/1/12 I fell so in love with this piece I couldn’t put it down!
Americana – Carriage House Samplings – New Start finished 6/9/12
America – Little House Needleworks – New Start finished 6/17/12
Betsy – Sheepish Designs – New Start finished 6/25/12
America – Blackbird Designs – New Start finished 7/8/12

I also conquered my fear of finishing ornaments!

I got a new car! I got to travel to California and see Son and Melissa. Son and Girlfriend came here for Christmas. My parents came here for New Year (haven’t visited me in over 12 years).

All in all I feel I had a really good year. Mister and I stayed healthy. Harley Quinn had a rough year-end, but it looks like she’s completely healed and we’re very thankful to be starting 2013 with her and Jasper healthy.

Mister starts back to school on Monday. I’m looking forward to the routine it helps keep me in and the uninterrupted stitching time it gives me.

Last but not least, I managed to finally start And They Sinned yesterday. I have a 25% off everything coupon for Jo-Ann so I’ll be buying DMC for Berlin Woolwork Sampler and starting on that on the 15th.

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Posted in And They Sinned, Berlin Woolwork Sampler, Goals, Puppies, Quilting, Samplers - Original, Samplers - Repro, Stitching, Weight

2013 Crafting Plans – Part 1

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Terri | 2 comments

I have become interested in so many things this past year that I can’t make just stitching plans anymore! While stitching is my predominant obsession, there is also quilting, reading, chain maille, beading, and what I call “general craftiness.” (And, yes, I know reading is not a craft.) I have decided to make a permanent note of some things I’d like to accomplish in 2013. Nothing is set in stone. I know my tastes might change, or I may not like something after I’ve tried it, so I won’t have any guilt about altering or deleting something from my list. The main thing will be to shop my own stuff.

I’ve decided to break up my plans since the stitching portion is so large! LOL

Stitching

1. I’ve spent the past couple of weeks organizing my craft room and entering my stitching into a spreadsheet. I pulled a whole bunch of stuff out that I know I will never, ever stitch so number 1. on my list is de-stash.

2. Since I got to look at every single design I now own, I was reminded of so many of the things I bought and have put away that I truly love and want to complete. Many of them purchased as kits, or kitted up by me, most of them very small stitching accessories, or tiny samplers, that I want to stitch. I’ve put them in a basket and want to stitch from that basket first before I pull something new out of my vast selection.

Here’s a list:

Blackbird Designs – Feast of Friendship
Dessins – Deers Among Wood
Examplar Dames – And They Sinned
Needlemade Designs – ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas
Needle’s Prayse – Berlin Woolwork Sampler
NeedleWorkPress – Commemorating a Centennial
Plum Street Samplers – Beans, Beans
Plum Street Samplers – Eliza Scattergood
Scarlet Letter – Gratitude
Scarlett House – Christmastide at Holly House
Blackbird Designs – Waiting for the Harvest
Cherry Wood Designs – Acorn Pincushion
Chessie & Me – Pumpkin Stack
Erica Michaels – Mending
Ewe & I & Friends – Queen of Hearts
Ink Circles – Treble, Bass, and Alto designs
Just Nan – Needle Tweets
Just Nan – Feathered Fashion
Little House Needleworks – Home of a Needleworker
Little House Needleworks – A Stitcher’s Prayer
Little House Needleworks – Scissors Bed
Little House Needleworks – Schoolgirl Lessons
Little House Needleworks – Jessie Bell – Arizona Territory
Lizzie Kate – Life’s a Stitch
Lizzie Kate – A Good Marriage
Lizzie Kate – Less is More
Milady’s Needle – Faithful Friends
Scarlett House – Emma Mills 1839
Sweetheart Tree – Teeny Wedding Announcement
Threads of Gold – Barbara Schlater
Twisted Oaks Design – Roses and Rooster
Prairie Schooler – 1987-2012 annual Santas

A bit scary, huh. These are things that have not been started! Will they all get started? Most definitely not, and even if they do I don’t promise that they’ll get finished in 2013 either. They’re just what I’m hoping to choose from when I ~~need~~ want a new start.

In addition to the above, I will also continue working on my WIPs. The first ones pulled are going to be Dimple Designs – Haiku, and Mirabilia – Fairy Moon. Both are very close to being finished. As mentioned in a previous post I am planning on starting Scarlet Letter “Gratitude” on Christmas day, and will start Examplar Dames “And They Sinned” on January 1, and Needle’s Prayse “Berlin Woolwork Sampler” on January 15. As of this writing I am planning on these last two being my only large starts for 2013 while I work on some of my other larger WIPs during the year.

I’ll update on the other craftiness in the next few days. Right now I have a third of my china cabinet spread out all over my kitchen (been moving furniture); boxes and boxes of holiday decorations piled up in the garage that Mister is patiently (for now) waiting on me to dig through for what I want to put up this year; 3 large boxes of things in my guest room that need to be sorted out so Son will have a place to sleep when he arrives; my cutting table set up in the upstairs hallway covered with beading, chain maille, wool, and quilting craft stuff I’ve been sorting; and a Coke Zero calling my name.

Oh, and for those following along. HarleyQuinn had a successful surgery. She is still recoverying to the point where she is still having to take pain pills. We were warned it was major and the recovery would be slow (about a month). She is still having some digestive problems but we think it’s due to the medicines and then change in diet she had to have due to surgery. She had lost about a pound and a half and for her that is a LOT. She started having her regular food worked back into her diet yesterday and we’re keeping our fingers crossed that it will help with her digestive problems and get some weight back on her. Right this second she’s taking a nap with Mister and Jasper.

2 Comments

Posted in Goals, Life, Stitching

Organization

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Terri | 6 comments

It’s just turned 3:00 p.m. here. With the exception of breaks for breakfast, shower, lunch, 2 15-minute email checks, and 2 15-minute blog reader checks, a half hour wasted surfing quilt fabric sites, and a couple of “important” interruptions by Mister, I have spent my day entering 439 charts into an excel spreadsheet.

Full-sized charts

I pulled my patriotic designs and Halloween designs put them in a separate piles to create a box each specifically for them, plus I pulled some charts that I want to work on in 2013 if they fit into my “goals” that I’ve been working on. I have also culled what I know no longer interests me (which is probably why it’s taken so long). I’ll be offering them up here before putting them out on the various Facebook groups I post on.

I still have a very long way to go, but at least I’m working on it. I finished sorting through my quilt fabric several days ago. Of course, this doesn’t include the fabric shopping I’ve done over the past couple of weeks. (It’s a sickness, I tell you!)

I’m waiting on some comic backing board to arrive and I’ll start better organizing my fabric. For now it’s folded the best I could get it to get the most to fit in there. The refolding won’t happen until after the first of the year though since my goal is to be finished getting my room organized before Thanksgiving so I won’t be too embarrassed if a couple of stitchers happen to drop in for some stitching and finishing fun.

6 Comments

Posted in Goals, Quilting, Stash, Stitching

May’s report, June’s goals

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Terri | 2 comments

Before I get started I need to give a huge public “thank you” to Melissa. Right after the first of the month my blog decided to take a nosedive. It was a PITA in the beginning. By mid-month I could no longer post any photos and as the month wore on it turned into a catastrophe. I couldn’t even log in. This past week I threw myself at her feet and begged her to help me. She was kind enough to get it straightened out for me. It was not an easy fix, and I think I owe her my blogging life.

A lot went on in May for me, but because I couldn’t access my blog in the past couple of weeks, I’m sure I’ve forgotten more than I remembered. I settled the lawsuit I brought against the woman who hit me last year; we’ve been having record heat here and M and I have been thoroughly enjoying our pool; I got Hannah Beeby framed and she’s hanging all by her lonesome in the middle of my family room wall (I haven’t unpacked my other large pieces yet); I have finally settled into the perfect routine for me and because of it am getting a ton of guilt-free quilting and stitching accomplished; I started walking consistently. That’s all I can remember right now!

My goals for May were fairly simple and I accomplished more than I thought I would:

Get the rest of my fibers put away (DONE)
Get started sorting my fabric (DONE)
Get back to rotating on:
1. Petite Mexican Sampler (finish it?) (FINISHED IT)
2. Fairy Moon (YES!)
3. Haiku (DIDN’T TOUCH IT*)
Continue with Rose Quaker and Mary Wigham on their respective stitching days (YES*)
Piece 4 more quilt squares (YES)
Finish quilted stitching bag (my Theme-a-licious project for May (NO)

*I forgot when I set my monthly goals that Memorial Day was coming up. Last year Jean published in the Attic Needlework May 2011 newsletter that she stitched on patriotic pieces from Memorial Day until September 11th. I have a lot of designs that contain the American flag, or are otherwise patriotic, and I thought this was a wonderful idea. Last year I chose 2 medium sized designs and it took me until about the 2nd week of October to finish the 2nd one. This year on Memorial Day I started Carriage House Samplings’ “Americana.” I’m very close to finishing it…perhaps just a couple more days of stitching. I have a second design pulled and will probably have no problem getting it finished before September 11, and then I’ll decide what to do next…continue with patriotic stitching or get back to my rotation. For now, though, I have stopped working on my rotation and I skipped yesterday’s stitching on Rose Quaker. I still haven’t decided whether or not I’m going to work on Mary Wigham today/tonight at Thursday stitchin.

While I had my stitching bag down for my Theme-a-licious project for may, I did work on my other quilt class projects. I keep forgetting to bring my stitching bag upstairs to make those few stitches! It sits by my chair holding my project bags and waiting to be loaded with my other odds and ins I take to stitchins. It’s happy where it is! LOL

I do have WIPacolypse progress to share but that will have to wait for another day as I have places to go and things to do today 😀

What do I want to do in June?

Finish sorting my stitching fabrics.
Get started sorting my quilting fabrics.
Continue with my patriotic stitching.
Piece 4 quilt squares
Work on Haiku for June’s Theme-a-licious.
Paint my bedroom.
Buy new bed.

My quilt class ends in June. I have enjoyed it so much and have gained confidence in reading patterns, choosing color, and piecing. I’ve purchased fabric for a small table top size quilt and am looking forward to starting it after I catch up with the rest of my quilting.

M finally heard back from the Veterans’ office at the university and has started his registration process.

The puppies are still providing great entertainment and love and are staying relatively healthy.

I have a long weekend getaway planned with Karen and am really looking forward to it.

2 Comments

Posted in Carriage House Samplings, Framing, Goals, Hannah Beeby, Quilting, Stitch-together, Stitching, Theme-a-licious, WIPocalypse

May goals

Posted on May 1, 2012 by Terri | 1 comment

My needlework expectations for May are:

Get the rest of my fibers put away
Get started sorting my fabric
Get back to rotating on:
1. Petite Mexican Sampler (finish it?)
2. Fairy Moon
3. Haiku
Continue with Rose Quaker and Mary Wigham on their respective stitching days
Piece 4 more quilt squares
Finish quilted stitching bag (my Theme-a-licious project for May)