Lazy Sunday

I am having a very lazy day today, I am spending a lot of quality time with my sofa and doing nothing more energetic than a little bit of knitting and some stitching. The last couple of weeks have been a real rollercoaster ride and I need some down time. I finally got myself back to what passes for normal for me when one of my closest friends and neighbour became very ill - she still has not had a definate diagnosis but is scheduled for exploratory surgery this coming Tuesday. And then on Thursday my father was rushed to hospital in extreme pain, after a sleepless night for all the family he has been diagnosed with gall stones and an infection. Once the infection is under control he will need an operation but is feeling much better now he knows what is wrong.

All this has left me with little time for the internet but I have been crafting. Since I last posted I have completed several braclets (apologies for the poor photographs)

and have added a few personal touches to a plain plastic pot that I had lying around which I am now using to contain my finishing reward fund.

Yesterday I put in the last few stitches and added the buttons to Spring House by The The Trilogy but forgot to take a photograph before taking it to my framers. While at the framers which doubles as my LNS I purchased five charts by Heart In Hand Needleart, the border for their Monthly Markings series and the first four months. This is my first purchase since I started my finishing reward fund. I now just need to finish a few more things so that I have some money to spend on more stuff.

I've Been Thinking (again)

Firstly thank you for the kind comments on my last post, I promise to try and post more regularly from now on.

Secondly I have been thinking about my stash and have decided that being on the crafting wagon is not for me but on the other hand I really really want to reduce the amount of stuff I have lying around the house waiting for me to create something with it. Not only do I have loads of stuff for my long-term hobbies (cross-stitching, knitting and beading) but I also have a very bad habit of deciding that I am going to try a new hobby and then going wild buying supplies before actually doing anything. For example when my niece was born 5 years ago I decided to take up card making and scrap booking. I promptly went out and purchased 4 large crates full of supplies and to date have created 1 scrapbook page and about a dozen cards. So in order to help me stay focused on finishing projects and not buying large quantities of new stuff I have decided to set up a “finished it fund”. The idea being that each time I finish a project I will put aside a pre-determined amount of money. This will then be the only money that I am allowed to spend on crafting related purchases. The sum of money set aside following each finish will be determined based on the type and size of project plus time taken to finish but within the following limits:
Card – 25p to £1
Scrapbook page – 50p to £2
Gift Tag – 10p to £1
Gift box / bag – 50p to £2
Pair of earrings – 50p to £2
Bracelet - £1 to £3
Necklace - £2 to £5
Knitting or stitching projects – £1 to £10
Note: Stitching projects that are to be framed will count as a finish once all the stitching is complete. Stitched pieces to be finished by other means (e.g. flat folds, pincushions, bags etc.) will only count once stitched and finished.

For Margaret

A progress picture of Awake the Dawning Day:

Sorry I have not been around much but I have been struggling with a neck injury which is resulting in loss of sensation or severe pain (I am unable to decide which is worse the feeling that the arm has been amputated at the shoulder or intense pain) in my left arm. This has led to, in part to a bout of the blues and a massive round of comfort eating which means my weight has sky rocketed and has led to me feeling even worse about myself. I have also had to restrict the amount of time I spend stitching, knitting and gardening as all of these become painful after awhile. However yesterday after months of seeing doctors and various consultants at the hospital I had an appointment with yet another specialist but this time came away feeling that progress has finally been made towards sorting out my arm and maybe getting back to normal. Last night I got a good nights sleep in for the first time in months and have woken in a much more positive frame of mind and really feel that a corner has been turned. So no more feeling sorry for myself just postitive thinking from now on.

January Results and February Goals

January was a good month for stitching. I managed to exceed my goals and finished a total of 6 projects. The last of which is Spring Banner by Lizzie*Kate pictured above. I also managed to complete the first two squares on Springology by The Trilogy and to make some progress on the two Blackbird Designs Loose Feathers projects that are current WIPs.

Awake the Dawning Day by Blackbird Designs.

Stash wise I have managed to limit purchases to a new pair of scissors, a single skein of GAST thread, a packet of needles, some mount board and three fat-quarters of cotton fabric. The last two are to be used to finish the Lizzie*Kate months that I finished the stitching in January as flat folds. On the downside I have been seduced by the siren call of a new hobby. While in my LNS picking up some framing (one good thing about not buying stash is I now have money to pay for long finished projects to be framed) I purchased a needle felting kit. I made a start on it over the past weekend and think I am going to be addicted. However I have promised myself to only buy the supplies for one felting project at a time and not to build up a huge stash pile.

I have decided to leave February’s goals as originally planned (even though I have already completed one). If I finish Feb’s goals before the end of the month I will put in some extra hours on some of my WIPs.

A Trio Of HDs

I decided to start on my spring stitching so that I have some pieces ready to go on display on the first day of spring. So far I have managed to finish these three designs from the Lizzie*Kate A Year With Charm series. At the moment I am undecided on how to finish them, originally I was going to get them framed but I am now considering turning them into flatfolds. I have never finished anything as a flatfold but I have found some very good instructions so might give it a go. Finishing them as flatfolds will give me a great excuse to visit my local quilting shop for some fabric.

A Little HD

I completed this late last night:

The Littles Snowman by Bent Creek.

New Year New Starts

Since it is January I am allowing myself to indulge in some new starts. Normally I would start something of significant size during January but this year I am limiting myself to medium and small projects. So far I have started:

Beneath The Sunlit Sky by Blackbird Designs, started 01-Jan-08.

Springology by The Trilogy, started 02-Jan-08.

I have also started The Little Snowman by Bent Creek but am so close to finishing it I thought I would not photo it will its HD. I must apologise for the very poor quality of the photos, I waited till this morning to take them in daylight but still needed to use the flash and it seems to have washed out the colours & my camera is very old hence the blurry images.

Setting Goals

I have decided that in order to maintain my focus throughout 2008 I need to set myself monthly goals. I have planned the whole year but am only going to post the first three months since I intend to review my progress every quarter and amend the following months as necessary.

January Goals

1. Start and finish Snow by Heart In Hand Needleart (a bit of a cheat since I have alreay completed this goal)
2. Start Beneath The Sunlit Sky by Blackbird Designs (also already done)
3. Start and finish Littles Snowman by Bent Creek
4. Complete two squares on Springology by The Trilogy
5. Progress Awake the Dawning Day by Blackbird Designs
6. Start and finish A Year With Charm March by Lizzie*Kate
7. Start and finish A Year With Charm April by Lizzie*Kate

February Goals

1. Start and finish A Year With Charm May by Lizzie*Kate
2. Start and finish Spring House by The Trilogy
3. Complete two squares on Springology by The Trilogy
4. Progress Awake the Dawning Day by Blackbird Designs
5. Start and finish Spring Bird by Heart In Hand Needleart

March Goals

1. Start and finish Easter Bird by Heart In Hand Needleart
2. Complete Springology
3. Complete Awake the Dawning Day
4. Start and finish A Year With Charm June

A Happy New Year and A Happy Dance

Snow by Heart in Hand Needleart, started 31-Dec-07 completed 01-01-08.

The flash has washed out the colour of the fabric which is a pale blue but I did not want to wait till the weekend to take a photo in the daylight. This was a really fun and quick stitch. I wanted to get 2008 off to a great start as it is my year for stash reduction. If I am to get below 100 fully kitted projects in my stash before the end of the year I need to finish on average 4 projects per month - unless I buy anything extra during the year. I am going to try and buy as little as possible this year after the bumper Christmas I had.

I would like to wish everyone who reads this blog a happy and helathy new year. I would also like to say thank-you for all the lovely comments that are left here, I truly appreaciate each and every one.

The Last HD of 2007

Paperwhites by Little House Needleworks completed 31-Dec-07.

Sorry the photo is so blurry and the light here is very bad this afternoon. Also although the photos makes it look otherwise the stitching is straight in real life.

When I got this out early today to finish work on it I counted the number of stitches left to be done - 85. I can not now remember what was so vitally important that I had to put this project aside with so little left to do.

For the rest of today I am going to work on Awake the Dawning Day and maybe later tonight will make a start on Snow by Heart in Hand Needlearts which is hopefully going to be a quick stitch. I am spending the evening with a bottle of wine, a couple of dvds and a few good friends who all would be most surprised if I left my stitching at home. Snow will be a good project to take out with me since it is simple enough not to need my full concentration.

I have been contemplating whether or not I will start something new tomorrow. At the moment I am so focused on completing as many projects as possible in 2008 I am working my way through my smaller / easier projects that the need for a new start is not so great. However I might start Beneath the Sunlit Sky by Blackbird Designs as this is not too large a project and was going to be my next start anyway.