2014 in Cross Stitch

Hi all,

A big thank you to those of you who have left such encouraging and helpful comments! 
With 2015 only days away, I thought this would be a good time to look back at my goals for cross stitching this year, and see which I can cross off (no pun intended) my list.

For the initial post of our WIPocalypse SAL (hosted by Melissa at Measi's Musings), we were asked to come up with a list of cross stitch goals for 2014.  I didn't join the SAL until the end of May, so my goals were for June-December 2014.

These were the goals from that initial post (quite ambitious for me, but I made a dent in them: 4 out of 6 reached!) I have marked those I was able to accomplish, and shown where I am with the rest.  Just a warning, this is a very pic-heavy post! :P

Goal #1: finish "Checking His List" stocking: complete!  Gave to my bf for Christmas. : )
                Here's what it looks like all sewn up:

        

 And for the back, a Christmas plaid:

Goal #2: finish "Aurora Cabin": not so much, but I did make a big dent in it. This should be a finish for 2015 (knock on wood.)

I started here in May:

And this is what it looks like right now:
    

Goal #3: complete 4 out of 25 pages for "Quiet Time": nope.  1/25 pages complete. Oh well, better luck next year. I started it in March, and this was my progress for the year:

Goal #4: start and finish four nativity ornaments: Complete! I gave these to my mom for Christmas.
All finished up, this is what they looked like:

 

Goal #5: start and finish "Napping Kitten": Complete! Gave to my sister for Christmas.
Here it is framed:

Goal #6: start "The Wave," any amount!: Complete! I started this on Nov 16, and this is my progress:

 

In addition to these goals, I started and finished one additional design, and started two other designs:

I started and finished "The Lonely Mountain: The Hobbit" from Quirkorium on Etsy as a Christmas present for my dad.  This is what it looked like finished and framed:

I also started two more patterns.  First, a kit that was a birthday present from my bf, "Beauty and the Beast Falling in Love" (Disney Dreams, MCG Textiles).  I started it on Oct 4, and this has been my progress so far:

I also started "Winter Friend," (Gorjuss, Bothy Threads kit) on Nov 18.  My progress so far:


I will post in a week or so with my goals for 2015!  May your holidays be filled with stitching! :)

Winter Stitching: Dec. WIPocalypse Check-In

Hi all,

I've decided to save my summary of my yearly progress on my WIPocalypse goals until the end of December, but for this check-in, I thought I'd update you on my finishes and starts since my last post.

I had 2 finishes: I finished the stitching for the final ornament in the set of 4 I am making, and finished the stocking.  I also finish-finished (so far) the stocking, and 2 of the 4 ornaments. I will upload photos of these after Christmas...just in case. : )

With all my Christmas stitching completed so early (still can't believe it!), I decided to try to tackle one more stitchy Christmas present, which I will be starting once the fabric arrives on Monday! It is a pattern by Quirkorium on etsy: "The Lonely Mountain- The Hobbit."  I am making it for my dad (who I think I can safely say will never read this blog, so I can share), who is a big LOTR (and Hobbit) fan, and who loves the "Misty Mountain Song" the dwarves sing (and this cross stitch has the first verse!)

I am going to stitch it on a mottled brown Aida that (I hope) will look like old parchment, instead of plain white.  Hopefully, I will finish it in time (if not, he's got a January birthday), and I will upload a pic of it at the end of the month!

Additionally, all these finishes meant I got to start two of the charts that have been calling to me from my craft shelf, yay!  I do a rotation of 5 WIPs, and I don't allow myself any projects beyond these 5 slots (except for this new Christmas present I just mentioned, which was a last minute decision to stitch, and therefore will technically be a 6th WIP for about a week until it's done), so with each finish, I get to start something new.  I've found this helps me to finish my WIPs more quickly towards the end, because I get excited about the upcoming start!

My two starts are both from kits, mainly because I am trying to save for Christmas presents and have therefore sworn not to buy any more stitchy supplies except for those needed for gifts until 2015.   But they are two patterns that I am very excited about getting to finally stitch!

The first is "The Wave" by Dimensions. This is my progress over the past two weeks:

(My apologies for the dim lighting...it's a rainy day here!)
And this is what it will look like when finished:

 I got this kit back when I was in middle school, but it turned out to be too daunting a project for me at the time.  I rediscovered it when I was organizing my stash earlier this year, and my bf saw it and really liked it, so I decided it would be first in line after I finished this year's presents!

The second is "Winter Friend," a Gorjuss design.  I recently purchased this kit, which I think is so cute!  I love the effect of all of the different threads used in it, especially the fuzzy Lana for the snowflakes!

 

This is two weeks progress on it:

I will post pics of all my finished Christmas presents, and my updates on the bigger WIPs I've been stitching on this year, on or around Dec. 31!  Until then, happy stitching!