Finally chose a Joan Elliott Piece

Well I finally decided what to stitch next. I kitted up and started Christmas Dreams on Silver Stardust Aida. It is a Santa in the shape of a crescent moon. I chose to do the blue version on the silver aida. The chart was designed specifically for the Stardust Aida from Charlescraft. I wanted to do one of the fairies, but due to Christmas money was a bit tight so I couldn't order all the metallics. Since I have all the flosses the Santa calls for, I chose to start that one instead.

© Joan Elliott and Charles Craft
Christmas Dreams: Silver

I may do the red one as well so they'll be a pair to hang up next Christmas.

Stitch the night away!

My daughter did a cross stitch for her boyfriend for Christmas. It comes from the Oriental Oddessy by Joan Elliott. She chose the pattern that has the Chinese character for "Love" and stitched it. She absolutely hated the metallics! But she still a great job! Here is a picture of it when she was done stitching followed by one that shows how her boyfriend chose to have it professionally framed. I think the frame he chose was perfect for the design.

I was so proud of Sam for her gorgeous stitching and for perservering through using the metallics she hated so much. I was even prouder when she explained how they had it framed: stitched and suspended (no staples, tape or glue), using archival quality mat boards, and uv protective archival quality glass. Her and her boyfriend "T" really wanted to make sure this piece survived the years and I think it is wonderful!

I haven't been stitching since I finished that secret square. I just haven't felt much like stitching. Though I did finally get a fabric for the birth announcement for my friend Aramina. It's a beautiful pale yellow that should compliment the colors of the piece without overwhelming them. I will start stitching it soon. I also want to start Joan Elliot's Seasonal Fairies or another of her designs. I have a bunch of hers that I love and I am having a hard time choosing between them. LOL Oh well, I will eventually figure out which one to start.

PIF

I won a PIF on Lindsay's blog "Caring Stitcher" back in October of 2008. When I got home from Thanksgiving with family I had a small package in the mail. The package contained my pif gift! I am so happy with it!! She did a beautiful biscornu for me, added a pretty card and a skein of the scented DMC floss to try! This is my first biscornu and it is gorgeous! Her stitches are beautiful!

Thank you so much Lindsay! I love it!

PIF stands for "Pay It Forward" and it was started because of an old movie by the same name. How it works is you announce, on your blog, that you are going to do a PIF. You choose how many recipients you want (1, 2, 3, or more) and what the PIF items will be (it can be a stitched and finished item, or stitching stash etc. so long as it is stitching or craft related). You announce the date that your PIF recipients will be chosen and tell people to comment on your post if they wish to be included. Then you draw the names and those people will be your PIF recipients. At some point within the next 365 days you must send your winners the items you chose to do. They can then announce on their blogs that they are going to do a PIF and thus "Pay It Forward".


I will send a stitching related item (could be stash, could be a stitched and finished item) within the next 365 days (by Dec. 7, 2010) to two people. So if you would like a chance at being one of those two people please comment on this post. I will announce the winners on Dec. 31, 2009!

The Cat Is Exiled ...

I was sitting in my living room watching TV the other day and heard a cat playing around in my bedroom. I thought it was one cat chasing and playing with another. I was wrong!

I went into my room to find the craftstor tote I keep my in progress stitching in upside down on the floor and the ziploc bag that contains the quilt square I've been working on is also on the floor. The bag has been torn up and the piece of stitching has also been torn up. I was only 10 stitches or so from finishing it and the cat tore it apart! The aida is all torn up, threads pulled out and shredded and my cat was happily chewing on the edge! I swear I saw red! I had to walk away because I was so angry and I wanted to just kill the cat. Instead I threw him outside and there he will stay.

I've been busting my butt to re-stitch the square and am now halfway through it. I feel so angry at the cat and so upset with myself because now it is late. I'm hoping I can finish it today, wash it tonight, press it tomorrow and get it in the mail tomorrow or Wednesday.

Think a jury would convict me if I killed that nefarious feline?

Prayers Needed!

A young mom named Anissa has had a stroke. Please send her good wishes, say a prayer or whatever it is you personally do to wish someone well!

You can donate via PayPal for her family by clicking here.

Or check out http://aiminglow.com/2009/11/hope-for-anissa/ for other ways to assist the family if you wish to.

You can learn more at Anissa's first blog: http://www.hope4peyton.org/

Did some stitching

Woot I finally felt well enough to get some stitching done. I feel bad because the square I am working on was supposed to be mailed on Friday but due to being sick all week I didn't finish it in time. I should be able to get it into the mail on Tuesday. I can't show a picture because it is supposed to be a surprise, but I'm pretty sure the recipient doesn't read my blog so when its done I'll put a pic up.

Screwed up already

I finally got some sleep yesterday and of course missed posting for the 5th. And since it is 5 past midnight where I am, I just mised for the 6th. Guess I'm not very good at the daily blogging thing.

Stitching update: I picked up my needle today and started the second square. I am really hoping she likes it!

NaBloMoPo and Second Secret Stitching Square

The month of November is NaBloMoPo Basically it requires that you post in your blog every day for the month of November. I wanted to give it a try as it should be interesting.

I finally managed to pick a pattern for the second secret stitching square I signed up to make. I had to ask for a bit more information about the person the square is for and found out that she likes blackwork embroidery. So I looked through all my blackwork patterns and found one that just made something inside me jump up and yell "Stitch that one!!". So I printed the pattern out and started stitching it. I chose two shades of DMC floss that are blue-green (she likes blue and green), 3850 and 3851. This piece is a mix of cross stitch and blackwork and shows the colors off beautifully. The blackwork section will be done in black, though I may try using the variegated thread that I have which has paler shades of blue-greens on it just to see how it looks. Since I do not know if the recipient reads my blog or not I can't post pictures. The thought just crossed my mind that I can post a small corner of the piece to show the colors and it won't give away the pattern thus spoiling the surprise. I'll try to do that tomorrow then. I'm really looking forward to stitching this piece. I enjoy stitching blackwork and I love the colors I chose.

As with the other square, I will be thinking good thoughts and praying for the recpient as I stitch. Historicaly women said prayers when they cross stitched and the pieces were used for churches. I've heard people say that when they receive an item that was stitched (knitted and crochet counts too) with the stitcher praying or thinking good thoughts and intentions for the recipient that the piece exuded feelings of warmth and comfort and love. I hope that the recipient of both of these squares as part of a final object will get those feelings from the piece.

An Award!!

A while back I was given an award for my blog. Ally, of Ally's Stitching Life, gave me this award back in July. Me, being the goof ball that I am, did not realize that I was on the list of recipients until September when I started re-reading old posts in blogs that I really enjoy. Until then I had assumed that "Missy" was another Missy, not me. When I realized it was me I was so excited as well as surprised as heck! I sent an email to Ally apologizing for not noticing before and thanking her for the award.

Ally, thank you again! I really appreciate it and I am sorry it has taken me so long to post about it.

Due to depression settling in again, I hadn't gotten around to posting it on the blog. But finally I have remembered and here it is!

The award says .."This blog invests and believes in the PROXIMITY-nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement! Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated."

I find it so hard to choose just a few blogs out of the many wonderful blogs that I read. Buthe award has to go to eight other bloggers, so here are my eight:

1. 
   
   Spinster Stitcher
   
   
   
2. 
   
   Crazy Aunt Purl
   
   
   
3. 
   
   The Twisted Stitcher
   
   
   
4. 
   
   Litla Skvis
   
   
   
5. 
   
   Caring Stitcher
   
   
   
6. Living With Brittle Asthma
7. 
   
   Nutmegg's Blog
   
   
   
8. 
   
   Neo-Conduit
   

These are all blogs that I have enjoyed for quite some time and that have touched me in positive ways. I am very grateful that these people have chosen to blog and that I have had the wonderful opportunity to read their blogs and thus "meet" these people. Thank you all!

Small Piece of Stitching

I did a small piece. This is done with DMC 550, a dark purple. The picture is blurred and since I already mailed the piece to where it is going, I can't get a better one. Sorry about that. I hope the recipient likes it. As far as I know she doesn't read my blog so I figure it will be safe to post the square. This square will become part of a quilt that is being made for a friend.

More Secret Stitching

The secret stitching piece I mentioned in my last post is done. I couldn't mail it today though because the hoop mark didn't come out in the first wash. I had to soak the piece overnight and most of today to get it out. So tomorrow I will rinse it real well then press it and get it in the mail. Once I know it has been received I will put pictures of it up. While stitching this piece I silently prayed for the person who I stitched it for, as well as let memories of our conversations and jokes run through my mind. My hope is that every stitch will be infused with my good intentions, concern and well wishes for the recipient and that maybe she will be able to feel or somehow sense those emotions when she gets it.

I got another email requesting people volunteer to stitch a square for another secret quilt. I volunteered. So now I am trying to choose a pattern that will fit 4 X 4 inches and that the recipient will hopefully like. As I do not know this person as well as the other one, I will focus on well wishes and prayers for healing and hope for her as I stitch.

Since I was working on the secret stitch I haven't put any more stitches into the "Sentiment Sampler" piece. I hope to put some more stitches into it this weekend.

Secret Stitching

Right now I am working on a small project for someone and it is a secret who it is for. Hence I can not put up pics of it or say how it is to be used. I am almost done and I do hope the recipient likes it!

Other than that little square I haven't stitched in a few days so no progress pics, sorry about that. Hopefully I will get some more stitching done later tonight or tomorrow. Right now I am real tired and sore from sitting at the doctor's office for a couple hours.

Thank you very much Dawn, Charlene, Cindy, Maureen, Cindy and Jo for your comments on the wedding sampler. I really appreciate them. :)

New Blog

I have started a new blog. This one will focus on my medical conditions and my struggles to regain a life despite the pain and the deep depression I have been dealing with. If anyone cares to read it you can find it at ravenpain.blogspot.com

My hope is that the blog will help motivate me to get back to doing the things I used to and give me an outlet where I can release the pent up emotions that are running around inside me and maybe help someone else in a similar situation as mine to know they are not alone (which can be a great help) in the process.

Finally A Wedding Sampler for Myself and DH

December 4, 2009 will be my 9th anniversary with my DH. I started stitching this piece a year or so ago and it got set aside when my stitching mojo died on me. Well after finishing Crescent Dreams I decided that it was time to finish this one as well so I pulled it out.

The picture above shows what the piece will look like when it is finished. I found the pattern in the magazine "Cross Stitch Crazy" the May 2002 issue. The chart was created by Betty Spencer. It came with 5 possible sayings to use on it. The one that is in the above pic, plus 4 more.

Since DH and I wanted our names and date of wedding on the sampler I had to do some fiddling with it. I moved things up a few rows, and changed the band that goes directly above the first line of text. By doing this I was able to fit all the text in the space provided, so I didn't have to add to the borders to make it fit. I have also decided to add some beads to the piece. At the bottom, above the heart and scrolls, there is a band of diamond shaped blackwork. This is stitched using DMC 500, a nice dark green. I am adding a green seed bead to the center of each blackwork bit to add a bit of sparkle.

To keep it in balance, I will be adding gold beads to the hourglass shaped blackwork in the top row as well. On the final border, I will be putting green beads on top of the two dark green stitches that appear at even intervals throughout that border. Since its only 2 at a time, with space between, I don't think this will overwhelm the piece.

I am really enjoying stitching this piece. I love the lacy effect that the blackwork gives it, and I love the way the colors work together. Neither picture gives an accurate depiction of the colors in it. I will try to get a picture tomorrow, outside so I can use sunlight (if its not raining here LOL).

Today was a tough day for me. My lower back is hurting pretty badly and I ended up spending the day in bed. I have been up over about 34 hours now and I just can't sleep, so I figured I'd come post my wip.

Thank you all who read and comment on my blog. Your comments really do make me smile!

Crescent Dreams: Finished!

I finished the beading, and framing of Crescent Dreams for my neice. I think it will need to be reframed by a professional but for now, it looks okay I guess. The stitching and beading came out pretty good. Neither my SIL nor I liked the way it looked with the ribbon, so we moved the two stars to different spots and left the ribbon off.

to show the full thing without the flash on glass effect.

sorry about the glare. :(

Closeup of stitching and beads.

Where I have been

I am sorry it has been such a long time since I have posted. Life got real hectic and depressing. In July my adopted father passed away. So my DH and I traveled to Massachusetts for the funeral. I did not think my back would hold up very well, but my back handled it okay. I made it through the wake, the funeral mass, and the graveside service before my leg finally decided it had had enough. It was a real hard few days both emotionally and physically. After I got home things were made a tad worse when I received a phone call after I arrived home that was extremely hurtful and totally unexpected. This caused me to become very depressed. It took me a few weeks to pull myself out of it.

After I returned to FL I got to start the waiting game and the arguing with the doctor game about getting the radio frequency re-done for my back. This is a procedure that helps me a great deal by lowering my overall pain level so that my medications (at their current dosing) are more effective. My doctor insisted, at first, that I did not need this procedure despite the fact that I had gone through it 3 times before. He then argued with me over which side of my back/pelvis needed this procedure despite the fact that past experimentation had proven that I get the best results by having the procedure done on both sides of my lower back/pelvis. Because of all the disagreement I ended up with 6 weeks of extreme pain because the prior RF procedure had completely worn off. I was then told that I could not possibly be in that much pain and a diagnostic would have to be done to decide whether or not RF would be feasible. I went through the diagnostic, which proved RF to be feasible, and returned to the doctor. He then wanted me to wait an additional 2 months before doing the RF itself. He had no real reason for wanting this other than his belief that I couldn't be in that much pain. I cried on my way home from that appointment. Finally the RF was completed, but only on the left side, on August 5th. The doctor then decided that I did not need it done on the right side at all, despite the many entries in my chart that clearly showed I needed both sides done within 2 weeks of each other for maximum benefit. That was the final straw for me; I chose to stop seeing this particular doctor and switched to another doctor in the same office. It is my belief that a doctor should listen to their patients and actually read the patient's chart before they start deciding what works and what doesn't work.

Because of the length of time between the left side being done and the possibility of the right side getting done, I chose to not do the right side this time. The reason for this is because they can not repeat the procedure until a minimum of 6 months have passed from the last RF procedure. This would leave me with 2 months of extreme pain on the left before the time limit was reached for the right side. Then it would take at least another month to get the procedure scheduled (if not longer, depending on whether or not the yearly diagnostic needs to be repeated). That amount of pain is excruciating and leaves me unable to do anything at all (no walking, no house work, no cooking, nothing) except suffer. To prevent that, I chose to not do the right side this time so that in February I will be 6 months out from the last RF on the left and can schedule to have it done again without having to wait for the other side to wear off. (It is the left side that hurts the most as that is the side that has the compound fracture of the SI joint in it.)

Needless to say I have done no stitching these last few months and because of that I did not post here. I picked my needle back up last week as it gives me something to do to keep my fingers busy while I work on quitting smoking (so far so good!). I have completed all the stitching on the Crescent Dreams baby sampler for my niece. It is now being washed and then I will add the beads and the silk ribbon to it and prepare it for framing.

On Sept. 4th we celebrated Bridgette's second birthday! We had a blast and she loved ripping open the presents and playing with her new toys. I can't believe she is already 2 years old! Where did the time go?!?! She is so cute though!

Hopefully I will have pictures to post tomorrow!

Main Stitching Done Crescent Dreams

Here is Mirabillia's Crescent Dreams with all the main stitching and backstitching done. I changed the backstitch color for the blanket and hat from a grayish color (used on the face) to a dark pink because I thought it looked better against the pink blanket and hat. Now comes putting on the birth information in a simple backstitch alphabet, then washing and pressing it before adding the beads, silk ribbon, and charms it calls for.

This is a closeup of the baby and blanket. I am very proud of it because I changed the color scheme. The pattern said it came with a color scheme for a blue blanket and a pink one, but it didn't really. The girl version was simply a bluish purple blanket with a few dark pink stitches here and there. For the boy blanket it was still that bluish purple color but with blue stitches here and there instead of pink. I asked Stephanie what she wanted and, like me, she wanted the entire blanket to be pink. Together we chose a few colors until we found ones that we both liked and that worked well together. We are very pleased with the results.

The following is a rant. Someone I considered a good friend sent me an email telling me I complain too often about my pain, so now I'm ranting.

I am still dealing with a higher pain level because the radio frequency wore off. I had the diagnostics for the radio frequency done last week. They were positive which means I am a candidate to have radio frequency done again, YAY. I see the doctor on Thursday to go over the results of the diagnostics and then schedule the procedures. Getting it done hurts like absolute h***, but once I recover from the procedure itself (usually takes a few days) my overall pain level drops quite a bit. Not enough that I no longer need oral medication, but enough that my current doses of medication work so much better! It will keep my pain level below a 5 almost every single day and it will last for 6 to 9 months. Honestly it is annoying that I have to go through such a painful procedure just to get longer lasting relief. Since, in my opinion, the relief is worth the extreme pain I get for a couple days, I will go through the procedure. It doesn't make me pain free, nothing will do that, but it does make the pain alot more bearable. I just hope I don't have to wait another 6 weeks before getting RF done.

Some people have told me that I complain about my pain too much. I've been told in the past two weeks that I'm a whiner. One person told me that if they were in my position they wouldn't complain because it can't possibly be that bad. This just annoys me, saddens me, hurts me (when it is someone I really like who says it, as it was this time), and angers me. Living with a lot of pain just stinks so bad. It affects every aspect of my life and everyone in my family who loves me. It causes insomnia, depression, lethargy, frustration, confusion, fear, guilt, low self-esteem, thoughts of being no good/worthless/broken, and so many other emotions. Those who love me have to deal with their own frustration that they can't make it better or take the pain away from me. My family members have to deal with the fact that I can not do many of the things I want to do and they have to pick up the slack (re: housework and such) when I am off my feet due to pain. This makes them frustrated, angry, scared, resentful and other emotions. When I am stuck in bed crying because I hurt so bad and the medications are not helping and my leg is literally kicking all by itself and every muscle in my lower back and pelvis is twitching hard enough to be seen easily, those who are around me and who love me are completely helpless to do anything to help. For my youngest child and my niece seeing me like that is utterly terrifying. My son (youngest child) has gotten old enough to understand and not be as scared as he used to be but my niece (the baby) is not old enough to understand and she freaks out. She screams my name and sobs. I do my best to hide it when a pain crisis occurs by going into my room and locking the door. I cry into a pillow or folded up towel so the noise doesn't carry. This leaves me feeling very alone, ostracised and outcast when I really need support the most, but I'd rather feel alone than terrify my niece.

I deal with this pain every single day of my life. I can't stand for more than 20 minutes. There are many times when my legs just completely give out, without warning and I end up falling. There have been times where I have lost control of my bladder (majorly embaressing!). Every thing I do increases my pain simply because a person's pelvis takes a lot of stress with every movement a person makes and since my pelvis is broken, every move makes it hurt more.

I do my best to maintain a good attitude. I crack jokes about the weird noises my pelvis and back make when I move (popping, snapping, grinding sounds). I crack jokes about the deep wrinkles that are on my face due to the facial expressions that show up when I hurt a lot. I have had to adjust how I do every day things from taking a shower (using a chair because I can't stand in the shower) to doing laundry (kick the clothes accross the house because I can't carry a full basket) to cooking dinner (sitting on a bar stool because I can't stand long enough) to intimacy with my husband. I can't make promises or plans in advance to go somewhere with a friend because I can't promise that when the day arrives that I will be okay enough to do those plans. There are too many times that my niece comes to me and asks "up Ahma, up" and I have to tell her no because she is now too heavy and when I try sitting on the floor or a chair to hold her she gets mad because she wants to be carried and I can't do it.

These are just some of the things that a person has to deal with when they live with chronic pain. Since I do not complain all the time and I do engage in conversations on many other topics, I do not believe that I am somehow weak because I do complain sometimes. I do not think that my complaining is out of proportion when it is compared to all the ways the pain negatively affects my life and my loved one's lives or when it is compared to the actual level of pain I live with every day. Even though I know these things, it still hurts to be told what I was told and it makes me question myself even though I know I shouldn't.

I'm sorry if my complaining about being in pain upsets or bothers you, but it is a major part of my life and affects my entire life, thus it becomes a topic of thought and conversation for me. Talking about my pain helps me to find the strength to go on dealing with it and not give up. I am ever so grateful for everyone who does listen and emotionally support me when I do complain about my pain. I know that it doesn't feel like it is really helpful to me, but believe me it is extremely helpful to me. It gives me the strength to go on by allowing me the mental release of complaining about it and being heard. I do not seek sympathy, I seek support and in my opinion being emotionally supportive is something that real friends do for each other, no matter what the situation is that makes such support necessary.

To all those who have provided such invaluable support to me in the past (and will do so in the future) I thank you all! I am so very grateful to each and every one of you.

Ok I'll stop ranting now.

Crescent Dreams Update and A Stitcher's Helper

Here is a side view of Crescent Dreams by Mirabilia. I changed the blanket and hat to all pink. This closeup shows the colors really well! It is being stitched on 28ct Jobelen from Silkweaver called Rock-A-Bye.

Here is what the design looked like at the end of my stitching time on Thursday or Friday. I am almost finished with all the cross stitching on this piece and will try to post new update photos tomorrow.

On Thursday June 11, 2009 I had some help stitching this piece. My niece, Bridgette, (whom the piece is for) insisted on helping me stitch. Since the ones of her helping me with the Blackwork piece from Tam's Creations did not come out, I made sure DH got pictures this time. It won't let me upload any more pics *pout* so here is a link to the photo album on the Facebook page that has those pictures (Bridgette and I stitching) in it.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/album.php?aid=15111&id=1624692760&ref=mf

Update on Wedding Sampler

This is what the sampler looks like when I finished stitching it for the day. The arch had a new stitch that I had not done before, Diamond Smyrna Stitch. (It's the goldish colored one in between the satin stitch diamonds). I am really happy with how this is looking so far.




Here is a closeup of the arch. The backstitch was wrapped with rayon floss, the diamond were done with ecru cotton floss and the smyrna type stitch was done with 2 colors of cotton floss.

WIP, New Start, and Pain

Here is my update on Teresa Wentzler's Wedding Sampler as of May 25th. I decided to try doing the backstitching as I go along, rather than holding it all off until the end. Teresa Wentzler designs have a lot of backstitch in them. I've read information from many stitchers who do the backstitch as they go along to cut down on how much they have to do at the end, usually because they hate backstitch. I don't hate backstitch because I love how it makes a design look. But I figured I'd give the "do it as I go along" thing a try and see if I like it and if it works well. I'm a bit worried that as I move the hoop around the backstitch will become warped, or break (its only one strand), but so far it looks good!

This is a picture of a completed Mirabilia design called "Crescent Dreams". It is one of the discontinued "Little Stitches" line of charts. This is the design Stephanie (my sister-in-law) chose to be a birth sampler for Bridgette (my niece). It said that it had a conversion for pink for a girl, but there isn't a full conversion. Instead the blanket is a purplish blue with pink dots in it for a girl, or purplish blue with blue dots for a boy. So I had to play with different pinks to try to find 5 shades that worked well together to make the entire blanket and hat pink.

The above picture is of my test stitching using the first selection of pinks that Stephanie and I chose. I did not like them as the color variations were too stark from one another, rather than blending naturally from one color to the next, there was a sharp contrast involved. So we chose not to use those colors. (I needed 5 shades of pink from very dark, to very light)

This was the second set of pinks we tried. As with the first set I did some test stitching on plain white jobelen 28ct to see how it would look and whether the colors worked well together. These did, and both Stephanie and I liked how they looked, so these were the colors we chose to go ahead with.

Now that we had the pinks chosen (and pinks that worked well together I think) I went ahead and started the project on the hand dyed fabric I had purchased for it. This is being stitched on "Rock A Bye" 28ct Jobelen from Silkweaver's Fabrics. This picture is a little dark, but it still shows how well the pinks blend together and work together. I am so very happy with how this is looking! This is my progress as of May 25, 2009. I hope to make more progress today as I have not done my stitching yet today.

Last week was not a good one for me. For some reason at 4AM on Wednesday morning I woke up in extreme pain to find myself laying on my stomach. Apparently I had rolled onto my stomach while I was sleeping and slept that way for a while. I do not know for how long, but I do know that sleeping on my stomach is a very bad thing for me. I woke up because I was in extreme pain and I had symptoms in the right side SI joint, which is unusual for me, at least to have that much pain in the right joint. I usually have that kind of severe pain only on the left, though the right has started to have some pain at the top of the joint when I stand on my feet (cooking dinner or something like that). Now I have sciatica on both sides and in both legs, both joints are popping/snapping and sending sharp shooting pains out, both joints are hurting all the time though the left is still more severe than the right. Anyway, because of the sleeping on my belly thing I ended up spending the end of last week and most of the weekend in bed trying to get the pain under control.

This really scares me. The doctors have told me for years that the right side is not healthy either and that eventually it will cause me as much trouble as my left. When I had the second fusion attempt on the left side I was told that I would probably need a wheelchair within 5 years because the right side was getting progressively worse. Well it has been 10 years since the second attempted fusion, so I got more than 5 years which I guess is a good thing, but the continued symptoms in the right joint still scare me. When the left side hurts a lot, I lay down on my right side and take the pressure off the left. Now when I do that, the right side starts to hurt worse. If I sit up, both sides hurt from the pressure of sitting on my bottom. If I lay on my back both legs get severe sciatica symptoms (numbness, tingling, shooting pains, muscle spasms etc), and well laying on my stomach is just out of the question. So now I am scared that if these newer symptoms on the right are permanent, how the heck am I supposed to ease my pain? Get hung up by my ankles from the ceiling or something?

Dealing with my pain the way it is usually is bad enough. Some days are just horrible and I always hurt extremely badly during my periods. I just don't know if I could handle having that same level of pain on both sides of my pelvis, I really don't think I could.

Sorry about ranting about my back, I just needed to get it out. Here's hoping I will have another update on stitching tomorrow, when I finish my stitching for today.

Update on Teresa Wentzler's Wedding Sampler

This is what the Wedding Sampler looks like when I finished stitching on it today May 17, 2009. I did a lot more than I thought. The second ribbon and all the green between second and third ribbons. Which means I got the green confetti stitching in faster than the first bit, I guess that means my Pako Needle Organizer does help!

First Finish of 2009 for Regular Size Design

I am so happy, I have finished Blackwork Winter by Tam's Creations and I think it came out great! I finished it tonight, May 7, 2009 at about 9:23pm central time. Here is a pic of the completed peice.

Yesterday my neice helped me put in a few stitches. They were a bit messy but I chose to leave them in and add her initals as a "stitcher" of this piece. I figured she might like that when she gets older. Here is a closeup of the center panel snowman, with our initials and the year put into it.

I got a really cute picture of my neice earlier tonight. She had a pretty clip on bow in her hair and sort of looked like Pebbles from The Flintstones, so we just had to get a pic. She is so adorable, so here is a picture of my very cute neice to make you all smile! (Her mother, Stephanie is holding her, and my DD Sam is in the background to the left.)

I am so excited to finally have my first regular size chart finish for the year 2009! I have been battling a depression all year so far, and it seems to finally be lifting. Having the new LazyBoy recliner has helped me a lot more than I thought it ever could. Having a comfortable place to stitch, and be able to stitch for hours and hours without extreme pain, has really energized me again. I have missed stitching so very much, but figured I would just have to live with it, as no matter how I arranged the pillows on my bed, I hurt after just 30 minutes or so of stitching. With this chair, I do not have that problem and can stitch for 2 or 3 hours (or more) at a time, so long as I shift position every 20 minutes or so. I am so happy! Having this stitching corner, and being able to actually stitch has helped with the depression so much! As has having the medication and taking it daily. I am so excited and looking forward to my next project with great excitement!

My DH (Ron), decided that for the anniversary of our 9th year of living together (which is June 21st) that I could buy 9 charts from Heaven and Earth Designs. One for each year. He is not sure why this year's "arrival in Florida" anniversary is such a big deal to him, he just knows that it is. So I went ahead and ordered 9 charts. They arrived today. Here is a picture of my new stash! I hope to be able to start an HAED soon, but I want to get my two Teresa Wentzler UFO's/Wips done before I start such a large project as an HAED. I am so happy that my DH understands now that I get just as much pleasure for collecting (and often looking at, or re-reading magazines) stash as I do from stitching and finishing projects. HAED's are huge, but I am hoping to eventually get all the ones I now own stitched and up on my walls.

Well that's pretty much it for me for today! Happy stitching everyone!

Blackwork Winter Tam's Creations: Update

Well I am done stitching for the day. I was hoping to get this one completed, but ended up having a long conversation with DD, so I put my stitching aside for that. I did get a bit done tonight and am so close to finishing I can taste it! I have that excitement of being so close to finished rushing through me right now and part of me just wants to keep stitching tonight until it is completed, but I can't do that because I have to get up at 6:30AM to get my DS up and off to school. *sigh* So I will just have to finish it tomorrow after my 2 hours on Teresa Wentzler's Wedding Sampler. I am trying to keep my promise of at least 2 hours on that design every day and so far so good. Anyway, here is the progress picture for Blackwork Winter as of May 5, 2009.

I have enjoyed stitching this piece so very much! It is perfect for those times when I hurt too much to concentrate on the TW design. It is perfect for taking with me to appointments and such. It is easy to pack up and take with me if go somewhere for a weekend. I am going to miss it! It's ok though, after I finish the birth sampler for my niece I can either do the wedding sampler for me and DH, or start another Tam's Creations Blackwork as I have a few of her charts in my stash.

Well that's it for me today, see you all later!

My Stitching Corner, and Progress on WIP

Here is my Teresa Wentzler Wedding Sampler progress as of May 5, 2009. I got the entire upper left block completed. Lots of confetti stitching. I wanted to get it done so I could put in the satin stitches around it. I wanted to see if I could do them as well as I did the ones in the shell shapes at the top of the column. I think I did pretty darn good and I just love the effect.

This is a close-up of the upper left corner of the Wedding Sampler by Teresa Wentzler. I just love how the rayon floss looks in the satin stitch border and I am so very pleased with the result of the confetti stitching and the satin stitches. I am very proud of myself for doing it so well.

Ohhh I am such a happy happy stitcher now! My DH bought me a LaZboy recliner. He was hoping it would be more comfortable for me to sit in when watching TV or stitching. So he set it up in the living room. For now I am using the daylight table lamp off my computer desk, but will be ordering a daylight floor standing lamp to put behind the chair to the left (so I don't stitch into my own shadow). When we got it home I was hurting pretty good from all the getting up and down trying out different chairs as well as the laying on different beds to check out mattresses at the store. I tried a Tempurpedic mattress and found that it actually hurts my pelvis. I was thinking of waiting to try the chair until the next day when I wouldn't be hurting as much, then I realized we had bought it to help me with my pain, and I remember how quickly my body relaxed when I sat in it. So I went ahead and got my Blackwork Winter from Tam's Creations and sat down to stitch. IT WAS WONDERFUL! I managed to stitch for 4 hours and when I was done I couldn't believe I had sat that long. Better yet, when I got up, my pain had actually gone DOWN while I stitched in that chair. I am so very happy with it!

DH set it up in a corner of the living room, in front of the large windows we have. He also bought me a metal music stand because I wanted something to hold my charts that would be able to hold charts that are inside hard cover books (such as the Christmas books put out every year, as well as collection books of a specific designer). We set the music stand up next to the chair on the left and moved one of the end tables to the right of the chair. This made me my own stitching corner which can be seen in the picture above.

This is a picture of the music stand I am using. I love it because the magnets stick directly to it, which makes it easier for me to use 1 magnet as a needle minder. It also holds my heaviest stitching books without any problem. The little lip on it is great for holding my scissors, thread heaven, a high lighter and other small things I use while stitching. Because of my niece I have to find a better place to put my floss box as I found out today that she will not leave it alone if it is on the end table to the right of my chair. For now, I put a small cardboard box to the left of my chair (Beside the music stand) and put the floss box on it and that seems to work just fine.

I plan on emptying out the top two shelves of the large book shelf to the right of my chair. I will place my floss boxes on those shelves, as well as my WIPs and probably some of my chart books, or magazines.

I have long admired the stitching corners or rooms of other stitchers and crafters and have wanted one of my own. If I had known just how comfortable a recliner would make me and my stitching, I would have bought one years ago! No problem though as I have one now and it is a great help.

It is now 7:48PM central time and I paused in my stitching to post this blog. I've been stitching literally all day. I started at about 8AM this morning and just kept going. I wanted to complete the upper left hand block on the sampler, which I did. I am now working on Blackwork Winter which only has the lower right hand corner left (last page). I hope to finish it tonight. Anyway, if I were to sit in bed for that long and stitch, my back would be hurting like hell from the bending forward to read the chart. With this new stitching corner set up my back does NOT hurt from stitching! I am ecstatic about it! (Because the chair is a large one, I can easily shift positions every 20 minutes or so like I am supposed to.) This means I can stitch as often as I wish and for as long as I wish without hurting myself. This just feels marvelous!! *Happy cyber dance*

A little while ago we gave Bridgette, my 20 month old niece, a coloring book and washable markers. I of course had to take pictures of the first time she colored with markers! She really enjoyed it! Isn't she adorable?

Well I'll post again tomorrow when I will hopefully (*fingers, toes and all stitches crossed*) be doing a happy dance for completing the stitching on Blackwork Winter. Bridgette helped me with a few stitches on it, but the picture of us stitching together did not come out. I hope to get one tomorrow as she enjoyed it and so did I. The stitches came out a little crooked, but I refuse to remove them as they are the first stitches my niece has ever done! I hope when she gets older that she will be interested in learning to stitch so I can teach her how.

Stitching Chair/Corner

My DH insisted on buying me a LaZBoy recliner today, in the hopes that it would be comfortable for me to sit and relax in, as well as to stitch in. I went with him to the furniture store and picked one out. It is positively wonderful! As soon as I sat in it, my entire body just relaxed completely and I did not want to get out of the chair LOL So we bought it.

It is now set up in my living room, with a music stand to hold my chart. I chose a music stand because it is sturdy enough to hold a chart that is part of a hard cover book, whereas I was worried that the light wood stitching frames with chart holders would not be able to hold a hard cover book.

We moved my desktop day light lamp so that it sits to the left of my new chair. I spent somewhere around 4 hours today stitching in that chair while watching a movie and I did NOT hurt from it. I actually hurt less! I was absolutely wonderful! So I now have a stitching corner and I am so excited!!

Sadly my digital camera's only memory card has died. Took it long enough! So tomorrow I will have to buy a new digital camera, or a new card for the one I have. Considering how old my camera is (8 years), it is probably time for a new camera, one with more meapixels to make my pictures have more detail. So I will be hitting the store tomorrow on the great hunt for a camera!

I finished the first and second rows (closest to center) of Blackwork Winter by Tam's Creations, so all I have left is the outermost row that has snowflakes and poinsettias and swiss cake yule lgs as well. I am getting so exited because I am so close to finishing. Because my camera is messed up I can't get a picture. Hopefully tomorrow I will get a new camera and get some pictures up for you guys!

Thanks , enjoy!

Another Stitching Update

This is my progress on Blackwork Winter by Tam's Creations as of April 29, 2009. I am so happy to be so close to finishing it! I will be stitching some more tonight, so hopefully I will be even closer to finishing it tomorow!

This is a close up of the pulled satin stitches and rhodes stitches at the top of the column in the Wedding Sampler from Teresa Wentzler. I am so proud of those stitches, they came out wonderfully. The anchor rayon works just fine next to the DMC rayon, and it has such a beautiful sheen to it! I am quite pleased with this design so far.

This is a closeup of the confetti stitching on the left hand side border and the upper left block. The picture doesn't show the color differences too well, but there are 4 different sets of greens (all but 1 are blended stitches) in the leaves so far, and the same in the flower above it. Confetti stitching is not my favorite as constantly changing threads in the needle can be annoying, and it is impossible to make the back look very neat either. But the end result is gorgeous, so it will be worth all this effort.

This is what the Wedding Sampler from Teresa Wentzler looks like as of April 29, 2009. I have not stitched on it in 2 days because my DH has the book to copy the chart for me so that I can mark my place without destroying the book. This becomes necessary with confetti stitching or I will lose my place and make mistakes.

I have already chosen the project that will replace Blackwork Winter when it is completed. It will be Crescent Moon from Mirabilia. My DSIL wanted it as a birth sampler for her DD Bridgette. I have all the threads, beads, embellishments, and a beautiful hand dyed fabric for it. It is not a very large design so it shouldn't take too long. When it is done I will pull out Sentiment Sampler which I started quite a while ago as a wedding sampler for DH and I. I really want to finish that as well and get it up on the wall in a nice frame.

Last night while we were watching Stephen King's Storm Of The Century, Bridgette got up on the couch next to my DD Sam. She pulled up her blanket and lay down, cuddling with Sam. It was so cute I just had to get a picture! They are both so beautiful and I love them so very much!

Since I have stopped playing WOW as much I am getting back into my stitching. I am enjoying it so much. I find it hard to believe that I went without stitching much at all for the last few months. I had to give up WOW because the Wedding Sampler needs to be done by June/July, so I decided to not play wow until the sampler is done. What has amazed me is I have not missed WoW at all, instead I have found great pleasure and joy in stitching again! I will be doing my best to balance it better when I do return to WoW as I want to continue stitching. I have so many beautiful patterns I want to stitch, so many ideas for what to do with those patterns (cushions, linens, curtains, framed pictures, wall quilts, quilts and more) and I can't get them done if I stop stitching again. So I have decided I will balance my hobbies better.

A friend of mine from Facebook has asked me if I would do a cross stitch for her and her daughter. It is one I will have to make the chart for myself as I can't get what she wants already made by someone else. She wants two crossed swords (as sword is part of her name) and put her name and her DD's name on the blades. Since it just going to be the two crossed swords I want them to be fairly ornate so there is some bling to the piece. This will stretch my charting ability that is for sure! I'm hoping I can do a good job. This will have to wait a while as I have a couple of obligation pieces that need to be done first (anniversary sampler and birth sampler) but my friend understands that and does not have a problem with it.

If anyone has pictures of swords, or charts of swords (within copyright laws please) or knows where I can get one, please let me know! Thank you so much!

More Stitchy Goodness!

This is my progress on Blackwork Winter by Tam't Creations as of April 10, 2009. I did not get very far because I was hurting too bad to stitch. I am enjoying stitching this chart a gret deal. It brings back memories of my childhood, good memories too. :)




Here is my progress on Teresa Wentzler's Wedding Sampler. I did not get as much as I wanted done, but that's ok. Every little bit counts LOL

I am greatly enjoying stitching on a daily basis again. My DH is helping to keep me on track so that I stitch every day. Having his support has really helped me to stay on track. I am so very lucky to have him in my life :)

Stitching Update

This is what my Blackwork Winter Sampler by Tam's Creations looks like as of April 6, 2009. I am now finished with 3 out of 5 pages. I am getting closer to finishing it and am still loving every stitch.

I have started TW's Wedding Sampler. This is what I have done so far (as of April 9, 2009). It is not a lot and I have already made a mistake, which I will remove tomorrow. I would have some of the satin stitches put in but I don't have the rayon floss it calls for. I am doing this on Painted Champagne Cocktail 28ct Jobelen by Enchanted Fabrics using DMC cotton and rayon flosses. It will have both 2 over 2 and 1 over 1 areas. I hope to stitch on this at least 2 hours every day.

I had to drive to Savannah Georgia to pick up my daughter. She was on her way home after spending a few weeks with friends in Virginia. Sadly she missed one of her buses and the next one wouldn't be there for 4 hours or so. So Stephanie and I went to get her. It wasn't too bad of a drive and it didn't hurt my back as much as I thought it would. We had a lot of fun on the drive back, singing along to music, cracking jokes with each other, laughing, and just enjoying each other's company.

On the way up there Stephanie and I discussed the possibility of opening a needlework store here in town. I think it would have a decent chance of doing pretty well since the closest needlework store to our town is over an hour away to the west and over 2 hours to the east. So tomorrow I will be searching for information on market research and seeing if I can't find that article that discusses small business loans from the state and/or county that I read a while back. We will of course have a web site as well as a physical store. Here is hoping that this will work well! I am very excited by the idea!

50th Anniversary Sampler

Well I finally started the 50th Anniversary Sampler for my parents. Instead of doing the one I posted about earlier, from a Just Cross Stitch magazine I decided to do Teresa Wentzler's Wedding Sampler and change the words to show it is for a 50th Anniversary.

I have the chart as part of her Best Of Teresa Wentzler's Sampler Collections book. From past experience with her charts, I went to the posting board and her web site today to get the list of possible errors that have been found on the different releases of this chart. The biggest one I was worried about was the Plait Stitch border on the heart box near the bottom. There is no stitch diagram in the best of book for plait stitch that can be worked in a row, just a diagram for one that is to be worked as a single stand alone stitch. Luckily the wonderful people on her posting board had already found this error and posted a correction for it which included the stitch diagram.

I will be stitching this design using the recommended DMC floss, Mill Hill beads, and the first fabric I ordered from Enchanted Fabrics. (Champagne Cocktail, painted..28ct jobelen) The second one I had ordered is too dark and over shadows some of the colors, whereas the champagne one (that has a slight peach cast to it) works perfectly!

So far I have the upper left square done, with the column of cross stitch that goes below it on the outside of the satin stitch lines. I really like the way the colors are enhanced by the fabric, not overshadowed or drowned out.

I will be working on this some more tomorrow, so hopefully I can put my first progress picture up! I am really looking forward to stitching this design!

Blackwork Winter Tam's Creations

Well I did some more work on Blackwork Winter from Tam's Creations yesterday. So here is what it looked like when I started:

And here is what it looked like when I finished for the day:



Yay progress!! I am enjoying stitching this piece and feel a bit bad that I hadn't stitched much at all since December. Finishing the Snowmen Cow made me want to stitch again and I am making myself stitch for at least an hour every day so I can try to pull myself out of depression again. I really hate depression and how it comes and goes, specially since my pain levels vary. The higher the pain, the depression comes back, the lower the pain, the depression goes away. Like living with chronic pain isn't bad enough all by itself. Oh well, such goes life I guess LOL

Well I'm going to go do some more stitching See if I can't finish the whole upper left corner today then I will be three quarter's done!

Exchange Completed YAY

I put the cow together. I turned it into a card that can stand up, similar to a flat fold. I just hope Rose likes it!

This is the front and it is sitting between the snowmen salt and pepper shakers I got for her as an "extra". She loves snowmen. The chart is Snowmen Cow designed by me and based on the generic cow shape of Les Marottes.

This is the back. It says "For Rose, From Raven. Cross Stitch Forum ATC Round 5, Mar 2009, Snowmen Cow by Raven". I added a pink crystal heart charm from Mill Hill treasures for a bit of "bling" on the back.

I have been working on my Blackwork Winter Sampler by Tam's Creations again. I have the center and one of the 4 corners done and am working on the upper left corner now. I will try to put pictures up tomorrow since I am not done stitching today.

I found a site last night that had over a thousand files on it which were all illegal copies of cross stitch charts for download. The site is similar to webshots in that it is supposed to be a picture hosting site, but a few people used it to list illegal scans of charts from many different companies, some of which included Dimensions, Dimensions Gold, Teresa Wentzler, Passione Ricamo, Mirabilia, Cross My Heart, RICO, PINN, and many more. I couldn't believe it when I saw how many charts were up there. So I made a list of each chart I could identify, arranged by company and then used the list to send emails to each company that included the name of the stolen chart and a direct link to the files. I am hoping to see that site disappear by the end of the week. It really annoys me to see people continuing to steal from designers. In total it was 35 emails.

Well I am off to watch a movie with my beautiful neice!

Feeling Real Happy!

I have my first HD of 2009!! I am feeling so happy and excited!! Better than I have felt in months!





The first chart I have designed for myself and stitched is completed, I finished the backstitching tonight!

This is my Snowmen Cow design, fully stitched! It is for an exchange on Cross Stitch Forum, a forum filled with the most wonderful people I have ever met online. The people on this forum are real, welcoming to newcomers, and their behavior matches their words. I honestly love this forum and the people on it and it is one of the 2 forums that I go to now because there is no clique and the people on it are just wonderful!

Anyway, this cow is for Rose on that forum. It is for the ATC (artist trading card) exchange, round 5. I am majorly late, but that is partly because I was sick for 6 weeks and had uncontrolled pain for a few weeks. I put the last stitch in it tonight. I think it came out pretty good! My DH is buying me the few items I need to turn it into a card that will stand up on its own (kind of a flat fold type of thing). I stitched the words for the back as well. I will mail it on Monday and I really hope that Rose likes it!

I can't believe how happy and energized I feel after finishing this! I am excited, happy, smiling and feeling really good! I haven't felt this good in weeks! Maybe this is all I needd, to finally accomplish something to start of the new year.

I will kit up the chart that my sister in law Stephanie chose for me to do a birth sampler for my niece. It is mirabilia design called Crescent Dreams, a baby in a blanket on a crescent moon. I will be changing the blanket to pink rather than blue, then adding Bridgette's information to it once it is done. I hope it turns out real well for them!

Maybe this energized feeling will be the catalyst to pull me out of this depression I've been dealing with since the first of the year.

Way too long

It has been a long time since I have posted. I am sorry about that. I am still around. It took me six weeks to get over being sick back in January (my last post) and 2 antibiotics. It took another 2 weeks to finally feel more like myself. Ugh I hate being that sick!



I have been fighting depresson again with the New Year. I'm not sure what has brought it about, maybe the fact that I turned 40 had something to do with it, I'm not sure. I just know that I have had very little desire to do anything at all including stitching. I have done no stitching that is not an obligation so far this year. I just haven't felt like it. Heck, to be honest I haven't felt like doing anything at all. *sigh* I'm working on it though and hopefully I can pull myself out of it soon. I really hate it when this happens. I don't want to talk to anyone, don't want to do anything or go anywhere and I know that giving in to those feelings is not at all helpful and just makes it worse, but it can be so very hard to fight it. Specially when it is accompanied by a higher pain level due to normal monthly stuff, since the increased pain decreases my mobility and decreased mobility feeds into the depression and lack of desire to do anything. I guess I will have to do what I have always done and just force myself to start doing things again. Things that I know I like because even if doig them right now doesn't make me feel happy, I know my enjoyment will return when the depression lessens a little bit.



I did make a chart of my own based on the cow charts that can be found here: http://lesmarottesdenath.free.fr/index.php?doc=1



It is for an ATC (artist trading card) exchange that I signed up for. The chart I made should look like this when it is completed (virtual stitches). I used PC Stitch Pro 9 to make it. The person it is for loves snowmen but already had the chart that was already made, so I decided to make my own. I don't think she reads my blog, so hopefully this will be a nice surprise for her! Darn, blogger will not cooperate tonight and let me upload a picture so here is a link to it instead, sorry.

http://thumb12.webshots.net/t/52/752/0/85/4/2428085040092041512mQWshc_th.jpg

I have all but the little bit of backstitching around the snowmen, their hats and scarves done. Then I have to do the words for the backing then put it all together. Hopefully blogger will cooperate and let me upload pics when I have it done. If not I will provide a link to the finished project.

I will try to post again tomorrow and hopefully get the pictures up!

Sick sick sick

Well I have gotten sick. Coughing, sneezing, congestion, fever....ugh!! I hate it when I am sick and feel this horrible. I haven't wanted to stitch or do anything. Hopefully I will start to feel better soon.

Year End Q & A

Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
--yes I did. My resolution was to stitch more than in 2007, and I did that.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
--My sister-in-law did and now they live with me.

Did anyone close to you die?
--Nope.

What countries did you visit?
--Just the USA, another state.

What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
--rebuild my physical strength, keep the house cleaner, and stitch!

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
--Pulling myself out of depression by recognizing it sooner and acting to change it.

What was your biggest failure?
--Not realizing I was severely depressed until many months had passed.

What was the best thing you bought?
--My Sleep Number bed!

Where did most of your money go?
--bills, where else?

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
--Having a baby in the house again and visiting my in-laws over the Holidays.

What song will always remind you of 2008?
--Hate Me by Blue October I guess.

Did you fall in love in 2008?
--rediscovered many times how much I love my husband and why.

How many one-night stands?
--none of any one's business LOL

What was your favorite TV program?
--Dexter

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
--Yes.

What was the best book you read?
--I really enjoyed Stephen King's newest short story collection and Patricia Cornwell's new book Scarpetta. Other than that, I mostly re-read books I already own.

What was your greatest musical discovery?
--Blue October

What did you want and get?
-a new bed and some new charts

What did you want and not get?
--a new digital camera

What were your favorite films of this year?
-I didn't watch many movies.

What did you do on your birthday?
--nothing.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
--comfort and anything that did not add to my pain level such as jeans.

What kept you sane?
--writing in my journal, talking to my husband, playing with baby and stitching!

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
--Prince as usual :)

What political issue stirred you the most?
--Not sure.

Who did you miss?
--my DH's family

Compared to this time last year, are you:Happier or sadder?
--happier

Thinner or fatter?
-sadly, fatter (steroids suck!)

Richer or poorer?
--the same.

What do you wish you’d done more of?
--stitching

What do you wish you’d done less of?
--hurting

The CSC stitchathon challenge results!

Back in Jan of 2008 I entered a challenge on Cross Stitch Crazy. I predicted that I would do between 12,000 to 14,000 minutes stitching. I based that on my total of 6,773 minutes from the 2 (or 3?) stitchathons I had participated in towards the end of 2007 when I joined the board. I am curious to see if I even come close, so I'm going to post my totals here so I can keep track for myself. I am hoping I can do at least 12,000 minutes.

I met that goal! 3. Ravenhead goal: 12,000 minutes actual 15,974 (133%)

I stopped recording my time in the stitchathons back in October I believe it was so not all my time is accounted for, but that's okay. I still met my goal and since I forgot this one in the other day's post I figured I should pop it up here. LOL

Update on Winter Blackwork, final finish of 2008 and goal review 2008, new goals 2009!

I managed to finish Exciting doilyby Mary Werst and I gave it to my mother-in-law while I was in Indiana over the holidays visiting her. She was really excited to get it! Here it is:





Here is a closeup:




In my last post I promised a picture of my progress on Tam's Creations Winter Blackwork. So here it is as of December 2008.




Since it is now 2009 I figure I should go over the goals I made for 2008 and see if I met them at all. The original post is here and my goals were:

1. Have at least 10 finishes. I seem to have confused my goals. Here I wrote I want 10, but on webshots I wrote that I wanted more than 2007. I did not meet my blog goal but I did meet my webshots goal. I have 5 finishes in cross stitch for 2008.
   
2. complete stitched ornaments into completed ready to hang up ornaments I got a couple done, but not all of them.
   
3. Finish either Stroke of Midnight or Woodland Fairy by TW (preferably finish both) nope
   
4. Participate in at least 2 swaps/exchanges (I was so happy to get my 2008 re-approval from CSC!) DONE
   
5. Continue to encourage Curtis and now Stephanie (My sister-in-law who has moved into the house) to stitch as well. DONE
   
6. complete at least one (preferably more) of the harder thread crochet doilies that are at the half way point (I am afraid I'll mess them up even though I have done them well so far LOL) DONE both of them!
   
7. Organize my stash and threads better DONE
   
8. Continue to make thread crochet items as practice and maybe try to do an afghan or something larger than a 16 inch doily DONE by working on doilies but no afghan yet.
   
9. complete at least 2 more charity squares DONE, did 3!

Not as good as I wanted, but not bad considering I didn't stitch at all in 2007! Now goals for 2009, lets see:

1. Finish at least 10 pieces
2. Finish one of the 2 TW's I have as WIPS
3. Do at least 2 charity squares
4. Participate in at least 2 exchanges
5. Complete my excel sheet of magazines
6. Create excel sheet of freebies
7. Get Bridgette's birth sampler done
8. Get parent's 50th anniversary sampler done
9. Get Tinkerbell done for father in law
10. continue thread crochet

That seems like a good list of goals. Hopefully I can do a good job with it through out 2009! So what are your goals for the New Year?