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This past week was another catch-up week but with quilt guild obligations, I didn't get as far as I wanted, I fear. Still, one day at a time! I had two completions --- the July Bead Journal Project butterfly and the September Crazy Quilt Journal Project block: I stitched on the new blackwork piece, "Puppy Dog", and got an eye done: And at quilt guild, I finally cut and sewed strips for a quilt I promised to do way back in 2010 (it was called the "unstarted project" or USP)... It…

I was right. It wasn't a good stitching week! The new TAST stitches languished; Band 8 of the Mystery Band Sampler arrived, was printed out and languished; the Crazy Quilt Journal Block for April and the "Reloaded" Mandala also languished. BUT... it was a fun two, if slow, mornings at the phone bank (it always is --- we have a regular group who do early mornings the first two days and we spend a lot of time laughing while waiting for the phones calls that never seem to come). And the Improvi…

I did get some work done at guild retreat, although I forgot to take my handwork with me and ran out of things to do by dinner on the first full day! Didn't help that I was so very sleepy the entire time adn had very little focus... Anyway, here are the pieces I did work on... November block for Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2014: Blocks January - September for the 2014 Crazy Quilt Journal Project assembled (blocks for October and November are awaiting December for final assembly):…

What did I do this past "moon"? Well, there were • the Take a Stitch Tuesday stitches: Beaded Hebedo Edge, Knotted Loop Stitch. Italian Knotted Loop Border, and the Buttonhole Wheel Cup. • The October Stash Buster from Janet Perry (the very last one) • The October Mittens & Mini-Socks from Janet Perry --- both a mitten and a sock • the October parts for "Kimono - Revisited": • The October Color Palette Challenge/Crazy Quilt Journal/Bead Journal Project block • and…

I buckled down this week and tackled more WIPs which were tending to becoming UFOs... I completed the Take a Stitch Tuesday stitch. I kitted up the Crazy Quilt Journal Block for September: I assembled the block for "Bling it ON", the quilt retreat I stitched on "Midnight Garden" (only eight more border blocks to stitch in the two blues): and I completed the June BJP butterfly: Yet I'm still woefully behind... 2012 Color Palette/Crazy Quilt Jour…

For IHSW, I worked on three WIPS. I had the body and two top wings and part of the bottom wing beaded on my December BJP butterfly before the weekend. Over the weekend, I managed to get the third wing done and started on the fourth: Early in the week, I couched red cording around the appliqued flower and sewed on the buttons in the heart of the flower --- cording (passing as "string") and buttons being two of the requirements of the "Green Thumb Challenge" for January's quilt guild meeti…

These stitches, Triangular Buttonhole and Beaded Triangular Buttonhole, were relatively easy but I made it more complicated by trying to use the larger beads that fit over my needle so... Here are five rows of the stitches, four in large size to accommodate the beads and one smaller to show how it would make a border: I like how it worked up in variegated perle cotton... but I think I'd like the beaded versions better if the beads were smaller and I was using floss or silk.

March's assignment is to show our favorite place(s) to stitch. So I took a photo of the only place I like to stitch - my bedroom: I can sit at the left side of the bed, leaning against the headboard with two pillows behind me, within reach of my side table (and the telephone, iPhone, iPad and TV remote) and turn my Ott lamp (the foot slides under the bed and the lamp stem is right up against the bed frame) so it sits in front of me, with the magnifying lens at eye level and the light f…

The Portuguese Border Stitch. Kind of fun to do, and fast. I have to watch my tension, and play with curves and the like, but I think this one will become one of my preferred seam treatments! I used two kinds of threads in this piece... #5 perle in a variegated blue and Carrie's Creations (Crazy Dreams).

My February butterfly (I'm calling it "I Heart...") is done! Encrusted with two shades of red, one translucent pink and opaque white seed beads, body in red bugle beads and antenna stitched in three strands of white embroidery floss. I added two heart buttons from my "extensive" button stash ( I would have liked that they were symmetrical but...) Now to decide on March --- will it be Easter or St. Patrick's Day or...

My last week on drops for the left eye and an eye exam has resulted in new glasses (should be in in a week or so) which should solve any additional problems I have (except for the peripheral vision shimmer which still sometimes strikes without warning). I really lost my stitchery mojo last week --- I settled down on Sunday to get some stitches in on International Hermit and Stitch Weekend... Finally finished the April BJP butterfly: May's butterfly will be in orange and white on…

This week's stitch was the Zig-Zag Chain - a fairly easy stitch which will come in handy the next tine I want to couch rick rack! I like this one! Here it is --- the start of the next "page" in my TAST sample book:

Other than going to the fair to work quilt day and check on my needlework, all I managed to accomplish this week was: purchase of the necessary stretcher bars for L auraJ. Perrin's "Purple Daisy", which arrived this week, complete with the first weeks assignment stitch #75 for TAST purchase a packet of silvery seed beads which, although they don't quite match the ones I'm using now, might just work on the June Butterfly. You tell me --- does it work? Most of the lower right wing has the new…

This stitch, the Reversed Buttonhole Bar, done four ways... It wasn't difficult (other than my usual inability to stitch a good circle, that is) once I got the tension down. I like the look, especially in the circles - it would make great flowers! This completes another "page" in my TAST sampler, the fifth for 2013: This page includes stitches 82 through 94: Spanish Feather, Siennese, Spiked KNotted Cable Chain, Raised Cup, Turkman, two approaches to Buttonhole Picot, Twisted Sa…

This "reporting period" included the International Hermit and Stitch weekend (which I devoted entirely to "Save the Stitches"), a Take a Stitch Tuesday pair of stitches and Band Six of the Mystery Band Sampler", I didn't have a lot of stitching time to devote to "Reloaded", but I have nearly 3/4 of the outline complete: I'm beginning to wonder why I decided to do all seven of the "Roll Your Own" mandalas as they take so much time just outlining! But I do love the look so... I will soldie…

Blocks 8 and 9 of the Elizabeth Almond blackwork SAL, "Save the Stitches" are now completed (except for beads, of course)! While I had allocated IHSW for the blackwork piece, I also fit in a couple of other tasks as well. I started on the second part of lesson 1 of the Funk & Weber finishing class on hemstitching, by prepping a 12 x 12 piece of Aida for folding the hem with mitered corners and then hemstitching. If I actually get stitching done on this, I will only be two classes behin…

In the past week, I have completed five 4.5" square crazy blocks for swapping at the guild retreat (Technique taught by Mary Lee G at guild on the 9th of October. I have yet to master working with small pieces so my scraps are a little on the large side.): the October Crazy Quilt Journal block (I do much better using a foundation and a larger blocks size; these are 6" square finished): and the Take a Stitch Tuesday Stitch # 134 (Fern stitch). I played a little with adding beads t…

This WIPocalypse report is to cover my accomplishments for the year! (my finishes, my final before/after photos, etc). This should be a short report given how little I feel I have accomplished this year but I will have my personal wrap-up on December 31, JUST in case I actually accomplish something more between now and the end of the year (highly unlikely with the holidays had upon us, but I will try!)!! FINISHES Quilting: Green Thumb Challenge quilt for my quilt guild "Dossier" b…

A lot of time spent this week, avoiding the banging on the roof (the roofers are done; today it's the gutter people)and trying to get posts through to a forum that had suddenly gotten fractious and wasn't behaving nicely. So, except for TAST, all I managed was a lot of backstitching on "Birds of a Feather" (all the border blocks are stitched now --- only beading left for them) and started on speciality stitches in the border, proper (A green Rhodes Square completed and just a start on a p…

Another stitch I really enjoyed once I started on it: