Back With Pics

It's a dull and cold day here today so the pics aren't great, but I did promise proof that ABC Christmas is finished, and thought I should take update pics of the other things I've been stitching while I had the camera out.

LK ABC Christmas 1x2 on 40ct flax linen (I think lol) using CC

Here is my new start from a couple of weeks ago, Waxing Moon's Spooky Greetings Bellpull. I bought this as a kit (without threads) about 18months ago and have only just got around to starting it. I've subbed the recommended threads and just hope it will look ok. It's stitched 2x2 which is not my favourite stitching, but I had to follow the rules due to the linen banding. I have decided to put this in place of ABC and stitch on it on a Friday and Saturday with Sally in the hope that I might be able to finish it by the end of the year like Sally is aiming to do with Shores.
We have been kicking eachothers butts since we started and it's obviously worked as I finished ABC last night and she finished block 8 on Shores lol.

Next up is HAED QS Alisha. Not a lot more progress on this since the last pic, but I'm pleased to say I'm still enjoying stitching on her in the new style so hopefully I can finally start to get somewhere with her.

And finally is my personalised sampler by Nouveau Encore Designs. I'm loving this more and more as I stitch it, and it's actually coming out again tonight for a couple of night's attention. At first I was worried that the variagation in the silk would make it really hard to keep it flowing, but I'm finding that isn't really a problem at all which is great. Page 1 is now completely finished and I've moved right to start page 2.
Well I think that's it for today. Tomorrow I am excited to be going to meet Hazel for the first time for a coffee and a drool over some wool in a shop in Holmfirth. Hazel has got seriously into crochet and is wanting some new stash for her blankets. I've tried to make a start with crocheting myself but don't seem to be able to do it and instead just got frustrated with myself lol. So whilst it will be nice to look I think I am safe from spending, unless of course I find something in one of the other shops hehe.

It's Finished!

Just had to come on and post that I finished Lizzie Kate's ABC Christmas about half an hour ago!!! My second finish of 2010 and it's only September lol.
I'll be back with a photo of it and progress on my other wips tomorrow hopefully, but for now I'm going to go do a happy dance!

Whoohoo, I Really Am Stitching!

I've actually done more stitching since my last post and really enjoyed it as well which is a definite bonus lol.
Over the weekend I concentrated on LK's ABC Christmas and managed to finish another letter, so I've only got four to go and I'll be having a huge happy dance! I'm tempted to just focus on this now til it's finished, but I don't want to burn out on it so am going to stick with Friday and Saturday night's with Sally and I may carry on on a Sunday if I'm close to finishing a letter. One letter seems to take me two to three nights, so I'm actually hoping I might have it finished in another four weeks, and then I'm going to start the yearly christmas ornament for our tree, which I've decided will be the sock monkey from this year's JCS Ornament issue, when it arrives. DD got a sock monkey last year for christmas after seeing the film Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium which she loved, and as soon as she saw the ornament on the cover she asked if I'd stitch it as this year's ornament, so how could I refuse?Before the weekend and then last night I stitched on HAED QS Alisha (artwork by Hannah Disney) again. I've changed the way I'm stitching this slightly as I was finding it really frustrating, and it seems to be working so far so fingers crossed I can keep going with it.And finally the finish I promised last post! This is Just Nan's Winter Hearts Humbug. I stitched it using the called for fabric and threads and although I struggled to get into it to begin with I'm really pleased with how it turned out, and am looking forward to displaying it during the winter. I will be adding the chart to my for sale blog soon, but if you're interested just let me know.Tonight I have decided to pull out my Personalised Sampler which I haven't stitched on for a couple of months. It's lovely to stitch as there are no colour changes, but as I'm using a variagated silk floss I am having to tape bits of chart pages together so that I can keep the flow going in the design. I've got a few sections to do and then page 1 will be all finished and I can remove that page and move on. Hopefully I'll be back with an update on that soon!
Before I go I just wanted to thank everyone who commented on my last post very much, I really didn't think anyone would still be reading lol.

I'm Baaaaccckkkk!!!!

I'm probably talking to myself now after so long being missing in action, but here goes lol.
It's been so long since my stitching mojo went awol that I really don't think it's ever going to find it's way home. So instead I just stitch a little when I get the urge, and put it down again when it goes. This year has been my worst stitching year ever so far, but I'm just glad that I haven't stopped completely and I still enjoy what stitching I do manage and can still drool over new releases.
Sally being such a good friend always humours and encourages me when I whine about the pitiful amount I stitch, and after thinking about it for a while I've decided that I'll try to start blogging again, even if it's only very short update posts, so I can try to get back into the blogging world, start commenting on other blogs again and maybe even get stitching a bit more.
So without further ado, here are some update pics!!!
LK ABC Christmas
I've finished another letter and am part way through the next since I took this pic. I'm hoping to finish it before Christmas if at all possible, so I'm happy to be joining Sally on a Fri and Sat night starting next week when she stitches on Shores of Hawk Run Hollow as she's trying to finish that this year as well.
Nouveau Encore Designs Personalised Sampler
I haven't stitched anymore since this pic, but I'm hoping to pick it up again soon.
HAED Moon Fantasy SK
Haven't stitched anymore on this either.
HAED Alisha QS
Have finished the row of blocks since this pic and started the next bit lower down. Stitched on it last night and really enjoyed it so will hopefully be doing more tonight.
I also have a finish to show! I know you don't believe me, but really I have, I just need to take a pic of it, I promise I'll do it for my next post.
And if anyone is still here and reading, thank you so much for not giving up on me completely lol.

More Progress With My Weight Loss Than Stitching

Happy Easter everyone, hope you've all had a great weekend. Ours has been fairly quiet as DH has been on call for work so we've not been able to go far, but I have actually stitched a little which is progress lol.
I'm very pleased to say that my 61lbs loss I reported in my last post has now increased to 79lbs! I've now lost 5 dress sizes in 8 months and have been learning to run on the treadmill at the gym for the last couple of months, which is something I never thought I'd do. I've signed up for the Race For Life on the 3rd July so now need to start getting used to running outside on grass. I've tried it once and it was a major shock to the system, so going to use the same programme I've used to get me into treadmill running to start with the outside running and hope that works as well.
Stitching wise I seem to have startitis, but once I've actually started something I then lose all interest in it...
I have done a little more on my Personalised Sampler, as well as starting a new HAED in silks from HDF, QS Garnet, and Just Nan's Winter Hearts Humbug. I have decided that I no longer enjoy stitching with 2 strands of floss which Winter Hearts requires, so that is getting a few stitches here and there just so I can keep making progress, but I'm planning on as many new starts as possible being with just 1 strand in future. The Personalised Sampler has also just been getting a few stitches here and there. I've started a 10 stitches a day SAL sort of thing with JM from the HAED BB and Sally also joined in with one of her UFO's. So the humbug and PS get approx 10 stitches a day in on them, some days more, some none at all, but at least I can see progress is being made. HAED QS Garnet is lovely to stitch so far, the silks are gorgeous colours and just glide through the fabric. The picture doesn't do it justice at all, the colours blend much better than they look on the pic, but you get the idea.
And I have another three starts in the pipeline. Sampler Cove's Rhapsody in Red in HDF silks, Ink Circles Kaleidoscope in DMC, and a new design called Follow Your Heart which is winging it's way to me from France as we speak hopefully (will use HDF for this but not sure what colours yet). Not sure which will get started first, depends on my mood the next week or so I guess lol.
Thanks for looking and for continuing to read my blog, even though I'm useless at posting regularly.

I've Been Stitching!

Again, it's been a long time since my last post, but I'm still here and although my updates may be few and far between I do still intend to keep up with my blog.

I had a nice surprise when I just looked at my last post which said that I'd lost 50lbs. A nice surprise because as of today I've now lost 61lbs, so another 11lbs since the start of the year, which I'm very happy with. I'm now in between clothing sizes again so all my clothes are looking a little baggy lol.

On the stitching front, my rotation came and went AGAIN! but the one great thing that January brought was the final realisation that my hobby had turned into a chore. I was so taken up with trying to get a rotation that worked and make sure that I stitched on all my WIP/UFO's that I had totally lost all enjoyment in my stitching. I felt guilty about everything that I wasn't stitching on, and felt I wasn't allowed to start new things because I hadn't finished others. I kept looking longingly at my huge stash collection, and just being frustrated because I couldn't let myself stitch on it, and so felt it was just being wasted.

So after a long chat with Sally one night, who was feeling a little the same as me, we made a pact to stop being so obsessive over our hobby, to start stitching on what projects we want, when we want, and to put away and ignore anything we've lost interest in. I realised my ufo's aren't hurting anyone, but forcing myself to stitch on them is, me, because it's taken my love of stitching away. And we also decided if we want new starts then we shall have them! lol

Since that night I feel like a totally different stitcher, almost like the person who started stitching about 15years ago. I've stitched some days, and not others, but when I have I've just enjoyed each stitch. In the past few weeks I've stitched on LK's ABC Christmas, HAED's Moon Fantasy SK (which I hadn't intended to stitch on, but called to me one day lol), L&L's Celtic Autumn and my January new start the Personalised Sampler I had designed for my family. I'm stitching this 1x1 on 25ct antique white lugana using Vikki Clayton Hand Dyed Fibers in BeWhined. I did start this on 1st January using different fabric and threads, but I didn't like how it was looking, so started it again on my birthday in this colourway and am much happier. Apologies for the shadows on the pics, but I wanted to take the chance to get some photos while the sun was out, which is a very rare sight at the moment lol.

Items For Sale

I am starting to go through my large amount of stash as my tastes have changed and I have some items which I now know I'll never stitch. You can see a list of the items over on my For Sale Blog, in the left hand side of this page. I will be adding more as I go through more boxes lol.