Stitch From Stash - January

Hi everyone!  It's Stitch from Stash reporting time again!  Here are the basics...

Month: January, 2015
Spent:  $4.12
Earned: -0-

So my balance forward is $20.88.

Here's what I've been working on this month...

Stoney Creek Oh Holy Night

I've been working on Oh Holy Night for about 30 minutes most mornings, and I'm seeing progress!! :

and...

Stoney Creek Winter Sanctuary Stocking

I've spent the bulk of my stitching time on this one this month.  I would love to finish this in the next two or three weeks.  I was hoping to finish one of my WIP's each month, but we'll see if that happens!

My goal for the first half of SFS is to try to spend under $25.00 total for the six months.  I don't really have anything extra to spend right now, and I think I have enough stash to get me to June just finishing up projects that I've started, or stitching on ones that I have a kit for.   If I make it - and I need to! - I will splurge on a kit that I've been wishing for. : )  Then I'll try to kit up my second half projects with anything extra I've been able to save (in real money!) from now til June.

Sooo... things I've seen that are on my wish list?  Not tons, thankfully, but definitely the L*K ABC's of Faith Kit that will be coming out soon.

And then Rachel, has been using all these gorgeous aida fabrics by Fabric Flair for her challenge starts this month.  I can see kitting some things up with them for the second half of SFS!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Tricia

YOTA and Mid-January Update

Hi everyone!

Today is the first Year of the Acronym (YOTA) update!  I've been working on my chosen piece - Stoney Creek's O Holy Night, that I started back in 2012. I decided that I would stitch on it for about 30 minutes each morning and see how much I get accomplished.  Here' my before...

And here's my after...

I'm so excited to be working on it again.  It will be so pretty!!

In non-YOTA stitching I've been working on the Stoney Creek Stocking that I would like to have done for Christmas this year.  I've been working on this one for about 2 or 2 1/2 hours each night and I just finished the bottom page yesterday.  Maybe I can come close to finishing it this month!!

Thanks for stopping by today!  

Tricia

2015 Goals!

Hello, hello!  I'm back with my New Year's Goals post.  I spent the whole day on the floor in front of the space heater going through my stash,  picking out projects that I would like to work on next year and making a stitching game plan.  I'm really going to try to make this my motto this year...

Yup, I got the pillow as my end of year treat.  And stitched it in just a couple of days because I liked it so much!!  

I loved Stitch from Stash last year, so I joined again, but this time my personal goal will be to only spend $50.00 or less in Round One and $50.00 or less in Round Two.  

I also joined the Friendly Stitcher's Get It Done SAL and I'll be working on my Stoney Creek O Holy Night Nativity that I started a couple years ago.  My plan is to stitch on it for a half hour each day during daylight hours, then to stitch on another project at night.  I have an ornament kitted up as well for traveling or boredom. : )

Here is my tentative list of projects for this year...

1. Stoney Creek O Holy Night Nativity

2. Stoney Creek Stocking

3. Homespun Elegance Snowman Ornament

4. Precious Moments January Snowdrop

5. Homespun Elegance Reindeer Ornament

6. Dimensions Nativity

7. Homespun Elegance Along for the Ride

8. L*K Marriage Piece

9. MBT Joy Ornament

10. Harvest Blessing Kit

11. JinglePot Road Ornament

12. Harvest Light

13. L*K Ornament

14. Bent Creek Leaf

15. Got Snow Reindeer

16. LHN Kindness

17. Cardinal - Lady in Red

18 CCN Silent Night

19. CCS Slow to Speak

20. LHN 12 Days of Christmas

21. WIPF (Work in Progress Forever) HAED Nativity

22. WIPF HAED Mini Christmas Mailbox

23. WIPF HAED Stocking

The ones in red are my January projects, and, if I get any charts as gifts during the year, I reserve the right to fit them in. : )  I can't wait to see how I do on my list!!

One last goal for the year is to keep track of the time I stitch on each project.  I simply forget to do it, but I would like to know how long it actually takes me, vs what I THINK it will take.

Wish me luck!!  I'm looking forward to starting tomorrow!!

Stitch from Stash - December

WOW, oh WOW!  I made it to the end!!  What a fun year it's been with the Stitch from Stash challenge.  I've really enjoyed it and I'll be back in a few days with my goals for next year.

Here is my spending breakdown for this month...
I started with a balance of $145.51 + December's allowance of $25.00 = $170.51 in account. : )

I did a little buying during the Thanksgiving weekend...

Family Blessings Kit:  13.99
Natural Aida:  4.79
DMC:  2.00

=20.78

149.73 Left! : )

This month I finished the Necessities Sampler...

So I started a Precious Moments charity piece...

And did a little more on the Dimensions O Holy Night kit.

Thanks for all your hard work keeping track of this Mel!  I have really enjoyed it and am already signed up for next year.  If I don't see you before have a Merry Christmas, and I'll be back soon with my 2015 stitching goals! :)

I found a Must Have!

I found a must have yesterday.  Even before the Oh Holy Night that I showed in my last post.  This one is going to be stitched and put on my bed so I can look at it when I'm sitting in my chair working on my computer.  It seems strange, though, that I want to buy something to help me remember that I don't have to buy things!  Here it is...

photo credit:  The Silver Needle

Isn't that the truth???  I so need that reminder!!!

I'm hoping someone will have a wonderful after Thanksgiving or end of year sale, so I can get it then.  Soooo ... today I'll be working on my LHN piece to see if I can finish it in the next week or so.  I can't buy anything until it is done!!!

Did you see Nancy's wonderful giveaway today?

Day Eighteen

Love it!!!

I'm off to be productive!

Tricia

Another Giveaway!

Oh, look at Nancy's giveaway today!  Wouldn't that be just SPLENDID???

The 17th Day of Christmas

{Stitch from Stash} November

Good morning!  I thought I had better post my SFS update before I forgot!  I had a good month and didn't spend a thing. : )  YAY!!  I still have my eye on a few things that I might get before the end of the year, but we'll see.

Here's my progress since my last update.  I haven't touched my HAED's much during the past couple weeks, but I've made some progress on the stocking...

the Dimensions Nativity...

And even the Necessities Sampler!!  

So here's my report...

I started with a balance of $120.51 + November's allowance of $25.00 = $145.51 in account. : )

I'm doing pretty well with my 5 project rotation/choice.  I can always find something in the group that looks fun to stitch.  The piece I'm really wishing for on my wish list right now is the DesignWorks Oh Holy Night that looks like this...

It looks so happy!! : )  So maybe if I can finish one of my pieces this month I'll let myself order it.  We'll see!!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Tricia

More Christmas!

I have another giveaway to share from Nancy!  It's another fabric giveaway today.  Isn't she SOOOOO generous??  Just click HERE to enter!!

Are you getting ready for Christmas?  I have ornaments to finish, a tote bag to make, a quilt to quilt, and I'd like to try my hand at a couple of stitching project bags.  Guess I'd better get busy, huh??? :)

Have a wonderful day!

Stitching Fun and Frustrations!

Hi everyone!

Do any of you have trouble with stitching a certain designer's work?  I just LOVE Lizzie Kate and Little House Needleworks and Country Cottage Stitching designs, but every time I stitch one of them I end up frogging and frogging and frogging.  Every. Single. Time.  Why is that???  They are not hard charts.  There are not a lot of color changes.  They should be easy relaxing stitches!!!  Take this lovely little piece here.  Notice where I stopped??

Yes, the bottom of the X.  Only when I picked it up again, I assumed it was the bottom of the Y and so that's what I stitched.  And then I stitched the Z and the little tree under that and the little house under that....  You get the picture. : )  Sigh.

I think I need to stick with pieces like this instead...

I just love how my HAED Nativity looks!!   I worked some on the Mini Mailbox, too, but I think I'll save pictures until I have something to show you other than a blob of pink.

Here's my progress on the Stoney Creek stocking.  I'm enjoying this one, too, for the most part!

My daughter has been after me to make out my Christmas wish list, and I'm adding a few charts and some fabric here and there.  How fun!  And Nancy keeps posting more Christmas giveaways which is fun, too!  Here are a couple more of my favorites...

DAY THREE - Floss

DAY FIVE - Hand-Dyed Fabric

DAY SEVEN - $25 Gift Certificate to Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe

Have a splendid day!  

Tricia

The 25 Days of Christmas have begun...

Well, at least on Nancy's blog!

For this first day she's giving away hand-dyed fabric.  OOOOoooooo - and you could get Aida instead of linen (if you wanted) and wouldn't that be SO fun????  Well, at least it would be for me!  Be sure to stop by her blog and enter!  And be prepared to see more - ahem - enabling posts about her giveaways from me over the next 25 days!! :)  Here's today's link...

DAY ONE - Fabric Giveaway

Thanks for putting up with me! : )  I'll be back later with a stitching update!

Tricia

A New Page Started!

I've been recovering from whatever cold/flu thing got me a couple weeks ago, and since I couldn't do this...

I decided to rest by stitching!

I worked a little on my new Christmas kit...

And added a few letters to my LHN Necessities Sampler...

And worked quite a bit on my Stoney Creek Stocking...

Then I played a bit setting up my new box with my HAED projects..  Isn't it pretty??

Here's the inside...

And this little box holds all the extra threads I needed that aren't on bobbins yet.

I just adore my new little Vera Bradley Kiss and Make Up case.  I have it filled with all my stitching necessities and I can grab it and take it with wherever I happen to be stitching. 

So I stitched a little bit on my HAED Mini Christmas mailbox... (which will look like a big blob of pink for quite awhile!)

And I started a new page on my HAED Nativity!  I've stitched around 11,200 stitches, and just started page 3. : )

Christmas movies start on the Hallmark channel on Friday, so I should be getting more stitching time in soon!! : )

TTFN!

Tricia

Beautiful Thread Giveaway Spotted!

Nancy does such generous giveaways, doesn't she?  There are two on her blog right now for assortments of floss.  Check it out and tell her I sent you! ;)

Be Ye Thankful Giveaway - 1795 Floss Collection
1840 Floss Collection Giveaway

The colors in both collections are so pretty, but I just LOVE the colors in the 1795 collection.  So rich and deep and gorgeous!!

Back to my regularly scheduled stitching!! : )

Tricia

Stitch from Stash - October

I had so much fun spending some of my stashed stitching money this month!  When I wrote my last post - the one where I was in a needtobuysomething mood - I didn't realize that I was coming down with the cold/flu that DH brought home last week.  Well, after a week of feeling not so great, I celebrated starting to feel better by doing a little shopping. : )

Here's the rundown...

I really was trying to be good, so last night when I was still feeling sneezy and wheezy I sat down on the floor and spread my charts over the floor.  "I'll just kit up something I have in my stash!", thought I.  Pretty soon I had piles of "I like this!" and piles of "I should stitch this because someone sent it to me" and piles of "I want to do a charity stitch or two next year" scattered around me, and then I opened one of my folders and saw this...

HAED Mini Christmas Mailbox

That was it!!  I looked to see if I had enough fabric leftover from the yard I bought for The Nativity.  WOW!  The Mini one will only be half the size!  Who knew!!  (As a side note... I didn't start the Mini Mailbox last year when I got it because it was TOO BIG.  And now listen to me!  LOL!!)  Anyway, I had enough fabric, so I started to plan...

I went through my floss and marked what I needed.  I made a list of accessories I wanted to have, and I started shopping...

Here's the rundown...

One big Decorative Box to hold the threads, accessories, fabric and charts of my two HAED's on the go.

One little Decorative Box to hold the extra skeins of floss.

Bobbins and Needles

One DMC Storage Box

DMC Floss to finish kitting up The Nativity and Mini Mailbox

One Kiss & Make Up Bag to hold accessories....  It's Vonna's fault.

One clipboard to hold my pattern

One Dimensions Kit from EBay

One WOCS magazine from Ebay with a stitch I want to do for charity.

For a grand total of $78.00 BUT Mel just said we could have a $50.00 exemption once before the end of the year, so I'm going to take it now, making my total a mere $28.00.

So here's my accounting for the month...

I started with a balance of $123.51 + October's allowance of $25.00 = $148.51

I spent $78.00 - $50.00 exemption= $28.00.  So my balance forward is $120.51.

My goal is to stitch on 5 projects for the rest of the year...

1. HAED The Nativity (WIP)

2. Stoney Creek Woodland Sanctuary Stocking (WIP)

3. LHN Necessities Sampler (WIP) (I can start something new if I finish this, 

but it needs to be a charity piece.)

4. HAED Mini Christmas Mailbox - New Start

5. Dimensions Kit Oh Holy Night - New Start

But I have quite a bit still in my Stitch from Stash "account", so if I get desperate again, or if I need fabric or floss for the charity stitch, or if I just want to place a Black Friday order, I still have room to play. : )  This has been such a fun challenge!  Next year I'd like to do this for my stamping supplies, too.  I've spent WAY more there this year than I have on stitching!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Tricia

ps I've already started both the Dimensions kit and the new HAED.  You'll have to come back in a week or two for pictures! :)

Mid - October Update

It's raining here and I have chocolate chip muffins cooking in the oven, so it seemed like a good time to update my blog.  I think I've decided that cross stitch is one of my comfort foods. :)  No, I don't eat it, but if I'm feeling a little low I love to look through my stash, window shop online, or make grand plans about next year's stitching.  I might actually even stitch a little! :)

Here's my update...

Page Two of HAED Nativity is finished! WooHoo!!!

The toe of the stocking is finished and I've worked on the band.  Little by little!!

Just a quick letter here and there when I need a stitch I don't have to think about too hard. : )

I've been having a needtobuysomething urge lately.  First I saw this...

... which is SO me.  I haven't bought it yet, because I am not sure I should have 2 HAED's going on at once, but I love it and would love to stitch it!

Then I saw this...

...which looks so fun, since I love Christmas stitching.  I didn't buy that either.

Then I saw this Petite Dimensions Gold kit on eBay.

Another sweet Christmas stitch.  I did buy this one.... : )

My Stitch from Stash account is over $100.00, I think, so I might cave in and place a small order just to get it out of my system.  But as soon as I say that, I am paralyzed, because I can't choose what to get.  LOL!!!  Should I start another HAED?  Should I just get fabric and floss and kit up a bunch of charts in my stash?  Should I buy the Christmas kit up there?  Or the two charts from my last post?  Or should I get one of those Vera Bradley Kiss and Makeup bags to stash with all the stitching goodies I always wish I had with me?  Or should I call Shepherd's Bush and see if they would kit up a fob for me with aida, since I'm allergic to linen???

Decisions, decisions!  I'm going to go ponder....

: )

Have a splendiforous day!

Tricia

Up for Adoption

Hi everyone!  No stitching to show today... although I have been working on my HAED and should have Page Two of The Nativity done tonight or tomorrow....  WOOHOO!!

I'm just dropping by this afternoon to let you know that there is another Artist Teddy Bear up for adoption in my daughter's Etsy Shoppe!  Take a look at Carmel and his kitty....

SOoooo sweet!  And a perfect gift for yourself or a friend this fall season!!

You can find Carmel HERE - but hurry!  He'll be gone soon, I'm thinking!!

{Stitch from Stash} September Update

Hi everyone!  Are you as excited as I am that it is fall?  I love Autumn!!  I like to stitch and watch/listen to football games.  I like the pretty leaves and the beautiful colors.  And I like that Christmas is almost here!!! :)

I hope everyone has had a wonderful Stitch from Stash month.  This has been so fun for me so far.  I enjoy seeing all the projects we are pulling from our stashes, and I'm enjoying making a dent in my own!  Here's my update this month - and sorry if the pictures aren't that great... The lighting didn't seem to catch them right this morning!

I stitched another column on The Nativity.  I'm at 5% now!!! WooHoo!

I finished the chart I picked up at Cecilia's Sampler this spring... Lizzie Kate's Thankful String.  I stitched it on 16 count sparkly fabric.  LOVE the sparkle, but working with it made my hands itch, so I glad that I was only doing a little piece. :)

Finished a little PS design for a gift...

Finished a Sheep Virtue (I'm not doing the border on this one...).  I'd like to make it into a bag for a Christmas gift.

Finished a sweet ME doggy ornament....

And worked some more on the toe of the Stoney Creek Stocking.

Here's my accounting for the month...

I started with a balance of $98.98 + September's allowance of $25.00 = $123.98

I looked at a couple of charts over and over again, but I didn't buy them, so all I spent was $0.47 on a skein of DMC floss.  So my balance forward is $123.51.

Want to see some of my "almost boughts"?

Imaginating Harvest Light

Imaginating Got Snow Reindeer

I'm sure I'll get both of them eventually... I just can't decide which one to stitch first.  I love the colors on the first one, and I just love the cute expressions on the reindeers' faces in the second one!

 Happy FALL!!

Tricia

{Stitch from Stash} August Update

Hello, hello!

What a whirlwind month it has been!  I'm afraid I have very little stitching to show for it, but I had two new starts from my stash and took a trip to my LNS, so it was a good month. :)

So here's my month in pictures....

  I stitched 1600 stitches on The Nativity...

and started a Stoney Creek Stocking that was in my stash...

I went to my LNS and picked up a pattern, a needle minder and a Stoney Creek magazine

Because the magazine had this in it...

I started an LHN Sheep...

And picked up the Stoney Creek FREE pattern of the month...

So since we got a free $25.00 this month and I spent $32.00, I'm actually only charged for $7.00 of my budget.  YAY!!  That puts my totals for the month as follows...

Balance forward $80.98 + August $25.00 = $105.98 - $7.00 = $98.98 to Carry Forward.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tricia