5 years!

Oh my goodness! I just realized that today my 5 year blogiversary. Woohoo!

I can't believe it has already been 5 years since I started this thing. I began this as a way to show off the crafty things I have made. This was my very first item I posted about:

 My giant latch-hook Mario!

I find it fitting that I now reach the 5 year mark with a finish! I have finally completed Candy Cane Christmas! I originally started this project along with a couple others as a Saturday SAL. I was doing OK, but then my stitchy mojo disappeared, and I moved over to making lots of chainmail jewelry and starting my own business in the process.
Now that the stitchy mojo is back, I have caught up and finally finished it! Woohoo!
Here is the final picture:

I am wanting to work on my Mousie next, but I also have a couple new starts that I want to begin, as well. Hmmm. Decisions, decisions...

Getting so close!

I still haven't received the goodies in the mail that I have been expecting, so I have been plugging away at Candy Cane Christmas, since it is so close to being finished. I'm going to be going on a trip next week, too. I will probably take Kyoto with me, unless my goodies get here before-hand (crossing my fingers). 

Here is where I was last week:

And here I am now:

Some of my progress is in white (I have completed all the white) so it isn't seen very well. I left off last night catching up on some backstitching. I won't get to work on it tonight, but tomorrow I will have all day. I'm hoping to be able to have a finish very soon!
Once this one is done, I think I want to switch over to my Mousie again. I haven't worked on it for so long!

Update on the stand that I bought. The seller did send me a screw that I was missing, but that was all they sent: one screw. So now I have 3 screws to put together the entire stand. This is getting so frustrating!

Need to finish, ASAP!

I have been in a huge rush to finish Candy Cane Christmas as soon as possible. I have been getting so much done lately, especially with all the holiday weekend time last weekend (although work wasn't as slow as I was hoping), that I keep encouraging myself to work more and more on it.
I am expecting to receive some goodies in the mail soon (shhh, it's a secret). I'll have a bigger post about it later, just want to make sure everything arrives OK first. Once I get the goodies, all of my stitchy time will be focused on something else, so I won't be able to work on this one for a while, so I'm trying to finish it first.

Anyway, here is where I left off last week:

And here is where I am now:

Holy progress, Batman! If I can keep this momentum up, I could be done with this by the end of the week, if all goes well! Woohoo!

Bit by bit, tiny steps

I wish I could stitch faster! I'm pretty slow at stitching, so my projects tend to take forever. (Well, that and the fact that I get bored with them, so I switch to another one for a while)

Here is the tiny bit of progress I have gotten done on my Candy Cane Christmas.
Before:

Now:

I am getting so far along on this one! This one is the most completed of all of my projects, so I think that is part of what keeps me motivated to work on it. I just want to finish it!

 For this holiday weekend, I will be stuck working (I'm actually at work right now typing this up). It should be pretty slow, though, so I'm hoping to be able to get some stitching in, while I'm at it. It won't be this project, though. My work project is Kyoto (pic is on the left).
I haven't been posting pictures of it, since the fabric has the design printed on it, and it can be difficult to determine the actual progress. I just don't like the look of it in progress pictures. If you guys want a progress picture of it, let me know. Otherwise, I'll just keep sneakily updating the progress counter on the left without any posts about it.

Color SAL - Red

I joined a one day SAL for Tuesday, and the goal was to only stitch one color. This time, the color chosen was red.

Since there is plenty of red in my Candy Cane Christmas, I stitched on it some. I did have to put it aside for a little bit so I could stitch up the beer bottle for my 99 bottles project, but I did get a lot done. I didn't get to finish the words, as I was hoping, but here are the before and after pics.

(Forgive the lighting, I took this one in a hurry before bedtime)

Ups and downs this week

As the title suggests, I have had a lot of ups and downs this week.

I have worn glasses since I was about 8 and contacts since I was 13. I have been interested in Lasik for over 10 years. Now that I am finally in a financially stable position to afford it, I decided to take the plunge and scheduled my consultation exam!
I went in on Friday, and after going through all the tests, I was told that I was a good candidate for the procedure, except... there seems to be a small spot of congenital cataracts in the same place, symmetrically, in each of my eyes.
I thought that was kindof odd, since during all the years and years of eye exams I have had, nobody, not once, mentioned anything about cataracts to me. I talked to my mom, though, and she vaguely remembers something from when I was born that they mentioned it was possible. However, at the time, they were more concerned over the heart murmur from the hole in my heart since I was so premature.
So, I can't have Lasik, and I've been depressed all weekend because of it, since it is something I have been looking forward to for so long.

There, now that the depressing sad news is out of the way, I also had a good thing this weekend. I took (and passed) the first exam for a certification I am getting for the day job.
Yes, this first test is the easy one, and the next one will be much much harder, but that's just one more thing out of the way and passed. I have already started studying for this next test, and I have a feeling that studying will take up some (not all, of course) of my stitchy time.

Speaking of stitchy time, let's get back to the reason for my blog. Crafty updates!
I have been working on Candy Cane Christmas a lot more. I'm about 60% through it now, and done with page one!

Here is where I left off last:

And here is where I am now:

IHSW and a review

Earlier in the week, I really started wanting to start on the Sleepy Hollow project I have lined up. I made myself a rule, though, that I wouldn't start on it until I finished the Christmas project, since I don't want to have a ton of WIPs lying around.
So, I have been working on my Christmas project a lot, now.  Plus, it was also IHSW this weekend. Fortuitous!

Here is where I left off:

And here I am now:

I also wanted to add a review, as well.
I have started watching some cross stitch videos online, and I was introduced to Thread Heaven, a thread conditioner and protector.
I was interested in it, so I bought some online, and it came it this week. I haven't had much opportunity to use it, but I wanted to share my thoughts so far.
So far... I really like it! It smooths out the thread, and I don't seem to have as many tangles with it. I also have noticed (and I'm not sure if this is from the Thread Heaven or not) that my thread lays better, with better coverage.
Since I haven't had much chance to work with it, I will continue using it to assess if I still like it after heavier usage.

Do you guys use Thread Heaven? What are your thoughts on it?

I never updated my progress counter!

I realized yesterday that I never updated my progress counter on the side for my Christmas project. I was missing over 3K stitches!
I have since updated it, so it looks much better for how much I have done. While I'm at it, I figure I'll go ahead and post an update from the last couple days. I haven't had much urge to work on the rocket, my Christmas project keeps calling.

Here is where I was a couple days ago:

And here I am now:

Update and a new start

I have a new start this week. I promised Justine that I would stitch along with her in April on the Cut Thru Rocket. This project was in my to-do pile, and I had already purchased the fabric for it. I only had to purchase a few colors of floss.
Now, I am nowhere nearly as fast as she is (plus she has gotten a head start on me), but here is where I am so far:

I would be further along, but shortly after I started this project, my Christmas one started yelling at me to be worked on, so I picked it up for a little bit.
Here is where I was when I left off last week:

 

Here is where I am now:

 

I also had the oddest occurrence when I was working on this one, especially since it had been yelling to be worked on. I got to this point, and all of a sudden, I just didn't want to work on it anymore. 

I ended up putting it away and pulling out the Rocket. I've never just hit a wall like that before, it was strange to me.

I have also started watching some YouTube videos of people's techniques and tricks for certain things. I have already incorporated a new technique (starting a new thread with a loop from the front of your project rather than the back) into my own stitching, and it has been pretty helpful.

IHSW March 2016

This weekend is/was IHSW, which is International Hermit & Stitch Weekend.
My weekend from work is actually Friday and Saturday, so my post is a little earlier than most. My goal was to finish up the shelves for the 99 beers project. I didn't get as much done as I would have liked. I just get so bored with the long rows of one color.
Here is how far I am, though:

I also have some progress to post on my Candy Cane Christmas. Here is where I left off:

And here is where I am now:

Progress pic, as promised

I managed to get a picture of my stitching progress from last week.

Here is where I left off last week:

And here is where I am now:

I didn't really get much done on the 99 bottles project. It's so little, that it doesn't even deserve a picture (just a small part of one shelf). My weekend time was eaten up by the craft fair.
Here is one of the bracelets that I made while at the craft fair, to pass the time.

When to backstitch

So, all my life, whenever stitching something, I would wait until all the full stitches are complete before doing the backstitching. I just thought that this was the normal way of doing it, so I always did it that way. However, now that I have started seeing other people's works, I see that there are so many others that do backstitching as they go. I am curious, now.

Do you backstitch as you go, or do you wait until everything else is complete and do it at the end?

This week, I broke out of my normal routine and decided to give it a try! There is a lot of backstitching on my Candy Cane Christmas, so I decided to do some of it where I had completed the full stitches, already.

Here is where I left off last week:

Here is where I am now. I got more stitching in, and I started on some of the backstitching in the corner, as well.

I have also started stitching on Kyoto. My schedule at work has changed, so I now start really early in the morning and work a weekend day, which tend to be slower times. I have managed to get some stitching done, then! I don't have a picture of it (because I forgot to take one before leaving work), but I think things are coming along quickly with this one. I am hesitant to post a picture of my progress, though, because (like Qingming) this one is printed on the fabric, as well, so it is difficult to make out. I may just post my progress percentage. So far, after 1 week, I am at 5.7%

Yet another start for me this weekend, as well. I have decided to get started on my beer project. The name of the pattern is 99 by ink circles. I was going to stitch this with a buddy, but I think I'm going to be on my own. I want to get the shelves done first, then each update for the beers will be after I have tried a beer and stitched it. I will post thoughts on the beer itself and what I liked/didn't like. So far I have just the beginning of the shelves. I didn't get as far along as I'd wanted because, well, frankly it was just boring. Long lines of stitches of one color. Ugh.

Stupid games keep pulling me away from my crafts!

I have been stitching a little bit. Unfortunately, though, I downloaded a game to my tablet, and it sucks up my time. Next thing I know, an hour has passed. I was hoping to have stitched more, but the game made that impossible.

Here is where I was last with Candy Cane Christmas:

Here is where I am now:

I just noticed how fuzzy the picture is. I did it in a hurry. I have also updated my progress on the left!

Some work

I got a little bit of work done this past week.  Let me first show my progress on my Candy Cane Christmas project. Here is where I last left off:

Here is where I am now,I got some more done in the corner.

 

I also got some more work done on something that I am making for myself.  With all the chainmail stuff I have been making, I decided to experiment and make myself a purse out of aluminum and rubber chainmail. I love how it is coming along so far, but I have already determined that these purses are not something I would be able to make and sell. There is just too much material and work that goes into this. 

Here is what I have done so far:

 You can see that strip and a half that I haven't yet attached to the main body. The 2 outer edges will eventually attach to each other, making the main body of the purse. I still need to make quite a few more strips to attach until I get it to a nice size, but I love it so far! 

Here is a closer picture of it (you can click on the picture to make it larger, too):

This coming week, I am going to be in training all week at work. That usually means I will either be so super busy that I won't have time or feel like working on anything (most likely) or I will have plenty of time and energy to work on something when I get home (hopefully).  

At the very least, I am hoping to finish attaching these strips to the purse body.

Saturday SAL update!

This past Saturday, I was actually busy all day with studying and working on day job cert stuff, so I wasn't even home to stitch at all. So, I decided to stitch on Candy Cane Christmas on Sunday, instead!

Here is my last update:

And here I am now:

As you can see, I managed to get a lot of the beads around the outside done.

Another Saturday done!

I got to work on my Candy Cane Christmas again this past Saturday. It may not seem like much, but it seemed to take forever filling in that gingerbread woman!

Here is where I was last:

And here is where I am now:

This weekend I also bought myself a plastic project keeper box to store this in when I'm not working on it. I love it so far. I may buy a couple more for my other projects so they don't get dirty/dusty while waiting for me to work on them.

On another note, it seems that everybody is in favor of my wild shopping spree. I have started making a list of the fabric I will need to buy. I may not buy it all in the same place, but I will post my stash once I get it (although it may not be until after the new year)!

Saturday SAL update

In my endeavors to try and catch up on the Candy Cane Christmas project, I have gotten in some noticeable progress!
On Monday I finished up the second R and the candy cane. Tuesday provided the finish for the candy between the M and C. Then the rest of the progress was done Saturday!

Here I was when I last updated:

Here is where I am now:

Forgive the bad lighting in my pictures. It never fails, I'm usually in a rush to take a picture as I'm headed out the door, so I don't have time to get a better shot. You can still see the progress, though!

I was so worried about keeping up on this project, and somehow had it in my head that this would be completed by Christmas. I realize now, that this is not the case, so my freaking out has lessened. Although, if you count next Christmas, then we should be done by then... maybe...

I forgot!

Yes, I know I forgot my Friday update!
I thought about it on Saturday. I would have posted then, but I realized that not only did I forget to post, but I also forgot to take a picture of the progress on the pirate, so I had nothing to post.

So, here it is; 2 posts combined into one.
First, my should-have been-on-Friday post:

I have gotten more completed on the pirate. I did the blackened teeth and the backstitch around all the teeth. I even have most of the bandanna finished. I just need to finish up the bandanna and do the backstitching work and I am done!

Second, Saturday SAL:

I got some more letters completed, and I switched to work a little on the border. I needed some more color other than red!

Last, my giveaway:

I have mailed off the items to my giveaway winner, Jenilee! I'm not going to post any pictures, though, until she receives them!

I want to thank everyone who entered. This was my first giveaway, and I have learned things from it to help make the next one go smoother (for me) and more fun (for all of you). 
Happy stitching!
 

Saturday SAL and IHSW

This weekend was IHSW! Yay! I went ahead and combined this with my new Saturday SAL, and here is where I am on Candy Cane Christmas:

OK, so the lighting isn't so great. I snapped a quick picture before I left for work this morning. This one is coming along nicely, though!
I didn't get any stitching done on Sunday (I got sucked into video games instead). This is the only progress made this weekend, which is why I combined it with IHSW.

Pirates and Christmas

Here is the weekly progress of my Pirate. So close!

Also! I have joined a SAL! I have never done one of these before, so it will be neat. I am joining the Saturday SAL with Linda from Stitchin with my Furbabies and Miamina from Miamina's Musings. This SAL is one that Linda had been planning on doing with Debbie before we lost her, so rather than let her work on it alone, we have joined in!
I'm a little behind. I only just got some fabric for it yesterday. To catch up a little, I started it last night. I didn't get too far, I discovered that the color I had been wanting to use first was at work with my Pirate kit, so I started with another. Here is my tiny bit of catch-up work:

I will definitely start working on this more on Saturday for both the SAL and IHSW, so more updates to come!