A Tale of Two Projects

 Last week during the Dayton EGA meeting, a discussion arose about why we put a project aside.

I can tell you the answer to that as far as I'm concerned: I get bored, I get frustrated, or I find something shinier that I really want to work on. I also have the attention span of a fruit fly. And I'm having some problems with my wrist and its inflamed tendon, so I have to be careful.

So, I decided to try an experiment. I decided to try to focus on two projects and see what happens

 I have an intense goldwork project that I want to do, and hopefully would like to have it done by April 4 when the videos are removed from EGA's site.

Meet Lizzie Pye's Peony in progress:

I'm working on the padding at the moment. This is one of those fiddly prep things in goldwork--the foundation garments for the glitter--and I have to work slowly and carefully. Very slowly and carefully. And I have to focus.

Remember the attention of a fruit fly thing I have going?

So I needed another project that will give my fingers something to do but let my mind wander. I finished the bargello panel for the Flame Pouch--at last!!!--and I found I'm going to have to do some planning to get the rest of the bits for the set stitched on the linen I have left. (There's that frustration thing operating, so it's in time-out for a bit.)

Country Sampler has a stitch club called Threads Through History. I joined it last year.  Ann Kemp was one of the samplers in last year's offerings, and I finished it in almost no time.  Elizabeth Hall 1771 from Needlework Press was another project in the program. It also has a big, wild basket, and I like the saying, so I sewed the linen to the scroll frame and set to work.

And I immediately realized that I had overlooked the four bands of letters and numbers in focusing on the big, wild basket.

Normally, that would be a deal breaker. However, this is a small sampler--like maybe 9" or so wide--and that means I can get a row done in an evening. And it's really easy to stitch after working on teeny, tiny stitches needed to do the padding on Peony.

To make it a little more interesting, there is a mystery word at the end of the second row. Do you see "SHIHER" sitting to the far right? Is this the name of Elizabeth's teacher? Does this have something to do with where she lives? I googled, and got nothing.

Then I thought, what if little Elizabeth wasn't the best speller--well, actually, spelling wasn't really standardized in 1771. What if she was trying to write "Shire" to indicate where she lived?

And my Lord of the Rings fangirl clicked in. This is now my Hobbit sampler.

Going Walkabout

 This all started with a bad case of FOMO.

Inspirations magazine, the Crewel Work Company, and the Online Studio classes from EGA cause me the biggest problems when it comes to fear of missing out. All of them offer amazing classes and projects that aren't just the everyday stuff. And, generally, there is a window of opportunity that may close faster than I would like.

Of course, I would like that window to stay open indefinitely.

Anyway, a recent Friday newsletter from Inspirations mentioned that they had already restocked Betsy Morgan's Stuart Reticule kit from the most recent issue twice, and weren't sure how many more times they would continue to make kits. And they were down to two remaining kits for Heartfelt.

We all know that I do love me some Betsy Morgan designs. And I've been looking at Heartfelt for a solid year.

We know what happened next.

So then, there was the wait for my goodies to arrive.

All was well at first. Shipment was sent from Australia, landed in California, got through Customs. Ended up in Memphis, which seems to be the place most things that come to me from Australia go before making the final trek.

After all, it's pretty much a straight shot from Memphis to my part of North Carolina. And, let's face it, Tennessee and North Carolina are right next to each other. We share a border and part of the Appalachians.

However, the kits seems to have had another idea.

The next stop that tracking showed was Jacksonville. The one in Florida, not the one in North Carolina. Okay, the box hopped on the wrong truck. Generally, things are put back on another truck heading north and it's no biggie.

Nope, my package decided it liked Florida and hung around Jacksonville for a bit. Then it went to Tampa. Then back to Jacksonville. Twice.

Finally, finally, it arrived in the parcel delivery box at my home address.

Am I digging right in? Well, I would, but I started two new projects yesterday.

And that's a story for another day.

Patriotic Stitching

 Seems like everyone has been stitching patriotic pieces for the 250th anniversary of the United States. 

I have finally hopped on the bandwagon.

The borders on Stacy Nash's Liberty for All sampler first drew me to this design. So that's the first thing I plan to work on:

I'm using the called-for overdyed cotton threads on Rhyolite 40 count linen from Weeks Dye Works. The color of the linen is washing out, but it's a lovely, rich color that I think will work well.

And one of the sampler guilds I belong to, Examplary Needle Guild, is having Susan Standley of Stitch in Time present a program in June. As part of the program, we received the chart and kit for Clara 1876. So Clara is my second project:

AVAS silks on 37 count Legacy Linen Smoke Signal--yummy!

There is a third candidate for Patriotic stitching, if I can find it. Merry Cox designed a needle book that she taught at Christmas in Williamsburg a long, long time ago, like over two decades. I know I have it. I know I have seen it in the stash since we moved. Which bin it's in, I do not know. 

It will likely show up after the Fourth.

Marching On

 I spent a week with my daughter and friends at our annual stitching getaway.

I took seven different projects with me. I did very little stitching on any of them. Apparently I can't stitch anywhere but home, and that's fine. I already knew I don't stitch well in class, so this is just more of the same. I like my nest. I was, however, enabled, I had some lovely meals out with friends and wonderful food, I went shopping at Liberty Hill Needleworks. And I was chastised because my blogging has been sporadic of late.

Hopefully that will change, now that I'm back home.

This is going to be my focus project for March, I think.

Peony is designed by the same person whose Hummingbird I just finished. This was one of EGA's online studio classes, and the videos will be available only for a few more weeks, so I need to get moving.

And this is my albatross:

I worked on the Flame Pouch while I was away. I thought it would be the perfect stitch-in project--don't have to think about anything but the color I needed to use and I could listen to conversations and talk while stitching. Just like I thought it would be a good television-watching project . . . but, while it is absolutely beautiful, I'm bored. I am sooooooooooo booooooooored!!! And I only have three and a half rows to stitch and then I can move on to stitching the smalls that fit in the carrying case with the pouch. (And putting it together, of course, but that's a hurdle to leap later.)

I have spoken sternly to myself, and I will put a thread a day in this until it is stitched.

Follow this space to see if I can be disciplined. I'm not usually disciplined.

In other random thoughts, wouldn't it be great if someone would provide ergonomic chairs at stitching events? Those straight up-and-down chairs might be great for banquets or conferences where you listen to a lecture for 45 minutes and then move to something else. For long days of needlework, they are killers! I had an office chair at work before I retired that did everything but provide massages and whisper sweet nothings in my ear. I could LIVE in that chair. I wish I had something like that for stitching away from home.

Or maybe have someone come in and provide chair massages every afternoon--just loosen up those shoulders and arms and hands and lower backs.

And, finally, my annual rant about going to Daylight Savings Time. I am against it. I will never, ever adjust well to it. You'd think that being retired would keep me from feeling the effects so badly, but since you have to deal with events and people who have to cope with it, it's still a pain.

Enough said.

Birdwatching

 I finally crawled out of my stitching slump and finished my Hummingbird in Silk and Gold.

I wish the camera showed how shiny this is--I mean, majorly shiny! And I'm also pleased with the way the pearl purl cooperated--I mean, I got the points exactly the way I wanted.  The silk shading could still use some work, but that will get better with practice.

Meanwhile, I'm getting ready to leave town for my annual escape to Williamsburg and a week of stitching with some of my favorite people. I am packing more than I will ever touch, mainly because the last couple of years I've taken only one or two projects for focused stitching.

Which meant I got bored quickly, so this year, I'm taking a ridiculous number of projects, and planning a trip to Liberty Hill Needlework on top of those, so I won't be able to get bored. 

I just hope I remember to pack my magnifiers and needles and scissors.

Look familiar?

 

Yep, Jackie's Flame Stitch Pouch, which is about all my brain has been capable of handling lately.

Maybe it's the aftermath of the Cold from Hell, maybe it's the winter that's been dragging on forever, maybe my mojo has gone on vacation to a sunny tropical isle--whatever is going on, I haven't been stitching much. The best thing that I've found to do when my mojo goes walkabout is to avoid forcing it.

So I've been watching the Olympics and old movies and reading a lot instead.

But, as I was looking at this the other night, I decided to glance over the finishing directions, and, hallelujah and praise the Lord! I found that I only need three complete repeats of the color pattern, not four! So I'm almost through with this part!!!

Also, I'm taking a couple of classes through the Crewel Work Company's Lady Anne festival this weekend, so maybe that will jump start the stitching fever again.

Which is the only kind of fever I want to have.

Long Time, No See

I have finally clawed my way back from the cold of the century. The last time I had a cold this bad, it morphed into pneumonia, so I was extra careful this time. Once it was determined I didn't have Covid, I was told to rest and get plenty of fluids.

So I took naps and drank lots of OJ and slurped up chicken noodle soup and did almost nothing else. I finally did get dressed, mainly because I was out of clean nighties. That was exhausting. Actually, the worst of it was getting a bra on: the girls had become accustomed to roaming free and didn't appreciate being corralled again.

Anyway, enough of that nonsense. I didn't pick up a needle until a day or so ago, and the Hummingbird in Silk and Gold appeared on the stand. I have started adding the tiniest of gold pearl purls around the wings. It is taking a lot longer than I hoped, but I am being very, very careful.

I have a couple of other goldwork projects I want to work on, but I'd like to get this one finished first. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll spend a little time with all three, or go off on a completely different tangent. I am setting no goals and meeting no challenges this year.

Other than avoiding another cold.