It's been a good week. I brought order once again to the room where I store craft materials. And I have settled on yarn in my stash for a new Dahlia blanket to begin when the mood strikes.
Feeling a desire to bring a little discipline to my crafting, and wanting to finish some languishing cross stich and embroidery projects, I decided it was time to do just that.
Being the perfect temperatures lately to spend time in the sunroom, I set up a little corner to work in.
I may end up moving to the other end of the room as it cools off because the three large windows at the far end of the room are south-facing and that spot warms up some on sunny cool days.
But for at least another week or so, this spot I've set up overlooking the backyard, and pretty changing colors is where I'll park myself to work on this on-going cross stitch sampler.
If you've been a reader here for more than a couple of years, this project is the infamous mystery sal that I decided to jump into in 2020. It was a free offering by Linen and Threads, and it was to be my "covid piece". As we're approaching the end of 2024, I'm happy to say I'm about half-way finished with it. I might just finish this before the decade is over!
Last week, I set myself a goal of working on this project for at least 30 minutes every day that I could. I managed to stitch three - maybe four - days, and, of course, once I started, I kept stitching beyond 30 minutes.
Progress
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Another project I pulled out is a slow stitching scrappy thing I started last autumn.
After a few hours of stitching, I concluded that I really don't like it. At all. I'm not even going to sew on the buttons. Before you tell me it's not that bad, let me assure you, it looks better in the picture than it does in real life.
That said, I'm deciding it wasn't a waste of time. It may be the first time I've embroidered something based on an idea and a sketch I've made.
So that was kind of satisfying - even if my embroidered rendition looks more like house centipedes than wheat stalks. If you're unfamiliar with house centipedes, look it up.
And I think I've concluded I'm not all that into frayed edges on stitched pieces - even if they look cute when others do them. I loved stitching up a small kawandi a few months ago, and I enjoyed the scrappy nature of that, so maybe I'm just happier with finished edges. And prettier colors.
I'll try my hand at scrappy slow stitching some other time, but I think the next stalled WIP I'll turn to is something more predictable - like cross stitch, or embroidering a printed design. It sounds a little boring perhaps, but my brain will appreciate the break from second guessing the multitude of choices that are involved in a scrappy project.
Until next time...
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LUV LUV LUV your stitching area!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Barbara. It is a nice spot on comfortable days.
DeleteWhat a pleasant way to pass 30 minutes, Becki!
ReplyDeleteI have to confess I am having to relearn the practice of being willing to go back to something time and time again, realizing that progress is made over time and the only way we realize it is when we see the difference.
I am also coming to remember that even as we become more digitally bound, it is the analog practices of the world that keep us grounded.
Oh, that last part resonates with me, TB. Gardening, handcrafts, cooking... These things are grounding for me - especially, if I am doing them alone. I think it's the solitary aspect that makes these things especially grounding. Sometimes I play a podcast as I stitch or cook, but sometimes I just work in silence - listening to my own breath. Turning over thoughts. In this noisy world we live in, it seems we have to create opportunities for silence to exist.
DeleteOh yes ... that last part of the comment resonates with me too. I wouldn't have thought to word it in just that way, but it is absolutely true. And comparatively few really even know how to do the basic tasks of gardening, needlework, cooking -- things that may be needed for survival -- and that's really sad.
DeleteI remember your red xs. I always loved the way it was coming along. So glad you unearthed it. You little crafting knook is wonderful. Will you be able to be out there even in winter? Your wheat stalks DO NOT look like creepy crawling bugs to me. Be proud of that accomplishment. Not sure I would even try and design something to be stitched. You would be an awesome quilter. Lots of scrappy goodness with finished edges.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your encouragement, Marsha. This sunroom will be too cold to sit in come winter. It's a good room for when temps are between 50 and 80. If the humidity is low, and there's a breeze even in the 80's are comfortable, but we tend to have humid summers. Beautiful mid-80 degree days are rare here. On 50 degree days, if the sun is shining in the windows it's plenty warm, and on a cloudy day I might have to turn on a space heater. We haven't had a cloudy day since I moved out there. But definitely, once it's freezing outside and we have cloudy days (which we do most of winter, it seems) this room just becomes a cold holding space. Too large to heat with any space heater we've owned.
DeleteMe, too. So glad to see your red xs again! I like your wheat, but all the pretty patterns of fabric are too much for me, i think.
DeleteWhat a wonderful room for crafting. I love all the windows. It is such a beautiful time of year so definitely want to spend as much time there as possible. As we oculate between low 60s and upper 70s I at least get some days I can knit outside in the sunshine.
ReplyDeleteSounds great, Maureen. This is the best time of year in this part of the Midwest!
DeleteGlad for moments of peace
ReplyDeleteI hope your days are filled with peace, Elizabeth. You are a gentle soul.
DeleteWhat a lovely space to sit and sew such a lovely view. I think your piece is lovely and you're being too hard on yourself looks nothing like centipedes 🤣 but if you don't like it nothing anyone says will change that. I have lots of projects I've given up on because I don't like how they are turning out.🙂
ReplyDeleteLinda, if "being hard on myself" is the impression I've given in this post, I've missed the mark. Mentioning this funny, disappointing little stitch I spent time on is really about showing it's okay to be kind to myself by releasing myself from it. And documenting it. The moment the thought crossed my mind to just throw it away, I felt immense relief, lol. I will be taking the fabric yo-yo's off first, though.
DeleteThose still look adorable to me. ;-)
I'm sorting of joking, but then again, not - about my wheat looking like house centipedes. These are different from the garden variety centipede. Not to drive my point home too hard, because it was a joke, here's a url to the critter I'm talking about:
https://www.biodiversidadvirtual.org/insectarium/Scutigeridae-img1370228.html
I've lived in at least five different parts of Indiana, and I'd never seen a house centipede before moving to our current town. They evidently are beneficial in that they will eat smaller insects, but they are too gross for me. If more than one or two shows up in a year's time, I'm calling pest control. ;-)
Good for you for encouraging yourself to stop working on a project that is not bringing you happiness. I know as a crafter this is hard for me. I have been working on it over the past month. I frogged a knitting project that was just not bringing one bit of joy and again with a crochet project.
ReplyDeleteI love your stitching set up - how nice to have this spot for at least another month. Beautiful work.
Ruth, it is often a great relief when the decision is finally made to stop a project. When when a project needs to be given up on, I try to look at it as a learning experience, and then happily move on. ;-)
DeleteGoodness that's a blast from the past seeing your red crossstitch. How lovely to see it back in circulation of your active projects. I look forward to seeing your new blanket once it gets going. It's good to have some dedicated space and nice to have such a good amount of natural light coming through. Liz (highlandheffalump)
ReplyDeleteLiz, can you imagine the blast from the past this sampler will be if I'm still working on it in the next decade? lol
DeleteI've probably said it before, but I have always wished for a sunroom to stitch in. My great-aunt did traditional hand hooking, and her sunroom (a much smaller space than yours) was her preferred space to work in.
ReplyDeleteMrs. T., that is a sweet picture of your great-aunt. The simple pleasures are the sweetest.
DeleteYour sunroom has so many similarities to ours! It certainly is a cheerful place to work! I absolutely love your red cross stitch piece!
ReplyDeleteCheryl, every time I've seen a picture of your sunroom, I am amazed at how similar are our sunrooms. I think it's fantastic that you have turned yours into an fully functioning year-round room.
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