A Crazy January finish, a WIP, and a new start

I was a busy stitcher this weekend.

I had to get out of the house Friday night. I hadn't left it since Tuesday afternoon, thanks to a 13 inch snowfall, and we were starting to run low on food, so Left-brain got my car out of the space and I went to what was, to me, the happiest place on earth, the grocery store. It was a joy, especially because I got to see people I'm not related to. I stocked us up for the storm that is supposed to come through tonight through Wednesday, and came home to stitch.

I finished Hope Perches. I'm happy with it. It will look fantastic when it's finished into a pillow, something fresh and springy to remind me that better times are ahead. This is the second Crazy January start I've finished. Woo hoo!



With the finish, I rotated in another Crazy January start on Saturday. I had thought about doing another little one, but I know myself well enough to know that, if I do all the smalls first, I will be stuck at the end with the big projects and a chip on my shoulder, so I'm going to go back and forth with them. I think that's a more efficient way to do it. I chose Patriotic Summer to work on.



I had to frog out one of the flowers--the colors and symbols were very close, and so I, given a 50/50 chance of getting it right, got it wrong. But I got a little progress done. We went to my in-laws' house to celebrate his dad's birthday, so it wasn't a lot, but every little bit helps. I don't think this will take that long to work on, it's fun, like all of Midsummer Night Designs' pieces. And the colors are so pretty and fun to work with.

Yesterday I started Dimensions' Barnyard Kitties. It's my projects for the special contest at the state fair. I'm hopeful the judge won't nitpick that these are 'kittens', not 'cats', but if I don't win, it's OK.


I really like working on this project. Most of what I've gotten done was in a 5 hour stitching session. For a Dimensions project, this is a lot of progress, and it didn't feel like a hassle. The fabric is 14 count, and so it's not that hard to pull the floss through (nothing like trying to jam 3 strands of floss through 18 count aida to get the ol' heart pumping). They even cut the fabric decently--it's two inches on each side, so it shouldn't be too bad to frame. I do need to have good light, though, in order to work. This may be a lunch time and high daylight project. And, when I scrunched it to remove the sizing (I normally don't do that anymore, but I had to with this), it left white marks on the fabric. I think they'll wash out fine, though.

So that's my weekend. I appreciate all the comments on Betsy. I am beyond pleased to have her done and done well. Now to cross fingers that she'll look good in the frame.

Hoping everyone is having a great start to their week.