More March finishes

 It's been a pretty good month for stitching here in Crazyville.  On top of my other finishes, I got these two pretty sweet little designs done.

From my Big Box O' Projects:

Spooky String

Lizzie Kate

Stitched with DMC on Tea-Dyed Monaco

Did I mention that, right after Thanksgiving, I bought a very large paper box at Joanns and pulled a bunch of kitted-up projects to put in it so that I'd have some form to my stitching for the year? If not, well, I did. I wanted to kind of focus my mind and limit choice somewhat so I could stitch things I had pulled materials for and really loved that would have some meaning for this year. I have a nice mix of old and new, freebie and commercial chart. it will be fun, and it will be beautiful. I do have some things i am working on that are not from the box, but I'm hoping to make a dent in those projects. 

This did not come from the box:

Cowboys Don't Take Baths

Sunset Kit, copyright 1985

stitched with the kit materials

Someone Small does not like to take baths. Unless she wants to.  She also got a cowboy hat and boots to wear on her Rockin' Rider pony. She fancies she is a cowgirl, when she is not "'Fia First" (Sofia the First, if you don't watch Disney Jr., this child adores Sofia the First) or a dancer like her big cousin.  I got this kit at CATS, probably in 2007, from one of the giveaway tables, and I never had anyone to make it for. Well, now that she is in the "I just did it" phase of life, I thought it would be adorable for her. And it is. I do have to say that I was pleasantly surprised at how well the materials have held up in this kit. The fabric had been glued around backing, but that adhesive washed right off. I did not have the issues with the floss that many people report. And there is probably enough fabric to finish it nicely.  I am trying to decide between framing it myself (since it's not fancy) or making a wall plaque for the bathroom door, so it's OK either way, but it's so pretty. It's definitely gotten me looking at my large stash of kits, but I am trying to be strong and not pull anymore out til I finish at least one of my large projects. I'm planning to spend April finishing Santa's Pets, I think a month would get me a long way through that one, and still give me enough time to have it finished and framed properly for the state fair.

I sort of feel like I should apologize for the condition my projects appear in in these photos. There are hoop marks all over everything, but I get so excited to take the picture, I just don't stop to iron that. Maybe, when I get my new set up, I'll be a little more patient with it and iron things. I do iron everything before finishing, though. 

So that's all for now. Big stitching day coming up for me on Thursday. We are getting new windows and doors and I am home. I have to sit in a room and watch the dog, so all I plan on doing is stitching. I haven't had a vacation day in 2 months, so I need a day off like this.  I will try to post a picture.

Til then, have a wonderful week. Thanks for sticking around!

More updates

I hope everyone is having a good month. I still lack a computer, but it's on my buying schedule. We've been pretty busy lately. We are having some work done on the house, replacing all the windows and doors. This winter has been exhaustingly cold in our house--wind and vaulted ceilings are a terrible combination when your windows are horrible, and whoever had this house before us had a dog who scratched the CARP out of our back door and destroyed it. We realized things were coming to a head last summer when our daughter kept picking up pieces of the decaying door off the deck and showing them to us, but finally took the plunge. Hopefully, when we go to sell the house, it will be worth it.

I pulled this out this week to work on.

I'm embarrassed that this is taking me so long.  I have been watching Youtube videos and decided to try the parking technique, even though I don't know what to do when I get to the end of the column.   I'll figure it out. I really want to get this done by Someone Small's 3rd birthday.

And my finish for the week:

Clara's Skating Sampler, 1891

Sampler Girl

stitched with recommended threads on 32 count evenweave

I really loved this pattern, but it took much longer to stitch than I thought it would, and it's very big. 13 inches wide! I will make it into a pillow to be displayed next winter, but I still haven't found the right fabric. Maybe when we get our tax refund . . . 

I also completed organizing my DMC floss into the photo boxes. It was a 6 month process, because it got very discouraging at times. but I got it done last month, and am so pleased.  Now, I can see exactly what floss I have available, and I've only had to buy 2 skeins of floss lately. 

I'm also going to try really hard to stick to the stash wagon for the year. Money is tight, at least for now, and I need to not spend unless necessary. I have so many lovely things to stitch, and now is not the time to put my money into S.E.X. Heck, if I just worked on my Mirabilias, My Daughters Eyes, and Santa, that would last me til summer.  So, I'll stick to my little box of "must-stitch" projects, pull something else out when I can't find anything to suit me and kit from stash. 

So that's all that's going on around here. 

Update

Just a few quick updates for things I've been doing