More pictures (new and improved)

I thought I would share a few pictures of my current WIPs. I'm still trying to figure out how to safely put photos on the laptop--I don't have an anti-virus on there at the moment, so I'm a little worried about hooking my phone up to it to get the ones I take off. I should just buck up and buy the anti-virus, shouldnt I?

Salem Sisters

Plum Street Samplers

40 count linen with recommended fibers

Something possessed me to start this a few weeks ago. I have had this chart since it came out, and I also have the "sequel".  I just love them.  The mix of the hand-dyed floss and the 40 count is proving a challenge.  I had to frog out that pumpkin and restitch him. But I can't wait to see what this will look like when done. I have a lot of these witch charts, and I would like to set up a display of them, but the question becomes . . . are they just Halloween charts, or is there a history lesson in here?  These people were innocent of the crime. So is it appropriate to just have them up at Halloween, or should it be up all year. But, if it's up all year, would people think it odd?  Hmmm . . .

 

 

  Sleepy Hollow

Cricket Collection

Picture This Plus Loch with recommended Weeks and DMC floss

My progress on Sleepy Hollow, the final panel. I find the trees very confusing to work on because of the hand-dyeds. If this was regular floss I would just stitch the outline and fill in, but I can't do it with the Weeks, so it's slow progress. I usually do a length of black or hand-dyeds and then work on something else and come back when I am steeled for battle. I really can not wait to see this finished. It has been such a long project and I want it set out, not in a box in pieces. So we'll see. It's my push project, along with the one below.

 

Garden of Eerie

Plum Street Samplers

DMC on cream evenweave.

  

My progress on our wedding sampler. Since we'll be celebrating our 5th anniversary in 3 weeks, it's time that I get this done. I feel like I should feel awkward stating this is our wedding sampler, since it's not hearts and flowers and wedding-y, but . . . There's a reason we got married in October, and I don't think a quirky wedding sampler means we don't respect the institution of marriage. After all, we've lasted 5 years at this. I  really don't know if I will have this done in time, but I'm going to do my best.  I do like it, but I am not a fan of stitching black trees.  I seem to be stitching a lot of them lately. 

No Spend September has been a bust, but I am trying to minimize spending from here on out.  It's not easy to turn around a thought process, but I'm trying. I've been in the fabric store once this month, and that only because I needed something really badly. I bought some ribbon the other night at Walmart, but only because I want to finish something into a no-sew cube, and I just didn't have the right ribbon. I'm not willing to compromise the quality of a finish to save 50 cents. That's ridiculous.  But I am also finding a lot of UFOs and having them to work on for a few months makes it easier to not spend.

No-spend September

How many times on this blog have I mentioned that I want to get myself in a position to buy a house? Did I tell y'all that a few months ago, I bought a house? Or rather, I bought half of the house Left-brain owned when I met him?  Well I did; we refinanced and my name is now on the deed . . . and the mortgage. I guess you could consider it a killer belated wedding gift from my husband, part of that "with all that I have and all that I am" clause we said as part of our wedding vows, and I am thrilled to be a homeowner, but, ummm, it was a little shocking to look at my credit report and see that figure on there.  And I owe other money, due to poor choices I made at the stupid age of 23 and how that rippled down my financial life (If I have one piece of advice to offer young people, it would be that, if you want to break up with a romantic partner and don't know how to do it, loan them money, the more the better. Those people will leave you in a month.), and it's a rough path to go down. Some of it has been spent on legit purposes, we've made some badly needed repairs to the house, but . . . I read something in a book that people who are perpetually in debt choose to seek ways to bring in more revenue, not ways to cut their current expenses, so, starting now, I choose to cut our expenses by not spending money, because we need a new house more than I need a lot of the stuff I buy.

So I am doing no-spend September. It was online. People were discussing it being done in terms of craft supplies. I figured that was too easy. So I am just not spending, and, hopefully, it will turn into No-spend 2015-2016. I figure this is a good way to refocus on using what I have and finding ways to entertain myself in other ways than shopping. 

That said, I did renew my JCS subscription today. Just for one year though. I agonized over this decision. I really don't stitch that much out of those magazines anymore, and what I do stitch is either the Halloween issue or the Christmas issue, not sure that is worth the subscription. And I gave up all my other subscriptions and magazine addiction after Someone Small was born, it just seemed like an unnecessary expense. I'm going to think about this very carefully this year and see if it's really worth the continued expense.

And I paid for the Cross Stitch Christmas book. I enjoy it and they're lovely designs. I just kitted up a bunch of designs out of there, and, if I had to choose how to spend my cross stitch dollars, that is it. Though I would be pleased if Better Homes and Gardens started issuing a large hardback Halloween book every year. Or patriotic. Could you imagine?  Oh, how cool would that be?

I also wanted to take a second to pass on a really cool place I found in Baltimore. The city has not gotten the best of media attention lately, but there are good things happening there, like every other city in the US.  We have the coolest FREE used bookstore, A Book Thing. It's only open on the weekends, but it's open EVERY WEEKEND.  AND THE BOOKS ARE FREE.   The place was started when a bartender found out that the teachers who patronized the bar he worked at were upset because Baltimore wanted teachers to have books in the classroom, but would not pay for said books to be there. (As someone who graduated from the Maryland public school system in the 90s, there was never money for things you actually might carry into adulthood. We had no driver's ed or heat in my high school). So he took his tip money and bought BOOKS, and told the teachers to take what they wanted. And it has grown into this non-profit where unwanted books can be donated and passed on to anyone who can carry them out of the building. It's amazing and packed every time I go there.  I've found things from my Amazon wishlist, and some books that I wanted. The last time I was there, I got two books that, new, would have cost $50, and there was no cost. The only caveat is that you can not resell the books, but most people just donate back or pass them on. We have a bookshelf at work, so I can pass them on that way, if I don't want them. They also take donations, so a good way to get rid of books!  Yes, I checked for stitching books, haven't found any . . . .

So that's life here. I am starting a new SAL from with the Cross Stitch and Discuss group on Facebook tomorrow, a By the Bay SAL. I have the Fall Mystery Sampler kitted up, so that is my choice. Will try to post a picture of it.

Til then, see you guys later