June was a very eclectic month; I worked on so many projects!
After my last WIPocalypse check in: I spent the last few days of May working on Dasher and managed to get him 95% finished before I ran out of beads. Oh well, more are on order.
On May 31, I picked up "I am a Stitcher" and worked with my Emerald silk from Carrie's Creations for 2 days. I love it- the color is perfect! The project is almost half done now.
June started with Whine & WIPs for Stitch Maynia. I wasn't feeling it, though. My biggest whine was my WIP count! So I started with the project closest to finished, Seraphina, and after 2 days, ta da!
After that, I did work on a project that makes me whine, Fall Fairy. The fabric that came in the kit, the 16 ct light blue aida, is awful to work on, has a plasticky feeling almost. I gave it 4 days then hand washed the project, hoping to soften it up. I gave it another 3 days after that (7 days total). The handwash did help but it still isn't a particularly nice aida.
CurrentlyThe first page is almost done, the column of 12 stitches on the far left needs to be completed though. And of course, the fairy's face and hair... I will save that for the end however. The progress is decent and I just might be able to finish her this year.
Then I decided to go for another finish, Toy Shop. It only took one day and finis!
I decided to work on Cookies for Santa for the Color weekend SAL (white, green, & red) in the Stitch from Stash group. 2 days effort. Previous progress:
Currently:
It's almost done except for another line of text at the bottom, two more motifs, and some backstitching.
After that, Snowman Stocking had 3 days on the scroll bars. Previous progress:
The main body of the stocking is now almost complete, and I've started with the borders for the name band. This is definitely a finish goal for next month!
Stitch-a-thon weekend arrived, and I took out Winnie the Pooh. I managed 2000 stitches over 2 days, whew! Blogged here.
After that I could not avoid my biggest whine-inducing project, Maiden & the Unicorn. I gave it 4 days effort, mostly spent backstitching. The bottom half is mostly backstitched now. The big exception would be the metallic gold portions because those areas aren't complete... it's about 4 different gold colors of DMC, all with gold blending filament. One of the colors still needs to be stitched. Hopefully the gold blending filament I have in my stash now looks good with the blending filament I used back in 2007.
Check out the detail of the creature (gryphon?) in the side borders. Backstitching really makes a difference, eh? I also worked on the mirror, but it's hard to see because all my threads are parked there, and stitched on the flag pole & flag, and a bit of the top border on the left side. I feel like the end is in sight, perhaps.
Finally, on June 25th, I started and finished a new ornie, to be blogged soon.
Monthly topic: Show us your stitching space! Where do you sit, and what is going on around you while you stitch (TV, audiobooks, etc)?
There is my stitchy spot, minus the ottoman. The chair faces the tv and I typically watch Flosstube or Netflix while I stitch, with my feet up and using a lap stand. I have 3 lap stands, the one pictured adjusts from 16"-24", and that is what I use the most. I have two lamps, one on each side, plus there is a large window on one side, but that doesn't matter much since I typically stitch at night. I have a side table that is full of my stitchy stuff- pattern binder, clamshell case with accessories, and current wips, which I store rolled up. My DMC thread organizer is full of floss on stitchbows for my current projects, plus scissors and needles in the pincushion. The thread organizer is nice, but it would work better on a chair with skinnier arms. I'm planning to buy a Lowery stand in the not too distant future, and I suppose I will need the extension arm for it, since the chair arms are so wide.
And the end of June, I'm trying to craft several full finishes; I may work on I am a Stitcher a little too. My plans for July revolve mostly around Christmas in July, I'm aiming to finish Dasher, Cookies for Santa, and the Snowman Stocking. I also want to work on Charmed Santa, which I started in May, and Fire Goddess. I will definitely start Bookseller for my Christmas village, and I may start a patriotic project as well. I won't have time for a week each on the big projects, but I'll try to fit my lofty plans into a realistic schedule somehow!