First is the Lizzie Kate Mystery Sample, Things Unseen. It is going well, but I have to confess that I am not really comfortable with the QSnap. I like them OK for working on Linen, especially since the linen projects that I have done recently are small. But I like to stitch with both hands and it is hard to do with them. So, I whip out my Christmas Present (the Qsnap holder for my Lowery Stand) and will see how that works with these. I do find that I like the grime guards I got from EBay to hold all the extra fabric.
I am also enjoying working with the Weeks Dye Works threads on this project. The very subtle variations in the threads make it interesting and force me to do one completed stitch at a time. I also found that gridding was difficult on this linen. I put in some vertical lines to kind of help me out but I did not do them in blocks like I usually do.
I am anxious to get the first two parts done so I will be caught up when the third and final part of the project is released. No idea when that will be, but I am still quite a bit behind so am not too worried about it. I have to say, for for someone who has never been a fan of samplers I am enjoying this quite a bit.
Speaking of Weeks Dye Works, these are the first non-DMC threads I have used. I have just ordered the threads I need for planned projects and am not really planning on keeping a stash of them. I have no organization for them yet, and have not even put them into my inventory program. Once some of the projects that call for them are finished and I have (hopefully) some threads left over I will figure out how to store them.
Because I am planning to do a large Chatelaine Mandala this year I thought I would try one of the smaller ones. This is a Christmas Tree Mandala from Chatelaine from 2004. It is on the dreaded 6x6 Qsnap so holding it is not easy. Also, it has LOTS of single strand black line work. I hope I keep working on it, but I may check for another freebie that does not have as much black work on it. Then again, it is good for me to work on something different. I saw a post somewhere that had about a half a dozen small Mandalas someone had done and it was incredibly beautiful. I am resisting the urge to add a mini Mandala from Chatelaine because I want to stick to my commitment NOT to order anything new this year.
Am working on my Books Reading Books project as often as I can. I am well into the second page. I am thinking I will shoot for doing one page a week. That is about 5000 stitches a page. At that rate I should finish it in approximately 31 weeks assuming I can do about 700 stitches a day. Giving myself extra time that puts me finishing in August 2015. I think that will be a good goal. Photo is blurry, but you get the idea.
Finally, we are several days into the year and I have stuck with my resolution not to purchase any more "stuff" for stitching. I did order some Mo's threads on the 30th and got them in the mail this week. They are interesting. It is inspiring me to attempt to dye threads as well as fabrics. It also may inspire me to re-start the Tree of Stitches using the Mo's threads.
I am going to attempt to post once a week. My plans are pretty ambitious for this year and I am hoping that I will have progress to report on a weekly basis. At the least, I am hoping for a finish of some kind every month.
Thanks for visiting.
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