March WIPocalypse

It’s been a few weeks, hasn’t it? (Insert random excuse here.)

I actually managed to do some stitching this month. The last week was a little rough (I pulled emptied a project bag on the table every night, but most nights I just put everything away again without a single stitch), but all in all I did okay.

Out of season? Oh yes.

I pulled the bonus pattern from Something Wicked out of my stash and finished it off. I started this back in the fall. Am I late, or am I early? I have yet to actually finished Something Wicked itself, but this was a step in the right direction. It’s a teeny bit slanted. Best I can tell, the tension was off. This fabric felt much looser than I’m used to, and since I don’t use a hoop or frame, fabric tends to just do whatever it wants. Fabric is from Weeks.

Not to brag, but this is the first snow I’ve seen all year. *hides behind a chair*

I started working on From Sea to Shining Sea by Little House Needleworks. This is a series of six thread packs from Classic Colorworks. This is the finished center, called Mountains. Can I call it finished? The full piece sure isn’t, but that individual pattern is. Fabric is Ancient (I think) by Picture This Plus, and the floss is hand dyed silk.

You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear.

Once I finished the mountains, I took a break from the LHN piece because the new Story Time Sampler block was released. I give you Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Here are the first three months.

Wait. Sherlock Holmes? That’s a perfect segue into the following kitten pictures! It’s like it was meant to be!

Sherlock Holmes the cat knows from the threads of this blanket that the thief arrived in town Tuesday afternoon by train, and his shoes are Adidas.

Why yes, Morty is in fact short for Moriarty. He looks all sweet and innocent in real life, but in almost every picture he looks evil and scheming. Coincidence? Not a chance.

Ha! Almost forgot the WIPocalypse question. If money – and time – were not limiters, what projects would be on your stitching bucket list?

I can’t think of any specific patterns, but I would stitch everything in silk and mount everything on Lone Elm Lane boxes. And then I would stitch the entire Little House Needleworks library.

A Little of This, a Little of That

I left my last post on something of a sour note, didn’t I? Let’s look at some pretty pictures to distract us.

I haven’t actually read The Secret Garden, so I don’t have any witty remarks for this one.

February WIPocalypse

Oh wow, it’s February? How did that happen? Then again, in my mind it’s still October 2009.

Oh February. I haven’t posted in a few weeks and haven’t done much stitching since I finished the Alice and Co. block. Sadly, one of the cats has been sick, and it’s exhausting being a grown up. He’ll be okay, but it’s a chronic problem that I’ll have to actively manage for the rest of his life. In general, the cats have been good about rolling with the punches, but our daily routine has changed just enough that all three of us are pissed off at each other.

Sad cat is sad.

So here’s what little stitching I managed to do before all the cat drama kicked off:

I didn’t fully appreciate how big this pattern was until I unfolded the fabric all the way.

That’s the first part of Serenity Harbor, stitched with one strand of silk over two on 36 ct. linen. This is my piece for the Stitchy Start blog.

February’s WIPocalypse question is: How do you overcome that feeling that you’re in a rut with a particular project?

I have to walk away. I try not to have too many projects going on at once, so I usually stop stitching for a few weeks. I go do something else, go outside for some fresh air. After a bit, I’ll come back and jump right back in. If a project is really hurting, I might just pack it away and move onto something else.

I should write more, but in the meantime I have to go babysit two cats who won’t eat (one because I changed his food, and the other because he’s sad he can’t eat with his brother anymore). We’ll get through this.

January WIPocalypse

What a week. Or maybe I should just say what a month instead. You know how just about everything stopped everywhere over the holidays? Yeah, no, I worked through them. And I was putting in a crazy number of extra hours to meet a deadline. I’m exhausted, and I did something weird to my elbow. Time to burn a few vacation days.

It’s tough to stitch when you’re this worn out (and when your elbow is messed up). I had to frog and stitch the same little section three times in a row the other day. The last few nights I’ve just stared at my stitching in a vague stupor before putting it down without a single stitch and going to sleep instead.

So let’s talk about WIPocalypse. January’s topic is: Introduce yourself, your projects, and any goals you have for the year!

Me. I’m a 20-something from California who works too much and spends the rest of her time waiting on two cats hand and foot. Their lives pretty much revolve around sleeping, eating, pooping, and sitting in boxes.

Right now I’m focusing on Once Upon a Time from Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery. I started this one back at the beginning of 2014, and it’s time to finish it. My goal is to finish before the next Frosted Pumpkin pattern comes out on the 15th. This weekend would sure be great. I have made some progress since I last posted about it, so I haven’t been completely useless.

So close, yet so far.

How to Locate a Cat

You ever come home and wonder, “Huh, where could my cats be hiding?” I have discovered the secret to locating cats.

Step 1: Open pantry where cat food is stored.

Step 2: Look down. There are now cats on your feet.

Where’s the food?! That noise means food, but all I see is paper towels!

Step 2a: If you don’t see cats on your feet, they probably jumped straight into the pantry.

I found the food, but there seems to be some kind of force field in the way…

Alternate method:

Step 1: Sit at desk.

Step 2: Attempt to do something productive.

Step 3: Fail because a cat has just materialized on your chest.

 

What are you doing? Huh? What are you doing? Are you doing something interesting? Why are you doing that? Why aren’t you scratching my ears? What are you doing? What are you going?

Should both methods fail, cats are asleep upstairs. Not in the cozy cat bed or on the tower, but under the cardboard box.

This distraction is brought to you by Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty.

Fuzzy Little Distractions

I was hoping by now I could have reported successful completion of the 12 Days of Christmas sampler. I thought, surely if I apply myself I can finish it up.

But I didn’t. I’ve been a little distracted the last few days.

Specifically, I’ve been distracted by the sudden appearance of a sink full of cat:

Was that there when you moved in?

We’ve yet to determine how they feel about the colorful bits of string flitting about while I’m stitching, so hopefully I can get back on track. They’ve successfully venture out of the bathroom and taken over the rest of the apartment. The shy one (the gorgeous gray and white dude on the left) has finally left the smaller bedroom and is lounging in a lovely patch of sunlight. The decidedly less shy one has been kind enough not to sit on the keyboard yet, instead opting for the carpet behind my desk chair. I have yet to find any misplaced poops, and while they use my cabinets to stretch, they don’t scratch them.

Sweetest lumps of fluff you could imagine. They’ve been either at a shelter or a foster home since they were about a month old, and I can’t believe no one took them home before now. Sadly, they’ve outgrown the itty bitty kitty committee just enough that no one who goes in thinking, “I want a kitten!” would give them a second look. Also, because the gray one is so redonkulously shy they had to go as a pair.

BUT that’s not to say I didn’t accomplish anything. I just haven’t accomplished anything since they showed up. I did make some substantial progress on 12 Days. I finished all the blocks and the titling, and now I just have to finish the border. That border is no joke. I did half of it before the Pumpkins released the rest of the pattern, and it took me a solid 15 hours. Ouch. The second half has been going faster, but it’s still going to take time.

9 ladies dancing

10 lords a-leaping

11 pipers piping

12 drummers drumming. You can’t really read it, but there’s green text with “rat-a-tat” under the 12.

Ever so much fun! I have to say, my favorite part of the whole pattern is the cow right above block 12.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go clean cat fur out of my bathtub.