Progress and a start and finish

Here it is the start of another week and yes, I was able to make some progress on some projects in the last week. It was a nice week when I was able to spend some time working on projects and seeing progress on some of them. Now to see what this week is like as I would like to see if I can move at least one project forward a bit and then see what else I can get done.

Arabesque - here is the project that got a bit of attention this weekend as I wanted to see if I could move it forward a bit. I haven't spent a lot of time on this cross stitch in the past week so now hopefully I can get back to working on it as I would like to see how quickly I can get this piece done. I am loving how the colours are turning out on the piece so now to spend a bit more time working on it and maybe get those two missing letters done before too long.

I will see how much of it I can get in the next week because seeing some more progress on it would make me very happy. The only way I can see progress is if I pick it up so that is what I am going to have to try and do in the next little while.

Chew Magna Project #1 - here is the project that I did work on this week. This is a cross stitch that I did based on a picture of this pattern that was in St Andrews Church in Chew Magna, England. My sister saw two cross stitch pieces in the church and immediately thought that it would be nice to stitch it. We couldn't find any pattern, so I charted the piece from the pieces she had. This piece was quick to stitch up as it only took me three evenings to get it done. Now, I need to chart and stitch the other cross that she saw because it would be nice to have both. This church is where our grandfather went as a boy in England.

Easy Goes It - I have been able to make some progress on this project in the last week. I didn't get as much done as I would have liked but at least I have been able to move it forward and that is what is important. Now to see if I can continue to get more of this shawl knit as it would be nice to have it finished before too long.

I am enjoying working on this shawl and it is a pretty easy pattern so just being able to focus on it for a little while would be good so will have to see how it goes in the next week. Being able to sit and knit for even an hour a day is good and I do need to get back to doing that as it moves projects forward and it also helps me regain a focus when things are busy.

Simple Shawl - this past week we were doing some driving so I wanted a project that I could work on in the car as a passenger. I was able to get some of this knit last week and it will be a project that I will pick up and work on either when we are driving somewhere or when I just have a few minutes and don't want to worry about a pattern. This didn't take long before it was growing and now that the rows are a bit longer it does take more time to see progress, but it is still very enjoyable to work on. I am not certain how large this shawl is going to be because I have 115 grams of this yarn, and I am going to just knit until it is finished. I love patterns like this because it means you don't end up with little bits of a colour. 

Other projects - I haven't been working on anything else and given what I was able to accomplish last week I am happy that I had a focus. Now to see what this week has in store as it is a holiday here today so that means that I might be able to find a bit of time to craft, but I also have some other things that I also want to accomplish.

I hope everyone has a good week and you find the time each day to recharge your personal battery because that helps you focus on the things that you need to do. My goal this week is to try and make some progress on a few things and then see how things go. It is going to be a busy week for me so I will see what crafting I can get done. If things go well, I should be back next week with at least a little bit of progress on something.

 

English Paper Piecing - August Progress

Here it is the start of another month, and I have been able to spend some time working on my different English Paper Piecing projects. It feels good to see that I have at least been able to make some progress on things and that is great. Being able to pick up a project and work on it for a little while is always nice and these projects are the ones that do work when you have just a little bit of time to work on something.

Table runner - here is the project that was my focus as I was trying to get all the motifs added to it so that I could say that the top of the table runner is finally complete.

In August I was determined to get the rest of the motifs joined onto the runner and I got it done. It is nice to know that I have the top of the table runner completed and now what I need to do is figure out the backing that I want to use and then do the actual quilting on it. 

Popsy's throw - I am continuing to work on getting more of the motifs made for this throw. The pile of completed motifs is growing so that means that I also need to get back to joining these into flowers so that I can work on moving this project forward.

Other projects - I haven't picked up any of the other EPP projects as I have been trying to focus on just working on one or two projects at a time. Once the weather was cooled down a little bit I may try and work on a couple of the projects that are further along so that I can see if I can get them moved forward and closer to a finish.

In September I haven't decided what the focus is going to be, but I do know that I want to continue to move my projects forward so will see how that goes.

 

Progress and a new/revised project

It is hard to believe that another week has come and done. Things here have been busy, so it has meant that the week has gone by so quickly and am not certain what I really did.

There are still so many things that I would like to accomplish that I need to make a list of them and start working through that list. Hopefully once things are back to normal once summer is over, I can get that list written out and start working through everything.

Arabesque - here is the cross stitch project that got the attention this week. I am happy with the progress that I was able to make on it. I do know that this week I am not going to have as much time to work on the piece, so hopefully next weekend I can work on moving it forward again. It does feel good seeing that I have been able to get some of the letters done. If things go well, I might be able to roll the scroll bars a bit later this week and have a bigger area to work on again.

This project is still a lot of fun to work on, and I think with it being one colour floss it makes it so much easier to do. Using hand-dyed floss can be a bit of a challenge, but once you get into the habit of how you want to do things it makes it pretty easy to do.

Easy Goes It - here is the current knitting project that I am working on. It is a nice shawl that doesn't take too long to do, and it is something that I am enjoying doing. This shawl was started on Wednesday after I made a decision on the shawl that I was working on before. The Miss May Mystery Shawl has now been stopped and all the yarn wound into balls because I wasn't enjoying how it was looking. The yarn that I had picked to use for the shawl has a lot of character in each ball, and the shawl just wasn't looking like I wanted it to look.

It can be hard to make a decision to scrap a project after you have worked on it for quite a few days but if you don't think you will ever wear it, it's better to stop making it then spend all the time working on it and then just not wear it. I know that I will make the Miss May Mystery Shawl at another time, but it will be with yarn that is a lot plainer than the yarn that I was using.

This decision that I made was a little disappointing in some ways but then now instead of having two shawls that I might not have worn I will have four different shawls that I should be able to wear and that makes me feel a lot better.

Other Projects - I haven't had a lot of time to work on other projects this last week and hope that I can at least get a couple of other projects moved forward in this next week. I have also been working on charting some piece so those are things that I hope to stitch up soon if I can just find the time to do them.

I hope everyone has a good week and you continue to find that bit of time for yourself each day to recharge your personal battery. My crafting does bring me join and then life gets busy, I know that if I can spend those few minutes doing something that brings me join.

If things go well this week, I should have something to show you next week, but time will tell what project I can get done. Have a good week and I will hopefully post again next week.

 

Progress on a couple of projects

Here it is a start of another week, and it is starting out cooler than it has been, but that is fine with me. It looks like this is going to be a busy week, so I am going to see what I can get done, but I will try and at least move a couple of projects forward a bit before the end of this week.

Arabesque - here is the cross stitch project that got some attention this week. It didn't get as much as I would have liked to have given it, but at least I was able to move the project forward and that is what is important. It does feel good being able to work with one colour of thread. When I want to work on this project, I just have to grab the one variegated thread that I am working with and I can just stitch.

I hope to continue to move this project forward some again this coming week because it is nice to work on when I pick it up. Now that the large motif is completed some of the other parts of the project should move forward a little quicker or at least that is my hope.

Miss May Mystery Shawl - here is the knitting project that I am currently working on. I started this shawl at the beginning of last week and took a picture of it. This is how much I was able to get done on the Sunday when I started the project, and I was happy with how much I had done but it wasn't worth sharing it then.

Now you can see that I have been able to work on it for a while and yes there are different colours in the shawl, and it is working up at a good pace. The rows are getting longer so that means that I think it will take longer to see progress on the shawl, but I am going to continue to work on it as I would like to know that I have been able to move the shawl forward.

Other projects - I have been able to pick up and work on my EPP a little bit so that is making me happy, and I should have some progress to show at the end of the month on that.

Of course, there are always other projects that I want to work on, but I have been trying to keep a focus and limit the number of projects that I have on the go. It is sometimes so easy to start something but being able to see the progress that I have on my projects makes me feel good.

I hope everyone as good week and you find the time to do something for yourself each day. For me, it is trying to make sure that I have picked up my crafting even for just a few minutes each day as it helps me regain a focus and manage everything else that goes on around me.

This week I hope to continue to move my projects forward and hopefully will have something to show you next Monday. Have a good week and make sure you take time for yourself.

 

Some progress and another finish

Here it is the start of another week, and the weather has cooled down some here, so that makes it that being able to focus on things is a lot easier.

Work has been busy, but I have been able to find some time to make some progress on things and that also makes me happy.

Arabesque - here is the cross stitch project that got the attention and I am very happy with what I was able to get done in the last week. This project has been enjoyable to work on and having the different sections to work on does help. This motif that I am working on has taken quite a bit of time and now I just need to finish off the middle of it and then it will be finished.

This coming week I am going to continue to work on this piece and will see how much more of it I can get done. I am looking forward to getting into some of the other motifs and the alphabet and I should be able to start the alphabet before long.

Forage Shawl - this is the knitting project that I have been working on and it has been something that I have enjoyed working on. The yarn that I have used was from Arcane Fibre Works and it was nice and soft to work with. This shawl called for 100 grams of fingering weight yarn or approximately 400 metres. I was working on the shawl and at one point I did weigh the yarn that I had because I wasn't sure if I was going to have enough to finish the shawl.

The good news is on Saturday I was able to cast off the shawl and then I blocked it yesterday so now the shawl is done. I did have enough yarn to finish the shawl and even had 3 grams of yarn left so that was good. Of course, once I finished knitting this shawl it was time to figure out what I was going to work on next.

Yesterday I did start another shawl but there is no picture of it as there isn't much done on it so I should make some progress on it this coming week and will have a picture of it next week.

Other projects - this past week I was able to pick up and work on my English Paper Piecing for a little while so that is a bit of project on that this month. 

It has felt good being able to see progress on things and I am looking forward to seeing what else I can work on through the next couple of weeks. A lot of what I work on depends on how I am feeling but I do enjoy having different things that I can pick up and do.

I hope everyone is finding the time to do things that you enjoy doing. It doesn't matter what it is as long as there is a little bit of time each day spent taking care of yourself. I have found that when I am busy and don't take that time for myself it makes it harder to deal with the other things that happen that I can't control. Have a good week and I hope to have some more progress on things to show you next week.

 

A finish and a new start

Here it is the start of another week, and I am hoping that I will be able to spend some time working on a few of my projects as I would like if I can move things forward again. Being able to focus on things this last week was a little difficult, and part of that is because of the heat and humidity we were dealing with.

The weather here is supposed to be a little cooler, or at least a little less humidity, so that means it might be easier to focus on things. I do have some work things that also need my attention this week, so will have to see what I can get done.

Ramsay - here is the first project that I picked up and worked on this past week as I was trying to get him finished. It didn't take long once I could focus on it, and I worked on the piece until it was done. I had set a goal for myself to finish it in July, and I was able to finish it on July 31st, so that was good.

I still have one more Ramsay to stitch, as they are going to be Christmas ornaments when I fully finish them. I am thinking that I will try and pick up and work on the final Ramsay during August because having the three of them finished would make me happy, so that is what I am going to be trying to do. These are a lot of fun to stitch, and they don't take long to do if I can focus on moving it forward.

Of course, there are other projects that I am also working on, so that means the next Ramsay is going to be fitting in when I want a bit of a break from working on the other things.

Arabesque - here is a project that I started on August 1st as it is a stitch-along that I am hosting through Jan Hicks Creates - Stunning Cross Stitch Designs Facebook group. We decided that it was a piece that a lot of people wanted to do, so why not do a stitch-along. Arabesque is a monochrome piece by Jan Hicks and I have been having a lot of fun working on the piece. 

I started the piece in the bottom left corner and by the time I put it down last night I had got over to the bottom right of the design. I hope that I can continue to move this project forward because it is a nice piece, but that big motif has a lot of detail in it, so will see how that goes. I am going to have to try and focus on getting it done because if I don't get it done, I wouldn't be able to scroll up the piece if I get all the other parts completed before the motif is done.

Other projects - I am trying to focus on getting a few more motifs done for my English Paper Piecing, so will see how that goes over the next couple of weeks. I know that being able to move a bunch of things forward would be nice, so will see what happens.

I hope everyone is finding that bit of time each day to do something that they enjoy and recharge your own personal battery. It can be a challenge some days to put that time aside and relax, but it is important overall. 

If things go well, I hope to have something to show you again next week, but only time will tell. I have lots of things that I want to work on, but I need to try and focus on just a couple, otherwise I don't feel like I am getting anything done. Have a good week and will be back next week with another update.

English Paper Piecing - July Progress

Here it is the start of another month, and I can honestly say that I was able to make some progress on my English Paper Piecing projects this last month. Maybe, part of it is because there was a lot going on in July and I needed a project that I could pick up and work on even just bits at a time. 

In August I hope that I can continue to move some of these projects forward again because it makes me happy to see what I was able to accomplish in a month.

Table Runner - here is the project that does take a bit more focus and it was something that I wanted to see if I could move it closer to being finished. The pattern does take a bit of work to ensure that you are joining the motifs correctly, but I have now figured out a method that works for me and I am getting it moved forward.

As I am looking at the second picture of the table runner, I am realizing that I don't have much more to do so hopefully I will be able to continue to work on it and maybe even get the rest of the months attached. If I am looking at this correctly, I have a row to finish attached and then just two more rows to go and this table runner will be ready for quilting.

Popsy's throw - this project is something that is fun to work on because it is just making motifs and I can get a few made in just a bit of time. It is also a project that is easy to move around so that also does help.

I know that there are a lot more motifs that I need to make before I get this project finished but it is nice to have the motifs to work on when I have those few minutes and I want to work on something.

The pile of completed motifs is starting to pile up so I am thinking that I might get back to joining these into flowers so that I can continue to make the throw a bit at a time. The nice thing about this project is I have three stages and they are, making motifs, making flowers and joining flowers onto the throw. It gives me a nice variety.

Scrap throw - this project even got a bit of attention this month and part of that is because I wanted to work on making flowers from the motifs and this was the project that worked for that. One thing I have done is I have put together seven motifs into a little bag so that means that when I want to make a flower, I don't have to pick the motifs that is already done so it is fun.

With this project I like having the bags of motifs in a small container because it means that I can take them wherever I want, and it isn't a lot of stuff to carry with me.

Other projects - I didn't work on any of the other projects that I currently have on the go and that is good because right now I would like to try and focus on getting things moved forward and not starting something else.

I hope everyone has a good month and if things go as planned, I should have some more progress to show you at the end of the month. Have a good month and if you are working on your EPP project, I hope that you can make some good progress on it.