Designs

Weekly Thread – 6/21/21

Happy Monday!

This post will be fairly brief today because I have a cantankerous toddler that needs my attention more than this blog does.

Finished Projects

Hahahahaha… Nope.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Part 8 – DONE!

Part 9 – Just barely finished color 1 of 5

One of my kids got a hold of this project and completely took apart the hoop and lost my needle, hence the lack of progress. The hoop pieces have all been found and reassembled, but the needle is… still missing. Searched everywhere, ran a magnet over the rug, gingerly ran my hand over every surface of the couch… nothing.

Have another needle, but that’s not going to solve the problem of the missing one. I just hope it doesn’t turn up in someone’s foot.

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

Machine Embroidered Products

Going to get some trick or treat bags in my Etsy shop soon and a couple new totes to list.

Check out my Etsy Listings HERE!

OTD Free SAL

Hibernating…

Queen-Size Quilt

Trying to take it easy on this and get more cross stitching done.

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~ NO!

Conclusion?

Need to remember to put my sewing projects up.

My apologies to my readers who may find this week’s post disappointing, but my priority is always my kids first. Hopefully next week will go a little easier.

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 6/14/21

A bit wiggly in the middle, but that’s hard to avoid with a 1-year-old running over it (repeatedly) between shots.

It’s another Monday!! What did I get done last week? Well… all my kids are still alive and well!

Ok, in all seriousness I did get some sewing done, just not as much as I wanted. Aside from burning two days obsessively quilting I did get some cross stitching done. Do I ever get as much done as I wanted? Nope.

Finished Projects

Hahahahaha… Nope.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Part 7 – DONE!

Part 8 – Mostly done…

I’m very much enjoying these patterns as I work through them. I’m getting a little concerned I might not be able to keep up with the SAL pace which… may prove awkward in the near future.

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

Machine Embroidered Products

Got a couple new patterns intended for quilting, but haven’t had the chance to actually test them out yet.

Check out my Etsy Listings HERE!

OTD Free SAL

Hibernating…

Queen-Size Quilt

Last part of section “B” before final assembly.

I went a little bonkers on this and got a whole lot of it done. I finished section “B” and I guess for whatever reason there is no “C” so I’ve officially moved on to section “D” which is the last section before final assembly! Yay!

At least, “yay” aside from the fact that this final part is… huge.

I shall tackle it nonetheless and get to the final assembly stage! Eventually.

I am by no means expecting to get it done in the coming week, or the week after, or even this month, but it will happen and I cant wait to get to that point!

Then comes the challenge of actually “quilting” it. Queen sized quilt on a domestic machine? EEK!

Alternatives may need to be sought out…

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~ NO!

(More fun with the quilting program… Not an actual project as of yet)

Conclusion?

On the positive side, this post isn’t as empty as I feared it would be. I managed to get a lot more done than I expected to.

On the less positive side, I’m starting to seriously think I’ve bitten off more than I can chew between quilting, two SALs, Machine Embroidery, and just all the little details of trying to run a “business” in these areas. Not to mention caring for 4 young children and maintaining a household.

Has that caused me to slow down at all? *points at the upcoming projects that are “not” upcoming projects* evidently not. Maybe I function best in a perpetual state of overwhelm. There’s no rational reason to keep adding to the pile of things I want to do, yet I keep adding.

Just keep sewing… Just keep sewing…

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 6/7/21

This past week wasn’t quite as productive, between the memorial day holiday followed by driving the hubby to and from work while his car was in the shop all week, but a little bit of project work got done.

Finished Projects

Nope.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Part 7 – ….Mostly done.

I’ll probably finish it today and then move on to part 8.

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

Machine Embroidered Products

These turned out to be the easiest to work on while on duty for transportation. I tried out a bunch of new patterns and I’m SOOOO happy with the crazy colorful fox pattern I put at the top of the post! I didn’t have all the colors required (or… actually any of the colors required) but I like my improvised version nonetheless.

Check out my Etsy Listings HERE!

OTD Free SAL

Hibernating…

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating… but maybe I’ll pull this out this week and work on it a little more. Especially since we have a new bedframe on the way… in 18-26 weeks (yikes!). So it would be super cool to get this quilt done in time to feature it on my new bed when it arrives.

Can I get it done that quick? Maybe….? Worth trying!

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~ NO!

BUT… I did goof around on my quilting program a little bit though and put together a pattern for a large quilt for a twin size bed. Broodling #3 will be graduating to a “big kid bed” eventually, so a big kid blanket is, of course, going to be needed for the transition.

This is not an official project though.

At least not yet.

Conclusion?

I’m suddenly drawing a blank for “conclusion” material. There’s a lot I want to do over the coming week, but not all of it is craft project-related, so next week’s post might be… lackluster.

My “FOCUS!!!” sign over my computer is now mocking me. Bah… I’m doing my best!

I’m off to get things done!

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 5/31/21

With today being Memorial Day, this post will be kept SUPER short.

Finished Projects

Nope.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Part 6 – DONE!

As I promised myself, I finished part 6 and started part 7! Admittedly, part 7 is turning out to look very pretty so far.

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

Machine Embroidered Products

I made a pillow! Soon to be listed on Etsy…

Check out my new tote bags HERE!

OTD Free SAL

Finished part 8 in record time!! Now back to hibernation for a bit…

(Yes, one of my kids hit the aida with a blue marker. It’s washable. I think…)

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating… but not for long!

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~ NO!

Conclusion

Lots done. Everyone’s waiting on me to go to the park so gotta run!

Too brief? Maybe. It’s a holiday though!

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 5/24/21

Theme of this coming week is… Focus! No more scattered activity! No more shiny new project ideas, no more squirrel, FOCUS!

(Meanwhile, no exaggeration, got distracted and started working on other things five times writing this very short blog post. Houston, we’ve got a problem.)

Hopefully by planning my days out better and prioritizing projects more effectively I’ll get more done instead of staring at the “to do” mountain like a deer in headlights. Course I still have my 4 little wild cards that like to interrupt and derail every project in existence, so I can only do so much on my end, but still!

Finished Projects

Nope.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Part 6 – …..ALMOST Done!

This part will be finished this week and part 7 will be started this week. Even if it’s only a few stitches. It WILL. No distractions!

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

Machine Embroidered Products

I’m sticking with the tote bags for a little while in spite of coming up with a zillion more product ideas. Looks like my Etsy ads were not prepared for the tote curveball in the middle of cross stitch stuff sooo….. hopefully that’s the only reason there’s been… no interest at all.

Check out my new tote bags HERE!

OTD Free SAL

This project is in temporary hibernation. But I’m taking it back out this week!

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating… but not for long!

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~ NO!

Conclusion

So… the goal is to focus this week, get much more done, but considering I got distracted multiple times throughout writing this post the odds are… not good.

(Gets distracted again in the middle of writing the conclusion)

Nevertheless the attempt will be made. I’ve got a bunch of reminders set in my phone calendar, some alarms set up, and a notebook with a schedule/plan in it… AND now… I’m distracting myself with reminders.

We’ll see. I’ve gotta at least try to get some sort of organization thing put in place to keep me on track. Kinda like throwing a whole pot of noodles at the wall and see what sticks.

Hoping for the best!

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 5/17/21

Busy, busy, busy! Turns out I’ll probably have to build a whole new customer base for my tote bags… Nobody currently following me seems to be particularly interested. Feeling a little dejected now, but carrying on!

Finished Projects

I could fill this with totes, but that feels kind of like cheating, so no finishes this week.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Part 5 – Done!

I added my own little spot of color pizazz in this design, but otherwise it is faithful to the original pattern. I hope other people in this SAL add their own little pops of color, but that is totally up to them.

I’ve also started on part 6, but still quite a ways to go on this part.

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

Machine Embroidered Products

I’ve got 2 patterns for totes ready to go, and I’ve got a couple more in the works. I’m also adding a quirky diaper bag pattern soon!

Check out my new tote bags HERE!

OTD Free SAL

This project is in temporary hibernation.

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating… wanna work on this so bad!

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~ NO!

Conclusion

So much to do, so little time.

Need to find a way to better market my totes and embroidery services. So much of business is like running around blind and trying to figure things out. I’m in the process of switching to a new (more mature) logo and re-evaluating my business plan, all while keeping current projects rolling.

Father’s day is coming up… maybe it’s not too late to get some embroidery projects ready for that… but guys don’t generally care for tote bags. Actually as far as I know, guys don’t much care for embroidered things in general.

Hmm…

It felt like I got more done this past week than I actually did. At least based on what I have to say about this past week, looking back, I got a few totes ready, made some Etsy listings, finished a SAL part… messed up a part of my SAL release process, but hopefully that wont happen again.

I’m human folks! I’m sorry! (Still feel bad for botching the pattern release.)

Hopefully this coming week will be actually productive rather than just feel productive. Though I think part of the problem is in running a business… there’s really a lot of background work that just isn’t “picture perfect” or visible at all, nor is it really interesting to most people.

Either way, “Just Keep Humming!”

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 5/10/21

The star of the show today is technically an upcoming project, since I don’t have any finished products ready to go just yet…

Finished Projects

Nope… but still happy about finishing my quilt last week.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

The SAL has officially started!! Yay!

But…

I was hoping to have finished stitching all the patterns before it started!! Boo….

Part 5 – Not as much was done on this as I wanted, but this past week has been pretty busy and, to be fair, taking it kind of easy for mother’s day was nice.

Want to know more about the current SAL? Click Here to check it out!

OTD Free SAL

This project is in temporary hibernation.

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating…

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~

Machine Embroidered Products (Surprise!)

I took the plunge (somewhat with my husband’s insistance lol)!! My mother’s day gift was a lovely (discounted floor model) Brother Persona embroidery machine!!! It’s missing its 4″x4″ hoop… which turns out would have probably been much more useful than the 8″x8″. The store I bought it from is ordering a new one for me but… I don’t know when it will arrive. And the mini hoops are the wrong kind and wont attach to my machine, so I’ve gotta go exchange them at some point (probably when my 4″x4″ hoop arrives – with the gas prices the way they are and more than an hour drive one-way to get to the sewing machine store… going to try to minimize the trips as much as possible) and so…. busy busy!

Hopefully, with this machine, I’ll be able to grow my tiny business large enough to buy a house (a goal that keeps getting further and further away in this current crazy economy, despite saving as much as we can) and move my family out of this state!

To the North!

I could rant about why my husband and I want to leave the state, but then we’d be here all day. Long story short, this is not where we want to raise our 4 kids and I’m going to work as hard as I can to change that (My husband is already working 60+ hours/week so there’s not really much more he can do).

Anyways, I have some nice tote bags on the way for me to embroider and once those arrive I’ll be able to post them all on Etsy! Fingers crossed that people will be interested!

Conclusion

It’s just a start, but hopefully with cross stitch and embroidery I’ll be able to improve my family’s living situation. I don’t intend to become super wealthy, and I know it’s going to be hard work (especially on top of looking after my kids and keeping the house in order – yikes!), but nothing worth doing is ever easy.

The challenge just means I’m probably on the right track.

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 5/3/21

Finished Projects

Yes!! I finally have one!!

State Fair Competition Quilt

It’s FINISHED!!! Like totally done. Nothing else to do with it. FINISHED!

This last week I finished the quilting, tucked away the ends, and put on the binding and the hanging sleeve.

I’m honestly way more proud of this project than I thought I’d be.

I’ve actually always avoided things like wall hangings because…

I thought (wrongly) that they weren’t really challenging or interesting enough to look at and therefore would be a waste of time in comparison with a whole huge blanket.
I considered them to be… well… kinda useless and the irony of that is not lost to me. “I need to make my home feel more home-y.” meanwhile, “Wall hangings are useless.” (facepalm)

Either way, I stand corrected.

This most certainly was a challenge to put together and the finished product is definitely interesting to look at… even though I still don’t like the challenge fabric! lol

I kinda hope the judges don’t look too close at the center, but if they’re any good they will so…. we’ll see.

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Yep. I was a handful of stitches away from finishing part 4 as of this morning. I considered trying to get them done real quick before posting this, but nah. This is legitimately where I was. Still, onto part 5! (after a few quick stitches…)

Want to know more about the upcoming SAL? Click Here to check it out!

OTD Free SAL

This project is in temporary hibernation.

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating…

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~

Conclusion

Still hoping to pull some projects out of hibernation, but we’ll see. I’ve got a new (surprise) project I’m trying to get together so time needs to be split accordingly.

I’ve really got to remember to hit “post” when I finish writing…

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 4/26/21

So I’m not sure if this week is going to count or not. Husband on vacation kinda shuffles the routine a bit so… I did some stuff.

Finished Projects

Just keep stitching… just keep stitching…

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Not much got done on this… it’s very hard to just sit and stitch with everything going on, but I intend to put more effort into this this week… maybe as soon as I finish quilting my competition piece.

Want to know more about the upcoming SAL? Click Here to check it out!

State Fair Competition Quilt

Houston, we ran into a problem and, after a great deal of frustration, just avoided it as much as possible.

So… yeah, I can math…

Turns out I actually was trying to merge 16 seams in the centerpiece.

Absolute insanity.

I mean, the prospect of 8 seams was bad enough, but with 16 the result was a massive struggle that arguably was a bit of a disaster.

Maybe it’s just me being overly critical, but after numerous attempts and ripped/re-sewn seams… it still looks like a puckered bu++ hole to me.

Is anyone going to notice or care? Probably (hopefully) not.

Will the judge notice though?

I’m assuming they will, but there’s nothing I can do about it at this point. If I were to continue ripping and re-sewing I’d end up with a ragged hole in the center and the piece would be ruined.

So… moving on.

I’ve quilted the majority of it and now just have the corners to finish and the remaining lose ends to tuck away. Have to decide how far I want to go with the quilting detail. I’ve mostly stuck with stitch in the ditch since, in all fairness, the piecework gives the eye plenty to take in, but I’ve added detail in the corners that would otherwise be somewhat bland.

Should I admit this is the first time I’ve actually machine quilted a piece?

I mean, my previous quilts were either hand quilted, tied, or a quilt-as-you-go format. This one is all machine.

Not sure of my opinion of it yet.

OTD Free SAL

This project is in temporary hibernation.

Queen-Size Quilt

Hibernating…

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~

Conclusion

Did more than I expected, less than I hoped. This coming week, I’m aiming to finish my competition quilt, part 4 of Bargello, and then pull some projects out of hibernation.

Vacation adventure in the Sandia Mountains.

As always… Thanks for reading!

Weekly Thread – 4/19/21

An actually productive week!

So much stitching and quilting….

Finished Projects

Just keep stitching… just keep stitching…

Current Projects

OTD Bargello SAL

Finished part 3 and moved on to part 4!

Am I keeping up with the scheduled pace of the upcoming SAL? Nope!

Am I doing the best I can with my very apparent ADHD tendencies? Yep!

Want to know more about the upcoming SAL? Click Here to check it out!

State Fair Competition Quilt

I couldn’t stop myself!!

I came up with a pattern that looked fairly complex, stayed reasonably within my realm of experience/capability and got the husband’s stamp of approval! (or at least a “yeah, that looks good”)

Now, before anyone gasps and gets all worked up over me getting his “stamp of approval” – Chill out! I trust his judgement and I value his opinion on things! That’s not a crime! Yeesh…

So I decided on my design, made sure I had all the fabric I needed (or at least… ya know… ballpark guesstimated that it looked ok-ish) and immediately started cutting.

Now… I kinda worked in a mad frenzy all weekend (husband took on the brood so I could focus) so the in-progress pictures are…. pretty much absent.

But here I am now!

I changed up some of the colors (still don’t really like the challenge fabric), but otherwise I’m pleasantly surprised by the resemblance it has to the actual design.

I probably shouldn’t be surprised, but I am.

Now I just need to work on final assembly and hope it will be enough to impress those who have more quilting experience than I have life experience…

Only have the most difficult part ahead… having 8 seams meeting in the center… which I’ve never actually attempted before…

*eye twitches*

No pressure!

OTD Free SAL

This project is in temporary hibernation.

Queen-Size Quilt

I did nothing for this this week…..

Creative passions sent me running in a different quilting direction…

Upcoming Projects

Because… ~~why not?!~~

Conclusion

I’m super happy with how this last week went, although I’m uncertain how this coming week will go. Husband is on vacation so who knows what we’ll be up to this week. Maybe stitching, maybe not.

As always… Thanks for reading!