Updating When There's Really Nothing to Update

I have been stitching, but nothing that warrants photos and uploading them. So instead, I'll discuss a few plans I have for the New Year!

I am going to do a HAED. (Heaven and Earth Designs) Anyone who knows about them know they're huge projects that can take years to finish, are loaded with colors, and can be daunting to one who's never tried one. Side note: They do have "Beginner," "Mini," and "QS" versions of some of their designs, which are smaller than their usual projects. A lot of people recommend doing one of those before diving right into a larger sized design.

Of course, I'm ignoring that advice.

I have spent months scouring their website (here) and looking at the multitude of designs. To say their selection is all-encompassing is an understatement. They literally do have every type of design. Cute fairies, fat cats, realistic portraits, landscapes, mythical beings, scenes from books and TV shows and movies and on and on and on. There are even Harry Potter-centric designs!

After months I finally narrowed my choice down to one artist. Dennis Lewan's style is romantic, realistic and, in my opinion, just gorgeous. Once I realized I wanted to stitch one of his pieces came the hard task of actually choosing one. Finally I selected this:

I chose it for many reasons. I love old ships, lighthouses, and flowers. I love the colors - the shades of pink and purple in the sky are stunning. My main reason for choosing it is: Doggone it, I just like it. 

The size is 350w X 438h. I haven't yet decided which fabric I'm going to do it on. I have a large enough piece of 18 ct Aida (finished size will be 26" X 31") and 28 ct Evenweave (finished size will be 19" X 21" if done over 1). I've been slowly getting the threads I'll need (there are 89 colors), as my local Walmart doesn't carry all of them.

I'm so excited! I've wanted to do a HAED since I first heard about them. I'm looking forward to starting it in January. In the meantime I'll be doing practice stitching to see which fabric I'm going to use.

Year of WIPs!

While skipping around on FlossTube – the amazing stitching folks on YouTube – I was linked to this video. I'd never seen Melanie's vids before and I was intrigued. I looked up the group on Facebook (It's a closed group, but (link) please check it out!) and once I was accepted, did a bit of browsing. The ladies – I don't think I've seen any gents posting – are all wonderful, warm-hearted folk. I also learned more about the Year of WIPs. It runs from October 1, 2016, through December 31, 2017. I decided to do this for these reasons:

•  I still have WIPs from this year's MAY-Nia that have been gathering dust
• I need a kick in the pants to get some WIPs finished
• I've desperately wanted to start a HAED (Heaven and Earth Designs) project for months. 

My hubby is very budget conscious, and I'm not, so he suggested that I finish off some projects before going through the cost of kitting the HAED I have in mind. I mentioned the Year of WIPs to him and after explaining what WIPs are, then explaining what a Facebook group is – he's technologically inept, but he's adorable about it – he thought it was a grand idea. And he said that if I finish at least three of my WIPs before the year's end, he'll buy the things needed for my HAED. YAY!

Side note: Yes, I discuss purchasing stash with my husband. We are a one-income family, and it's his income. Anything over, say, $15 or so, I always clear with him. He takes care of the budget, I take care to not go over it…too much.

Anyway, my next feat was deciding which of my WIPS to focus on. I have quite a few but sadly I've lost the inspiration for several of them. One, a stocking, I actually frogged completely to use the cloth on another project. Sigh. But, I came up with ten projects. In no particular order, and showing my 

starting point come October 1^{st, they are:}

Quick Intro

Hey, y'all!

My name is Josie. I'm a stay at home mother of three pretty cool kids. I homeschool one. We live in an old farmhouse in the middle of nowhere, and several cats allow us to live with them. A dopey pitbull mix is allowed to reside here, too.

I've been cross stitching off and on for over twenty years. Little projects were completed, given away, and subsequently forgotten about. As years passed, stitching fell to the wayside, until my mother was cleaning out a closet in her house and came across a never-finished project of mine. She gave it to me in the Autumn of 2015, and I quickly finished it. Doing so ignited a passion for cross stitch and I have been stitching regularly since. The "Flosstube" family on YouTube - several stitchers who vlog (video blog) about their stitching, their purchases, and their progress - furthered my love, and led me to several groups on Facebook.

I currently have 20 WIPs, and am hoping to knock several of them off before I pursue future projects that I want to do.

Future posts will showcase where I currently am in my projects, my future plans, etc.