December Smalls SAL and 2019 Smalls

The last Friday of the month is a check in for the Smalls SAL. Even though Heather (the host) hasn't been around several of us are still continuing because we love this SAL. I really hope Heather pops back on soon and hosts again next year. If not I think several of us will just keep posting anyway haha.

This year I decided to do another year long monthly type design. I picked Durene Jones Calendar which Rachel stitched last year and I fell in love with. I got December all finished up this month...

Here are all 12 finished now...

I finished all but one on time and that one the stitching was finished just needed to assemble it the next day. So I definitely call that a success. I just love how they turned out.

Next year I'm sticking to a year long monthly design but this time I'm not doing one set I'm doing two!

First up is the Lizzie Kate Flip It Stamps...

I'm also doing a set from Sand, Sea & Cross Stitch Book for mom that I will call Nautical Year. This photo is one I found online to show what it will look like...

I'm going to do each set into individual pillows like I did with the Durene Jones Calendar.

November Small SAL

It's the last Friday of the month which means it's time to check in for the Smalls SAL. The idea of this fun blog SAL is to stitch up something small each month and maybe even finish it. Then you will have at least 12 small finishes that year. I joined a few years ago and decided to pick year long pieces with monthly themes. This year I picked out the Durene Jones Calendar. It is available as a freebie on her Facebook group.

This month I finished up the November one...

Now I have just one more to do to complete the set. So happy to have found this adorable set to stitch up this year. They look too cute on display each month. See ya next month with the last one hopefully.

October Smalls SAL/Finish to Report

Today is the last Friday of the month which means it's time for a Smalls SAL check in. The idea of this fun SAL is to stitch something small each month. I started a few years ago and decided to pick monthly designs to stitch all year. This year I picked the Durene Jones Calendar series. I only missed getting one month done by a day and actually it was just the finishing part. So I'm really proud of myself this year. This month seemed to fly by since I've been so busy so I just got a chance to start the October design on the 22nd. I admit I was worried I wouldn't get it finished in time for this post. But guess what...

(Finish #24) October 25th, 2018
October from Durene Jones Calendar
Freebie available on her FB Group
Stitched on 14ct Ecru Aida
Threads are suggested DMC
Started Oct 22nd. Took 4 Days.

Wohoo got it finished up yesterday. Now I'm back to working on the October Snapshot which is the last one I need to finish to complete last year's Smalls SAL pick the Pine Mountain Snapshot series. I hope to be back soon to celebrate another finish. Stay tuned.

Smalls SAL and WIPocalypse

Even though I'm on vacation I want to get my SAL updates in. First up is the September Smalls SAL. The idea of this fun SAL is to stitch up something each month. I've joined in for 2 years before this and I have decided to use this SAL as an excuse to stitch up a monthly design throughout the whole year. This year I'm stitching a Durene Jones Calendar project. So far I've only missed one by just a day. Not September though. I was excited about stitching up this cute hedgehog...

Now for the WIPocalypse update. The idea of this SAL is for us to finish our WIPs before the end of the world. I don't think this will ever happen. Especially after buying all the new stash I just did haha. So I think I'm helping with holding off the end of the world. I like to use this SAL as an excuse to keep track of what I've worked on during the time frame and how many days on each project. It's a fantastic way to look back and see how much progress I have made on my countless WIPs. So let's see what I've been working on since my last update...

You are Loved -- 1 Day and I had this one finished off

Dragon Moon -- 2 Days I was itching to work on HAEDs again
Here is where I got with it...

Dragon Skies -- 2 Days
Here is where she is...

 Durene Jones September -- 4 Days. The photo for this one is the top one for my Smalls SAL.

Sept Snapshot -- 6 Days. Started and finished this one. Just have October left to do now...

Frosted Pumpkin Halloween Sampler -- 6 Days
Here is where I was last WIPocalypse update...

Here is where I am now...

Halloween Mini - Vampire Face - 4 Days
Got started on this one before vacation and have got a little bit stitched while on vacation even...

October Snapshot -- 1 Day. Got started on this one at the retreat. But spent too much time chatting/shopping and not stitching.
Here I am now with it...

No stitching days -- 13. A camping trip, the cabin, and this vacation is stealing my time. But it's all good time to be spending so I'm okay with that. Looking back I have got a lot done and on a lot of different projects so I'm very happy.

Okay now back to my vacation posts. See ya next month for the next SAL updates.

Smalls SAL

Today is the last Friday of the month which means it's time for a Smalls SAL check in. I joined this SAL a few years ago and decided to pick year long monthly designs to stitch up to display on a shelf unit. I am trying to finish them up each month they represent. So far I only missed July by one day and really I got the stitching done in July just not the finishing part. August I luckily had no problem finishing up in time...

This years set I picked is from Durene Jones. It's a calendar set she has available for free on her Facebook group. I've really enjoyed stitching them so far. Can't believe there are only 4 more left.

Friday Update

I think it would have looked bad to have a Monday Update on Friday so you get a Friday Update instead haha.

First I have a finish to report...

I was able to get the stitching finished up on the very last day of July. But I had to wait till Wednesday morning to get it assembled. So close. At least it's finished. It's cheating and on display until I finish August....hopefully before September this time haha.

I can't believe it's August already. I remember in May when I thought it would be August before I knew it. Guess what! Here it is. What a blur the past few months have been. Getting the cabin finished. Enjoyed our weekends there. Now we've already had our big geocaching camping event in Ohio. It's called Midwest Geobash and it's in Wauseon, Ohio. It's just a tiny little town but boy I bet they love when we come to town. They had 1,389 people say they were coming and that's just the people who said they would be there. I know hundreds more just show up. 377 camp sites were booked in this huge fairgrounds. It's one heck of a party. People even fly in from other countries and I'm pretty sure all 50 states are represented. I know they were last year at least. We are in charge of the area where the night time bon fires are. It's called Area 51 because no one remembers it the next day haha. We have so much fun. This year was no different. Here is our camp area...

Our tent is in the middle under the one circus tent. The theme this year was circus. We had 9 different camper/tents in our section and we are all close friends so it was just a blast. I got this cool picture one day...

It was right over our campsite. X marks the spot for the place to be. Friendships. Smiles. Lots of laughs. It was a great 5 night camping trip. Next year is medieval theme and I am already looking forward to it. We have met so many wonderful people because of geocaching and this event brings everyone together for a whole lot of fun.

When Fred gets off work I bet you know where we are heading. Yep to the cabin. The work is mostly done on our cabin. I think we have just a bit more finishing touches on the deck. I know my dad always has things to do here and there but we will really be able to slow down and just enjoy our time there. Yep I have stitching packed to take with me.....just in case.

I hope everyone reading this has a great weekend.

Smalls SAL / July WIPocalypse

We got back yesterday from our 5 night camping trip in Ohio. I'm so exhausted. We had a blast. The weather was perfect and we were actually cold at night instead of sweating to death. Anyway I will update more on that later this week. I need to do two SAL updates first.

Smalls SAL -- The goal for this SAL is to finish up a little small each month. I joined a few years ago and have decided to do a year long design that represents each month. This year I'm stitching the Durene Jones Calendar. I actually haven't finished July yet though. My stitching time has been almost gone. I have got a good start on it though and I really hope to have time to stitch tomorrow on it but I have accepted I might not finish it before the month changes. I tried so hard too...

July WIPocalypse will be just as sad I have a feeling. This purpose of this fun SAL is for us to finish all our WIPs before the world end's. Of course with my list I will probably never be finished. I like to use this SAL as an excuse to keep track of what I work on each day during the time span. Let's see what I've been working on since June 25th...

Salt Water Taffy -- 3 Days of Progress. I got this WIP out and let it play for a few days. Here it was before...

Now...

I really hope to get back to this one soon.

Durene Jones Calendar July -- 6 Days of Progress. I really wanted to be able to say start and finish like normal but just not this month. I already showed above where I am on it. Hopefully it will be finished soon.

I've had 26 days where I haven't stitched at all since June 25th. We've been scrambling to finish our cabin and our big camping trip this past week. I swear July was only a day long it felt like. I really hope the rest of the year slows down now. We'll see. Stop over to the WIPocalypse check in to hopefully see others progress better than me.

Okay. Now I'm off to try to relax some more and catch up on blog reading.

June Smalls SAL and Monday Stitching Update

Friday was a check in for the Smalls SAL and even though our leader Heather has been missing several of us are still stitching along in spirit and hope she is back soon. The idea of this SAL was to stitch something small each month and maybe even finish it. When I started this SAL I thought it would be a good excuse to a do a monthly design to represent each month. I've really enjoyed it. This is my 3rd time participating. I've been doing the Durene Jones Calendar pieces each month this year. Here is June all finished and on display...

Last week I picked up a WIP I had been missing...

Salt Water Taffy from Joan Elliott. Evidently I hadn't worked on it since January 2018 which didn't seem possible. No wonder I heard it screaming for attention. Here it was last time I worked on it...

I got 3 days of stitching on it during the week...

Now I have 17 days total into it. I really missed working on this one. Felt great to pick it up again. I need to remember not to take such a long break next time.

I did pack some stitching to take with me on our extended cabin stay. Hopefully I'll squeeze in some time. I hope everyone in the US has a great 4th of July. 

May Smalls SAL, WIPocalypse, and Holiday Weekend Update

Pull up a chair I have a long update ahead. First things first it was time for the Smalls SAL update Friday. I hope everything is okay with our wonderful hostess she hasn't posted the check in for April or May. I have been keeping up though. The idea for this fun SAL is to do a small piece each month. I've been using this SAL as an excuse to do a monthly piece since I've joined. Here is my May finished pillow from the Durene Jones Calendar Freebie...

Sunday was check in time for the WIPocalypse. This SAL is pushing us to finish all our WIPs before the apocalypse. Yeah Right! Like that would ever happen. I enjoy using this as an excuse to keep track of what I've worked on during the time span. So let's see what I've been working on since my last check on April 30th...

Ocean in a Bottle -- 5 Days. Here I was last time...

Here I am now...

Durene Jones Calendar -- I finished the May pillow at the top in 3 Days.

Cabin Fever MH -- 1 Day. Here is my progress on this Mill Hill kit now...

Spring Bell Pull -- 3 Days. I've been working on the N block. Here it was before...

Here it is now...

August Snapshot -- 3 Days. I started another one of the Pine Mountain Snapshots. I need to finish this one, Sept, and Oct to finish up my monthly pieces from last year's Smalls SAL. Here is my progress so far on August...

Here is what it will look like when finished up...

I've had 13 days of no stitching. Mostly because of working on our cabin so that's a great reason to miss stitching at least.

Over Memorial Day weekend we had a different kind of camping planned...

We went up to a friend's house in Michigan and had a rustic weekend of camping in our tent. Boy we missed our cabin but we had a blast with friends. It was crazy hot. Low 90's. We didn't do anything other than be lazy and relax. It was great. We told stories and just got to know one another even better. It was a great recharge for the brain. Now to get back to all the hustle and bustle of life.

April Smalls SAL

It's the last Friday of the month which means it's time for a Smalls SAL check in. The idea of this fun SAL is to do a small piece each month so hopefully at the end of the year we have 12 things finished at least. This is my 3rd year. Each year I've picked out a year long monthly piece to work on. This year I have picked out a Durene Jones Calendar piece. Here is what the whole piece looks like...

So far I've kept up with my goal and finished each month. So here is April...

Here they all 4 are now...

I've really enjoyed how they turn out each month. Now to just keep up.

March Smalls SAL Post

Other than the fun Easter Blog Hop in my previous post. (If you hopped by for that just scroll down a bit.) Today is also the check in for the Smalls SAL. The purpose of this SAL is to inspire us to finish at least one small piece each month. I joined a few years ago and picked a year long monthly design set to stitch. I've always loved these monthly themes and it was just the push I needed to stick to it the whole year. This year I'm stitching up Durene Jones Calendar...

My plan is to stitch each month during the month on the calendar hopefully. This month I had a challenge. Since Durene designs this for UK holidays Mother's Day was the celebrated event in March. Here in the states ours isn't until May. I didn't want to change the May to the March design because it's been really cold still and pretty flowers aren't to be found just yet either. So I thought I would try to shoot for something from our Irish heritage and do a Saint Patrick's Day themed cake change. Here is what I came up with...

I am so happy with the finished result. Plus it's finished and on display. 3 down. Wohoo!

Feb Smalls SAL

I went out of town for the weekend but Friday was the last Friday of the month. So it's time for a Smalls SAL Check in. I picked a calendar from Durene Jones to do this year as a monthly stitch for this SAL. Here is a reminder of what they all look like...

Here is January again...

Now here is my Feb all finished up and on display in January's place...

Feb took me 3 days. I started it Feb 4th and finished it on the 6th. I'm nervous about March because I will need to modify the design. Since Mother's Day isn't in March here in the states. Hopefully I can figure something out. See ya in next check in for March to see if I pulled it off.

I will be back tomorrow to tell you about my weekend.

2018 Smalls SAL - Jan Check in

Today is the last Friday of the month (Wow already?!?) which means it's time for a Smalls SAL check in. This is my 3rd year participating. The idea of this fun SAL is to push us to stitch up something small each month. I enjoyed the idea of doing a monthly year long set in honor of this SAL.

In 2016 I did this fun perforated paper set from a Dimensions leaflet I had in my stash for years...

In 2017 I did the Snapshot series from Pine Mountain Designs. I still have 4 to finish up since I had such a busy year last year with traveling. But here is the latest one Dec that I recently finished...

This year I picked another fun set. This time from Durene Jones...

Rachel did them last year and I just fell in love with them. Plus they are actually little and should take a lot less time each month than the Snapshots that took around 7 days to finish sometimes more. Here is January all finished up and actually on display where it deserves to be instead of a hiding in a bin of shame...

It was a fun fast stitch only taking me 3 days from start to finished finish.

So hopefully I will be able to keep up and have a year worth of cute little monthly finishes by the end of the year.

By the way. I finished up my Valentine cutie last night. But I'm not sharing the photo with you just yet. It will be revealed in the upcoming Valentine Blog Hop hosted by the wonderful Jo. So make sure to come back Feb 14th for that. Which means that Hope will come back out to hopefully get finished off. Listen for the loud celebration coming sometime.