The 15 Minute Project Update

Monkey French Knot Scribble 10 days later

Here’s my monkey scribble after 15 minutes a day stitching since the last posting. Can’t believe I’ve gotten this far with him. I do need to add his ears. I don’t normally add anything to a scribble but I am making an exception to this one for the ears.

Nest in Tree 

My other 15 minute project has taken a detour, I’ll explain later when I have some photos to show. But this is where it is at for now. I won’t be stitching on it for a while. Need to do some planning.

One more thing I did this week was for a special order in my Etsy shop. These are hope rocks in felt pockets. My son does the etching and I make the heart pockets. And I finished them today so they are my FIF (Finish It Friday) for this week! 

Hope Rocks in Felt Pockets

My posts will probably be sporadic for now since I will be having surgery on Monday. I hope to get back to a more normal posting schedule in a few weeks.

Thank you everyone for your prayers and thoughts!

Happy Stitching! 

Rose

WWW - The 15 Minute Project

So I posted last Friday a picture of my scribble French Knot monkey that has been sitting in a pile of unfinished projects. I knew I had too much to do to be able to finish it in a Friday. So I decided to just work on it 15 minutes a day, you know, slow and steady. Here it is as of today.

Monkey Face 

Can you see the progress? I’m not the fastest stitcher for sure but I am actually enjoying my fifteen minutes a day with it. I read somewhere recently that our attention holds onto something for about 28 minutes. So we should set a 28 minute time limit for each project and at the end of 28 minutes go on to something else. Well I’m not sure that is really true as I know I can get started stitching and lose all track of time. Now when it comes to cleaning or organizing well yeah

about 28 minutes as all I can handle!

I’ve decided to take the 15 minute approach to some of my other projects that I have sitting around waiting for some attention. This is a piece I started back in 2012 while taking an online class from Sharon Boggon.

Bird Nest in a tree

It is a monochromatic encrusted nest in a tree. What you don’t see the encrusting? Right. It’s not there yet. I got stuck on the tree part. 

Here's a close up on the tree which I worked on today.

Tree stitching

I really would like to get it finished all though I’m not sure what I will do with it when I’m done stitching. I’ve added some more stitching (couching) to the main tree section and I’m happy with it. There is one stitch that sort of sticks out like a sore thumb but I think I know how I will fix that. Anxious to get started on the nest. You can read more background about this piece in this post. 

And I’m not sticking to my fifteen minutes on this piece. I may go over that time if I get really into what I am stitching on it. I think when I get to the encrusted nest part I will happily get lost in it.

Only time will tell.

Happy Stitching Wednesday!

Rose 

FIF:Finish It Friday! Didn’t Happen!

Well this week Friday didn’t see any finishing. Not that I didn’t try! I had planned to finish the next three flash cards that I started a while back. So I finished embroidering the circles.

Circles finished

Love how the running stitch one turned out. I wasn’t sure when I started it but as I saw it progress I liked it more and more. I will have to experiment with doing the running stitch in multiple rows. I think it has potential!

Then I damp stretched the three. Friday I cut the inside stiffening material, and looked through my black and white fabrics for suitable candidates. If you look closely at the “T is for Triangle” one you will notice that I used a white fabric that had little tiny black triangles on it. Now I know I won’t be able to continue this theme if I decide to make more shape flash cards but I wanted to try for the next three. 

Fabrics to chose and inside stiffener cut

One is a very busy print but if you look closely (for a better look at any of my photos just click on them) it is made up of angles. Good! Next came the dots and I waffled between the tiny, tiny white dots on black fabric or the larger black dots on white fabric. I think I will use the tiny dots for the dot card. Next came the circles, the black fabric with the white circles in different sizes is good but the fabric is more of a silky where the others are cotton or cotton blends. I think I will look for a different fabric for the circle one and while I’m at the store (excuse to go shopping!) I will check for the other two also. Just in case there is something that will work better. I’m thinking if I do continue with more flash cards I may just have to design my own fabric and have it printed professionally!

Monkey from 2012

The other thing I did was decide to try and stitch French Knots for 15 minutes a day on my monkey face scribble I started back in 2012.He’s been staring at me for a while wondering when I was going to give him some attention. One day he too will be a Finish It Friday project.

Monkey today

Plus I had my grandson with me most of Friday and he’s my best reason for not getting more finished. Any time I get to spend with him is a joy filled day!

Well at least I didn't start any new projects on Friday!

Happy Finishing ( or almost finishing!)!

Rose 

WWW or What I’ve Been Working On Wednesday - Staying Calm

Trying to stay calm, that’s WWW. Had a call from my doctor yesterday. The news was not great. I have cancer. Trying to stay calm. Went for an appointment with her today to discuss what the next steps should be. Just trying to stay calm. It is the most common of female cancers and the most treatable. That’s good. Will need to have surgery soon to remove the offending organs. OK – still staying calm. Why? Not “why me” but why am I being calm about all of this? Because I know who holds tomorrow and I know who holds my hand. I know my God has my back and His purpose for this is for good. Jesus told me years ago that everything was going to be okay. I believed Him then and I believe Him now. He has never ever failed me. And so I am calm and secure knowing that I am in His loving hands.

Because of this though, I have not achieved a lot for this Wednesday’s post. 

C is for Circle Flash Card

I plan to have my “C is for Circle” flash card finished so I can damp stretch the three cards in time for finishing them on Friday.

I’ve unraveled my laces and trims so they no longer look like this:

but are being stored neat and tidy like this.

Tidy laces and trims ready for storage

I finished a scarf for my grandson using some leftover fleece with a basketball design on it. He really doesn’t like wearing scarves or hats so I haven’t gotten a good photo of him with it yet. But I will.

Jaden and his new scarf

The last thing on my desk is all of the journaling/organizing books and handouts my daughter has given me for this year. I really want to start filling out these tools but keep putting it off. That is why they are now spread out on my table along with some washi tape she has given me and some colorful pens I bought recently. I’m trying to tempt myself/ encourage myself into getting started. Once I start I will be into it. Funny how that getting started seems to be the hardest part.

Journals, worksheets, pens and tapes

Happy Wednesday!

Rose 

Step Back!

I’ve been working on some projects hoping to get them to a place where I can finish them on Friday for some FIF posts. While working on getting the embroidery done on the three remaining geometry/shape flashcards that I started a while back I realized something that I may have even posted about before.

That is the need to sometimes step back well actually step away from the project in hand.

 C is for Circle Flash Card

I was working in the C is for Circle card and on the largest circle I was contemplating covering the entire circle with the chain stitch using the different colors I have used on the other cards. But it just didn’t seem right. So after the first three rows of turquoise I stopped. Still not sure what I wanted to do, I rather liked it as it was but I was seeing it up close. So I put it aside and looked at it once in a while. Still wasn’t sure.

Three unfinished cards

Then I put it up on my design wall and stepped back. Yes I like it just as it is! Filling in the entire circle would be too overpowering for the other two cards in the set.

All four flash cards

Of course when I add the fourth card to the mix it would probably be okay to fill it in but I think when I do the third circle I can fill it and it will help balance the cards as a whole. Now to decide what stitch to use in the third circle.

So my hint for Monday - take a step backwards to see the whole picture!

Stepping back for a better look!

Rose 

Well it’s Saturday!

I missed posting my WWW - What I’ve Been Working On Wednesday.

And I missed posting my FIF – Finish It Friday.

I haven’t been working on much this week so I wasn’t into posting my lack of progress. I really should have worked on a few items that I would like to get finished, they may have even been fodder for my FIF this week. But I didn’t. I did do some stitching on a quilt I’m putting together for Wounded Warriors. I picked up the “kit” at one of my Friendship Stitchers gathering and have been slowly working on it. I discovered that it didn’t contain the correct amount of pieces for the design so I need to check my stash (and maybe buy some fabric to supplement what I have! LOL and excuse to shop for fabric!!) And I did have another order of button yoyo flowers from my Etsy shop that I needed to get in the mail. But that’s about it.

First of four flash cards

When Friday rolled around I kept thinking I could finish my first set of geometric shape flash cards. But when I looked at it I would not be able to finish them on Friday because I needed to damp stretch them once the embroidery was done and that would take overnight to dry. So scratch that. 

Then I thought about doing a fleece scarf for my grandson that I had planned to do from some leftover fabric from this project. 

Grandson with his sleeping mat for school

But that didn’t get done either. I know I’m not the only one who has days where the time just seems to drift away and not much gets done but I don’t like having those days very much.

So I think I’ll try and make up for it today by moving a few projects forward in preparations to getting them finished.

Oh yes and my daughter contacted me with another project she would like me to do so we have some planning and prototyping to do for that.

Just Keep on stitching!

Rose 

Sometimes Ideas Just Pop Out Of The Blue.

I had meant to post this last Monday but I couldn’t find the items to take photos of so I put it off thinking I would do it on Tuesday (has Monday night tips and tricks become Tuesday tips and tricks?). Well that didn’t happen either because it was late Tuesday before I found them and I had to dash off to my quilt guild meeting.

Plastic Paper Clips

These were something I bought thinking I could use them as an aid when I was working on something. My idea did not work (and it took me a long time to remember what the idea was but I did remember whatever it was it did not work!). And I was a little bummed because I had spent a few dollars on something that I could have spent elsewhere. Oh well!

I have since remembered what the original thought was. I came across a hexagon project I have been slowly working on and the “aha” moment came. I thought these little clips could hold my hexagons together as I stitched them to each other. That did not work. They do not open up enough to grasp the thicknesses of the fabric and the card stock.

So I put them aside thinking maybe they’ll land up in a garage sale one day.

Then the other day I was working on sorting out my ribbons that had gotten all tangled up when I thought “hey maybe I can use those clips to hold the rolled ribbon nice and neat and keep them from intertwining with each other”. So I searched for the clips and tried it out. Happy camper here! Worked on most of my loose ribbons (a few were too thick but that’s okay).

Clips holding my ribbons nice and tidy

Now I may just have to go and purchase some more of these!

Happy Camper!

Rose