Translate

Sunday 27 August 2017

August's Stitching Drought WIPocalypse

Don't worry, the title definitely does not refer to me!  It's the topic for this month's WIPocalypse!

WIPocalypse
WIPocalypse is hosted by Measi's Musings
Also linking up with 17 in '17

Each month we have to share the projects we want to complete before the End Of The World.  I have chosen my "17 in '17" which are the 17 projects I want to focus on this year.  You can see the full list on this page here.

I've worked on 7 of my 17 and had a finish too.

1. Happy Hallowe'en by Imaginating:


2. Witches by Oberlin Samplers:


3. 12 Days of Christmas by Joan Elliott:


4. Stitcher's Alphabet by Brooke's Books:


5. Enchanted Alphabet by Lavender & Lace:


Added a pumpkin to the O

6. Dragon of the Winter Moon by Dragon Dreams:



7. Spring in the Square by Just Nan:


I didn't have the charm for the centre but I found this nice little button to use instead.

Measi always gives us a topic to discuss, and as the title suggest this month we have:

August - How do you get yourself out of a stitching drought?

I have no idea!  Probably cut back on doing other things which take up your stitching time.  The only times I have had droughts have been due to circumstances beyond my stitching control!  Here's a chart of my finishes from the year I started stitching to the year before I started my blog:



Can you guess what happened in the least productive years? 2001 I was doing a lot of overtime, 2002 my first son was born, 2006 I was dating my husband and moving house, 2007 we got married, 2009 my second son was born.  Life events stop you stitching!

Obviously this is quite raw data as it doesn't show the size of the projects I was working on.  For example 2006 was the year of Mirabilia's Sleeping Beauty so although I only had 2 finishes, one of them was massive!  I also didn't stitch so many smalls in those days which is why I have stopped the graph at 2010 when my stitching style changed from OAAT to rotation.

For people who find themselves in a slump, I recommend the Ten-a-Day method which has worked so well for Spring and Summer in the Square.  Just do ten small stitches each day and put the project away.  Looking through your stash works for some people, for others it can be overwhelming.  Fully-finish some old pieces, even if all you do is iron them and stick them into a scrapbook you can see them to inspire you.

Finally, read some blogs and leave lots of encouraging comments for other people.  Why not enter a competition like the one we are having on the Blogger of the Week blog?  Click below to see what it is all about!

21 comments:

Joe D Bear said...

Great progress on all, I love the Halloween stitches and at the rate your progressing your Christmas project will be done for this year! Love the cat wrapped in thread, my cat sometimes tries to grab my thread when I'm stitching, I can see him getting wrapped in it. The button for Just Nan works perfectly!!! Love that stitch.

I love to stitch and have only been stitching a few years, so the only thing that keeps me from it is being busy.I love starting my day with an hour of stitching when all is quiet. I bet you got lots of projects still done in your slower years! Mary@stitchingfriendsforever

rosey175 said...

Great button and (still) great drunk kitty. :D I'm really loving the Happy Hallowe'en piece. It's turning out so cute!

Slumps come and go with me, enough that I'm trying to embrace them! I don't like too many projects going at a time but if I really want to kick my butt into gear, I'll start and finish a tiny kit. I think having a mini-finish-finish is helpful for morale.

Mary - Lecoeurceltique said...

I can really see the progress on your projects. I've really fallen in love with your dragon project.

Faith... said...

Love the seven pieces you have worked on, you have some gorgeous ones there!

Unfortunately life does get in the way of stitching but you had some exciting things going on there during your drought periods.

Mouse said...

ohhhh my I am in love with your enchanted alphabet .... and the wee pumpkins are gorgeous :) well done on your other pieces too and slump haven't got time for a slump ... The C word is due and coming round fast ...lol love mouse xxxxx

Julie said...

No stitching happening here for a while, although I have started a little project to try and rectify that. Easier to knit at the moment, less brain cells needed! Pormise to be back on track for the seasons SAL lol.
Nice button choice for Spring in the Square

Stitching Noni said...

Great progress! Your 17 in 17 projects are coming along really well - I see some finishes in your future!
Love that graph of your stitching... my biggest stitching slump was divorce and the whole life change that brings! But now I am making up for it!! As I always say, life has a habit of getting in the way of my stitching! :)

Brigitte said...

Such nice progress again on all your pieces. The Enchanted Alphabet gets more and more impressive. You found a nice little button to replace the charm on the JN piece. I often have to replace missing charms by buttons and I sometimes love the buttons better.
You are right about stitching slumps. They usually come with life events, positive and negative ones.

Christine said...

Great progress on your projects. I really like the way Enchanted Alphabet is working out.

riona said...

Predictably, my favorite is the Dragon of the Winter Moon, but all your projects are fascinating.

D1-D2 said...

That is a very interesting chart. It makes me wonder how mine will look in a few years.

Barb said...

First, totally wonderful stitching. Now I have never had a stitching drought. I love it. My biggest problem comes from the arthritis in my hands. If I do more than a few hours, my hands hurt so that is my only limit. My Dr. said, just keep doing it and you should be able to keep it up, just don't stop and try to start up again. So I can't afford a drought.

Lili said...

Love your version of "Enchanted Alphabet"! Beautiful stitching!

Rhona said...

All your projects are wonderful. Love your graph of finishes but, as you said, it doesn't tell you the whole story!

cheryl said...

Everything is looking lovely. I just adore that little "Y" kitty! Are you stitching the "Stitcher's Alphabet" as one piece, or will you be finishing it another way? Love the Enchanted Alphabet & Winter Dragon, too.

RJ said...

You are a stitching machine since I have known you Jo. Hard to believe you have ever had a drought but I see your chart tells me so. Great job on so many lovely stitches. RJ

Leonore Winterer said...

Great progress on everything, and Spring in the Square looks fabulous! I like how you can see what happened in your life by that graph of stitching finishes.

Carol said...

Love seeing your progress, Jo! I have a major life even happening later this month that should give me more stitching time--can you guess??

Lady Stitch-a-Lot said...

Lovely work on all your projects! I think the button is truly beautiful and fits very well =)

Sarah in Stitches said...

Awesome stitching progress! I know, life events have a silly habit of getting in the way of stitching time. I'm actually having that problem right now! :D

Katie said...

Beautiful progress. Most of the time my droughts aren't because I don't want to be stitching haha. I'm just too busy.