February Stitch From Stash and Pie

 Have you enjoyed your extra day of stitching time?  I know a lot of people were doing a Leap Day start but I managed to resist that temptation.

Here's what I did stitch over the whole month:

Look at how focused I was!  Apart from my Dark 13 and A-Z Challenge I stitched on the same project every day for the whole month.

The WIPGO board chose Cricket Collection Spring as my focus piece.  I started this on 1st February and made awesome progress.  It does look almost finished but that's because I concentrated on the letters and large areas of colour.  There are a LOT of colours in this one so I left all the flowers until the end so I could stitch all the little bits colour-by-colour.

stitched on 32 count Marie's Daffodil linen from Chromatic Alchemy

The plan is to finish this one off if I complete March's piece before the end of the month.

In the evenings I worked on the Alice in Wonderland Bottles from Rainbow Hunter on Etsy. 

I completed Alice and made good progress on the Cheshire Cat. 

stitched on 32 count Antique Blue linen

My plan is to continue with the Cat until it is finished and then start on my March Small, as it is a very small and won't take long at all.

I was doing very well with my spending again, a nice zero spend for the second month when Circle Cross started releasing peeks of her new design.  Alice in Wonderland Blackwork themed!

I couldn't resist so instead of a Leap Day start, I had a Leap Day purchase!

Circle Cross Alice in Wonderland

Who could resist?  It's teacups seen from above the scenes from the book in order to tell the story in pictures.  She's promising a Through the Looking Glass version too!

So here's my actual spend:

Finally, I'll be doing an Easter Treasure Hunt again this year so stay tuned for more details about how we'll be hopping like bunnies around the blogs again.

February WIPocalypse SALs

 Mary comments

     

WIPocalypse is hosted by Measi's Musings

Each month we have to share the projects we want to complete before the End Of The World. Since 2011 I have chosen a number of projects to focus on that year, starting with my "11 in '11" and increasing to "24 in '24" for this year. This month I stitched on 3 of them and had 1 finish.

3. Rainbow Hunter - Alice Bottles

Finished Alice

Started Cheshire Cat

23. Cricket Collection - Spring

24. Cottage Garden Samplings Halloween Sampler

Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

February – What stitch-a-longs (SALs) are you participating in this year?

Obviously, WIPocalypse!  My other SALs are

Fully Finished Gallery - show anything you have FFO'd on the 10th
Gifted Gorgeousness - post anything gifted on the 15th
Smalls SAL - last Friday of each month
The TUSAL - post on the New Moon each month

The A-Z Challenge is a sort of SAL with Rachel where we're working through the Alphabet with our WIPs.

I don't tend to SAL actual designs as I have my rotation planned and it rarely fits in with other people's plans.  But if you are stitching anything that I am stitching do let me know and we can call it a SAL!

I also tend to avoid Mystery SALs having been bitten once or twice.  I wait until most of the piece has been released and then see if I still have FOMO and want to start it!


Finally, a Mary has been leaving lovely comments here.  But Mary is "no reply" and does not have a blog listed on her profile so I can't respond to her direct.  It's not Mary from Le Couer Celtique, or Mary from Mary's Thread or Mary from Mary's Stitching Spot!  So if you are Mary, please drop me an email and I will save it so I can reply to your comments.

February Smalls

 

The Smalls SAL is hosted by Rachel

For my Smalls stitching this year, I have chosen 12 smaller designs and numbered them for my WIPGO Board.  Each month one Small will be stitched in the evening timeslot and hopefully finished within the month.

This month the WIPGO number was for the Alice in Wonderland Bottles Collection from Rainbow Hunter on Etsy.

Here's the set:

I started with Alice, of course, and finished her within a fortnight:

stitched on 32 count Antique Blue linen

I am pleased with my fabric choice for these, it makes a great background and the colours show up really well.

I started the Cheshire Cat next and here's where I am:

Because the Smalls post is quite early this month I still have a few days to go and should hopefully be able to finish it by the end of the month.




Finally, WIPGO hasn't been called for March yet so I have no idea what I'll be working on next month yet!

February IHSW

   

IHSW or International Hermit and Stitch Weekend always starts on the third Friday of the month.  It's a chance to lock yourself away and focus on your stitching for the weekend.  You can take part on your blog or via the Facebook page - IHSW on Facebook.

This year I am trying something different for IHSW - an A-Z Challenge!  These usually take place in April and people stitch one letter every day except Sunday.  I don't want to swap projects daily so thought I could do 2 or 3 letters per IHSW instead.  

February is C and D.  I usually work Fridays so don't include that in my Hermit Weekend but as luck would have it, I worked earlier in the week because of the annual stocktake.

So for Friday I stuck with my Focus Piece which begins with a C - Cricket Collection Spring.

I went from here:

to here:

stitched on 32 count Marie's Daffodil from Chromatic Alchemy

On Saturday I looked at my spreadsheet and decided that Coffee Fairy from Yiotas XStitch would be my project for the day.  This was a kit that was sent to me in exchange for an honest review.  The design is full coverage but a huge amount is background so I decided to use this piece of mad fabric and omit the background.

Here's a really bad photo of where I started from:

And here's where I finished and a much more accurate photo of the fabric:

stitched on 28 count Monarch evenweave from Sparklies

For Sunday there was only one D - Bothy Threads 12 Days of Christmas, this is where I left off last month when it was B:

to here:

stitched on 32 count grey linen

I also managed to squeeze in 7 more leaves for my Temperature SAL from The Steady Thread:

stitched on 28 count Meadow Mist linen from Silkweavers

A new high of 17 degrees and yellow for the first time.

Next month I have a choice of 2 projects for E and 3 for F.  Although that might change when my WIPGO numbers are called.

As a general rule, I want to choose the oldest project for each letter.

Finally the next IHSW will be 15th - 17th March  so make sure you note the date in your diary or come and join us in the Facebook Group - IHSW on Facebook. If you don't do Facebook then you can check in here by leaving a comment on my post.

Gifted Gorgeousness February Link-up Post

 

Our new logo for the year is Just Nan's Special Delivery.  The chart with the fabric and the gold envelope was a gift to me.

Please remember to change your badge and the link to the new page as the old link no longer works.  Don't forget to link up on the main sign-up page with your blog address.

Welcome to the February Gifted Gorgeousness link-up. The link-up date continues to be the 15th and I will keep the link-up open until the end of each month so you have plenty of time if you are late posting.

The format remains exactly the same, there is a list of rules on the main sign-up page if you want to check what is required but basically anything connected to the word "gift" is allowed, whether it was a gift TO you or is a gift FROM you.

My focus piece this month is stitched on gifted fabric.

Cricket Collection - Spring

stitched on 32 count Marie's Daffodil linen from Chromatic Alchemy

This one was a gift from the designer and the fabric was a gift too.  

Steady Thread - Tree of Life Temperature SAL

stitched on 28 count Meadow Mist linen from Silkweavers

I record the temperature each day and then stitch the leaves on the Sunday morning.

My Dark 13 design is stitched on gifted fabric, a beautiful 40 count linen called Witch's Brew from Zweigart.  My plan is to stitch one letter per month until we reach October and then complete it during Dark October.

stitched on 40 count linen called Witch's Brew from Zweigart

Now it is your turn to show us your Gifted Gorgeousness for the month.  Please use your name or your blog name in the field and NOT the words "February Update" so I can easily see who has linked up this month.  And link to the actual post, not just your blog.  It is easier if you copy and paste the link, rather than typing freehand.

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Finally, I hosted the annual Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop on Valentine's Day.  Some beautiful stitching was sent out all around the world.  I made a collage to show them all:

Then I made a heart shaped one!

Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop

  

Happy Valentine's Day and welcome to the Secret Stitching Sweethearts Blog Hop.  My annual chance to show some stitchy love to our fellow stitchers.  Over the last month my inbox has been filled with various lovely stitched and crafted pieces on the theme of Love and Friendship.  On Monday I sent out them to randomly allocated participants who will be showing their Valentines on their blogs today.

Please hop round and see if they have found their Secret Stitching Sweetheart yet.  The following blogs are participating this year:

💖💖💖

💖Beth's Needlework Stash💖

💖 Aimetu's Stitching 💖

💖Guava Gems💖

💖Tickled Pink in Stitches💖

💖A Patchwork of Crafts💖

💖Life Outside the Washing Basket💖

💖A Stitching Grandma💖

💖Jeremiah's Mom💖

💖Tiff Stitches A Blog💖

💖私がめがねをかけるとき💖

💖Needle, Pen & Sword💖

💖Le Couer Celtique💖

💖Dragon Stitches and Stuff💖

💖An Arizona Stitcher💖

💖Count it *all* JOY💖

💖Jocondine💖

💖Tales of a Stitching Mouse💖

💖Bits of my Own💖

💖

As the organiser of the Hop I don't get a secret sweetheart but sometimes I still get some love!

This year, two participants sent in two designs, so I kept one of each for myself!

(Click on the photos to discover my Sweethearts!)

My seasonal display is not as big or as varied as some people but I have a few pieces which come out in February: 

Finally, don't forget to leave some lovely comments on all the participating blogs, share the love 💖

Finally Fully Finishing Fun for February

 

Hosted by Rachel the Ten Hour Stitcher

This SAL is designed to motivate us all to do something with that box of Finished pieces instead of just storing them under the bed.  We will all be linking up on Rachel's blog on or after the 10th of each month (10 Hour Stitcher - 10th of the month).

I have a nice little framed piece to share this month:

Amaranth by Shepherd's Bush

stitched on 32 count Antique White linen

Finished in January 2024

Framed in a charity shop frame (£1 only!)

Displayed with two more of the series:

Mulberry, Amaranth, Bilberry

Finally, if you've sent in photos for the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop, then thank you.  I'll be sorting them out and emailing you the surprise photo over the next couple of days ready to post on the 14th February.

February TUSAL

    

It's TUSAL time!  

Here is my TUSAL jar with my current projects:

On the left we have Spring from Cricket Collection and I've just started the R.  I am doing the largest blocks of colour for each letter and motif but leaving the smaller bits to the end to avoid changing colours too often.

stitched on 32 count Marie's Daffodil linen from Chromatic Alchemy

On the right we have the first bottle in the Alice in Wonderland series from Rainbow Hunter on Etsy.  You can tell this is going to be Alice now!

stitched on 32 count Antique Blue linen

Finally, it's the last chance to join the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop.  I need all the photos by 10th February to sort them out and email to the recipients ready to blog on 14th February,

February Plans

 At the start of the year I made a list of 24 projects I want to stitch this year for my "24 in '24".  The order I stitch them in is going to be determined by the WIPGO Board.  Jessie-Marie calls two numbers each month and those will be the two projects I stitch that month.  One small and one medium.

In January, the numbers 9 and 22 were called and I made some great progress on those projects, getting 2 finishes.

For February, the numbers 3 and 24 were called.  These relate to the collection of Alice in Wonderland bottles from Rainbow Hunter and Spring by Cricket Collection.

This will be my evening project.  I'll be stitching the bottles individually and seeing how many I can get done this month.

I started with Alice, obviously!

stitched on 32 count Antique Blue linen

This will be my main focus for the month.  I expect this to take all month and possibly need a few more days afterwards.

stitched on 32 count Marie's Daffodil linen from Chromatic Alchemy

The fabric is much more acid yellow than my picture, it's more like this photo from the website but not so much white in my piece:

I also plan to stitch Cottage Garden Sampling's Halloween Sampler for Dark 13 on the 13th and two projects for my A-Z challenge during IHSW.

We're on C and D this month so I'm thinking of COFFEE Fairy and 12 DAYS of Christmas.

Finally, the time for the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop is approaching.  If you'd like to take part then I need your photo by 9th February please.  I have some Love in my Inbox already but there's always room for more!

2023 Collage