November Pie

 It's time for pie!

Steady Thread Halloween Blackwork

stitched on 30 count tea-dyed linen

And here's my evening pie:

November Stitch from Stash

 The total spend for November was, drum roll......

Yup, a big fat nothing!  I'd gone into the negative the previous month thanks to the Wool Shop closing down and selling their DMC off cheap and a little treat of two CGS charts when I went to pick up my JCS Christmas Special at the LNS down the road.

So I had to rein things in a little this month.

November 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.

Last month I was stitching Dark October and started a small from the current Just Cross Stitch Halloween Special.  

This is stitched on the same 40 count linen as my main focus, there was enough left to stitch two smaller designs.  This one is Nevermore by Quaternion Creations:

stitched on 40 count Witch's Brew linen from Zweigart

I also completed the cute little skeleton chameleon that Jocondine sent me.

Miguel le cameleon from Fil'anthrope

stitched on 36 count dark green linen

Then in November the WIPGO Board called Moonshadow Mini from Full Circle.  I was really enjoying stitching the Halloween Blackwork so didn't start this right away which is why it isn't finished yet!

stitched on 32 count white linen

 

Finally, I did make the decision not to host an Advent Calendar Blog Hop this year for the same reasons as the Halloween Hop!  Maybe I'll do a look back through previous years instead.

November WIPocalypse Planning

          

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 just 2 of them, we've still got 6 days to go so they might be finished by the end of the month.

10. Full Circle Designs - Moonshadow Mini

stitched on 32 count white linen

20. Maria Brovko - Evening in the Shire

stitched on 32 count Millenium Blue linen

Finally, Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

November - How do you begin planning for the next year with your stitching? Tell us your process

I do love to make plans and I start thinking about the following year almost as soon as I start the current year!  For example, 2023 was a focus year where I stitched on Halloween at Hawk Run Hollow every month.  So I knew I'd make 2024 a rotation year and stitch some of the smaller and medium designs I had in my stash and then 2025 would be a focus year again.

The focus will be Mirabilia's Fairy Idyll and also the Art Nouveau Head which is my oldest WIP now.  Having decided on those two, I make a list of the series I want to work on:

Nora Corbett Zodiac Girls

Nora Corbett Pixies
Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods

Cottage Garden Samplings 12 Days of Christmas
Shannon Christine 12 Days of Christmas

Cricket Collection Seasons
Stitch it Picasso Zodiac Signs

Stitch it Picasso Dragons

Firewing Designs Dragons

Shepherd's Bush Herbs

Then I look at my individual charts and see which ones I want to add in.  

What do I want to use for my evening stitching?

What shall I choose for Dark 13?

How about IHSW?  Another go at the A-Z or one project the entire year?

Then I fit things onto my WIPGO Board.  Looking at the list, there are 10 series plus the two focus pieces.  So I could put each project down twice with the goal of "Stitch for 2 weeks" and use the other two weeks for the focus projects.  

It can and will change before 1st January but that's half the fun!

November 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.

The letters T, U, V and W were designated for November.  I went for 4 letters as I don't have anything for U or V so it still worked out as two letters for the weekend.

First up was Stitch It Picasso's TEMPERATURE SAL for 2023.

It started here:

And finished here:

stitched over 1 on 25 count tea-dyed evenweave

I was doing quite well with that one until May 2023 when I put it to one side to do my Just Nanathon and never really got going on it again.  I do have all the temperatures recorded so it will be on my list for next year to try finish off.

Next up was another TEMPERATURE project, the tree from The Steady THREAD.   That went from here:

To here:

stitched on 28 count Meadow Mist linen from Silkweavers

On Sunday I went for Papillon Around the WORLD in 80 Stitches, another older project which has stalled.

That went from here:

To here:

stitched on 28 count white evenweave

I think I might try get all the borders done next year and then think about the fill-ins.  It's very satisfying to complete each shape.  There are 32 altogether and I have stitched 13 of them.  If I stitch one or two a month then that would get them all done next year.

Next month will be X, Y and Z.  I have one project which will cover both X and Y and nothing for Z.  So hopefully 2 days stitching on one project will see some good progress.  Despite it being the weekend before Christmas!!

Finally the next IHSW will be 20th - 22nd December 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.

November Gifted Gorgeousness Link-up Post

          

Welcome to the November 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.

The Halloween Sampler from Cottage Garden Samplings was my focus for Dark October and a finish.  This was stitched on gifted fabric.

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

Nevermore from Quaternion Creations was stitched on the same fabric:

I also finished this adorable little chameleon which was a gift from Jocondine:

Miguel le Cameleon from Fil'anthrope

stitched on 36 count dark green linen

Need to get him FFO'd before the 10th of next month.

Continuing progress on this one as we cool right down, we're currently in the greens although I need to catch up on the last couple of weeks of leaves.

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.

Finally, 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 "November 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 Fully Finished Fun for November

    

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've got two FFO's to share this month, both Halloween themed.

The first is the Couer de Sorciere from TraLaLa which I finished into a primitive heart shaped pillow:

Here's the back, which is a piece of fabric from a sample book I was given.  It's expensive stuff - £75 a metre!

Slightly cheaper was this pumpkin shape from The Works!  It was raw wood which I painted using some watered down acrylic paints.  Start with bright orange and add black until it looks right then brush it on as a wash:

The designs are the Halloween Trifles from Shepherd's Bush with my own charms added.

I seem to have run out of spiders so used this web charm instead.

I just mounted each piece around card and used double sided tape to stick them to the wooden pumpkin.

Finally, I finished little Miguel le Camelion but not FFO'd him so you'll see him for GG and then FFO'd in December.

November 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 October, the numbers were 8 and 17.  These related to Cottage Garden Samplings' Halloween Sampler and Drawn Thread's Spot of Summer.

I finished the Halloween Sampler and didn't even start the Spot of Summer.  That can roll over to 2025 along with Spot of Autumn.

stitched on 40 count Witch's Brew linen from Zweigart

In the evenings I stitched the Steady Thread Halloween SAL:

stitched on 30 count tea-dyed linen

In November, the numbers are 14 and 16.  These relate to Maria Brovko Life in the Shire and Full Circle Designs Moonshadow Mini "A Child's Dream".

A while back I bought a batch of charts from Ukrainian designers to support them and this is one of them:

I haven't decided what fabric to stitch it on, I want to make sure the black backstitch shows up well on the blue.

The other chart is an old one I picked up in a needlework shop just because it was sweet.  I like a mini sampler and it came with the moon button. 

Here's a close-up of the design:

I'll stitch the sampler rather than the needleroll.

Finally, I am making plans for 2025!  After a year of small/medium designs I have two larger pieces I want to focus on and then keep up with some of the series I started the last couple of years.  Designs such as the Zodiac Girls, the 12 Days of Christmas, The Year in the Woods.  I'll publish my finished list next month as it's very much a WIP at the moment.

November TUSAL

    

It's TUSAL time!  

Here is my TUSAL jar with my current projects:

The main project is the Halloween Blackwork from The Steady Thread:

stitched on 30 count tea-dyed linen

This one is a cute little extra for the month.  The lovely Jocondine sent me a beautiful gift package for my Birthday which included a kit for Miguel le Cameleon.  Apparently Miguel is an icon who comes in a variety of designs, this one is the Skeleton, perfect for Halloween.

stitched on 36 count dark green linen

Finally, a big Thank You to everyone who linked up for my Spooky Link-up, I'm going to be hopping around and visiting everyone this weekend.