February WIPocalypse

It's time for another WIPocalypse update.  The topic for this month is:

How many projects do you generally feel comfortable having in progress at a time?

At the moment I am happy working on three pieces at a time.  As I've mentioned in previous posts, my main WIP is Forest Walk but when I need a colour break I switch to Treasure Hunt Bookshelf which I started at the end of last year.  This means that Treasure Quest will now be an UFO but I fully intend to finish it one day.  I stitch Spring Sampler during lunch breaks at work.

So here is my progress on all three WIP's since last month

Forest Walk

The page I'm working on is almost complete.  Most of the page was the green background but there was part of the dragon's horn too which was very confetti heavy but I do love how it looks.

Spring Sampler

The end is in sight for Spring Sampler.  There is a lot of backstitch left to do but I quite like doing backstitch.  I'm starting to plan what I'm going to stitch next.  At the moment I'm torn between Two Tigers (which is an UFO) or starting Summer Sampler (new start, yay!).  

 Treasure Hunt Bookshelf (Large)

I really love stitching this piece.  It is so large, it's probably going to take me at least five years to complete.  I can't wait until I can see all the little details.

I hope everyone is keeping safe with the weather.  I know parts of the US have very deep snow at the moment.  Here in the UK, we've had some very wet and windy weather recently.  Although I live close to the river Thames, there has been no flooding here, but there has been on the other side of London and in Somerset.  

Take care

X

January WIPocalypse 2014

It's been under a week since my last update but I have joined WIPocalypse 2014 and today is posting day. I have made some progress on both Forest Walk and Spring sampler.

So, a brief introduction, my name is Elle and I will be 32 in February.  I live with my husband and my cat Smokey in a flat just outside of Greater London in the South East.  As well as stitching, I love watching Sci-fi on TV, reading fantasy books and gaming.

I have two main WIP's: Forest Walk (HAED) and Spring Sampler.  Forest Walk is going to be given to some dear friends as a wedding present (no date set yet!) so this is my main project.  I stitch Spring Sampler during lunch breaks and at a stitching club I go to once a week.

My goals for 2014 are:
1.  To stitch as much of Forest Walk as possible (about a page per month)
2.  Complete Spring Sampler
3.  To complete one UFO (probably Two Tigers)
4.  To start Summer Sampler

    I am a self confessed serial starter and just before Christmas I treated myself to another HAED. It's the large version of Treasure Hunt Bookshelf by Aimee Stewart and it is gorgeous!  Now I am fully commited to completing Forest Walk but I couldn't resist this one. It called to me. I have started it but I only work on it occasionally (mainly when I'm fed up with the greens and browns in Forest Walk).  So here is my small progress on Treasure Hunt bookshelf.

I hope you enjoyed the update.  See you next time.

X

Forest Walk update

Well, my second post has been a long time coming.  It's now 2014.  I have no official New Year resolutions (except to keep on stitching).  I have completed another two pages of Forest Walk (one full page and one partial), so here is how it looks currently.

I've completed all the pages at the top.  Now I'm working my way down the right hand side.  It is taking me about a month to stitch a page providing there isn't too much confetti.

Here is Spring Sampler:

Progress is coming along nicely with this one.  I have recently joined a stitching club that meets up on Wednesdays so I bring this one with me to work on.  There is still a LOT of backstitch left to do on it.  

Introduction

Well this is my first blog entry in my first ever blog.  Hello!  I've been meaning to start a blog for quite some time.  In recent months, I have spent a lot of time reading other people's blogs (if you are ever stuck for inspiration, there are some amazing bloggers out there) and I thought I would dip my toe in the water and see how it goes.

This blog is called The Lilac Thread.  I will be keeping track of all my cross stitch projects on here.  I may at some point add other projects to it but as I have quite a few cross stitch projects I thought it would be a good idea to start with those and monitor their progress.

At the moment I have three WIP's (Works In Progress):

My number one WIP is Forest Walk which is a Heaven and Earth Design (HAED).  I spend most of my evenings working on this one.  I have been working on it for about two years now.  It's about 50% complete.  I plan to give it to a couple, who are dear friends of mine, as a wedding present. The good news is that they haven't set a date yet so I could complete it before the big day.  This is the last photo I took:

I've stitched a bit more of it since then.  I take pictures after I complete each page so my next update will be in a few weeks.

My number two WIP is Spring Sampler by Jannlynn.  

There are designs for all four seasons and I have all of them.  I stitch this when I am on my lunch break at work.  I had originally started the Winter Sampler which was on 18-count aida but the design has so many fractional stitches and on 18 count I found that it is too small to see the fractionals and I kept missing them.  I started Spring Sampler on 32-count linen (two over two) which is working much better for me.  All the other samplers will be stitched on the same count.  After I finished Spring Sampler I was going to move on to Summer, then Autumn, then re-do Winter Sampler but that plan is highly likely to change.  

Number three is Treasure Quest which is another HAED.  The design is by Randal Spangler.  I just love the colours in this design.  I stitch Treasure Quest when I need a break from Forest Walk.  I am still on the first page.

Well that's all for now.  Until next time!