15! FIF...TEEN!!!!

15?  15 what I hear you ask. See if you can guess before you read any further.

15 little itty bitty Christmas finishes that need FFOing.  Well! Luke is away on a college residential to the Lake Distric next week so I could get the sewing machine out and leave it on the kitchen table all week!! So, watch this space!

I got my Around the World in 80 Stitches out during the week as it fitted most of the Stitch Maynia Olympic challenges.  I didn't do much - it was the last week of term which is always hectic as we have to fit EVERYTHING in that doesn't want carrying forward to next term into it.

To add to the Christmas shame...I finished another design yesterday.  In my defence, it is almost FFOed.  All it needs is some felt on the back to cover up the stitching mess that is there. Snowflake Tree by Mill Hill stitched on perforated paper.  It was my first time using the stuff and I am still undecided whether I like it or not.  It is a really cute design and will be lovely on my little ornie tree this year.  This was one of the projects on my focus list for the year which means I have now finished 3 projects off that.

Mill Hill - Snowflake Tree

In other news, Luke brought home a trip letter from college this week.  I think I prefer the good old primary school days when a trip letter meant finding a tenner to pay for it.  This one is a 'psychology' trip to New York for 5 days.  A mere £1000!!!  Sorry, I shouldn't exaggerate, I do get £15 change from my £1000.  Still they are packing in absolutely tons of activities in the short time they are there so it will be well worth it - especially since it will be the first time he has ever left the country!  I wonder if I could get him to go cross stitch shopping for me???  Hmmmm...

Well! This is getting to be a bit of a habit!

Well what a busy stitching week I have had.  Watching flosstube and stitching is as good as it gets I think.  I love feeling like 'someone' is stitching with me (even if I am rather late to the party!)

This week has seen Positive Thinking getting a little (actually quite a lot) of TLC.  I had finished all of part one, some of part two and the words for part three. I can now confirm that ALL of part two is done as is ALL of part three. This was going to be my focus piece until either it was finished or I got bored.  However, as a Stitch Mayniac, I decided to do the Olympic Stitching Challenge which has different challenges for each day.

Before!

Positive Thinking SAL - Jardin Prive

Friday, for the Opening Ceremony was either a new start (NOOOOOOO!!!!!) or work on your most recent start.  I am pretty sure that the last thing I started was Lakeside Needlecraft's Under the Sea SAL. I actually didn't realise that it had been so long since I had started anything, other than the JCS ornies. That's impressive for me :)

Lakeside Needlecraft - Under the Sea SAL

Saturday was to stitch something with a winter theme.  Well in true Jo Perry fashion, I decided that Christmas is in winter and that I could therefore work on Oh Christmas Tree.  I am also going to work on this for the last challenge which is to work on a piece close to a finish.  I am hoping that it will actually get finished.  There is very little left to do - a bit to the bottom right where I couldn't be bothered to move the Q-Snap, the pot it is in and a bigger chunk on the lefthandside. (Justine, would you still like this one when it is finished?  There is hope!)

All Through the Night - Oh Christmas Tree

Sunday was Korean themed day.  Thankfully, the Korean flag has a lot of white - as does iStitch Advent SAL 2015. I am really happy to have got bands 8, 9, 10 and some of 11 stitched today.  I am going to go back to it in a minute and will hopefully get band 11 finished.  The photos are shocking! It stands out so much more in reality.

iStitch - Advent SAL 2015

 

Tomorrow is animal themed day.  I am going to work on Nature Patchwork which was gifted to me  a gazillion years ago and I used to work on when bathing the kids when they were little.  Well not so much when I was bathing them, more supervising the splashing.  Looking at it has given me a warm, fuzzy feeling...awwww.

In other news - Rachael had an interview for NCS on Monday. Well, it wasn't so much an interview as groupwork, interview, presentations and all sorts of activities.  She was complimented by 2 of the 'examiners' on her presentation skills and was offered the job the following morning.  That's the summer holidays taken care of then!!  

Finishes, finishes everywhere

Well...that's probably a slight exaggeration.  I do, however, have 2 finishes for the JCS SAL on facebook.

First up, is Lizzie Kate's Very Merry.  This can be described as personalised - that is, I miscounted and couldn't be bothered frogging a whole flower!  It uses random threads and is stitched on the same piece of random fabric as the cute kitties from last time.

Lizzie Kate - Very Merry

Then...tonight I have finished The Little Stitcher's Warm hands, Warm heart.  This is the same piece of fabric and different random threads.  Again, it is personalised as I miscounted the side border, then discovered it was 2 stitches short. 

The Little Stitcher - Warm Hands, Warm Heart

Now, I have had a totally weird thought, bear with me.  So far, I have stitched 3 of this year's designs and I think I stitched 3 (or possibly 4) of last year's too.  I may even have a few from the previous year.  Wouldn't it be a great idea to sort out fabrics and trims for these...............and finish finish them...actually make them into ornies!!!!!  I told you it was weird!!!