Wednesday, July 4, 2012

It's been a long time since I posted.  Good intentions and all that. 

On the one hand, it's been good to have work for the last year.  The income has been handy, and some of it has definitely been funneled into stash enhancement and classes.

On the other hand, stitching time has felt all too rare.

So why do I keep buying charts and threads, and signing up for classes?  Because I see opportunities to learn new techniques, or check out a well-known teacher, or because a project is so unusual, I don't want it to get away.  Sound familiar?

Recently on the EGA Yahoo Group (YG), the moderator asked about sources of inspiration on the Internet.  Got me thinking.  I signed up for Mary Corbet's Needle N Thread letter;  Thea Duek has done some competitions on her YG;  Silver Needle Society (SNS) offers numerous classes.

And along the way I've met a lot of other stitchers, particularly through some very active YGs.  Will we ever meet in person?  Maybe, at least a few.  Are we friends?  Yes, from my point of view.  We share things that are happening;  we do happy dances over successes;  we offer support, empathy, hope and ideas when things aren't so rosy.

 Would I have met these people any other way?  Unlikely.  I'm not a big traveler.  So, maybe, this will reach and encourage someone else.   Doesn't matter.  I want to record more of what I'm doing. 

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A few of the UFOs have been finished - will have to go back, and see which ones.  And of course some others have been added to the stack.  I signed up for the Crazy January Challenge 2012 -- 15 piece version. I started 15, and have finished one.  Two of the others are pretty far along. Time to get them moving again.

And new stuff? -- Have signed up for Papillon Creations SAL - Around the World in 80 Stitches (ATW80S).  Have fabric, but waiting for long scroll rods, then will select threads.  And Abi Gurden has a new SAL starting soon - a hardanger piece.  SNS -Stella Polaris is just getting started (Carole Lake and Michael Boren), and I'll be a 'ghost stitcher' at an EGA workshop  -- kit expected soon for Tony Mineri's Antique French Ribbons.  And started an afghan, Mary Stockett's Rainforest Afghan.

Ongoing series:  Double Delights and Color Delights by Kathy Rees (Needle Delights Originals).