January 2026 Stitching Update

Lots of stitching this month, a lot of which will be in the separate "new start" posts, but I did some other stitching as well, including one finish, and it deserves a post of its own as well. 

First some updates!

There was a new start in late December, the HAED SAL which I decided to try this year. I'm not sure if I'll get the whole 6 pages needed for all the charts, but there are a couple I'd like, so I might be able to do it. I think it's about 45K stitches to meet that goal, and I've done close to 3K so far. I chose Whisper of Wishes, which will look like this eventually:

This is about 10 pages total, so 6 pages would be the left 2/3. It might be possible. This is where I'm at so far:

Whisper of Wishes by HAED

stitched 1 over 1 full cross on 28ct Easy Count

with charted DMC

My very loose plan is to try and get 3-5K stitches done on this within the first 2 weeks of the month, then spend the rest on WIPs, new starts, etc. It's not very confetti heavy so far, so it's been enjoyable. It was nice to have a break for a couple weeks though. 

After I put this away, I picked up an old WIP that's been hanging around for a while. It's a small project, but it's Sweetheart Tree, so there's a lot of detail to it. This is where it was when I last picked it up in July 2024:

and now it's a finish! 

Honest Santa - I Didn't Do It! by The Sweetheart Tree

stitched as charted, 2 over 2 on last scrap of Tempest by Chromatic Alchemy

There was so much backstitch and the words are 1 over 1, which is so much harder now than it was 10 years ago. Even with my stronger magnification in my glasses! But it's done and I'm very glad. 

Another project I picked up, and hope to pick up every couple weeks is Stormlight Quotes by Taylor and Cromwell. I have quite a bit done, and it just needs time to get a finish. Last time I worked on it was in April 2024:

and now I've reached the top! 

Stormlight Archive quotes by Taylor and Cromwell

stitched 2 over 2 on 28ct black Monaco

with DMC as charted

I picked up a smaller Qsnap so I could concentrate on getting all the way to the top of this one. It feels like it's closer now that all 4 sides are at least started. I have about 5K stitches until it's complete, and the plan is to work on it every couple weeks when DH has a meeting. It's usually for about 3 hours, which was enough for 450 stitches last time. There's lots of one colour to stitch with, so that will help it go more quickly as well. I think I can get it completed in time to have it framed for DH's birthday at the end of the year. 

The last project I worked on is a Mill Hill that I had kind of lost. I found it in a bag while I was looking for something else, so I pulled it out and got a few threadlengths into it. It hasn't changed much since you last saw it (April 2021), so I don't think a before photo is necessary. 

It's a Wonderful Life by Mill Hill

stitched as charted on 14ct perforated paper

And there you have it! All the other stitching I've done this month. There hasn't been much knitting since I'm trying to get all the starts in, we'll see how that goes next month. 

I hope it's been a good month for everyone,

Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

September Round-Up (Yes, a little bit late!)

Hello, hello! I'm a little late, as usual, getting up the end of the month round-up. Finally I seem to have time today, on Canadian Thanksgiving.

To recap the start of September, I was finishing off the dragons that Rachel and I started for the Paralympics Stitching Challenge. I think we'll try and pick those up again for the Winter 2022 Paralympics and see if we can get them finished. 

I was debating on what to do for the rest of the month and ended up starting something new for my birthday, which is this Anne Stokes beauty charted by Paine Free Creations

And I kept with it until I finished an entire page:

Trick or Treat by Anne Stokes charted by Paine Free Creations

stitched on 25ct easy count 2 over 1 tent stitch with charted threads

I was debating about what to do next and thought I'd pull out a smallish WIP I'd started earlier this year to finish. I started this one on May 24 for Stitch Maynia:

and managed to finish it:

Spring Snapperland by Bent Creek

stitched 2 over 2 on 28ct evenweave scrap

with random stash threads

I hope to finish this up into a little ornament for my parents to sort of represent their granddaughter. 

After having a page finish on full coverage and a small WIP finish, I thought I'd try attempting another page finish on a different full coverage project. I pulled out Motherhood by Selena Fenech, even though the page was nowhere near to completion. 

I didn't have time to finish the page before the end of September, but I did progress well:

Motherhood by Selena Fenech charted by HAED

stitched 1 over 1 full cross on 28ct Unicorn Farts by Chromatic Alchemy

with charted DMC

I'm really looking forward to seeing how this will turn out on this fabric. Thank goodness for Pattern Keeper to get these projects moving along. 

I finished off September here and will be planning a Dark October, so will post about that soon!

Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Stitch Maynia 2021 Start #10

Hello again! Jo guessed my theme was "seasonal" and she's right. I decided to go through some old binders where I had printed out some seasonal designs from the "old days" of the internet and get them stitched up. However, just as she guessed, I derailed that theme today. It was not a good day at work yesterday. There were several issues, but one of the main ones was we got a call that one of my long-time patients had died suddenly. On Mother's Day in the USA. She had children and grandchildren and was only in her 60s. It was such a shock. I'd seen her and her family almost since I started practicing, so maybe 16 years or longer. I was a bit of a wreck emotionally after that, although I managed to pull it mostly together when I was home for Mother's Day celebrations. 

I wasn't even feeling much like stitching last night, but decided instead of the regularly scheduled seasonal start, I'd pull out one I'd been thinking of starting for a while. 

This is Kathleen and Summer by Hannah Lynn charted by HAED. I'm going to stitch on blue to hopefully not have to stitch all the background. Here's my start:

Kathleen and Summer by Hannah Lynn charted by HAED

stitched 2 over 1 tent stitch as charted on 28ct opal linen by BeStitchme (unnamed colour)

I know, another giant start, but it felt like starting was worthwhile, even if it never gets finished. Hopefully it will at some point though. Once I get farther down I could try the outlining that some people do in 310 for her charts. 

I hope you're all well today. I'm fighting a migraine which might be sinus/allergy induced, so just from being overwrought yesterday. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. 

Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Gifted Gorgeousness 2021 - March Edition and February Wrap-Up

I'm finally managing to get myself together enough to post for Gifted Gorgeousness! Hosted as always by the excellent Jo, please check her post to get the links for everyone's posts and check out their lovely works. 

I haven't managed many posts this year so far, but I have been very dedicated to keeping up with the huge HAED I started on New Year's Day, Amazing Animal Kingdom. Another WIP was finished this past month, as well as a bit of work on a few others too. I got a little behind in my stitching for Animal Kingdom while I finished Princess and the Dragon back in January, but I'm almost caught up to where I had hoped to be by now, well over 20K stitches! 

Enough talking, what have I been stitching? 

In Harmony - for DH

In Harmony - kit by Dimensions

stitched 2 over 2 or 3 over 2 as charted, tent and full stitches with kit threads and fabric

I started this one many, many years ago, when I was still into cross stitch kits and unaware of any other options. Shortly after starting this, I discovered this whole other world of cross stitch designers and charts and fabric that I obviously had to try! So this hasn't had a heck of lot of work over the past few years, but will get a fair bit this year. One of the Facebook challenge groups wants you to stitch on your oldest WIP if you don't have a WIP that fits that week's challenges and I think this is currently my oldest WIP. 

When I pulled it out this year, it looked like this:

Kiss for a Snowman - for DD

Kiss for a Snowman - Dimensions kit

stitched as charted with kit threads and fabric and a bazillion French knots!

This one has been hanging around since CJC of 2015 I think. I'm so glad to get it finished off. I'm thinking a flat fold might be a good way to finish it, although I might just frame it as well. It's so nice to finish!

Do Not Meddle - stunt stitching

Do Not Meddle - by Dragon Dreams

stitched 1 over 1 on 28ct Monaco with charted DMC

I'm so far behind on finishing this one, but I still have some hope it will happen this year. One whole dragon to stitch, and less than half of another isn't too much stitching to do. 

Twilight LeMans - for DH

Twilight LeMans - by Heritage Stitchcraft

stitched 2 over 2, 1 over 2 on unknown 28ct fabric

with DMC as charted

Another one that's been hanging around since 2015 or 2016 and those Crazy January/February Challenges, and you can kind of see the cars now, which have some weird quarter stitches to try and get the shape. Hopefully they'll turn out okay. 

Moon and Back - for DD

Moon and Back by Heart in Hand

stitched 2 over 2 on 28ct linen with Gloriana threads mostly

This is a long narrow piece, and mostly words, so I don't think it will take too long if I'm able put a little bit of time into it. Plus I'd like to get it done while DD still appreciates this kind of stuff. I know she might not in another few years. 

And now, the project some of you might have been waiting for, Amazing Animal Kingdom! Last time I showed it, it looked like this:

And now, one full page is done and over 3/4 of another is complete, plus some into another 2 pages, and there's a little over 21K tent stitches into this one so far:

Amazing Animal Kingdom by HAED and Aimee Stewart

stitched 2 over 1 tent stitch on 32ct experiment 19 by Chromatic Alchemy

I'm still pretty happy with this one, and it's neat seeing all the animals appear. There's the cockatoo, a gorilla, a parrot or macaw, a cheetah below that and an elephant is starting to appear with a baby right below it. I'll still stick with it and see how it goes. If I use this as a focus piece, it will take a few years to complete, so we'll see if I can stick with it. 

Stay well and happy stitching!

Tiffstitch

January Wrap-Up and a Big Finish!

 So I'm a little late with the January wrap-up, but there's a good reason. I did stick with my plan of trying to get 2K tent stitches into Animal Kingdom for 4 weeks, so there are over 8K stitches in it now. You can even see another animal and some books:

Amazing Animal Kingdom by Aimee Stewart

stitched 2 over 1 tent stitch on 32 ct Chromatic Alchemy fabric as charted

I'm looking forward to picking this back up this month and catching up a bit. I did get a little behind as I got a little obsessed by finishing one of my older projects. 

Was it this one? 

Full Moon by Cute Patterns by Maria

stitched 2 over 2 on 28ct Lazurite by Chromatic Alchemy as charted

No, although it was really nice to finish this one up as well. It's over 4500 cross stitches (in Pattern Keeper for easy counting) plus you have to add all that backstitch in. These are so pretty, but don't start them if you're not a fan of blends. There are always a lot in her charts. 

And it wasn't this newest finish either:

Love by Durene Jones (Facebook freebie)

stitched as charted 2 over 1 on metallic finish perforated paper

This will be for DD, just have to cut it out and add some felt and a ribbon to the backing. 

Then it must be this one:

Princess and the Dragon by Charting Creations

stitched 1 over 1 DMC 310 full cross on 28ct Amarinthine by Chromatic Alchemy

I still can't really believe I've finished this one. I started in 2015, around the time Nikki started up Charting Creations I think. This was my very first piece of Chromatic Alchemy fabric as well. I had won it from a giveaway Sam had on her FB page and that's what made me sign up for her FOTM club. 

It's over 53,000 stitches and although there are a few mistakes, no one will be able to tell what they are. Now to decide how to FFO this, it definitely needs to get hung up on the wall soon. 

I hope you've all been well and are staying safe. New plans for February involve getting back to the 2K stitches per week on Animal Kingdom and trying to focus on some small or medium size WIPs when I've accomplished that so I can get some more finishes in before the start of Mischievous March. I am looking forward to something new and I'll likely keep the starts small to not add too much to the WIP pile. 

Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Mid January Update

 Hello from wintry New England in the USA! We had a beautiful snowfall over Saturday night and woke up to this loveliness on Sunday. The quiet was still present as well, so it was quite a nice morning. The roads were clear, so driving to work wasn't an issue either. 

I've been working a lot on my New Year New Start, Amazing Animal Kingdom by Aimee Stewart. Eventually it will look like this:

and so far I only have almost the first page on the top left complete:

Amazing Animal Kingdom by Aimee Stewart

stitched 2 over 1 tent stitch as charted

on 32ct evenweave experiment by Chromatic Alchemy

My relatively fluid plan for 2021 is to try and stitch 2000 stitches on this BAP once per week, and then on a different WIP once a week so that they all get some work on them. I didn't manage it the first week, too much national stuff going on, in fact I don't think I stitched on 3 days out of that week? It was a rough one. I won't say I've entirely recovered, but I did manage to start a new one for Valentine's Day, and that seemed to help my stitching bug recover a bit:

Love by Durene Jones (FB Freebie)

stitched 2 over 1 as charted 

on 14ct silver perforated paper

This past week was a little better and I pulled out 2 WIPs to finish:

Winter by Bent Creek

stitched 2 over 2 with stash threads, mostly WDW and some DMC

on 28ct Feldspar by Chromatic Alchemy

I have no particular plans for this one, it's very cute and might fit easily in a 5x7 frame, or maybe I could try another flat fold? 

The second finish was this little dragon I've been draggin' around for several years now. It was a free chart from a French site, Lud In the Mist and is called Petit Dragon Rond:

Petit Dragon Rond by Lud-in-the-Mist

stitched 2 over 1 with Caron Waterlilies Holiday

on 14ct gold sparkle Aida

My other exciting news was my custom knitting/stitching bag arrived! I saw a bag on Roladex Stitcher's Flosstube and looked at the options the seller makes. You pick your own custom fabric and she turns it into amazing bags. The construction is really well done and I look forward to using this for a good long while. I chose the style called double flip, because it has 2 high zippered pockets (one for knitting, one for stitching) and the central section has pockets, including a zippered one for keys, pocketbook, etc.

I'm sure you're all surprised by the pattern I chose. :D Hockey, maple leafs, what's not to love?

The in between section with the long pockets on either side

And the seller also included a booksleeve for DD, to match her new bag:

This will be DD's first real purse, and it's so well constructed, I think it will survive for several years, possibly farther out than she will still like the pattern? It's really pretty and DD hasn't seen it yet, it will be a surprise later in the year. 

If you have any interest in looking into custom bags for yourself, the seller is Jasmine Ravenclaw, and she has Instagram, but no Etsy store, etc. at this time. 

I think they were very reasonably priced, and the product is really outstanding. 

And that's the year so far. The inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden will be this coming Wednesday and I just hope it all goes smoothly. Still debating on if we'll watch it on TV or not given little eyes and ears that will also be watching. 

Stay well and Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Fully Finished Gallery - November Edition

 I finally made it! I've been meaning to post on Rachel's FFO gallery for months now, but kept not quite managing to get a post up in time. This month I'm determined to do it. I even have multiple things to show now too. 

First up, this has been finished for a while:

Siberian Forest QS by HAED

stitched 1 over 1 full cross as charted on 28ct Monaco 

I had a few 6x6 inch frames for Mill Hill finishes and turns out this fits just about perfectly! I even washed it, since it was a little grungy after being stitched on since 2012. There wasn't any bleeding of colour thank goodness. 

And I'm really excited about my next finish. I gifted it to a friend who is also a bibliophile:

Sleep is Good by Circus Stitches

stitched 2 over 2 with Caron Waterlilies Plum and Soie Cristal green

on 28ct Bacchus by Chromatic Alchemy

I found these bags at Michael's. They're canvas, lined inside with something silky-looking. They have handles and a zipper. I think they're intended to use as bridesmaids gifts, that kind of thing, but it works pretty well for this. It didn't take very long to complete and I think I even managed to pin it on straight, enough that my friend took a sec to realize I had put it together instead of purchasing new. That's always a nice feeling that you did it well. 

Someone had a big birthday around here, and since things are such that there's really no ability to have a party, I wanted to try and make something special. I found these in Issue 13 of the XStitch magazine as part of a pattern for a slot machine. 

Are You Feeling Lucky? by Stitchfinity

stitched 3 or 4 over 1 with stash threads on silver perforated paper 

I chose rainbow colours since DD loves rainbows and is always drawing and painting them. I had some idea of making 7 of these with individual colours, but that didn't quite work out. I had some Dinky Dyes Down Under Blues left to make 2 sections on these and I thought it was a good indigo colour. 

I still need to finish up lots of other projects, so let's switch to knitting as well, since they are easier to fully finish. :)

I managed to complete 2 pairs of socks in the last few months for gifts:

Sweet and Tartan socks by Traci Millar

knit with Fiberstash Fire Engine Red and Charcoal

These were completed for a friend who loves red/black plaid. I'm so glad they turned out well. It's all mosaic knitting, and the heel is a little different from the usual gusset, which I thought made them a little tight to get on when I checked the size. No complaints from the recipient, who has slightly smaller feet, so perhaps not an issue for her feet. If I make them for me, I'll just be sure to use my normal heel. 

"vanilla" socks, no particular pattern, cast on 64 stitches per sock

Yarn is If I Wanted Exposure by Blue Moon Fiber Arts

These have been mailed, so hopefully they will fit as well when they're received. I enjoyed how the yarn knit up and sort of striped a bit. I've had this for a couple years from when Countess Ablaze released a dye lot for any dyers interested as long as they were going to contribute some of the proceeds to charity. It's a nice yarn, with a good twist so you don't catch the threads. This is the only Blue Moon yarn I've owned/used so far. 

And that's everything I've finished so far. If I can get myself in gear, maybe there will be more for next month. 

Stay well and Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Spring Into Summer New Start Binge #16 - Magical Arrival

Here we are at the penultimate weekend of starts! I was tempted to add last week that it was the antipenultimate weekend because that's one word I've never forgotten. Our high school music teacher used to use it because he wanted to show off our knowledge if the VP or Principal ever walked into our class to observe. He'd say "We'll start at the antipenultimate bar." It means the 3rd bar from the end, or 3rd last.

Rachel has her post up and I'm sure Annie will soon too, so please check out their new starts on their blogs as well. Only one more to go this weekend! It seems so short looking back at it now.

Once again I tossed out my sensible plans of sticking with small projects, unless you count this as a "small" HaED....

and I managed to get here:

that's almost 2K stitches into it already, of about 23K total needed. There's also something a little unusual about this chart. I noticed it when I looked at the thread list. Any guesses what it might be? I'll mention it in next week's post.

It felt really good to start this one. Life in general has been pretty stressful with everything and the decision on whether or not to homeschool this year for DD has just added a little more. A new start on something I've had in my stash for years felt nice, and I love that I had a long piece of 25ct Magic Guide to make it that much easier. I got this on clearance from Charting Creations, I think it was 10"x52"? Something odd, but I had a couple projects that I knew would fit, and this was my first purchase of pre-gridded fabric. The first project I started was Tiger Stare, which is what I purchased it for. I may be able to get that one out again soon now that the new start binge is almost over.

Also, a finish! Celtic Ice is complete:

Celtic Ice by Ink Circles

stitched 2 over 2 on 28?ct linen 

with Carrie's Creations Night Storm and Blue Dreams

I hope you've all been staying healthy and not letting the stress get to you like I've been doing. It's hard, but it is good to have stitching and crafting and things to take a break from the rest.

Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Spring Into Summer New Start Binge #13 - Witch's Gate and a Recent Obsession

I hope you've all been having a good stitchy week! I didn't forget I needed to start a new project, but I did get myself distracted with plans for July and a bit of a mania to finish a project.

So, I debated and decided to make the last few weeks all about Christmas projects, and do a kind of different Jolly July. Each new start will be Christmas or winter themed.

And since this was the 13th new start, I thought I'd pull out the other Whispered by the Wind spooky chart, and made a miniscule start on it. Please check Rachel and Annie's posts as I'm sure they did better.

So, there's a lot left to do. :) I did keep working on some of the other WIPs I've started for this and am nearing a finish on the Wish ornament:

And as for my recent finish mania, this has nothing to do with these starts since I won't get it done by the end of July, but there's some chance Rachel and I have been discussing starting more projects this year, so I'd be aiming for a finish near that time.

This is Siberian Forest as it was when I pulled it out this year. Some of you may remember this from way back in 2011 or so when I started it. It's been out occasionally, but very rarely.

The main reason this came back out and why I'm interested in finishing it is Pattern Keeper came out, and there was finally a way I could get my head around stitching full coverage HAED projects. To the end that I'm over halfway done this one now and really want to finish it to have my first ever HAED finished this year! And then start all the rest... perhaps not all. 

This is where it is after Sunday, June 28:

I'm at the bottom, this is as far down as it goes, so it's quite a small piece by HAED standards, only about 20K stitches. I do think a finish is possible this year, and I think it's going to be a focus while I have this mania to finish it and see if I manage it before I burn out. 

I hope you've all been staying healthy and happy stitching!

Tiffstitch