Work-in-Progress Wednesday...Soldiering On

So much for finishing before the next Wednesday rolled around {cue sad trombone}. Not only did I not finish, I didn't even get to the part I was teasing you with. Instead of stitching, I:

• celebrated my anniversary with dinner at a restaurant who's motto was "Love is...getting fat together. So eat more!" (We did not know this when we planned to eat there.) 
• taking my second oldest niece to a minor league ball game in Delaware that went on f.o.r.e.v.e.r.
• making potato salad and watermelon feta salad (really, try it!) for Sunday dinner
• having my hair done 

Can that be it? Because I feel like I was run off my feet between last Wednesday and this! I'm sure there were lots of little things to do that didn't even make it to the calendar. 

Today, I continued work on Shining Star while I was getting a pedicure. The manicurist, who did not speak English as a first language, asked me about my stitching.

Mani: You like sewing?

Me: Yes.

Mani: You must have so much patience.

(I've talked about this before here.)

Mani: How long have you been working on this?

Me: This piece, or cross stitch generally?

Mani: Generally.

Me: 25 years.

Mani: You could be a teacher. Teach kids. You don't see that many people doing this now. Mostly old ladies, retired ladies.

Wow--two of my pet peeve stereotypes in one short conversation! 

Work in Progress Wednesday - Shining Star

Thank you! I'm so glad I've found the rest of you. Honestly, I've been thinking about writing that post for months but I was worried about being kicked off the stitching bloggers' internet. Now we all know.

(This happens to me at meetings all the time. We'll be sitting around the table getting nowhere with some problem or action item, and finally after ten minutes of everyone staring at the center of the table, I'll say the most obvious thing and this somehow works to move us along. And then afterwards, people come up to me and say, "Thank you for saying what everyone was thinking." So that is my role in life: saying the unsayable, being willing--or unmannered, unsticking things.)

Of course, now that puts the pressure on for me to really bring something to my WIP Wednesday post, doesn't it? I appear to have exhausted my resources by sharing the Christmas carols story.

I ran out of Forest Glade, the color I am using for the words. Used it all up. Even after I had read Mary Agnes's admonition to keep your dye lots and color numbers and "stop stitching several strands before you absolutely run out." But I kept on stitching with that color because: magical thinking! Of course it was going to be enough. I'd just be able to eke it out. 

I have a plan. You'll just have to wait until next Wednesday (or until I finish it, which I'm hoping will be before next Wednesday).

WIP Wednesday

As promised, Sam Sarah's Shining Star which is stitched on the called-for linen with the called-for colors with the exception of the variegated green used for the words. It called for DMC Camouflage which I couldn't find anywhere; I substituted GAST Forest Glade.

My family has always been big Christmas carol singers, though none of us has the voice for it. We're happy to do it anyway. (For a lot of us who can't carry a tune in a bucket, we happily don't hear ourselves that way.) One Christmas, we were bringing something to my aunt. I can't remember what or why four of us piled into the car to make the trip, but we started singing carols. Then we decided we should seranade my aunt, so we practiced three songs. When we got to her door and started singing, she freaked out. She didn't have anything to give these carolers (was she supposed to give them something, she wondered?) and they sounded too good to be anyone she knew. So we sang to her closed door for all three songs. Finally, we had to ring the doorbell and call out her name before she'd answer!

This is how it looked the last time I worked on it, January 2014.

Through the Years...

Christmas-in-July stitching continues apace, though my reporting on it does not. In addition to celebrating the dude's birthday last week, we also celebrated our 12th anniversary. The dude loved the stitched piece I made for him. I finished it so long ago (back in May), I almost forgot about it. We also hosted Sunday dinner this week, and that always eats up my time. (If I kept my house clean, it probably wouldn't but I don't and it does.)

But back to Christmas...This is SamSarah's "Shining Star" stitched on 30-ct Morris blue linen. I am stitching with the called for colors except I've replaced DMC camouflage variegated floss (overdyed?) with Sampler Threads forest glade. I went to two stores and couldn't find the camouflage so I went to my collection. Forest glade was a good color match. It's not as variegated as the camouflage but the colors toned nicely with what I was already using. I do have more stitching to show and if I can get some work-type projects out the door, I may even get back here soon to show it!