My Sunday Stitchy Update 09/10/23

Happy Sunday Everyone! I hope that you are having a relaxing weekend! Our temperatures here in Arizona have spiked into the low 100s again. It feels like they will never end this year!

I finished stitching some ornaments this week.

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

Bird                                                              Santa

   


Polar Bear

All the backstitch has been completed on these last three!
09/08/23

Then Tia put french knots in all their eyes for me (thanks)

and here is the whole bunch all together!

FINISHED 09/08/23

I still have to find some fabric/felt to back them with and finish them off completely so they will be ready for the Holiday. I have picked up another WIP to work on but I will post about that piece next week.

Thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 09/03/23

Hello There! I hope that you are having an awesome weekend! This weekend in the States we have the labor day holiday on Monday so it is a long weekend for us. It also marks the unofficial end to summer, unfortunately! When I was younger it also signaled the start of the new school year. I liked going back to school for the most part. New clothes, new school supplies, new classroom, new teacher, and new things to learn ~ what's not to like! How about you? How did you like the start of a new school year? 

Well on to the stitching part of the week... 

This week I was able to finish putting all the stitches in the Snowman so now all of them have been stitched and are in need of their backstitch. Then I will almost be finished with the ornaments for this year, finally. 

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

Snowman

Progress 09/01/23

All stitched up! 09/02/23

I hope to get the backstitch finished on the others this week!

Next year I plan on finding another way to get the family ornaments stitched up. I think if I do them gradually through the year it might work out better for me. They will probably take just as long but I am hoping it won't seem as long and overwhelming if I break them down in smaller blocks of time. I don't know if that is true, but I will see. That means I have to start hunting down some ornaments soon!

Thanks for taking a peek at my stitching

see ya next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/27/23

Welcome Friends!  This week has been a pretty quiet and lazy week so I am sure this will be a short but sweet post about my stitching. 

I was able to get in some stitching on the ornaments and I even finished the stitching on the Bird.

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

Bird

Progress 08/24/23
Finished the stitching and
waiting for the backstitch.


Snowman

Progress 08/26/23

The Snowman is the last one of the set! Once this one is stitched I will backstitch all of them and get them ready to hang on the tree. I estimate another two weeks (I hope) to complete them fully.

I hope that you have a fabulous week!

Thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/20/23

Hi Everyone! 

I hope you have had a great week. I see many of you have said that your weather is cooling down so that is good! I think everyone needs some better temperatures and even our dogs are happy about that. I have been busy doing house stuff today (yuck) but we stopped for the day so I thought I would blog and get in my stitching afterwards! 

This week I finally finished the Bear I was working on last week and I was so never so happy to be finally finished with a piece!

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

Bear

Finished 08/15/23

Then I started on the Bird right away!

Bird

Progress 08/19/23

So that is it for this week!

Time to go do some work on the bear.

Thanks for stopping by,

see ya next time!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/13/23

Happy Sunday Friends!  I hope you are enjoying a nice relaxing weekend. 

Well just like that the streak of 100 degree days is OVER! On Tuesday we experienced a few thunder storms which caused our high temperature to only reach 99 degrees. The streak lasted 53 days from June 16th to August 7th. The very next day we reached 100 once again but we are not staying at that temperature day after day.

This week I have been working on the bear ornament and he has been giving me lots of trouble for some reason! The culprit is that hat of his and this is my third time stitching it and I am DETERMINED to finish it so I can put it to the side. 

Here is my week's progress! 

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

Bear

Progress 08/13/23

It was something with all the different red stitches that I kept miscounting and it was throwing things off! Then when I was doing the colors white and grey I noticed some more red squares that were wrong yesterday! I really want to finish it today so hopefully I won't find any more mistakes.

So that is it for me for this week. I hope you had a great week.

Thanks for taking a peek at my stitching

see ya next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/06/23

I hope that all of you had a wonderful week! It is still very hot here in Tucson. Including today we have has a streak of 52 days of 100 degrees or more and they don't see a change for the next ten days unless we get a good storm. We will see what Mother Nature has in store for us! 

Well I feel like this has been a kinda slow stitching week for me. It has taken me the entire week to stitch Santa even though his hat was already stitched and he is a small guy (ornament wise). So I don't know why it took so long.

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

Santa

Progress 08/06/23

This guy seriously needs some back stitch, you can't really see his features without it but I think that I need a little break from him before I work on him some again.

It looks like the next one up will be the bear and hopefully he will go quicker!

Well thank you for stopping by and

I hope to see you again next week!

Have a great day!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/30/23

Welcome Friends! I hope that you are having a wonderful week! 

First up, a reminder of what today is! 

Make sure you get in a few stitches for the celebration.

Now on to my stitching. This week I have been stitching away on the following Christmas Ornaments. 

Mini Christmas Ornaments
Shope By Maria

Reindeer

Finished 07/27/23

Penguin

Finished 07/28/23

Santa

Progress 07/29/23

I hope I can get another one finished and a good start on another next week. 

Thanks for taking a peek at my stitching

see ya next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/23/23

Afternoon All, I think this will be a quick post because I have only been stitching on one project for a change! It has been slow stitching but I am getting there. I always forget how much stitching goes into full coverage pieces even when they are small ones! 

Anyways; here they are.

Mini Christmas Ornaments

Shope By Maria

First up is the

Penguin

Progress 07/19/23

This guy still needs his backstitch.

Then I started the

Reindeer

Progress 07/23/23
So far he only has a big old nose!

Well that is it for this week's stitching!

Next week I have to finish this guy and start on another.

So that's all I have for now!

Hope to see you again next week.

Have a great week everyone!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/116/23

Hello, hello, hello! Here we are at Sunday once again. I hope that you have had a wonderful week. It has been pretty quiet around here which is perfect for me! 

This week I FINALLY finished the SAL! 

The Blackwork Stitch Along

Designers - Rhona and Eirinn Norrie

Tangled Threads and Things

First Stitch 01/19/23

Last Stitch 07/11/23

 

I had decided to stitch one of the borders that they provided but after I stitched two sides of this one I just couldn't get passed how the corners looked. Each corner is designed like this and I felt that the corners do not end in a "perfect" rounding so I ripped it out and made this simple border based on their border which I like much better. Now I need to find some fabric to make this into a pillow, so I will have to find some time to go thru my fabric stash to see what I have and get to the sewing machine.

Once I finished that it was time for my Christmas In July stitching. So I searched for a chart I liked and one that looked kind of simple. So over to Etsy I shall go! LOL  I found a bunch of ornaments but decided I wanted it to be all whole stitches so I could work them on plastic canvas - that makes for easy stitching and easier finishing! 

This is the design I decided on in the end.

Christmas Mini Ornaments

Shope By Maria

I think they are both cute and whimsical!

So this is my start on the Penguin, my first ornament.

Progress 07/15/23

So that is all for the week; one finish and one new start.

Thanks so much for stopping by to see what I am up to,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 09/12/21

Hi Everyone! 

It is Sunday once again and while I have been stitching EVERY DAY I still have not finished the Polar Bear and Elf ornaments. It seems like it is taking millions of blue Xs to fill in the background and I feel that I will never run out of space to put them in!

Christmas Characters

Polar Bear & Elf

Designer - Durene Jones

Progress 09/12/21

If there is anything about these ornaments that I can say I am glad about it is that I started them so early in the year. If I had waited until December I would have been in big trouble! I think that I can say with confidence that I will have these all stitched up by next week F I N A L L Y !

Hope to see you again next week

with another faithful update!

Thanks once again for stopping by!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/22/21

Hi there friends! I hope that you are having a great day and taking a little time for yourself. That should be a very important part of your routine but so often we are so busy we overlook ourselves! 

This week I have been working on the Penguin and he is just about finished; he only needs a little more back stitch. Lately one of my eyes  has been bothering me when I stitch so I am not getting in as much time as I would like. Guess it is time for my self care and get in and get my prescription for my glasses updated. 

Anyways; here is the progress on the Penguin.

Christmas Characters

Penguin

Designer - Durene Jones

Progress 08/22/21

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

He should be finished by tomorrow and then yes - I have decided to stitch at least one more ornament. Even though the background takes forever and ever... I think I will do the Elf though I am pretty sure it won't be finished by the end of the month!

I would like to start some Halloween stitches in September so I need to dig thru my stuff and see what I have. This year I did NOT buy the Just Cross Stitch Halloween magazine because let's face it, I buy it every year and barely ever stitch anything out of it. So I will search thru the old editions and my pile of charts to see what strikes my fancy.  Do you stitch Halloween designs? 

Well, thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/15/21

Hi Friends!! I hope you are all doing well and had a great week.

For a lot of us here in the States school is back in session! Jacob was excited (even though he denied it) to go back and be around people his own age. Not sure if schools will stay in person or not but so far they seem to be doing well since they are wearing masks and they are going to start taking their temp and the plus side is Jacob is fully vaccinated. 

So this week I started the Penguin. I think I forgot how to count while I was stitching it because I had to frog quite a few times!  But then that is how I often stitch! LOL  

So here he is:

Christmas Characters

Penguin

Designer - Durene Jones

For me it is still the...
#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

Progress 08/15/21

Now back to the Penguin's other side! I still have some room on this piece of fabric so do I dare start another one? There are two more left on this leaflet. What do you think? I don't have anything pressing to stitch except maybe something for Halloween. Guess I will have to see if they fit!!

Thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/08/21

Hello, hello, hello! 

I am still working on my Christmas ornaments even though it is no longer July and I have a finish to show you today.

So here is the Snowman...

Christmas Characters

Snowman

Designer - Durene Jones

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

Finished  08/08/21

Next up is the Penguin and he is the last of the ones I HAVE to stitch. I am not going to say it won't take to long because every time I say that they seem to take forever!

Well that is it for today,

I hope to see you again next week
for another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 08/01/21

Hello Friends! Here it is August already. This year seems to be moving fast all of a sudden. I guess it is all the returning to "normal" again.

I am still working on Christmas in July and will probably continue thru August; at least most of it. The FB group I joined has extended the SAL at least until October for Halloween!

This week I started working on a Snowman which is the third of four I am doing. He has a large section of white stitches coming up and of course it is on white fabric but he is looking kinda cute already. 

Christmas Characters

Snowman

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

Designer - Durene Jones

Progress 07/31/21

I hope to finish this one hopefully by Wednesday and then start on the Penguin!

Thanks so much for stopping by,
have a great week and I'll see you on Sunday!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/25/21

I have a quick post for you today!

I am still working on the
Christmas in July SAL

and making pretty good progress!

I now have two ornaments stitched and I have two more to go! 

Christmas Characters

Santa

Designer - Durene Jones

Finish 07/25/21

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

Next up is The Snowman!

Told you it would be quick!

Thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/18/21

Hello everyone. I hope you are having a good week. We are still having some rain but it seems to mostly come in the evenings or over night. Some of our dogs (one in particular) is very scared of the storms and will wake up everyone in the house with his barking and howling at the thunder. It can make for a long night but we love him so we comfort him until it is over.

This week I did the backstitch and finished up the Reindeer and I think I love him! 

Christmas Characters

Reindeer

Designer - Durene Jones

Finish 07/12/21

Once he was finished I started on the next ornament; Santa! 

Santa

New Start 07/13/21

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

I would like to say he is a little under halfway stitched but it maybe wishful thinking on my part!

I am stitching Christmas ornaments in July because
I joined this SAL that is very kindly being run by
Rachel, The Ten Hour Stitcher!

CHRISTMAS IN JULY SAL!

Thanks Rachel!

Please go on over to her page to see the others that are
participating in the SAL and what they have stitched!

Thanks so much for stopping by,
see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/11/21

We FINALLY got rain last night and it was crazy! It was proceeded by a hoboob (which is a fancy word for a dust storm) with winds over 50 miles per hour. The street was full of garbage cans (luckily the garbage was picked up that morning) and yard decorations. Then the rain poured down for what seems like forever. There were downed power lines on the next block and our lights were out for hours. Thankfully today is a new day and it doesn't even look like the storm passed thru. 

But now to move on to the important stuff...

CHRISTMAS IN JULY!

I see that last week I forgot to link up to this event... sorry!

Well if you remember last week I said I picked out some smaller and easier ornaments to stitch up this year and I had settled on a set from Durene Jones. Well... I guess I fooled myself because there seems to be a million Xs to each one!

Christmas Characters

Reindeer

Designer - Durene Jones

Progress 07/11/21

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

This week I have been working on this Reindeer and I just finished the cross stitching on it and will do (and hopefully finish) the backstitching on it tomorrow so I can move on to another.

Well off to start some backstitching! 

Thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 07/04/21

Happy Sunday Everyone! I hope that you are enjoying your weekend! We are now in monsoon season and I am (impatiently) waiting for the rain to come. I hope it comes soon because we are in a drought and can really use it. 

This week I continued to work on the Quilt Squares through the end of the month and I made it to the seventh square. That square is not complete but hopefully it will be complete soon!

Quilt Block Sampler

Artist - Loretta Oliver

Designer - Stitching the Night Away

Progress 06/30/21

And now it is Christmas in July! 

If you are a long time follower of mine than you probably remember that I stitch each person in my family the same character every year for Christmas. This year I looked for some that were much smaller than last year's ornaments (they took me forever!). Durene Jones has quite a few designs which contain each of the four characters I need and so I decided to stitch up one of the sets. 

This is the one I settled on.

I will need to stitch the reindeer,
Santa, snowman and the penguin.

If time permits I will stitch the other two (LOL).

Anyways I started them:

Christmas Characters

Reindeer

Designer - Durene Jones

First Stitch 07/01/21

Progress 07/04/21

#2021ChristmasInJulySAL

Her charts are definitely cute and I love the drawings she does!

Thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!

My Sunday Stitchy Update 06/20/21

Hi everybody! I had  great week this week and got in quite a bit of stitching.

That means that I FINALLY finished the borders on this section of the Quilt Squares!

Quilt Block Sampler

Artist - Loretta Oliver

Designer - Stitching the Night Away

Progress 06/20/21

I even managed to finish another square! I hope to get in another square next week before this goes back in the box for a while. Which brings me to a question for you guys...

Is anyone going to be participating in the Christmas in July event hosted by Rachel at The Ten Hour Stitcher? I think she will also have an Olympic Stitching event which will overlap Christmas in July. I am hoping the Christmas event will help me get my "required" ornaments stitched up for the family early instead of having to struggle along and get frustrated with them during the month of December! This year I also intend to make SMALLER ornaments which should be a big help too!! I hope you will join in!

Well as always, thanks so much for stopping by,

see you next week with another faithful update!