July 25, 2020

Dropping back and punting.....

Boy oh boy.....do I have task in front of me.......and so you say what else is new?  I first need to preface this with being a person that believes everything has it's place and there is a place for everything.   Even my kitchen junk drawer is neat.   That said, there are two places in my house that I allow myself to be an absolute mess.

#1 my bedroom walk-in closet.
I used to blame the state of MY closet on my husband being in bed still in the morning or in bed already at night as the reason my closet looked like Filene's Basement after a sale.   But alas, admitting the problem is half the battle.   I confess now that I am retired and am home all day I realize it has nothing to do with him.   I know no one but me goes in there; no one sees it.  And even though I vow to maintain a visual of the floor it doesn't always happen. Yes, life would be easier if it were picked up but I have other things that are enticing me to not be stuck in a closet.  I really hope to weed out a lot of the work clothes come the fall which will be a big help.

#2 is my walk-in craft closet.  
This is where I have boxed up frames, paper mâché boxes, basket making supplies, a dresser full of larger cuts of fabrics, baskets, games, needlework frames, bags of fiberfill, rolls of batting, WIPs, UFO's, bolts of interfacing, a suitcase of my brothers flannel shirts I plan to make a quilt from,  a serger and more.   We are having more solar panels installed in the coming weeks and attic access is needed for the roof inspection. Guess where the attic access is.   You got it, far corner of the craft closet so I am in the middle of an unplanned necessity-created sort out.  Ugh.

I promised myself I would empty a shelf a day in preparation.   It is not that the closet isn't neat, the problem is that there is too much 'stuff' that I 'may' need one day that I have shoved into the closet - out of sight.    I have two shelves emptied and both twin beds in the room are covered.   I vow that I am going to have a critical eye and purge when I put it back but the first step will be to empty the closet.   After the roof inspection is completed, I will have a good old sit and sort.  I will be putting in my AirPods; putting on some tunes or an audio book; setting a 2 hour time limit; and knocking about  a bit at a time.  It is already organized, I just need to purges and I know it is going to get worse before it gets better.

As for stitching, I have made great progress on Ornaments ala Round.  I am enjoying this stitch, I just took a break from it.

I finished three ornaments since picking this back up on Monday of this week and am ready to start on a fourth.  I am in high gear now.  I have ordered the octagonal frame from Brick City Stitch in Ocala, Florida and I expect it in October but that is not giving me pause to get this finished.


I've put a few stitches in on Holly Hocks.   I did have a bit I had to frog.   I was over-zealous with the top border just stitching along and then realized Oops!  There is a break in the top border.  c'est la vie.

My order from Salty Yarns arrived.   I had told Sara to wait until all the backorders were in and send it all at once so I have been looking forward to the mail each day.





































This is Teresa Kogut's Land That I Love sampler.   I asked Sara to substitute the called for linen as I felt it was too dark.   She selected WDW Aspen in 36 count.  I am super happy with her choice.   I am still missing a few of the fancy flosses but I don't plan to start this until October 1st so there is time.

  
I am also waiting on my quilt back fabric.   It was supposed to be delivered on Wednesday and tracking shows is hasn't moved from the regional warehouse since it arrived there Tuesday early morning.   Oh well, I do have the closet to empty upstairs.

I am finding I need to create a retirement routine.   I seem to go down that rabbit hole of something I want to do and remaining singularly focused while neglected other things.  And I always thought I was such a good multi-tasker.   I laugh out loud at myself.

Has anyone seen the "Friend Stitch"  SAL from Heart in Hand on Instagram?   I am curious.   Like a need another project!  Remember NEED and WANT are greatly different.

Not much else happening here.  It continues to be hot hot hot with heat indices forecasted to be over 100 each day.  The grass is growing, flowers are blooming, cucumbers, zucchini,  tomatoes and broccoli are being harvested, masks are being worn, social distancing is still happening, daily swims are happening, and I am trying to watch some FlossTube to catch up on all the ones I subscribe to.

Stay safe, stay healthy, thanks for stopping by and keep on stitching!

7 comments:

  1. I’m feeling jealous of your Kogut stitch.....

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  2. We just had a new HVAC system installed and guess where the new pipes had to go?! I emptied my craft closet and then th3 work was rescheduled three times. I started sorting each time I took out a box, but then I realized it would be easier to sort before putting things back in. I haven’t done a purge of my supplies for several years so it’s slow going. But I did find the finishing kit and backing for a block-of-the-month quilt I’d like to finish this year. Let us know what treasures you unearth!

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  3. I've been saying the same thing about my bedroom closet since I retired...three years ago! It's more of a step-in than a walk-in now.
    This just might be the year to get it done since everything else is in order.
    Ornaments is just gorgeous and the colors for the Kogut sampler are beautiful.
    Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
    Shirley

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  4. Isn't that the way it always goes?
    Oh well, it will be organized now when you finish.
    Love the Teresa Kogut.
    I find that I do get more done being retired.
    Was always too tired to do anything before.
    Have a great week ahead!
    Marilyn

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  5. The Ornament stitch is looking incredible and Holly Hocks is looking good (sorry you had to frog some). The threads are very pretty for the patriotic piece by Teresa Kogut. The Aspen linen is lovely. Good luck as you go about purging and putting things back into your craft closet. Enjoy the coming week!

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  6. The purging is not a lot of fun, but you do feel free when it is done!!

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  7. Good luck with the craft closet organizing! It's always so difficult to choose what to keep and what to let go... no one has a crystal ball as to what they will become interested in within the next 2, 5, 10 years. Heck, I thought I was done with cross stitch 2 years ago... lol! I just may have to start Land That I Love sooner than later....nice substitution for the linen! Stay cool!

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Thanks is much for stopping by. I so enjoy your comments even if I do not always reply. Have a great day that hopefully includes a bit of stitching.