February Happenings

The end of January and the beginning of February found me at my son's.   Their move went well and everyone is getting settled in.   More important, all their things are out of my house.   The townhouse they rented for the last year was only 1,000 square feet.   Whatever didn't fit in storage or they didn't trust to storage, came to my house.  I think my house might just float up into the sky with all the things gone.    It really wasn't an imposition but I am glad to have my closets, my shed and attic spaces back.  I kept telling myself that once their things were out and they took the futon from the spare room I would have room to put down my yoga mat.   Umm, no.   Basic principal, remove one thing and something else will take its place.   

The move did lead me to a good cleaning of my craft room.    I pulled out furniture, wiped down baseboards, etc.     I did pull out (machine sewing) fabric.   If you are like me, things just come to you.   I mean physically.   I keep telling my family that I have not personally bought all the crafty type things I have in my stash.   We all have a friend who has 'stuff' they think we can make use of.   Maybe from a dead aunt or a fool hearty craft attempt of their own.......haven't we all heard, "oh you craft, I thought you could use this".   We crafters never say NO to enhancing stash.    Alas, accumulation of things I will never use.    I decided to cull the mass of fabric I knew I would never ever use.  I folded and bagged three totes and passed on to a friend of a friend with the note that basically said - no deposit/no return!   It is now Barbara's to deal with.   Win for her and BIGGER win for me.  I also sent off two boxes of unwanted cross stitch charts that have been collecting off for eBay sales.   Again, another win for me.   And took five boxes and two suitcases of household stuff to the local ARC Store.  

We got hit with the 'cyclone bomb' (??) snow storm.  (Who thinks up these names?)  We were lucky and only got about 6 inches.   Not nearly as much as some others.   For someone like me that loves a good snowstorm it wasn't an issue.  

In February we also celebrated Raegan’s second birthday.  She is a pip.   Such a personality and a strong willed little one.   She is daddy's helper assembling a kitchen island and my helper hugging my project bag.  She hates her hair pulled back or even barrettes.   I have to quick take a pix when I manage a 5 second pony tail.

I did spend Super Bowl weekend at Salty Yarns.   We had a great group of 5 in our apartment.   We each took charge of a meal.   It was great fun and I did get some stitching accomplished.   I downloaded a PDF ornament pattern I saw StasiBee do for February.   I was smitten the minute I saw it so I put perforated paper on my Super Bowl shopping list.    I picked up several remnants of 36 count that will be the perfect size for ornaments.    Before going for the weekend, I went through at least a dozen patterns to list the floss I need to completely kit them up.  This time I put the list on a spreadsheet where I indicated what pattern each was for.  It sure did save me from scratching my head went I returned.    

I only picked up two patterns and the fabric for each.   Plum Street’s The Black Cherry Tart and from Artful Offerings, Kind and Gentle Woodland Sampler.   Since the reindeer is wearing a sweater in my favorite color, I had to get the pattern.

February also saw the start of a year long SAL with Delaware Valley Historic Sampler Guild.   This is   Summer Garden by Samplers Not Forgotten.   Our February zoom meeting was a discussion with Kimberly Nugent, the designer.   The fibers and linen are sumptuous!   This contains over a dozen speciality stitches which adds to the challenge.   I have one more row to completed and I will be done this month's assignment.

I have kept up to date on my i-band.  I am loving it so far.    

I made a bit of progress was made on Winter Cometh by Summer House.  It is what I am picking up once my SAL assignments are done for the week/month.

I completed my February assignment for an EGA project, Herringbone and Holes which introduces pulled work.  

Darn Floss Tube gets me in trouble every time.   I watched Kim Young from Sassy Jacks discuss Red February and I had to join in.   I was able to pick the necessary banding and what I thought was a good red.   Today's assignment will be flipping the banding to the other end and restarting with a different red and  stitching over 2 instead of over one.

With March around the corner, I am itching to get outside to start cleaning up the flower beds which will make less time to stitch.  I am ready to get my hands in the dirt again and have bought the Preen for the flower beds to help curtail the springtime explosion of a new crop of weeds!   

I do have another long weekend mid-March at Salty Yarns with my Tuesday night stitchers.    By the third visit in three months, I should have NOTHING to buy but then again, it will be after Nashville Market......

My meager stitching plans for March are to keep up to date on my three SAL's, and possibly finish my January ornament and maybe start another.    I always find it funny to look back at the previous post at what my hopeful soul thought I was going to accomplish only to be hit upside the head with the reality stick!  Forever an optimist I guess.

Thanks for stopping by, stay safe and keep on stitching.