Five More Finishes This Year and Craft Studio Update!!

Hello Everyone :) 

I hope this finds you all well and in good spirits! We have been having some amazing weather here in coastal South Carolina, and from what I have seen people post on Facebook, even people up North are getting some nice Spring weather. 

I have managed another 5 cross stitch finishes since my last post on the Christmas ornaments (see pics below). I am working on another one, but I haven't stitched on anything since Thursday night. Cause:

Friday I went to the local Quilt Gala (more on that to come in another post), yesterday after getting up and getting breakfast and riding to the lumbar store with the hubby (he is now expanding his storage shed), me and my girls worked ALL DAY and I mean All day out in my quilt studio. I call it a quilt studio, but I guess it could also be called a craft studio, cause it does contain some of my totes of cross stitch kits and I have a bookshelf with patterns upon patterns, and also I have designated an area for where I am going to have my own space to make handmade soap out there instead of in my kitchen. It also has my painting and mixed media stuff out there. Lots of goodies to play with :) I came in for about and hour to grill steaks, cook mushrooms and boil the ears of corn for supper. After that those little slave drivers of mine (my 17 yr old twins) wanted to keep going until all the totes and bags was put away, but about 8:30 last night I called quilts. Me and Elizabeth went out there this morning and worked for about an hour to and hour-and-a-half and got some done before she went to her friends house, but we are going to work on it some more after school tomorrow. After we get the quilting goodies all organized, we have to get all my soaping things put away! Oh and this past Monday, while they were off from school for President's Day, we worked 6 hrs out there. I have a pic they snapped from Monday, but alot more has been organized and cleaned up yesterday and today :)

In other news, I will be getting to go to Quilt Week in Daytona, FL this coming week!!! Squee! This will be my first big show ever so far! I am so looking forward to test driving the longarm quilt machines to see which one I am interested in, so when I am ready to make my purchase I will know what I want! I have had one of the small arm quilting machines and frame for 10 yrs now, and I have used it maybe  6 times cause I don't like all the stopping and starting due to not having enough quilt throat space for the designs I want to do. Like I mentioned, I went to our small local show on Friday, but I am sure it will be nothing like this one. I get a day and a half to go, so we will be staying 2 days in Daytona, and then we will stay a night in Port Canaveral, as we are leaving for a 7 day cruise on Sat.! Really excited about that too - the timing worked out perfect :) 

I do plan on stitching here in a little bit - yay! I wanted to update the blog before my exciting week coming up, and then the following week I will be on the cruise. I may post another time or two, as I want to share some pictures from the Local Quilt Gala also before leaving out Weds.! 

Take Care and enjoy the beautiful weather (that is if you are having some, if not stay warm!)

Please follow me on:

Instagram @stayinginstitches

YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/stayinginstitches

Please Like, Comment, and SubscribeAlso please feel free to comment on here too :)

7th Finish of the Year!

8th Finish of the Year!

9th Finish of the Year!

10th Finish of the Year!

11th Finish of the Year!

Progress on Monday 2/20 after working 6 hrs on organizing.

Progress on Monday 2/20 after working 6 hrs on organizing.

Progress on Monday 2/20 after working 6 hrs on organizing. Now all the totes and boxes are cleared from under the cutting table. Will post updated pics from the marathon yesterday (2/25) of organizing!

Three More Finishes ~ Moving Right Along!

Well, I have managed three more finishes since Valentine's Day. I finished one on the 14th and two on the 15th. I have 10 more of these various designs to do and they will all be complete. I will then need to finish them off into ornaments.

I received some Weeks Dye Works and Gentle Arts Threads in the mail on Monday for some Lizzie Kate Jan. - Dec. Flip It's. I am looking forward to getting to those eventually.

It is a beautiful sunny day here in South Carolina. A little chill this morning, but the high is suppose to be 57*. That's a little chillier than it has been. By the weekend it's suppose to be back in the low 70's - my kind of weather :) Before long it will be time to get the pool opened up. Hubby told me the other day to go ahead and start ordering the chemicals for it.

On another note, I have an ultrasound on my thyroid this afternoon at 1:30 pm. I have to have one yearly cause there is several small nodules on there they like to keep an eye on. I also need to schedule a mammogram while there as I am overdue for one as I have to have them yearly. I am now 39, but when I was 31 I had uterine cancer, so they keep a close watch on everything. I had a colonoscopy last March, and I have to have them every 5 years! Better safe than sorry, so PLEASE everyone get your screenings!! 

I made it to the gym yesterday. I only managed 30 minutes flat cause I was pressed for time. I had to pick up my daughter, but at least I went. I may take today off from the gym since I have the test, but we will see. I went 3 days last week, and 2 days so far this week. My goal is the minimum of 3 days a week starting out, and then increase it from there. I do also have several chronic conditions so there is days I just hurt really bad, but I am prevailing and that is what matters. Baby steps!!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day/evening/night depending on what part of the world you are in!

                                              4th Finish of the Year 02/14/17

5th Finish of the Year 02/15/17

6th Finish of the Year 02/15/17

Threads I got in the mail for the LK project :)

Please follow me on:
Instagram @stayinginstitches
YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/stayinginstitches
Please Like, Comment, and SubscribeAlso please feel free to comment on here too :)

Another Christmas Ornament Done :)

Yay!! I have another Christmas ornament done :) I completed it yesterday, and it looks like I may get one completed for today also.

I started cranking these out from a kit that makes 25 ornaments right around Oct/Nov.. You can see the other ones I have completed either on Instagram or Older Blog Posts on here. 

After I get them all stitched, I will do the finishing on them and they will be ready to go on this year's tree. As I stitch these small little projects to get back into the swing of things, my mind keeps wondering what I will do after I get these done. I am wondering if I should pick back up my Lavender and Lace Angel of Grace or ???. I have also been wanting to start a Mill Hill kit or something else. I have 11 more ornies to go I think, so I still have about a week to keep figuring it out ;)

I tend to be usually a one project kinda girl here in the last year-and-a-half. I use to love to start new things all the time, get quickly bored with it and start something else. But now I like to usually stick to one project get it finished and move onto the next. Withstanding though a large project like my L&L, I will start a small and work on it when I need a few days break from my large project. Now it seems, I love to get finishes in over starts. Also, I noticed I seem to get alot more done this way. What is your stitching style like? Do you love new starts or one or two projects only at a time?Would love to hear about your stitching style :)

I didn't make it to the gym today cause I got a "janky" treadmill at Planet Fitness yesterday that the belt was weird on and I was hurting in my right hip/buttock area yesterday evening cause of it. I know, I should have switched immediately to another treadmill, but I didn't want to start my time over. Lesson learned for sure!! I plan on going tomorrow. I went three times last week, and want to do at least that this week. I went from practically zero physical activity to going 30 minutes a day, and I try and improve on something small each time - like a little faster, or a little farther, etc..

I want to go see 50 Shades Darker this week or next week. Has anyone seen it? Did you like it? I have read all the books and watched the first movie, but it seems the critics are hitting this one hard and giving it bad reviews, but that to me doesn't really mean much lol! I know the critics gave Split a raving review and I didn't like it at all!!

I hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day! 



Please follow me on:
Instagram @stayinginstitches
YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/stayinginstitches
Please Like, Comment, and SubscribeAlso please feel free to comment on here too :)

My finish yesterday!

The kit of ornaments I am working on.

The beautiful roses my sweet hubby got me :)

.

Oh Stitchy Bug You Was Lost But Now Found :) And Two Finishes in One Day!

Well Hello There :) 

It's been since November since I last wrote, but there's a sad, sad reason as to why. The first of December I lost my stitchy bug :(  No clue as to where it went but went it did!! I did not pick up a needle until yesterday - Feb. 12, 2017! I did get back at it fast and furious and I finished 2 small Christmas ornaments in one day and started a 3rd - Yay :) I will share those down below.

I don't know why it left me. We was getting along so well. Getting lots done in 2016, but I guess it went on vacation when I did, but didn't want to come back until yesterday even though I returned back right before Christmas. December the 9-18 we went on a cruise to Aruba, Bonaire, and Grand Turk. We had a great time! We are leaving out again the first of March to hit up 4 different ports around Mexico. Looking forward to that! Hopefully my stitchy bug won't leave me again after coming back from this upcoming cruise!

Hope everyone has jumped into 2017 with a good start on all they want to get accomplished. Last Weds. I started going back to the gym. Trying to lose some weight and get healthier. I have a long road ahead of me, but slow steps and small changes will lead to a better me eventually - Rome wasn't built in a day!

Also, my quilt studio has come along quite nicely. Me and my daughter has gotten alot organized out there since December - yes, that to hasn't been touched since then. Hubby and our neighbor built me a 6 foot cabinet, and he is going to put a sink in it so I can make my soaps and beauty items out there. He was staining the cabinet yesterday, and will be putting the drawer handles on it today. We have to purchase the counter top, sink, and hot water heater and install them and it will be finished. I feel so lucky to have a hubby who can do all these things for me. I will have to eventually share some pics of my woman cave ;)

Please follow me on:
Instagram @stayinginstitches
YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/stayinginstitches
Please Like, Comment, and SubscribeAlso please feel free to comment on here too :)