Octopus Garden Blanket, Mask of Colors 1, Hidden Stars, Step Afghan

Finishing:

I finished sewing Oscar's legs onto the Octopus Garden Blanket by Georgia Vincent and pinned Olivia in place.

I didn't do any work on my other finishing projects this week.

Quilting:

I finished the 2nd block of my Hidden Stars quilt.

Crochet:

I did some more work on my step afghan.

Cross Stitch:

Finally, I did some more stitching on Mask of Colors 1, a Colray Crafts chart by Michele Sayetta* of Heaven and Earth Designs* based on artwork by Linda Ravenscroft.

*I do not endorse this designer's products.

Octopus Garden Blanket, Mask of Colors 1, Hidden Stars, Step Afghan

Finishing:

I sewed 2 of Oscar's legs onto the Octopus Garden Blanket by Georgia Vincent.

I didn't do any work on my other finishing projects this week.

Quilting:

I did some more piecing on the 2nd block of my Hidden Stars quilt.

Crochet:

I did some more work on my step afghan.

Cross Stitch:

Finally, I did some more stitching on Mask of Colors 1, a Colray Crafts chart by Michele Sayetta of Heaven and Earth Designs* based on artwork by Linda Ravenscroft.

*As of today, I will no longer be linking to Heaven and Earth Designs.  I have written before about Ms. Sayetta's deceptive practice of using images of the original artwork on her patterns instead of images of the cross stitch thus causing those purchasing the pattern to expect different results than they will actually get.  In the past she has at least been showing computer mockups of the cross stitch on her site (still not ideal because these will vary from actual floss colors).  However, when I went to link to her site for this blog post, I discovered that she has redone her site and now all of the product images show the original artwork.  There are no images of the cross stitch until one clicks through to an individual product page.  Then, there's a tiny image below a huge image of the original artwork that says to click for a mockup.  There is a vast difference between the original artwork and the mockups, e.g. when this person started working on the design they had purchased they discovered that the top of the image was cut off.

This kind of deceptive practice is simply unacceptable.  I will still credit Ms. Sayetta as the designer because it is unethical to do otherwise, but I will no longer support her by linking to her site.  I will also include a note in my blog posts stating that I do not endorse her work.  I will continue to work on the patterns I have already purchased, but I will not buy any more of her patterns.  There are plenty of other patterns out there whose designers do not resort to deception in order to sell their work.

Octopus Garden Blanket, Mask of Colors 1, Starry Night, Da Capo, Leopard Crochet Set Slippers, Hidden Stars, Step Afghan

Finishing:

I finished the Slippers from the Leopard Crochet Set by Darla Sims. Yay! That's one project down and five to go.

On the Octopus Garden Blanket by Georgia Vincent, I pinned Oscar's 3 remaining legs in place.

I didn't do any work on my other finishing projects this week.

Quilting:

I did some more piecing on the 2nd block of my Hidden Stars quilt.

Crochet:

I did some more work on my step afghan.

Blackwork:

I did a bit of stitching on Da Capo by Elizabeth Almond.

Cross Stitch:

I did some more work on Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh which was adapted to cross stitch by Debbie Golonka of Ladybug Designs.

Finally, I did some more stitching on Mask of Colors 1, a Colray Crafts chart by Michele Sayetta of Heaven and Earth Designs based on artwork by Linda Ravenscroft.

Yearly Goals, Soft Shoulders, Starry Night, Mask of Colors 1, Octopus Garden Blanket, Leopard Crochet Set Slippers, Hidden Stars, Step Afghan

I've decided to try setting a yearly goal again this year. I've got far too many projects in the final stages; it's high time that I got them out of the boxes and finished so that they can be admired and/or useful. So, I'm going to try to finish one project for each of the 6 types of needlework that I do by the end of this year.

Crochet:

My finishing project for crochet is going to be the Slippers from the Leopard Crochet Set by Darla Sims which I started last week. I made good progress on the 2nd slipper this week.

I also did some more work on my step afghan.

Knitting:

My knitting project is going to be the Octopus Garden Blanket by Georgia Vincent. I last worked on it in Dec. 2013. All I have left is to applique the octopi onto the blanket. This week I finished sewing Oscar to the blanket. Next I need to do his remaining 3 legs. After that, I need to do Olivia, her legs, and her bow, and I'll be finished.

I also did some more knitting on the front of Soft Shoulders, a sweater designed by Kathy Zimmerman.

Swedish Weaving:

My Swedish Weaving project will be the towel based on Wheat Fields from Learn to Make Monk’s Cloth Afghans by Marilyn T. Magly. I last worked on it in Feb. 2015. All that's left is to hem the ends. I didn't do any work on it this week.

Blackwork:

My blackwork project will be the Blackwork Chessboard by Anne MacGregor. I last worked on it in July 2013. I plan to make it into a quilted wallhanging. I didn't do any work on it this week.

Quilting:

For my quilting project I'll finally finish Batik Cascade (Batik Go-Round) by Karen Combs. I last worked on it in June 2015. All I have to do is bind it. I didn't do any work on it this week.

I did, however, do some more piecing on the 2nd block of my Hidden Stars quilt.

Cross Stitch:

My cross stitch project will be the Celtic Jewel Bookmark from the Textile Heritage Collection. I last worked on it in Sept. 2015. I just need to wash it and sew the backing on. I didn't do any work on it this week.

I did, however, pull out yet another UFO, Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh which was adapted to cross stitch by Debbie Golonka of Ladybug Designs. I neglected to take a picture of what I'd already done, but here's my progress so far.

Finally, I did some more stitching on Mask of Colors 1, a Colray Crafts chart by Michele Sayetta of Heaven and Earth Designs based on artwork by Linda Ravenscroft.

Planetarius, Bright Feathers, Leopard Crochet Set Slippers, Da Capo, Bah Hum Bug, Soft Shoulders, Step Afghan

Cross Stitch:

I pulled out Planetarius, which is adapted from the artwork of Miles Pinkney and did some more work on it.

I also pulled out my Bright Feathers design and did some more stitching on it.

I finished stitching the Bah of Bah Hum Bug by Michelle Lutzen of Stitchy Kitty and made a good start on the Hum. These will now get put away until next December.

Blackwork:

I pulled out Da Capo by Elizabeth Almond and did a bit of work on it.

Knitting:

I also did some more knitting on the front of Soft Shoulders, a sweater designed by Kathy Zimmerman.

Crochet:

I got a sudden urge to crochet slippers the other night (it was cold), and started the Slippers from the Leopard Crochet Set by Darla Sims (who has written a ton of needlework books and patterns, but doesn't seem to have a website). I finished the first slipper. The pattern includes little bows to attach to the slippers; I'm leaving those off.

Finally, I did some more work on my step afghan.