Confessions of a Stitcher

A recent question on one of the Yahoo groups prompted my confession. The question was asked:

"We all have WIP/UFO'S, all the best stitchers do.
How long have you been stitching each project?"
Now I do realize that I don't have as many WIP's and UFO's as some of my stitchy acquaintances, but the ones I do have are getting up there in age. Time does fly, doesn't it?

Without further adieu, I confess. My name is Meari. I have the following UFO's/WIP's:

Elegance of the Orient -- started 2001 or 2002
Japanese Garden -- started in 2006
Simply Elegant -- started 2009
Blossom Splendor -- started 12/2010
iStitch SAL -- started 08/2011


ELEGANCE OF THE ORIENT
This was the first Dimensions kit I'd ever used. Prior to this, I kitted up my own projects. The threads had to be sorted. The fabric is 18ct aida. There is a fine gold thread which is a pain to work with. It was also my first asian-inspired piece. As I stitched it, it just wasn't looking like I thought it should. Over the years, it got pushed aside for other projects while I tried to decide what to do. I lost the chart not once, but twice! Luckily, Dimensions has sent me replacements both times. I am probably going to start this over on evenweave. Does it still count as a UFO if I'm going to start it over? LOL What it's supposed to look like is HERE.

SIMPLY ELEGANT
SCISSOR CASE
Lorri Birmingham is the designer of this kit. I've always thought her elegant designs were really pretty. I used to take this kit with me to do during my lunch hour whenever I worked out of town in another office. I stopped working out of town in December 2009. And stopped working on it. (LOL, that just happens to be a coincidence.) I am not fast at specialty stitches -- they are not my favorite either. I love how they look, just don't like doing 'em. With that said, I have to really have time to concentrate on the stitches, hence why it's taking me so long to finish this tiny project.

JAPANESE GARDEN
I was so excited to start this piece back in 2006. It is the first project I'd ever used evenweave on. It is stitched with silk threads, has specialty stitches, and beaded -- also all new to me at the time. It is one of those pieces I really have to have a big block of time to be able to work on because I have to read the directions several times to figure out what goes where and how. Once I do get going, I find I really do enjoy stitching it. All the WIP pics can be seen HERE.

BLOSSOM SPLENDOR
Ever since I saw her on the cover of a magazine, I wanted her -- to stitch her, that is! In 2009, Viv granted my wish by RAK'ing me the magazine. After hand-dyeing the fabric myself, I started this project in December 2010. Working on it steadily since, my plan is to have it completed by the end of this year. Progress pics can be seen HERE. It's amazing to see a project come to life!

iStitch Mystery SAL
I've been a reader of Carol's iStitch blog for several years. When I saw that she was going to open up her Mystery SAL to an additional 25 people, I jumped on the opportunity. It's a pretty tiny piece, only about 3 1/2 x 5". I'm stitching it over-one on an unknown brand of linen. I'm using a varigated Anchor thread called "Flame". I will probably re-stitch it once the SAL is finished because I'm really not liking how big the holes are on the linen... and I'm not sold on the color. Love the design though!

So there you have it... My secrets exposed, confessions out for the world to see. Now, what's YOUR confession?