Dec 28, 2010

BWA HA HA HA HA!

I see that my evil little plan to get attention and acclaim worked. Bwa ha ha ha ha (she says, as she maniacally rubs her hands together over a steaming cauldron). Thank you! I really do appreciate you comments on my stitching, but let's just call it like it is, shall we? Raymond Crawford designed a fabulous canvas, and Ruth Schmuff brought it to life with stitches and fibers.

I just followed directions.

But I'll take all of the praise I can get, especially since I am but a fragile and delicate little creature, and my ego relies on all of you for constant feeding and watering.

(Stop that snickering in the back, please.)

Who knew that my announcement that the Great Purge of 2010 had begun would garner such reaction? Before y'all think I've gone round the bend again, let me explain what I mean by "purge"...

At the end of the year, I like to go up into the studio and take all of my stitching and go through it. I start by getting everything into piles and bins in a "like with like" fashion so that I can see exactly what I've got. First, all of the fuppies get a little admiration and stroking and sorting out as to who will make the next trip to the Michael's and who will go to live in the box for finishing. (Oh, um, sorry. Fuppies are things that are stitched but not finished into their final form. I wish I could lay claim to that term, but I shamelessly lifted it from another stitcher's blog and I can't remember whose it was.) (So sorry about that, dear stitchy friend who probably hates my guts right about now.)

So once the fuppies are all settled into their respective bins, I set about going through each category of stuff: painted canvases, counted canvas charts, cross stitch, crewel, hardanger, etc. This is where I get a little ruthless, because I sit on the floor and do a very fast "yes" or "no" decision making that relies only on my gut feeling as to whether or not the item blows my skirt right up. If it doesn't, it goes into a pile.

Once I've made all of those yes and no determinations, I gather up all of the no's and put them in a storage bin and then put it away for a year. (See? I don't throw anything away, so there's no need to faint over the thought of me getting rid of piles and piles of stitchy stuff!) Then, at the end of the next year I go through that bin to see if I've changed my mind or taste and want to re-consider the no's into yes's.

It's not a perfect system, but it seems to work for me, and I'm happy to report that my cross stitch baskets are now filled with things that I might actually want to stitch and NOT crap that I've collected for the last billion years because I thought I would just die a painful death if I didn't have a particular chart, etc. right then on the very spot. It's a little crazy, but some baskets went from having a hundred or so charts to now having five or six. (What does THAT say about me and my obsessive hoarding tendencies, hmmm?)

Oh, I forgot. My baskets of cross stitch charts are pretty much separated into seasons, since I seem to be a very seasonal stitcher. (You know....spring, summer, autumn, winter, etc.) And I have a basket for stuff that isn't exactly seasonal, like samplers, geometrics, etc.

Speaking of geometrics....here's an oldie but goodie that I pulled out of the stash yesterday and then put a few stitches into last night. This is a painted canvas from Maggie and Co. and I think I bought it all the way back in 2004 or so:


As you can see, I've started stitching it already, but I'm kicking myself over the lack of notes for this one and the fact that I've taken a few of the threads out of the kit for other stuff over the years. So I'm a little stuck between wanting to rip out everything that's there and starting all over and trying to match up colors and threads from my stash. I'll give it a good going over this afternoon in the light of day and will probably opt for the less demanding job of it, since we all know how keen I am to do anything more strenuous than laundering dog pee out of the drapes.

Aunt Chrissy and I finalized our New Year's Eve plans yesterday. There will be dining and dancing and partying and all kinds of revelry going on. Too bad we won't be doing any of it, though. We'll be parked in front of the TeeVee in our jammies, stitching and slurping dietCoke into the wee hours, and on New Year's Day we'll watch the Tournament of Roses parade and we'll stitch some more. Hopefully Stewey and Bosco will alert us to the issuing in of 2011 by calling us on their iPhones. (They, in fact, are going to a black tie event in Vegas. Apparently, Bosco's rating at Ceasar's warrants a private plane being sent, as well as some front row tickets to see Cher and Elton John. Stewey has already cleaned and pressed his little tuxedo, so I imagine it will only be a matter of time before he demands that I make an appointment at Mr. Gordon's House of Style for a little pre-party pampering.) Damn dog.

That's the report on a December Tuesday! If you're snowed in wherever you are, I hope it's with someone you love and that you've got lots of stitching to keep you company!

20 comments:

  1. Coni,

    I loved your finish - and I have to say that I did worry about the "purge". :D So glad that it is just a way to see if you still want/like/must have stuff.

    Will you ever list the stuffs that you no longer want from last years purge bin? Mayhap your fellow stitchers (myself included) will pay for them? Unless you think that they should go free to a good home... :P

    Just think...no matter how you get rid of it, there will be more room to fill up and even more money to spend on stitchy stuff or even Stewie's college fund.

    Hugs and Love to you, Stewie, Aunt Chrissy and Bosco.

    Jen

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  2. Congratulations on the finish! And the WIP--very pretty! I have a similar basket... okay, huge rubbermaid tote... that has all my 'I may stitch this at some point but not any time soon' charts. I should sort through everything a bit better beyond that--I like your system--but I get too distracted by remembering everything I'd planned to stitch and where I'd hang it/display it, etc. It's better for my mental health to go stash diving in small doses.

    Happy new year!

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  3. Hi Coni,

    Love your current WIP.

    I've been going through my stash in preparation for the Crazy January Challenge, but I keep getting distracted by all the pretty colors...'oohhh, pretty..."

    I'm having a small give-a-way on New Year's Day...drop in if you'd like a chance to win some St. Valentine's linen!

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  4. Have my dog that I love, have my stitching, and of course, have my hot cup of Cafe JoJo (my own concoction), so it doesn't get any better!

    Love your blog so much, and can picture myself sitting with you and Aunt Chrissy stitching the day away! BLISS!

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  5. Midwest humor is SO AWESOME . . . ho0 I miss it, but get my dose from the Spinster Stitcher.

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  6. Your blog is the only one that I read snippets of to my husband. We both get a hoot out of it.
    I'm so glad your purging doesn't involve tossing anything stitchy into the trash bin! I almost had to retrieve my smelling salts from gramma's sewing basket. *whew*

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  7. Прекрасная работа! С наступающим Новым годом!

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  8. Stewey is leaving you to party on their own in Vegas??? If you wave with his favorite toy he might change his mind. Even more if you tell him that you and Aunt Chrissie will play all evening with HIS toys. Seen that he is a Jack Russel...no way he would leave you alone with his toys...lol. I have a Jill Russel here and know about that.
    The canvas looks fantastic. Hopefully you'll find all threads and have a go at it. It will look amazing when finished.

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  10. Coni,

    Love your Merry Christmas finish. Beautiful job! I am glad to hear you are busy reorganizing your stitching for the new year! I need to do some of that myself.

    I also am glad to hear of your plans for New Year's Eve. I think I will follow your lead, altho, my sister is too far away to join me to stitch the night away, so I will just pretend I'm stitching with my online friends.:) Thanks for your blog, it's always a bright spot in my day.

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  11. You encouraged me to do the same thing! I pulled several projects out and am in the process of kitting them up. Now I will be able to work on what is "blowing my skirt" up right now! I would never be able to throw anything out but I do have a special box where things go for giving to others should the need arise! I hope you have a wonderful New Years, and think of me, also in my jammies but with a regular coke, while my hubby plays on the computer.

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  12. Coni,

    I forgot to ask - what craft iron do you use? I just saw a small one for around 8 bucks. It fits in the palm of your hand for crying out loud! How cool is that?

    Hugs and Love,
    Jen

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  13. Love your New Year's Eve plans! Sounds good to me! Hope Stewey and Bosco enjoy their evenings at their respective parties. Popular dudes aren't they? I'm not surprised. :) Cathryn

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  14. Oh, I love your finish. And, I'm in the middle of a "purge" too, so I know what you mean. If anything makes it into the "I never will do anything with this" pile, it will either be offered to other stitchers who may like it, or if it is just something I think is beyond use or worth to mail, I'll send it to a charity shop. I just love the feeling this whole process gives, but I have to admit, I haven't done this annually... maybe every ten years? Yikes!

    I have a "bin" like Siobhan's, but ouch, it's a huge ottoman that is chock full!

    I hope Stewey and Bosco travel safely. I've always been one for staying at home on New Year's, simply because of the additional risky drivers on the road. So, make sure they buckle up!

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  15. Your purge sounds like a good idea...the mess that is my stitching room is crying out for some organization! I need more drawers and more bookshelf space! I should go through my WIPs and do some tossing...but I may NEED them...what if there is a sudden holocaust of some kind and there is no more floss in the world????

    Kisses to Stewey

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  16. Happy New Year Stewie - with love from Daisy - woof woof

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  17. I love your New Year's review system. Seems to be a great compromise for those who do NOT want to actually get rid of something we might want to do ANY DAY NOW. . .but want to get organized anyway. Maybe I'll try it. . . if I can FIND all my stash that is. LOL

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  18. Have recently discovered your blog - so fun ! Love your finish and your NYE party sounds just my style! Stitching, snacking and jammies - YEHAW! Enjoy and Happy New Year - Melody

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  19. I have read several good stuff here. Certainly worth bookmarking for revisiting. I surprise how much effort you put to make such a wonderful informative web site.

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