Floss Friday #153

First Friday of September! Welcome Fall. We are still having warm weather but with a few showers to help break things up. I am sure in 4 months I will be complaining. For now, welcoming the change. It has been a pretty good week so let’s take a look.

August WIPGO Update

Overall, great month!

Project 12: Snowman Collector: The Shepherd by Cottage Garden Samplings

I gave myself 5 nights to finish The Shepherd but I was able to finish in 3! I even worked on the border. Super happy to have finished this one. It is stitched as one large project and this was number 3 in a series of 12. I am stitching on 18 ct vintage country mocha aida with all the called for floss which is a mix of DMC and hand dyed floss. The coat was done with WDW Cocoa and I think it looks fabulous. The white is DMC 3865 which isn’t a pure white, but I definitely like it.

Project 15: 2025 SJ Temperature Moon Phases by Climbing Goat Designs

My goal for the month was to finish March, April, and May. WooHoo! Goal achieved. It felt good to make so great progress and to achieve this goal. I still have some catching up to do, but this really helped with the momentum.

Starts & Finishes

I had a flurry of starts to finish up my August goals. To start off September I had a start and finish.

START: Mr April (A Calendar Gnome) by Charlie’s Needle

Not only did I have a goal to start Mr. April, I wanted to have 400 stitches. I got to tired the first night to reach that goal so it rolled over to the next night. Loved this CCW color called Meadow Green.

START: Snowman’s Collector: The Postman by Cottage Garden Samplings

I had not originally planned to start The Postman in August, but since I finished The Shepherd faster than expected, I felt the urge to start the next one. It will have a limited color palette 🎨 with several shades of red. The mailboxes were fun to stitch.

START: Stitching Quaker by Primrose Cottage Stitches

The last start for August was Stitching Quaker. So far I have some bobbins, floss bobbins, and a pin cushion. Loving the look of this start. I am using the suggested fabric and floss.

START: Sep WIPGO Project: Home Grown (Stitch Quarterly) by Fat Quarter Shop

I got a nice start on my WIPGO project here. As you can see, I outline the letter and then started filling it in. I almost hit 700 stitches. Once you have the outline, it is kind of mindless. Still this is a project that is a bit dense so there is over 5500 stitches and my goal is 2000. I figure I should be able to finish the H and start another letter.

FINISH: Patriotic Tiny Town by Heart In Hand

I hadn’t planned on finishing, but I was just too close not to power on through to the end. I think this Americana town turned out gorgeous. Just love it. This was stitched on 16 ct aida Silver Fox with called for Weeks Dye Works and Classic Colorworks floss. 🇺🇸

WIP Updates

With all those starts and finishes, that doesn’t really leave much in the WIP section this week.

2025 SJ Temperature Moon Phases by Climbing Goat Designs

I am starting this month off with a goal of two moons a day. We shall see if that continues with all the travel, but it is going okay so far. Doing half a moon less seems so much faster. I am already on June 8th! It looks so colorful and you sure can see how it is warming up.

Sep WIPGO Project: October Calendar Crates by Stitching with the Housewives

I started off the month working on this project. For some reason I didn’t stitch as fast as I thought I should. I have decided to take this one to the retreat with me. I have a goal of 2000 stitches for the month.

Reflections & Plans

OMG! This one is totally me! I always am saying just one more thread and before I know it is 1am. And the pattern thing?! Yes! It seems like it should be a quick stitch but it takes forever. The only thing that is helping me to be more realistic is to know I typically stitch around 400 stitches a night (assuming NOT 18 ct (or 36)). Some projects are more challenging because of lots of color changes but generally speaking that is my average. So when it loads as 5500 stitches (like Home Grown) then I know that even with doing 2000 stitches, I will NOT be done this month. LOL!!!! 😂

Next Week’s Plan

I have a week before heading to the quilt retreat for a week. I am thinking to work on as many projects as I can this week and take the WIPGO projects on the road.

• Start & Finish Chill for the Virtual retreat I will be attending when I get back from the quilt retreat.
• November Stackables
• Stitching Quaker
• Mr. April
• House on Pumpkin Hill
• Shabby Winter Calendar
• 2025 SJ Temp Moon Phases

That should keep me nice and busy this week yet leave me time to start gathering my supplies for the retreat. So excited to see my friends next weekend.

Happy Stitching!

Peggy Stockwell in Vancouver, Washington