Livin' La Needle Loca

 ...the last one for February. The Husband has planted several flowers in the hanging baskets in our backyard. There is stock: Ranunculus and pansies. The sunflowers are still going strong. The birds just love them! I'm looking forward to spring and having more to photograph.

...last one of the month. The two projects getting the most play this week are the mermaid and the sweater. Here's a look at the Pure Comfort Cardigan [ Ravelry ]: I've finished beading the upper half of the mermaid. I'm working on the bottom half and getting very close to the end of this project! WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Pure Comfort Cardigan (knitting) [ Ravelry ] Getting closer to the halfway point of the shawl collar Renaissance Mermaid (cross stitch) Finished the cross stitching and ready to start beading Tucson Twilight (needlepoint) Working on the diagonal sections. Works In Progress: Bean Me Up quilt (quilting) By the Sea needle roll (cross stitch) Look Through My Window quilt for me (quilting)  Illusion hexagons [ Ravelry ] Malachite (needlepoint) Marionberry Shawl [ Ravelry ]  Peacock Majesty by Just Nan (cross stitch) Waiting for Finishing: Deco...

 ..in which my current obsession is beading the mermaid. On Wednesday, I started beading the Renaissance Mermaid. This has been my main focus ever since. I want to finish this project as quickly as I can because I'd like to start another big project. On Thursday, I baked a batch of sourdough hamburger buns and froze most of them. I'm not baking as much sourdough bread as I did last year, but I'm managing to keep the starter going. I spent a little time on Tucson Twilight, the needlepoint project. I'm frustrated with a couple of the design elements because they are worked on the diagonal and are difficult to place. I'm trying to work through it by keeping my stitching sessions short. I'm still taking my sunrise photos. When I hit one year of Shelter-in-Place, I'll rethink whether to continue taking these photos. By then, I will have had my second COVID vaccination and will be able to ...

...another week down. Flowers are starting to bloom in our garden. In our front yard, paper-white narcissus are blooming. In our backyard, feverfew are popping up all over the place. The Santa Rosa plum tree is blossoming. This Showy Hebe has a wonderful pop of color. Even the weeds and wild mushrooms look pretty in the morning light.

 ...and it's been a heck of a week since my last post. Suffice it to say that family drama takes up a lot of time and mental resources. I pretty much threw myself into my projects to keep my mind off of what was going on. The top of the Bean Me Up! quilt is partially assembled. I finished the cross stitching portion of the Renaissance Mermaid and washed and pressed it. It is now ready for beading. So far, this week is going much better! WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Bean Me Up quilt (quilting) Block layout complete and sewed together blocks. Waiting for a fabric order so I can add borders. Pure Comfort Cardigan (knitting) [ Ravelry ] 20 inches knit on the shawl collar. Renaissance Mermaid (cross stitch) Finished the cross stitching and ready to start beading Works In Progress: By the Sea needle roll (cross stitch) Look Through My Window quilt for me (quilting)  Illusion hexagons [ R...

...it's been a week already. Lots of personal stuff going on. As part of my therapy, I did some spinning. I finished Cappuccino handspun [ Ravelry ]: and the close-up: Specs: Started 1/28/2021 Finished 2/9/2021 Camel-Silk (4.0 oz.) from Greenwood Fiberworks 156.2 yds. chain-ply, 12 WPI I worked on the mermaid, the sweater, quilt, and needlepoint project. WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Bean Me Up quilt (quilting) Sewed another 16 squares. I'm working on the block layout. Pure Comfort Cardigan (knitting) [ Ravelry ] Still working on the shawl collar. Renaissance Mermaid (cross stitch) Finished stitching the head and working on the upper hair section Tucson Twilight (needlepoint) Still working on the purple metallic in a right center section. Works In Progress: By the Sea needle roll (cross stitch) Look Through My Window quilt for me (quilting)  Illusion hexagons [ Ravelry ] ...

 ...concentrated on long-standing projects rather than new projects. Finished: 1/7 Arizona-Seafoam handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] 1/12 Best Things (crewel) 1/20 Summer Solstice Phat Fiber Sampler [ Ravelry ] Books A Fool’s Gold Wedding, Susan Mallery Heart of Ice, Lisa Edmonds Heart of Stone, Lisa Edmonds Heart of Shadows, Lisa Edmonds Heart of Vengeance, Lisa Edmonds Christmas Comes to Cedar Cove, Debbie Macomber The Last Days of John Lennon, James Patterson Blood, Sweat, and Tiers, Nancy Warren The Shadow Box, Luanne Rice Blood & Ash, Deborah Wilde Started: 1/2 Arizona-Seafoam handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] 1/12 Summer Solstice Phat Fiber Sampler (spinning) [ Ravelry ]  1/28 Cappuccino handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] 1/31 Bean Me Up! quilt (quilting) Works In Progress: By the Sea needle roll (cross stitch) Look Through My Window quilt for me (quilting)  Illusion hexagons [ Ravelry ] Malachite (needlepoint) Marionberry Shawl [ Rav...

 ...another week whipped on by. We are starting to see flowers in the backyard. The flowering plum is setting blossoms: The nasturtiums continue to grow everywhere. And the hyacinths are starting to bloom.

 ...and I'm making progress, but sometimes it sure doesn't seem like it. Here's an update photo of the Renaissance Mermaid (tail not included). I have finished the singles for the Cappuccino handspun [ Ravelry ]: Here's the first look at the coffee quilt that I started. I'm calling it Bean Me Up! WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Bean Me Up quilt (quilting) Sewed 24 blocks. Waiting for a fabric order to complete the last 8 blocks. Cappuccino handspun [ Ravelry ] Finished spinning the singles. Ready to ply. Pure Comfort Cardigan (knitting) [ Ravelry ] The shawl color is now 15-inches long. Renaissance Mermaid (cross stitch) Working on the hair and upper body. Tucson Twilight (needlepoint) Started laying purple metallic in a right center section. Works In Progress: By the Sea needle roll (cross stitch) Look Through My Window quilt for me (quilting)  Illusion...

 ...and I'm still bouncing from project to project. I started a new camel-silk top from Greenwood Fiber works. It's called Cappuccino [ Ravelry ]. I started a new quilt, using a coffee cup panel from Clothworks. (Yes, a second project around coffee!) I'm still plugging away on the collar of my cardigan. It's taking forever to knit this because it's a looooong collar and it's boring. The mermaid now has arms and a neck. I'm trying to stitch more of her hair before stitching her head. I received the 12th anniversary Phat Fiber sampler. I need to open it and photograph each component so I can post a collage. The Tucson Twilight needlepoint is looking good. I need finishing laying some long strands of metallic fiber before moving on to the next section of stitching. We're having a lot pf problems keeping Cassia and, to a lesser extent, Canela off of the counters. ...