2025 Year in Stitches (and glue)

Since I started keeping a spreadsheet stitch diary a couple of years ago, it makes it a lot easier to figure out how much I've done over the year and how it compares to the other years - and I definitely managed to squeeze in more stitching in 2025. (Probably because my brain needed the decompression/distraction more this year... as exhausting as 2024 physically, 2025 exceeded it mentally.) I had a very full ort bowl this time around!



I didn't set a lot of goals last year, but I did accomplish one that I explicitly stated and I got a little ways towards the other. The first was finishing my calendar magnets, so now I have the whole year all done! I should have changed up a couple of the lighter colors (or used the darker perforated paper), but all in all, I'm happy with how they turned out.



And the other was a partial success - I still have A LOT of things that need to be fully finished, but I did managed to frame three projects, two of which had been pinned for ages. (The other was the Mill Hill "Moonlit Kitties", which was on perforated paper, so pretty easy to slap into a frame.) I also bought a point driver to do the final finishing on the custom frames I've been ordering. So, here are the fully finished versions of "Moonlit Kitties" (stitching finished last year), "Wonders of Space" (stitching finished in 2020), and "Halloween Fairy" (stitching finished in *cough cough* 2010). "Wonders of Space" will be going to work eventually, assuming I still have some room on my office walls for it. And I'm so happy with the frame I chose for "Halloween Fairy"! Oh - and I fully finished "Panic at the Desko", which was my final finish of 2024 (and that one is at work already and has received quite a few chuckles).









I also finished a few WIPs this year, including two of the Cricket Collection seasons, "Spring" and "Winter". I worked on "Winter" a little at the beginning of the year, but then finished the stitching in December. "Spring" was a start in 2023, which I worked on some more in 2024, but then I was able to really get some work on it in 2025 and finish it. Part of that was that I finally figured out the type of stand that I *really* needed to work on these wide designs. And not surprisingly, it was another product from Ukraine! Now I just have "Summer" to finish (which I started this year) and I'll have all four seasons hanging in the closet waiting to be framed. :) I also finished "S'Mores, Anyone?" (started in 2023) and "Mediterranean Flavors" (a Dimensions kit, started in 2021). I switched out the kit fabric on "Mediterranean Flavors" and I now wish I had used a slightly lighter floss for the shading half stitches, but I still think it loooks fine.









I also had a couple of small-to-medium sized projects that I started and finished this year. First up was "Jaws Sampler" in honor of the movie's 50th anniversary. I made a couple of color changes in this one on the guys' clothes to better match the colors in the movie (yes, I actually pulled it up on my computer and paused it and held up colors against the screen... I'm that much of a nerd) and I changed the colors on the waves around the edges to be a gradient since I thought it would look cool (and I'm happy with how it turned out).



And I finally did two small autumn designs that I had kitted up ages ago - "Apple Pumpkin" and "Halloween Pumpkin Silhouette":





I also did four small Mill Hill Kits (and started a larger one, "Spooky Gate") - "Taco", "Enchanted Moon", "Taboo Kitty", and "Fall Fun" (taco picture coming later since it's at work):



And finally, I did the cute little "Purranormal Activity" from this year's Just Cross Stitch Halloween special issue:



I finished the May block in "A Year at Hawk Run Hollow" but haven't started any of the other months yet. Something for 2026! (I decided to put the whole piece of fabric in the photo so I can do similar progress pics as I continue on it - definitely the largest project I've ever done!) I also did a little more on "Sleepy Hollow" but was really struggling with it. I'm kind of tempted to scrap this version and start again on a different fabric, because I think that's what's holding me back from progressing more on it. I really like how it looks on that fabric, but I really struggle with 32-ct linen these days.





And the one major non-stitching project I did was to finally finish the miniature room kit that I started in 2024. I have two more that I purchased last year, but I'm going to hold of on starting those for a while. These are fun to do, but I think I'm going to have to explore some different types of glues and glue applicators before I do another (at least another with the variety of surfaces - plastic, paper, etc. - that this one had). I'm really happy with how it turned out though!





Goals for 2026

I have a couple of other WIPs that I didn't touch in 2025, and I think I can get at least a couple of them finished this year, if not more. After watching some year end WIP Parades on FlossTube, I realize that I have far, far fewer WIPs than the typical stitcher (assuming that's a representative sample), but I do tend to have far *older* charts, kits, projects, etc. than other people do. I have some 30-year-old kits in my stash! Maybe I'll pick one this year and start working through some of them (although I'm definitely modernizing the fabrics).

Most of my purchases in 2025 were from a fabric of the month club and buying DMC and specialty floss to kit up some charts that I hope to start on soon, including some Nora Corbet fairies, more Hawk Run Hollow designs, and a couple of the Cricket Collection month designs (since I'm nearly finished with the seasons). So I'll probably start a few of those projects once I finish getting all of the floss.

Happy New Year everyone and I hope you all have a good crafty year!

Halloween Fairy Finished!

I can't believe how long I dragged out the completion of this design. I've decided that I really dislike doing lots of long stitches (the metallics of the webs and vines) and I think that's why it took me so long when I was so close to finishing. Now I need to wash and frame it, which will no doubt take another two years.

Yesterday I discovered something I don't think I had previously realized - going to a craft store without knowing exactly what you need is just as bad as going to the grocery store hungry. I ended up with several things that I probably didn't need, but I'm a sucker for kitty cat Christmas ornaments (especially when they are 50% off). And organizer tools (especially when they are 30% off). And several other things what were various percentages off. :)

I'm going to finish a couple of small things and then get started on my next big design - Sleepy Hollow by Glendon Place. As has happened a couple of times, I had a hand-dyed fabric that I wasn't sure what I was going to use it for, and then found the perfect design (the fabric is "Raging Storm" by Silkweaver)!

Halloween Fairy is almost done!

I took this photo earlier in the day yesterday while the light was still good (Tropical Storm Hermine was approaching with lots of clouds), so I've actually gotten even closer to finishing than when I took this photo. Apologies for the weird shadow on the left side.

Three years and a Halloween Fairy update

Yes, this is my three year blogiversary! And I've only been working on Halloween Fairy for two of those three years. ;)



As you can see, she's finally starting to get legs and I'm almost finished with her skirt (I think it was all that dark brown stitching that was killing my desire to pick this one up and finish it, but I'm almost done with that now!). Soon I'll be able to get to the pumpkins and the remaining metallics and beads. I really wanted to start on another project, but I realized I needed the long Q-snap bars from this one, so I'm using that as incentive to get her finished before *this* Halloween.

Halloween Fairy update

I can't believe it has been so long since the last update of Halloween Fairy, but then again, I haven't worked on it much! Over the weekend I finished all of the top half of the chart and worked some more on the skirt:

Halloween Fairy update

Not a whole lot of progress, but she's gotten some backstitching and some beads since the last image I posted.

Halloween ornament and Fairy progress

First up is the "Spooky Tree" ornament from Just Cross Stitch magazine:

I used DMC floss instead of the over-dyed the original was stitched with.

And here is the first photo of Halloween Fairy:



I'm using a hand-dyed Silkweaver 32-ct linen. I think this is the largest thing I've done on 32-ct linen, and it is going a little slower then my usual 28-ct evenweave projects!

Latest small, with a big OOOPS!

I kicked this one out quickly a couple of evenings ago, but apparently a little TOO quickly, since there is a big ooops in it. I'm not sure how obvious it is if you aren't familiar with the chart or if it isn't pointed out, but the smile on the Jack o' Lantern is a little lopsided. Somehow I managed to make an extra stitch of the black on the right side! Oh well.

The chart is a freebie from Casey Buonaugurio's website.

In other stitching news, I decided to set Catherine of Aragon aside for a little while (I'm tired of looking at black, brown and yellow) and do the "Summer" design of the four seasons set I've been doing (pictures of fall and winter are here). I finally had an idea about how to finish them once all four are done, as a wall-hanging, maybe in a "stained glass" style with black borders around the designs. Of course, all of this is dependent on me being able to not jump right in and stitch Nora Corbett's "Halloween Fairy" in the newest Cross Stitch and Needlework magazine!