When I was very young there was a needle work store down the street from my house. It was called Calico Canvas and Colors. We lived in a fully residential area so looking back it was weird that the store was just…there. Perhaps that is why they moved locations in later years! Anyways…. There was a black and white cat that also lived in the store. Now as you can imagine, my friend and I went into that store all the time to pet the cat. The cat was the focus ….not much has changed in my life to this day in that regard, I am still obsessed with cats! The ladies who ran it where friendly enough but looking back I could tell they probably were super annoyed by a couple of kids always coming in without their parents. (I do think they told us to get out a few times if we weren’t buying anything…) Occasionally we would buy floss to make friendship bracelets! The store fascinated me. I was so in love with everything in it even though I really didn’t know about cross stitch and quilting at the time. I was still very much in the macaroni necklace and toilet paper tube vase at this point in my life. One time, my mom bought me a little cross stitch kit from the store. It was a Christmas ornament and it was the kind of kit with the perforated paper. As you can imagine, I always tugged way too hard and ripped the paper. Who knows what became of the first project! ……Well, I am actually 99.9% sure it went in the trash.
Fast forward 20-ish years later and I fell in love with the patterns by Alicia Paulson over at Posie Gets Cozy I asked for one of her kits for Christmas and received the Winterwoods ABC’s cross stitch sampler pattern from my wonderful sister and taught myself all over again. Over the next few years I dabbled a bit here and there, mostly with Alicia’s patterns, but I never really got into it as a serious hobby. Most of the patterns I would see in the craft stores were not my cup of tea. They looked too dated to me and not like something I would want to have displayed in my house. but in the winter of 2020 I discovered floss tube and 123 Stitch (and so many other stores now) and realized there was whole world of patterns out there that I actually liked. Ok, now I was hooked.
My main artistic outlet will always be first and foremost knitting; so I am quite slow at cross stitch. In fact I actually only have one completed project since winter of 2020! I am always starting something new and so nothing ever gets finished. That is why for 2022 I want to really focus on my WIPs, even if it means stitching “out of season”. I want to actually have some finished pieces!!!! So in no particular order here is what I want to work on in 2022! A small side note: perhaps I am cheating, but some of the projects below are part of a set or series…. So buying and starting the next part is TOTALLY fair game!!!
The Witch House by BlackwoodAndBriar
This was my 2021 Birthday start! …except for I started it before my birthday. It was at least in the same month! I was cruising along until I got to that house. So many stitches in it! I would love to have this finished by Autumn 2022. However I think it is a piece I would keep up year round. I love this pattern!!!! The designer has three patterns in her Etsy store currently. I plan on stitching them all and I hope she designs some more!
There is a lot of corn grown in Wisconsin, and I, fortunately, have lived around corn fields for most of my life. I can’t say why I love them so much, I just do. Perhaps it is because I have so many happy memories of summer and fall associated with them and home. My Mom always (ALWAYS) would say “Knee High by the 4th of July whenever we drove by them (which was, you know, every day). So that is something that I find myself saying a lot too. To everyone. Every time we go past a planted corn field. I would go as far as to say it is stuck in my head and will never get out. Ahem. Anyways. So when I saw this pattern I had to start it right away. It brings me such happiness just looking at it! Unfortunately I made a counting error, so the fence and corn stalk on the right hand side have to be ripped out before I can work on it anymore.
Welcome Spring by The Drawn Thread
I bought all four seasons Welcome patterns when I first got into cross stitch seriously. So far this is the only progress I have made! I want to finish the Spring pattern this, well, Spring, but I want to make sure I can find 4 similar frames before I FFO (fully finished object) it. I would love to hang them above my patio door looking out into the back yard. This was my first project that I used silk on. I loooooove it! I have the other three patterns and one more piece of linen ready to go, so who knows maybe I will finish this and start another this year!
The Reverend Gourdon Squashbottom by Not Forgotten Farm.
I started this one to stitch along with OIivia of Pumpkin Hollow Quilts. She stitches on a Autumn piece every Wednesday with another friend of hers! I, of course, fell horribly behind as I was distracted by knitting projects. However I do love this pattern and hope to finish it this year! This was the first project that I only bought the pattern for and then picked my own linen and floss from my stash. That was quite the fun (small) adventure.
Memorial Day by Hands on Designs
I started this one so I could have something patriotic! I got very far, as you can see. I also got it so I could try the Sulky threads and to try stitching in hand vs with a q-snap frame. I imagine in May I will get the big real bad to start working on this one again.
Farmhouse Christmas Series by Little House Needleworks
I just started this one. I loved all the individual designs but when I realized you could put them together in one piece I knew I had to stitch it! I am currently working on the first square and loving this stitch!
2021 Schoolar Santa by The Prairie Schooler
Originally my plan was to stitch three of these and turn them into ornaments for my mom, sister, and me. I quickly realized I stitched way too slow for that. So I decided to stitch just one for myself! I didn’t get it done for 2021, obviously, but I want to get it done in time to be able to start and finish the 2022 Santa. I would love to make a tree just for all the Prairie Schooler Santas!
October Cottage of the Month by Country Cottage Needleworks
I am kind of obsessed with season and monthly series. This is one of those series. October is the first one I started working on, but I already have the supplies for November and December! They are small and lovely!
Jingle All the Way by Little House Needleworks
This was one of the first Christmas projects I bought. I bought 40ct Mallow to stitch it on. When the fabric came I was in LOVE. The color is so amazing. However…. Well, I discovered 40ct is not something I can stitch on with the naked eye. Thus my search for a magnifier that I actually liked began. I tried a table top light first and it worked great but I didn’t like how I had to sit to use it. Finally I settled on these. They work great for me and my needs! I thought I was good but then I was conflicted about the linen choice. Was it too light?? I bought a few different pieces of linen but couldn’t find a color I liked as much as Mallow (shopping online for fabric is SO hard! Nothing looks like it does in real life). So finally I just started stitching. The white doesn’t stand out as much as I would like, but it doesn’t blend in completely so I am ok with it. However I didn’t get very far and I think the frustration of all these issues caused me to put it away. I would love to have it ready for next Christmas. If not, I am at least ready to stitch it next Christmas!
The Fox by Cottage Garden Samplings
The second I saw this pattern I knew I had to stitch the series. As you can see….I am super far. And yet, I am already frustrated with this project. The linen it calls for, 4 different colorways, is impossible to find. Normally I am 100% ok with just substituting whatever else I like, but I actually REALLY like how the patterns look on the called for. I bought enough of Dapple for the three winter patterns (still not the called for fabric) but I am at a loss for what to do for the rest of the year. I don’t know. Do I wait and hold out and HOPE I can get some of the called for linen for the rest of the series??? Who knows. I guess we will see what I can get and how quickly.
Simply Winter by The Drawn Thread
This is one pattern in a set of 4. Actually, the Autumn pattern is the only cross stitch project that I finished in 2021! (see below!). As I mentioned earlier, I love the patterns by the Drawn Thread. I guess some people don’t like the special stitches that are sometimes included in patterns by The Drawn Thread, but I love them! I am not very far in this project, but I know it will get done….eventually…..
Simply Autumn by The Drawn Thread
And here it is! The one piece I finished in 2021! I still need to find a frame for it, but otherwise I love it a ton!
Fall on the Farm by Little House Needleworks
This is a picture from the designer’s website. I have not started this project yet but I have the pattern for the first square. This is the only new start I am planning this year!
So there it is! My current WIPs that also happen to be my plans for 2022! I love seeing people’s plans so hopefully someone out there enjoyed mine. I am a notoriously slow cross stitcher and I have a billion other hobbies as well, so I will be happy if I only finish one or two projects on this list! Regardless, it will be fun looking back at this post in late 2022/early 2023 and seeing what I got done!
I wish you all a happy Sunday and a peaceful and productive week! -Alison, xoxo
Old Pine Hollow 