A Wrap-Up of 2020 Stitching

 By my count I had 36 finishes in 2020, they're posted in a tab above or come watch my wrap-up YouTube video at Minnie Gray - All XXs (link is to the right).  

To see more of my day to day progress of my stitching follow me on Facebook- Minnie Gray and minniegray5806 on Instagram.

I am participating in a stitching challenge on Facebook, it's called WIPGO. There is a board set up like Bingo and this challenge is hosted by a fellow flosstuber - "Jessie Does Stuff". You assign your choice of WIPs and goals to the blocks on the board in any order and number them 1-12, free space, 14-25. The host will call two numbers per month or a third if the free space is called, the challenge is to accomplish your preset goal during the year 2021. Last year each goal had to be reached by the end of the month the number was called. (That's how I will be playing this year too it's more of a challenge for me).

In my flosstube video #61 I showed all of my 2020 WIPs you can check them out there. The numbers called for January's WIPGO are 6,13(free space) and 18, since I filled in my free space with a wip I'll have 3 goals for the month and they are a finish on:

1. Patriotic Lady designed by Rachael Moore and you can purchase this design at www.etsy.com/shop/senistitch/ 

2. Just Me is  a chart my niece had created for me one year as a birthday gift. It's from a picture of me! This design will get 1000 stitches.

3. Fireside Sampler is designed by Diane Grick from Silver Creek Samplers (www.downbysilvercreek.blogspot.com) this design will also get 1000 stitches.  They may get more but I like to set realistic goals.

I also have a few new starts that I hope to be able to work on in 2021- "Moonshine" another from Silver Creek Samplers

Natural Beauty 2 from Filanthrope Broderies

And last but not least Harriet Tubman from The Primitive Hare

So now your know what I've been up to in my absence from blogging and what I will be doing in the future.  I hope to return with more updates soon.  Thank you all for stopping by to visit and I you will be patient with me as I get back into the swing of things. Now to makes some more little xxs.

I Couldn't Just Leave You Hanging!

I know I am the worst blogger ever, I go away and forget about you... but I've returned to do a wrap-up of 2018. In my August posts I had gone to Stitch Con in Cincinnati, OH (which I will be going to again in 2019), since then I've been gone, I went to two other retreats. One in Harrisburg, PA and one in Herndon, VA (that was a local one). They were so much fun, I've been on another Bahama cruise and enjoyed my first trip to NOLA (New Orleans, LA). 2018 was a pretty good for me as far as travel goes and I hope to continue in the future.  As for cross stitching there have been lots of finishes, some FFOs, and videos. In case you don't know I make what is known as Flosstube videos on Youtube.  I share some of my travels and my stitching, of course you get to see me! If you are at all interested my channel is Minnie Gray - AllXXs , I make new videos about once a month.  I am now on Instagram @minniegray5806, there I share a few times a week with stitching updates.  If you would like to see all of my stitchy finishes for 2018 there is a new tab at the top of my page here, if you have questions about any of the designs please leave a comment and I will try to answer them. Of course I have wips and there are a few I'll insert pictures and captions below.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and I wish all of my followers a very Happy, Safe, Productive and Stitchy New Year!

Advent Animals Brook Books

All Are Equal In Death Modern Folk Embroidry

All Souls Vierlanden Quiltify Design

Bella Butterfly Nora Corbett (needs beads only)

Christmas Dreams Joan Elliott

Coffee Quaker Heartstring Samplery

Comfort Lighthouse Carriage House Samplings

Dead Girl Love My Stitch (Etsy)

Elphaba  Keenah's Cross Stitch (Etsy)

Frankie the Thinker Glendon Place

Ghoul Tidings Plum Street Samplers

Halloween Treats Trail Creek Farm

Hazel's Wardrobe Sue Hillis

Hogwarts Crest Colleen Carrington

Hot Chocolate Alessandra Adelaide

House on Pumpkin Hill Stacy Nash Primitives

I Love Yoga Valenti Cross Stitch (Etsy)

Just Me 

Life, Liberty & Happiness  Mandi di Donna

MLK Memorial  The Posy Collection

Needlework Alphabet Little House Needlework

November  Snowflower Diaries

On Wednesday We Stitch Black  The Primitive Hare

Pray  Teresa Kogut

Pretty Little Chicago Satsuma Street

Rose Goddess  Joan Elliott (beads only)

Seeds Of Freedom  Silver Creek Samplers

Sirena  Lila's Studio

Three Kimonos  Joan Elliott

Vintage Cat  Alice Allen

Vintage Fox  Alice Allen

Witchy Time of Night  The Nebby Needle

As you can see I was very busy in 2018 and I suspect 2019 will be about the same.  My neglect of this blog was not intentional and I will try to be better in this new year (no promises). I truly appreciate all of you for hanging with me through my absence and I hope you enjoy the finishes and wips. Please join me in making some of those wonderful little xxs!

IHSW Update August 2018

I just wanted to show that I am still at it!  I went a stitching meet-up this Saturday and I got some more stitched on Rose Goddess. Here is my IHSW update.

I finished the face on Saturday and the rose at the lower right was done on Sunday and today.  Let's see if I can finish the rose tonight, on to more xxs.

Just Checkin In

I didn't want the whole month to go by without another post, this will be a short one. If you are wondering why, well I have been possessed, obsessed and consumed by Joan Elliott's "Rose Goddess"

I did a small conversion of the skin tone but everything else is as charted. I will as always leave the beading for last and there will be plenty. I stitched on this one exclusively until I ran out of the red Kreinik in the border so for a couple of days she sat watching me while I started a small piece from the 2018 Halloween issue of Just Cross Stitch magazine. When I went to stitch night at my LNS on Wednesday I picked up more Kreinick and finished the small "Hanging With My Boo!"

I just loved this little ornament and it looks great on the 28ct linen from Under the Sea Fabrics called Lycan's Moon.  So now you know what I've been up to and it time to make some more of those wonderful little xxs.

It's been so long...

But this will be an exciting post. First let's check out my long (you may want to finish reading this post first) Stitch Con video. Now you know what Stitch Con was, so if you ever have a chance to go to a retreat take it and go. Retreats are so much fun. I know that was a long video so you can imagine what writing a blog post would have been like. I'm sorry that I took so long to get back here but July was kind of busy.  My husband and I went to Las Vegas right after I got back from Cincinnati for the 4th of July and I have been doing a lot of stitching. My first thing I finished after Stitch Con was a small piece that I started there and it is:

Vanilla & Chocolate by LHN

The next project I finished was during the week before the 4th of July, everyone was stitching patriot so I had to join in.

Four Freedoms from LHN

After that I didn't want to work on a wip so while in Vegas so I started (and finished it when we returned) this little beauty.

Fairy Dreams from Joan Elliott Designs

My last finish for the month of July was another wip.

Mademoiselle Rose from Jardin Prive'

As if that wasn't enough I have worked on my All Souls Vierlanden from Quiltify Designs on Etsy.

All Souls Vierlanden from Quiltify Designs

This progress has been over several different sessions not all at one time. This one is easy there is no color changes, it's all one DMC floss #4245 (Coloris floss). Another wip that got some loving is Seeds of Freedom. Only one section left and it will be finished.

Seeds of Freedom from Silver Creek Samplers

After I stitched that small JE design I wanted to put another one in my wips so I started Rose Goddess. I also used it as the first day "J" in a SAL on Flosstube and InstaGram hosted by a Flosstuber who's channel name is "Jessie Marie Does Stuff". Jessie's channel is turning 5 years old and I think that is a big accomplishment so I joined in to help her celebrate.

I did a skin conversion on my version of this design, I used DMC 3862,3863,& 3864. The stitch-a-long is #jmdsturns5 on Instagram and for the second day "M" I worked on a wip.

M is For Mermaid -Heartstring Samplery

This one if you remember was one of my Stitch Maynia starts and this is where I am on it now. For the third day for "D" I plan to work a little on "Dorothy's Discovery which was also a Stitch Maynia start.

Dorothy's Discovery- Silver Creek Samplers

As promised here are the written instruction to make the "Minnie's Clearfront Vonna Bag"

Sorry, this is the only way I could figure out how to share the instructions I hope you are able to read them. Once I have had more practice making these myself I will put out a better instruction sheet (maybe even with pictures) and maybe even a video tutorial.  Well I thank you for staying this long if you are reading this, I appreciate you all, if you've been here before and came back or if you're new welcome and hope you'll come back again too. It's time to go make some more of those wonderful little xxs.