Meredith's (mabith) crafting in 2025!

The last three to four months of 2024 may have been a bust, but I'm still really happy I got back to doing some embroidery last year and looking forward to getting back to it AGAIN.

I've got a piece request from a friend which will be a gift for someone NEXT Christmas, but I'll hopefully start that in January (a shrimp wearing a santa hat with 'shrimply having a a wonderful Christmas time'), at least the pattern design if not the stitching.

I don't have any particular goals, and I'm hoping I'll be moving in the first quarter of this year (I'm on a waiting list for public housing, so it's unpredictable). That might be sooner rather than later so I should really be concentrating more on sorting through my stuff rather than stitching so it may be a slow start (I'll be going from a three bedroom house to a one bedroom apartment).

I have already started a project though!

My friend I used to collect a specific Japanese doll with has been taunting me with his new collections and all these cheap BJDs (ball joint dolls, used to all be so expensive). I browsed a bit and found this dragon series, which I fell in love with. It went on sale for $15 and free shipping, and I couldn't resist.



HOWEVER, I think she needs a grander dress so I'm going to embroider one for her. I traced out the shape of the pieces (the back pieces are on a separate bit of cloth) and started. I don't have a plan fully in place but it's a start and I might make more than one.



I've got the same kind of thread (Caron Watercolours), in a darker pink and blue as well, so I'm thinking of using it for two of the side sections and still debating the middle. Stem stitch for the main lines and a sort of long and short stitch in the larger fill areas. I might add some highlights in metallic gold or silver.

Oooh, that already looks gorgeous, and the doll is so cute!

>3 scaifea: Isn't she just! I'm regretting I didn't get two when they were on sale. I forgot how lonely it feels to only have a single doll of a specific type. Poor Longfeng.

I've finished the front!I'm not 100% happy with it, but that's usually the case, and it's the first try after all.



I'm getting a little anxious about the construction, but I'll baste the pieces together first to try to ensure a good fit.

Oh, look at that! I love it.

I think it looks great.

>6 scaifea: >7 dudes22: Thanks! I do really love the colors.

I can see why you love those colors -- so pretty!

Nice to see your new thread! I envy you the patience required for embroidering that - I cannot imagine being able to do anything like it.

>10 PawsforThought: I think as long as the eyesight is solid, most embroidery looks so much hard than it is. I wouldn't want to do it with individual solid colors, but with variegated thread it's just a longer line next to a shorter line over and over.

Finished enough to put the dress on her, but the back needs proper finishing and the insides of the back panels need a lining (needs to have a small godet at the top of the side splits too) and I'm not sure I have anything suitable. Here are the back panels before construction:







Given how I went about this in probably the worst way possible (far more sensible to draft a pattern and piece the dress before embroidering) and with no measurements or forward planning, just tracing the dress onto the fabric, I'm really happy!

The colors and texture just look so nice on her. The construction was a little horrendous, but I'm genuinely quite pleased with the result.

I ordered some more variegated flosses that might work with her, all in 12-ply silk floss, rather than the thicker thread I used here (Caron Waterlilies vs Watercolours), including the darker colorway on this piece. When that arrives I might essentially do a similar design directly on the front of the dress she came with (just to save myself some trouble now I know she won't be nude if I mess up).

I like it so much better than her original dress. I can imagine that it was much harder to put together being so small.

>13 dudes22: Yes, it was so fiddly. I've done some knitting for other similarly sized dolls before (1/12 scale, similar to Barbies) but largely just hats and one cardigan, so all very new.

The embroidered dress is so cute!

It's fun to see your progress on recreating the outfit!

>15 lesmel: >16 thornton37814: Thanks!

I haven't started another project yet because I keep living in hope that the new floss I ordered will get here so I can start on her original dress. The snow has really messed up the mail though (we had two days with no mail delivery which is somewhat unheard of). Fingers crossed for tomorrow.

In the meantime here's a picture of the back actually in situ and slightly more finished. I only had sticky back velcro, which I cannot sew through by hand (I don't have a thimble), but it seems to be holding fine.

I love how it turned out! Very cool.

>18 scaifea: I kind of like the back even more than the front.

I've been struggling with embroidery that doll's original dress and wondering whether to bother. Having to stitch it in hand means the fabric is stretching out and it's pure polyester so I don't think ironing/steaming it will fix that.

My thought was to only use that one color of thread but to stitch the diamond details in another direction or with another stitch style (satin stitch or a tight 'spiral' of stem stitch).

>20 mabith: I'm sure polyester is not easy to stitch on!

I'm a little late but loving the embroidery work you've been doing. It looks so good!

This is sew cool! I've never seen a doll's dress made that way.

>22 MickyFine: Thanks!

>23 beehappy: Thank you! I definitely prioritized the embroidery not being a nightmare over proper clothes making technique, so frankly it's a minor miracle it fits her at all. Having got to her shoulders in the second one where I'm stitching on her original dress though, the risky-fit method was definitely preferable.

I finally knuckled down and finished this (I won't be doing the back) and it's not as bad as I thought it might be. The floss color works really well with the original dress color and I largely think my design was sound, though I hated stitching on this fabric so much I stopped being careful. I like the other dress much more, but at least now she has a backup while I consider the finishing touches on the first dress.

I wish I had some shimmery pale pink seed beads to string over the hip gaps but I think I only have cool and dark colors (I'm not a huge beader, just have some random things). I'm also dithering on the closure for the first dress since velcro allows for more adjustment but I don't have the right kind that I can sew on by hand. I need to look at my doll clothes stock to see what kind of velcro is on some pieces I really don't need anymore (the other option is tiny little snaps). I collected a specific type of Japanese doll some years ago so I do have an absolute heap of clothes.

In order to stop myself getting into another no-crafting groove, I immediately started this floral embroidery piece. I scrawled out some basic shapes and this is not my forte, so we'll see how it goes I guess. I do love this type of work, though I don't think I've attempted it before. I hope to make it fairly densely packed and will stitch the flower bits first and then go back and add greenery.

I picked up this stack of eight six-inch doilies, for lack of a better word, in a thrift store or antique shop some time ago so also nice to finally use at least one.

>25 mabith: She looks great!

>26 mabith: I love the colors so far on this one.

>26 mabith: Is it a doily or more like a hankie? I ask because I have a number of old hankies from various women in my family that sort of meet somewhere between doily, hankie, & dresser scarf.

Either way, I love the work you are doing!

>27 scaifea: Thanks!

>28 lesmel: They're so small, I can't see them as hankies at all (6 inch diameter). I was thinking maybe they were intended as part of place setting, for individual butter dish to sit on, or a glass or something (given that they came in a set of eight).

Oh! That does sound like part of a place setting! I love seeing stuff like that. I get tempted; but I know me. It would end up in a drawer. I am trying really hard to be better about using what I have instead of just storing it like it is too precious to use or display!

>26 mabith: The parts of you done so far are beautiful. I am looking forward to seeing your progress!

>30 lesmel: I'm always at thrift stores digging through fabric, and find it very difficult to resist buying bits of the good stuff. I think I had a vision for these as appliqued onto some sort of art quilt, each stitched with some theme. I've got a few dozen vintage handkerchiefs, most with some kind of embroidery, which I was intending to stitch feminist quotes on and then make into some kind of delicate art quilt. They're mostly so thin it's a nightmare to stitch text on them.

>31 MickyFine: Thanks!

>32 mabith: Could you add a light stabilizer? Would it be worth it?

>33 lesmel: My issue is more that the thinness means you can see the thread on the wrong side through the fabric and with text pieces that tends to really bother me. If a stabilizer were thick enough to make up for that I think it would lose the delicacy I envision. I imagine the backing fabric as something equally light, in a floral or lace. Though I suppose one could use the embroidered text AS the quilting which might make it work better (though sounds like a nightmare at the size I was initially thinking).

I've gotten a little more done on my floral piece. I was trying to do an outline on those solid pink flowers to neaten them up but it did not look good and I unpicked it. The 'white' ones are actually a very pale variegated cream, yellow, and pink in person, outlined in a very pale yellow. I need to look at my embroidery books for more inspiration on different stitches to use.

I'll definitely be adding something done with woven wheel stitch and might try out picot, which I've not done before. The shapeless blob between the blue flowers and the white ones will likely be replaced with something less shapeless.

Your satin stitches look so much better than mine. I don't use them that often with cross stitch, but occasionally I have to do them. I guess I'm just out of practice.

>36 thornton37814: I always love the look of satin stitch but I so resent how much thread it uses, even when I'm just using single color DMC. My cheapskate nature is ridiculous. I do end up unpicking a fair few stitches with it that are just slightly off as I go, otherwise it would be messier.

I got devoured by a depressive grief episode and stopped working on my floral piece (or anything much). I'd say I'd be back to it, but I'll finally be moving soon! I've been on a waiting list for public housing since last August and finally got a call about a suitable apartment and have now signed the lease. I'm hoping to be fully moved within three weeks.

I inherited the house I'm in now when my mom died (I was already renting it from her with a friend), and it's been such a mixed bag. Physically and financially though it's impossible to stay and the stress of all the issues I can't fix is intense. However, this is also the last place my mom was herself before she died (she stayed with me for a few weeks before going to MD Anderson in Texas). The move is incredibly necessary but I know it will be an emotional rollercoaster, especially after I get fully settled in, I expect. However, I'll be right on a river so at least I can go sit and watch the water when I'm sad (my mom loved being in any type of boat on any body of water).

The next month probably won't bring a return to crafting, but I've kept out that floral piece and some thread for it in a separate project bag just in case. I'm excited to set up my sewing machine in the new place (it's been in the basement here, which makes things harder), and potentially position my couch so I can stitch with natural light behind me again. My current living room doesn't get proper direct light due to the porch roof.

I'm glad to see you've found another place to live and completely understand all the emotions. I hope your move goes well and that the river soothes you.

Great to hear you’ve found a new place to live, and that it will be better suited for you. Being close to the river sounds lovely.
Completely understand that it comes with mixed feelings, even if you know it’s better for you in the end. Places can hold so many memories and emotions and leaving them behind can so easily drag all of them up to the surface. I hope all goes well with the move.

Sending hugs for you during an understandably stressful and emotional time.

Thanks, y'all.

I'm excited and anxious and a bit sad all at once, so it's a little overwhelming. Though after a few more days of packing I imagine exhaustion will outweigh all that!

Since you needed to move, it's nice that you got what sounds like a lovely place. When your emotions seem like it's just too much, think of a happy memory to help you.

Happily, I've got plenty of those good memories to draw on, Betty! A woman in my book club who lost her husband a couple years ago pointed at that we're lucky to have such wonderful people to miss, since it means we had wonderful people in our lives. I've thought about that a lot since she said it.

>44 mabith: That's a lovely sentiment to hold through your grief. May your move (and all that goes with it) be easy...or as easy as it can be.

>45 lesmel: Thanks! It's a sentiment that I mostly find helpful though some days I am definitely not able to appreciate that angle.

I have been feeling restless about the lap quilt I made ostensibly for my mom when she was in the hospital. I had just started it when she suddenly went into a steep decline (both my parents went from pretty normal to not-lucid at all over the course of about 36 hours). So in the very limited time before my sister and I flew to Texas where she was in the hospital, I stress made this to take down without doing the binding. Because of the rush the backing fabric was poorly attached and got out of alignment during the quilting.

In order to do the binding decently it would all have to be unpicked and I don't think some of the fabric would stand for that (my emotions would not either). Plus, putting on the worst binding ever feels in sympathy with how this was created and thoughts around it. So now it's on and that's something.

There are t-shirts from my brother's and sister's first soccer teams, mine from the children's museum (very rare to be bought a new shirt anywhere and probably my aunt actually bought it), a shirt of my mom's, fabric she made herself a dress with in the 1970s, fabric she used to make us clothes, a mola embroidery panel (she loved those and found a skirt someone had made with a bunch which she planned to do something with 'eventually), a piece of tablecloth she'd bought in her early 20s, t-shirt with her favorite golden book, and a piece of mock crazy quilting I'd made (plus on the side the sheets I was bought to replace my favorite sheets age six or so which I made a huge fuss about). The mock crazy quilt (I say mock because it wasn't constructed in the traditional crazy quilt ways), still needs me to sew down or bind some edges but otherwise it's done.



And of course, the minute I put it down to take a picture in came the cat to test it out. She was NOT a fan of me sewing, and if I stopped for more than thirty seconds there was much meowing and rubbing against my shoulders (the chair ends up right against my bed in the current setup).

I think it was awesome that you even attempted to make this so quickly with everything you were going through. I wouldn't want to go have to unpick the quilting either. I'm not sure how much more work you want to put into it or how thick it would wind up - but could you quilt another backing on to stabilize it more and then add another binding over the top of the one you have on there? I saw a show on PBS once where a lady was making a quilt for a show which would be judged, and she didn't think the binding was right, so she just added another one without taking the first one off.

I was intrigued by the mola piece, and it reminded me of a piece of Hmong embroidery that I had once (not sure what happened to it.) I decided to go check it out and found out that they aren't similar at all. Mola are pictures and Hmong are geographic, Mola uses contrasting colors while Hmong use bright colors, and the way they attach the designs is different too. It was very interesting.

Maybe one day, Betty! I don't really think it will bother me, given the context of it and the fact that quilting is Not My Thing (vs cross-stitch which if I know there's a mistake, even if absolutely no one else will notice it, I can't have it up in my house). This is actually my first quilt ever! We'll see what happens when I fix down the crazy quilt bits and wash it though (even in the rush I did starch the thin t-shirts before sewing to make it easier on myself, and fused some other fabric behind one with holes). I did two lines of stitching on the binding and I am very pleased with myself about how close the second line are the edge of the binding.

Ha, I think I went down that rabbit hole with Hmong embroidery vs mola once as well! I think I've given myself a bit of an embroidery complex by being on Chinese social media and following a lot of Suzhou embroidery experts.

If anyone is interested in any mola pieces I'd more than happily send some off to any US address. These are the rest of the pieces in the skirt, they measure about 15 1/2 inches by 11 inches. I definitely can't use all of them.

Other than for crafting they make great wall art. I have a larger one framed that my mom bought me when she was in Panama. I specifically left the loose threads showing and love how it looks.







I want to keep the right sides of the middle row in both pictures, but the rest are up for grabs. There's a lot of variation in age, some are clearly extremely new (or were in 2012-ish when my mom found this in a thrift store). All hand sewn of course, as that's the only way to make them!

Although since we downsized, I don't have room for any, those are some nice pieces. I particularly like the one on the top left with that green color.

>47 mabith: What great Mola pieces. It's a theme that has become very popular with rug hookers in the past few years. The colour options and line designs make it a natural.

>47 mabith: I understand the desire to keep the quilt as it was, as something which will always connect you to that time. Tawny Scrawny Lion is a wonderful square! Was that a favourite of yours as well as your mother's?

How are you managing fitting your sewing equipment and supplies into your new place?

Ooh yes, I bet it would be great with rug hooking.

Tawny Scrawny Lion was definitely a favorite of mine as well (that and The Marvelous Merry-Go-Round). I found that shirt at a discount clothing store (along with one of the image on the back of the books) and snapped it up to make into a cushion cover or some such.

The crafting space is coming together. I use a combination of an old sewing machine table (with old sewing machine that never agreed with me removed) and two wire mesh drawer sets. The fold out top of the sewing machine table goes over one and I've got two firm boards to go over the hole in the table and the other drawers. It's not all set yet, and I'll move my printer to the right of the sewing machine eventually. I was happy to have found my sewing machine cover I made out of a favorite old skirt with a gibson girl pattern (what a normal thing for a skirt, the early 2000s were very fun).

It's a little tight, but that's life. I'm just happy everything actually fit in the bedroom (I did a lot of measuring before hand) and I didn't have to get rid of my beautiful old waterfall top wardrobe) The more blocked bottom drawer on the left allows easy access to the sewing box with spools of thread and the harder to access area is all beads, which I'll probably slowly get rid of. My mom had a big jewelry making phase and I keep thinking "I could use some in embroidery projects!" but it's a lot of beads... I'll try to go through them more carefully eventually but it wasn't happening before the move.



I have all my fabric in two large plastic totes, polyfill and batting in one box, and my yarn is in a couple boxes. It's a bit annoying yarn wise, as there's no hanging rod in the closet and I used to store it in one of those sweater holders you can hang from a rod. I'm not knitting loads though, so it will be fine in boxes I guess. My embroidery stuff, other than fabric, I keep in the living room since that's my main craft.

I have one mildly organized drawer and then I ran out of the little boxes. I'll eventually get some more for sewing supplies (so much 'eventually' going on here).

There's not been enough new stuff to warrant a picture, but I finally did some embroidery today, on the round floral piece I started earlier this year.

Good to finally do a little stitching regardless! I also altered a shirt I've been meaning to alter for some years.

My goal for the next two weeks is also to cut out the fabric for the pajamas I want to make, though I think maybe I'll just start with the shorts. I've realized it's maybe not wise to immediately try to sew a shirt with a collar and will perhaps make a loose tank top instead (especially since I accidentally bought the pattern for Tall people, which I am not). I cut out all the pattern pieces last week.

Well I've not done much embroidery on that floral round, because the mornings have been so busy with appointments and things (you turn 40 and the doctors just want to send you around all over the place). Then later I'm too tired and then it's dark, and I do prefer to have natural light for free hand embroidery.

Today, however, I made coasters! They're based on a design my mom did a demo for in a sewing shop event or something similar and then gave me because she felt it was a clever design and hinted I should make some. She was always a net outsourcer of crafting once I started doing any.

It is a nice design, as the four overlapping pieces of fabric on the top make it so you can sew round the entire edge and still turn it right side out at the end. Here is the one my mom made:



And here are the ones I made. The upper left, with the teal chevron and teal, pink, and green fabric has a thicker batting inside than the others and was the first I did, so it's a bit rougher.





The one my mom made has a very thin fleece or thick flannel on the inside but I didn't have anything like that handy. I also felt like I didn't have loads of patterned fabrics that went well together (certainly not that were similar colors for the most part), so these aren't my ideal combinations necessarily, but I'm happy enough.

Those are cute!

>55 mabith: I like those too.
I didn't have loads of patterned fabrics
Well, you know what you need to do ... 😀

Oh, I love those! My dumb brain can't quite figure out how you've put the top together, though.

>56 dudes22: Thanks!

>57 lauralkeet: Ha, I already feel like I have too much fabric for someone who doesn't sew all that much!

>58 scaifea: They're made up of 5 squares of fabric (I cut mine at 4 1/4 inches square, and one square the same size of batting/flannel). For the pieces on top you fold them in half and iron them, and arrange them so the folded edges are towards the middle, just like you're closing a cardboard box with the flaps overlapping. Then you stack that woven square with the full square piece for the back sandwiched between the woven square and the batting/flannel square. Because those top pieces are overlapped like that, essentially giving you a hole in the middle, you can sew around the entire edge and still be able to turn it right side out.

Here's the original one inside out, if that helps!

>59 mabith: Thanks so much for that! I think I may have to try this.

They can be made up very quickly, perfect gift item (well for people who like using coasters).

Well I've not managed to work on my free embroidery piece, and I think my tendency to not have a lot of WIPs around has been working against me. I clearly didn't want to work on that piece but starting something new without finishing it also seemed wrong. Very annoying of my brain.

I changed gears and decided to tackle these dresden flower blocks I picked up at a thrift store years aback. They've got this dreadful peachy pink in the center (which I don't love generally but also it doesn't look great with most of the other fabrics), and some have some spokes in that fabric as well. I don't love how the black and white gingham works with the other fabrics as either, and it's quite dominant on some of them.





I think there were maybe 18 blocks total, and 11 only have the peach middle circle (I didn't count them until I'd started breaking up the blocks). I've been cutting squarish blocks from the ones with peach spokes (leaving those out) and I've sewn a lot together into a placemat sized rectangle.



Due to the shape and disliking the middle color they're rather hard to make into other things. I will probably do a set of two placemats only (perfect for my little table when the gateleg isn't out).

That seems like a logical thing to do. I suppose you could have replaced the circles that only used the peach in the middle. That black and white really stands out. I wonder if you could find another fabric with a bit of black to use as a small border that would make it look more "planned"? I think if you could even find a little more of a black and white polka dot like the one that's in there, it would help. IMHO.

The quilting is nice evevn if you haven't gotten around to your embroidery.

>63 dudes22: Yes, I haven't cut up the blocks with just the peach center and no black and white gingham. I might try to do a small bag or zippered prouch (after replacing the center circle). Ooh great thought with the trim. Even a solid black binding on the placemats would be really nice I think, though the closest I have on hand is a navy with very small white dots.

>64 thornton37814: It's been very good to keep busy!

Amazing how when I was moving I thought I really had too much fabric for someone who wasn't doing much sewing and now I think I don't have nearly enough of the fabric I want! Everything is too thin or too drapey or the colors don't match etc...

I got the second placemat top finished today.



Now the question is whether to compromise on binding fabric or put everything on hold until I could buy fabric. I do have a second sewing project in mind and half-planned.

It's all been a great distraction anyway (today is the third anniversary of my dad's death and the 19th will be the 8th anniversary of my mom's death, so September is just A Lot).

I've finally made a cover for a small pillow form bought years and years ago. I even did a proper envelope closure in the back. Doing it again I'd add a quarter inch to two of the border bands but in general I'm very pleased! The quilt block was another one picked up in a thrift store with some other fabric.



There are some stain spots (maybe rust?) on that red gingham spoke. I don't dare hope they'll wash out, so I'm debating a little embroidery over them but I feel it would look a little odd just on that one.





I really like how it looks in situ (and with the pillow inside of course). I should have considered the stains and what to do about them before the sewing but I'm in dire need of distraction these days and these sewing endeavors have been the perfect thing.

>67 mabith: That looks really nice!

For what it's worth, I don't think the tiny stains draw the eye at all.

>67 mabith: - That's a good idea for an orphan block. Looks good.

>68 kicking_k: Thanks! Unfortunately the photo shows the stains less well than they appeal in person (and the worst is in a wrinkle/shadow there). I'm so pleased with how the cover turned out I can't mind too much though.

>69 dudes22: Thank you! I might have to make some traditional blocks for other cushion covers to match. It's so pleasing and would be good practice without feeling overwhelming.

I *love* the pillow!

>71 scaifea: I'm still smiling every time I look at it! So glad I did it properly with measuring everything for the border bands on the front and making the envelope back (vs my usual lazy pillow case style).

I was working on my placemats made from the cut up dresden flower blocks. I picked this vintage floral sheet for the back fabric, partly because it was the right weight, and the few solid color fabrics I have I want to be sparing in using.



Really I should have hand quilted it, the tension was doing some odd things, but handling the scrap blocks would lead to too much fraying and such, plus I'm treating these as test pieces in a lot of ways.



Then I got over halfway through the binding (used the same navy fabric as on my cushion cover) on the first one and my sewing machine decided it didn't like the needle anymore. The needle flew/was pulled out of the holder and stuck down into the bobbin holder area.

I pulled it out, got a new needle in, and did some test stitching, which did not go well. First it was getting stuck a lot, then that resolved but after a couple inches of stitching the top thread would break (and this happened multiple times). I think the needle going into the plate bent part of the bobbin casing. I took the needle plate off, and the needle is definitely hitting part of it which I feel it probably shouldn't be. I considered trying to bend it a little myself but that makes me nervous.

My car has been in the shop for over a week for an expensive repair (parts had to be ordered and of course took longer than expected to arrive) so it's particularly bad timing. I needed to take my mom's sewing machine to the repair shop anyway, so I guess I will take both once I get my car back after I drive it around a bit. I trust my mechanic, I've been going to him for 20 years, but everyone is human and I get a little paranoid after a major repair. The sewing machine shop is also outside my usual driving range and will require the interstate.

Ugh, car repairs are so not fun. I hope it's done quickly and the sewing machine repairs aren't too pricy.

All your recent projects look so great!

My friend asked me to make this for her. It was a fun, quick project. I was looking for ways to add some metallic thread but I didn't have any of the good metallic red, and adding gold filament to the white on the hats didn't look good with the oatmeal fabric (I would have stitched this on black if I'd had any black fabric, but alas!). I was intending to add green metallic filament on the word Christmas, but forgot and honestly it's so annoying to stitch with I'm a little relieved I did forgot. My friend can always get a glittery or sparkly frame for it.

>75 mabith: Snort! I do love me some punny cross-stitch. Having struggled once with metallic embroidery thread, I completely understand your abhorrence and don't blame you for forgetting to use some.

>75 mabith: That is so cute and you did a nice job.

>76 MickyFine: The Kreinik metallic braid I don't mind working with at all (and until last year it was a local company to me, which was nice), but the filament is a different beast. Though, to be fair, I haven't used it as intended really.

>77 mnleona: Thanks!

I'm back on my tiny 28 ct stitches and this Ink Circles piece (Cirque des Cercles). I've added the empty circles on the bottom this past week and a half, and I'll go ahead and add the circles on the right side before starting any filling in.



This is the full design:


I'm debating whether continuing to use the dark to bright red thread for the smaller circles or to do those filler elements in a solid and maybe somewhat muted color.

I do find these patterns really enjoyable, and it's much easier on my eyes after my move. Unlike my old house where the porch roof and high windows combo made for a dim space, I now get slightly more direct light and it's made a world of difference. I don't touch this piece after dark even with my very good craft lamp.

That's a really interesting pattern, Meredith. I like it as just a two color and I like the multi colors you're doing.

>79 mabith: That's amazing. I'm wondering if it would translate into rug hooking. Love the colours.

>80 dudes22: I kind of wish I'd done this as a single color, but I did most of the large center bit about nine years ago, and thought it would be a nice use for all my pretty hand-dyed threads that I never used. I have a number of similar Ink Circles patterns though, and eventually I'll do one of them in a single color on some lovely deep red linen I've got.

>81 SassyLassy: Would definitely be neat to use the interlocking circles and see how much even geometric detail you could get with the rug hooking!

>81 SassyLassy: - I'm wondering how BIG it would be as a rug!

>83 dudes22: That would depend on the how big you wanted it to be. You could make it into a pillow top using narrow cut strips, which would allow you much finer detail, or you could use wider cuts and yarns to expand it to any size you wanted. My mind is working away on this already! I'm thinking possible about 2' x 3', but if I were very ambitious, it would look lovely in 5' x 6'. I think with anything larger you would lose some of the lovely intricate detail.

>81 SassyLassy: Geometric detail is the devil with rug hooking, yet there many people are now using old quilt patterns as designs, and matching the corners and points up quite successfully. Then again there are the people who do abstracts...

>84 SassyLassy: - Interesting. I guess I assumed that the canvas weave would be so much bigger that it would end up huge.

>84 SassyLassy: Backings come in different weaves on the tight to loose scale, as they do for needlepoint and tapestry. You choose the weave based on the thickness of the predominant fibre(s).

My favourite backing is a Scottish linen. There is also burlap (2nd favourite), monks cloth which I don't like at all as it stretches as you work, and just about anything else you can think of.

Have you tried rug hooking? I think rug hooking is now a misnomer as there are so many different hooked things from tiny coasters to very large 3D objects.

>86 SassyLassy: - I did a couple of rugs - probably when I was in my 20s. They were relatively small.

>84 SassyLassy: There is such a charm in a geometric pattern adapting to something where perfection isn't possible and you have that human wobble.

I'd love to try rug hooking sometime, but of course I'd love to try most crafts! It's hard to commit to any new thing when my ronghua supplies are sitting untested and I have a tabletop loom I've not done anything with (I gave it to my mom as a housewarming gift a couple years before she died, as she'd done a weaving class and loved it when she was pregnant with my brother and when he was a little enough baby to be easily taken to class).

I have continued getting work in on my Tiny Stitches piece.



I'm not entirely happy with that dark red to purple thread, and the one between it doesn't have enough variation to feel worth it, but me being happy with all the colors is a ship that sailed ten years ago when I decided to ignore my 'this doesn't contrast with the fabric enough' feelings on the gold thread in the left center motif. I've now got the vertical outline circles on the other side done so it's feeling like the end is in sight despite there being quite a lot still left.

It helps that I'm not agonizing over thread choices any more. I'll use most of the same colors on the horizontal interlocking circles, though I'll switch out that end one that's pink and yellow with one that's pink and purple.

I look forward to seeing it with all the colors.

>89 mabith: It's looking lovely and I imagine it's pretty soothing to work on.

>90 dudes22: I'm hoping to be finished with it by the end of January! Some days I have too much to do in the morning so there's not enough daylight to work on it.

>91 MickyFine: It's really the perfect amount of counting and repeated pattern and mental engagement for me. One of the things I love while cross-stitching is working out the best order to stitch that sort of pattern so I don't have to start and stop new threads or have longer threads going across the back of the fabric (or waste even a tiny bit of thread). It's so pleasing when it works out.

>92 mabith: I know precisely what you mean. I look forward to seeing your next progress update. :)

Another chunk finished!



I meant to stitch the the small bits that go in that top gap before I shifted the fabric, but forgot. I will attempt to remember to do the bottom one before I shift things again. There are small motifs that go in some of the gaps on the outside as well (full design here: >79 mabith:), but I might leave those off. I'll see how it looks without them first anyway.

Now I've got the bottom left circle filled as well. If I hadn't had so many 'using up the good daylight' things to do in December I might have finished this by the end of the year, but I'm really pleased with the progress anyway. It's been just the sort of project I've needed for this difficult time of year.

I feel like you're making great progress and look forward to seeing it done.

>95 dudes22: Me too! It feels like the end is so near.

This was taken yesterday so I'm putting it in the 2025 thread. I was starting to worry I didn't like this piece at all, and then I filled in that bit of small motif fill and starting loving the look again. I'm really happy with the floss I picked for those bits as well.

This is so beautiful! I love the colors, and I so admire your skill and patience with all those tiny stitches.

Gosh, I love this project so much!

Your Ink Circles piece is coming along nicely!

>98 Charon07: Thank you! It certainly makes me feel a little blind at times, but I was determined to use up this odd piece of linen.

>99 scaifea: >100 thornton37814: Thank you both! The end feels sooo close now.

I've started my 2026 thread here!