February OMG - Temperature Project finally begun!

Hi everyone, not all that much progress, but I feel like I FINALLY broke the seal and did a little stitching. This month's OMG was really just to get started on this project that was feeling so overwhelming. And, well, I started.

The black wool finally arrived, I finally started stitching the grid, and I chose 7 stitches to use on the different days of the week to add a little more variety to what is still only a 3-color project! I haven't even stitched a complete week yet -- far from my "if I get to the end of January I'll feel like a boss" statement from the beginning of the month. But all progress is progress, right?

I have some concerns that I can see the canvas through some of the stitching -- will this continue to bother me? Or will I just relax and trust that it will look okay in the end? Who knows. I also have some concerns about the sheer amount of wool I'll be using and the inconvenience of getting more. But, hey, I have to do a lot more stitching before that will be the case.

The fact that I've done any stitching at all is largely due to the One Monthly Goal link-up over at Elm Street Quilts. Dozens of crafters of all types pledge to complete a goal at the beginning of the month, and then check in at the end with their progress. I assure you that the others do more than I've done, so go check them out.

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal - February Finish Link-up

February OMG - the Temperature Project

Hi everyone! Well, you know I didn't get much done on this project in January, so here's hoping I can GET MOVING in February!

We have had colder weather over the last few days, with the result that the piece will now have THREE colors. Welcome to the party, Dark Grape!

Of course, it's not much of a party yet -- just a bunch of skeins of wool nervously sitting in a bag, waiting for someone to pick them. The black wool I ordered a week ago hasn't arrived, and I'm still waiting for a response from their customer service about a correct tracking number as the first one they sent isn't recognized by UPS. But I have faith that, at some point in this short little month, I'll get the wool and do some stitching. Really.

So that's the goal for February -- just get started. Do a textured outline in black to break up the pattern a bit. Then get to stitching. If I can get, say, through JANUARY by the end of February I'll feel like a total boss.

It's nice to feel accountable -- so if you'd like a little nudge with your project, there's still time to join the One Monthly Goal link-up over at Elm Street Quilts. There are over a hundred amazing projects to look at to get inspired!

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal February Link-up.

January OMG : Starting the 2019 Temperature Project

Hi everyone! I have (reluctantly) returned to the real world after our New Year's / Birthday break and, no surprise, feel like I am somehow way behind on this "kicking off 2019" thing. However, though it feels like December 31 was a loooong time ago, I realize today is only January 4 and there's time to get going. *IF* I set it as my One Monthly Goal!!!

In 2017 I made a temperature afghan. I loved the process of picking out the yarn -- in my project, a  monochromatic "Fifteen Shades of Grey" -- and I loved tracking the temperatures and watching the colors shift over the course of the year. Who cares if it ended up nearly 10 feet long; it's warm and cozy and really nice on our big bed.

But I knew I didn't need another massive afghan, so wanted to find another project to do. I thought about some sort of cross stitch project, or even a pillow top. But nothing really felt right. Then I remembered this lovely old thing in my basement:

note Kiki in the background...

When I was growing up we had two of these; one with a burgundy cushion and this one with a green cushion. I don't know what happened to the other one, but I insisted that I had to have it, and often thought of stitching a needlepoint piece and recovering the sadly ripped leather cushion. But then it just languished in my basement, an odd UFO.

I decided that, somehow, I would chart out a simple pattern and spend 2019 tracking the temperature in needlepoint. This was easier said than done -- it's HARD to chart out 365 spaces, darn it! Lots of sketches, tests, and recounts. Oh, and of course it's not a true rectangle, and there are those cutouts to contend with!

But finally, with some fudging and some shifting, a 365-space grid was sketched on an old piece of needlepoint canvas:

The center piece will include the year and a very simple border, and then the background of it will be whatever color corresponds with the temperature. But what color would that be, I hear you ask!

I wanted something with a little color, but I'm not super into rainbows. I recently crocheted a scarf from Mandala yarn that was in a muted rainbow, so I used that as my inspiration and spent a lot of time trying to choose colors of DMC tapestry wool... without being able to see any of them in person. That said, when they all arrived, I was really happy with the range -- everything is a bit muted or, as DMC calls it, "Drab".

Of course, one can't predict the temperatures for the coming year, but I made some guesses and ordered between 2 and 7 skeins of each color. The nice thing about this project is if I need to wait to restock a color, I can keep working on other days, unlike with my temperature afghan!

My One Monthly Goal for January is to really get going on this -- get the canvas in a frame and get stitching. Oh, and to decide what to call this project. Temperature Needlepoint? Temperature Tapestry? Temperature Topper???

This link-up is organized by Elm Street Quilts, you can check out all the monthly projects on the January Link-up Page.

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal January Link-up

Oh, and here's a gratuitous photo of one of my adorable cats...