Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 13

Hi everyone! I hope my American friends enjoyed their Thanksgiving, and that you all found the Black Friday bargains you had hoped for. I work in ecommerce so this is a busy time for me, but I managed to get myself organized so I haven't had to log in and work since Friday evening. (Sure hope I didn't just jinx myself!)

In the intervening three weeks I actually took a week off (hooray!), so I'm feeling pretty relaxed and happy. And I feel like I got a lot of stitching done, despite not taking this big piece with me. Here's where my "Great Wave" was last time:

And here's where I am now:

I'm not sure how I got this much done, except that there was less confetti stitching, and more big blocks of color. I have the top halves of 17.5 columns complete, with 2.5 more to go. I'm pretty sure I can get another half column done by our next check in -- can I get the entire top half done?

The weather has been very wet and wild -- "atmospheric rivers" drenching the lowlands and causing the rivers to rise. I know we need the rain (and the snow in the mountains), so I hope everyone is safe. And it means I have few distractions or desires to linger outside! 

I'm looking forward to checking out the blogs of my fellow stitchers to see their beautiful projects. I'm sure they'll inspire you, too!

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 12

Hi everyone! I can't believe it's been three weeks! Hopefully everyone had a sufficiently spooky Halloween and a festive Bonfire Night. I have been reading about how this weekend's "king tide" at the coast -- when the earth is closest to the sun and the moon is closest to the earth, high tides and big waves are expected. So here's where my "Great Wave" was last time:

And here's where I am, three weeks later:

It's really getting "wavy", isn't it?! I have the top halves of 13.5 columns complete, with 6.5 more to go. I'm working on another stitching project that's been taking up a lot of my time, but I should be able to have another half column done by our next check in. 

Oh, and me and my sprained ankle limped our way through the half marathon, and we had a great weekend away. And the very kind race director made sure I got bib number 100 to celebrate. 

And my ankle? It's much better now. We joked that we really got our money's worth during the race as we spent a long time out there!

But this is a stitching post (though it reminds me I do finally need to write up my race report!) -- so I'm looking forward to checking out the blogs of my fellow stitchers to see their beautiful projects. I'm sure they'll inspire you, too!

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Witchy Stitchy 2021

This year I participated in the 2021 Witchy Stitchy Challenge -- a challenge to stitch for at least half an hour every day in October. Apart from the weekend where I was staying in a dimly lit cottage where I couldn't see to stitch, I did it. I also made a point of not working on my big "Great Wave" project, and focused on some Halloweeny items, and, in the last couple of days, an early Christmas present. And voila!

It will take me a while to decide how I want to finish the two small motifs -- in theory I'll turn them into ornaments for my Halloween tree. And I'm happy with how both the small Mill Hill "Taboo Kitty" ornament and the Hook, Line & Tinker "gnomework" kit turned out. 

It was great to have the motivation to stitch every day ... and the freedom to have a couple of skip days and not feel bad about it. So all in all, a big success!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 11

WOW. This is the 11th check-in with this project. And there's a looooooooong way to go. Here's where I was last time:

And now, three weeks later, I'm here:

Maybe it's because I know this artwork really well, but I love that it's really starting to look "right"!

By our next check in I hope to have another column done. I've realized that slow and steady is the way I'll be able to complete this. Sometimes I'll have a little productivity spurt, and sometimes I'll barely make a dent. 

In the meantime, I've also been making progress as part of the Witchy Stitchy challenge, where I'm working on some cute cross-stitch motifs. It's been much more challenging than I expected to stitch on such small-scale fabric, even though it's aida, and I've only managed to complete one motif so far. But it's CUTE:

In other stitching news, many of you will recognize this fella, Mr. Tiger:

I submitted him to the Washington State Fair (or "The Puyallup Fair" as locals call it) and won an "honorable mention" ribbon. I suppose it would only be honorable to mention to you that I was the only entry in the category! Still, I'm pleased with getting a ribbon at all, so that's fun. 

I'm drafting this early as I'm headed out of town for the weekend. We're going to the super adorable town of Port Townsend, where I'm going to be running my 100th half marathon! Well, running is an overstatement -- I sprained my ankle badly last week, so I'm still hobbling a bit. But I've waited quite a while to get number 100 done, so I'm going to grit my teeth and get through it. (Do not try this at home -- I'm aware it's ridiculous!)

I plan on spending my Sunday evening with my ankle iced and elevated, and reading through all the rest of the blogs in this stitch-a-long. I'm sure their amazing, creative, diverse projects will distract me -- and enchant you if you check them out, too. 

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Larry Scott Trail Half Marathon race report

*I'm writing this race report months later, but backdating it to race day.

In 2020 I expected to run my 99th and 100th half marathons. But given the pandemic and the fact that most races turned into virtual events, it wasn't until October 2021 that I got to run #100. (I ran the races in 2020, but don't "count" virtual events in my totals.)

I had told the race director ahead of time that this would be my 100th race, and, well, they saved bib #100 for me. 

It was a really gorgeous morning -- bright and cool. 

It wasn't a big race, which was fine by me. Eventually we gathered by the starting arch and set out. 

We started along the paved trail, which ran along the shoreline before turning into a forest. 

A small race and us walking meant we were on our own most of the time. But the volunteers were friendly, the course was pretty, and the day was fine. 

Eventually we approached the finish line -- not last, but there weren't many runners left. But they still had the arch set up, and the announcer gave me a special shout out, and the volunteers all cheered. Very, very kind. 

Larry Scott Trail Half Marathon

3:16:52

15:02 pace

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 10

Hi everyone! I don't know where the three weeks went. After last check in, where I managed to get a LOT of stitching done, I was here:

I was so happy to start stitching the actual wave. With some "oh my goodness tomorrow is check-in day so I had better get my needle moving" activity (I'm not alone in this, I suspect!), I'm here:

It's fun to have some of the deeper blue of the wave coming in ... and that subtle but detailed sky. 

Of course, the wave will be much more in focus when I add the backstitching... but that's a LONG way off. 

Halloween, on the other hand, is just right around the corner! I'm going to be participating in the Witchy Stitchy challenge, where I attempt to stitch 30 minutes 27 of the 31 days in October. I Witchy Stitchy 2019, where I believe we only stitched for 13 days, and that was hard enough -- but I got a lot of stitching done. While I do plan to keep working on the Great Wave, I always like to do some seasonal stitching ahead of my favorite holiday. 

Someone in this stitch-a-long, I believe, was stitching from this pattern set, and I fell in love with it. So I bought it last year and then put it aside until now. A couple of weeks ago I tried my hand at ice-dyeing and -- once I recovered one of the pieces from the raccoons (seriously, this happened) and washed the fabric, I really like how it turned out. So expect to see some of this work during our next check-in!

Until then, do check out what the other stitchers in this stitch-a-long are up to. It's always inspiring to see their amazing projects:

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 9

Hi everyone! I hope you're all sitting down because ... I got a bunch of stitching done!!!

Here's what I was last time: 

And here's where I am now:

Yep, that's BLUE! I stitched 21/2 columns and am now officially 25% of the way done with the main stitching!

Getting to the blue was so inspiring I just kept wanting to stitch. Not be to wishing this project was behind me -- I mean, there's a long, long way to go! -- but it's exciting to feel like I'm really into the pattern now.

I am going to keep working across the top of the design... where there's so much water coming! 

 

Don't forget to go and check out what the other stitchers in this stitch-a-long are up to. It's always inspiring to see their amazing projects:

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 8

Hi everyone! Another check-in, another "late" posting. I'm one of the folks on the far end of the world, so I usually try to get my post scheduled for just after midnight my time. This time, frankly, I just forgot! 

I've been working, slowly but surely on my Great Wave piece, and continue to be amused by where I see it. This was hanging on the wall of a nearby ramen restaurant:

If Godzilla really was in my picture, would already have stitched his head! 

Here's where I was last time:

And here's where I am this time:

The keen-eyed of you will notice that I've completed another column! (And notice that I keep "stitching outside the lines" when I have some thread left on my needle...)

I am now about 1/6 of the way done with the stitching... so there's a long way to go. Here's some perspective. I'm working on the top half, the bottom extends a little past the "roll" of the frame. And all that to the right...

BUT I'm still enjoying it and -- here's the exciting thing -- I'll have my first bits of light blue in the next column!!! But I'm getting ahead of myself. 

I'm going to wrap this up so I can check out what the other stitchers in this stitch-a-long are up to. It's always inspiring to see their amazing projects:

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 7

Hi everyone! Apologies for the late posting -- usually I manage to get these written on Saturday and then scheduled for just after midnight my time so that those of you IN THE FUTURE don't have to wait until late on your Sunday to see my check-in. 

But the weather here in Seattle has been so nice -- and much cooler than three weeks ago! -- so we spent yesterday playing and took the paddleboards out on a nearby lake:

Ahhhh. 

It hasn't been all play this past three weeks (not that any of you would fault me if it was!). Work was extra stressful with a new project launch an a new team member who joined at the 11th hour and wanted to make her presence felt... which meant scrapping a lot of work that had already been done. Sigh. 

But more importantly -- I did some stitching! Here's where I finished up last time:

And here's where I am now:

A whole other column! There is still so much to do... but progress is being made. So much sky...

I have realized that it's harder for me to work on big, framed projects during the summer. In fall and winter we spend evenings indoors, which is more conducive to sitting down with a big frame. So I have found myself picking up small projects that I can more easily take outside. 

I'm going to wrap this up so I can check out what the other stitchers in this stitch-a-long are up to. It's always inspiring to see their amazing projects:

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!

Great Wave Stitch-a-Long, part 6

Hi everyone! Greetings from the Very Hot city of Seattle. Less hot today, but... boy, it was hot. 

I'm happy to report that I made a tiny bit of progress on my Great Wave piece -- and all progress is good progress!

But here's where I was:

and here's where I am now:

I am absolutely sure that the other stitchers in this stitch-a-long have been much more productive than I have, so check out their blogs and see:

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, AJ, Laura, Cathie, Linda, and Helen.

See you in three weeks!