First Finish of 2026

Just 12 days in and we have a finish already!  This is Day 3 of the 12 Days of Christmas series from Cottage Garden Samplings.  Stitched like the others using 1 strand on 35 count cream linen.

stitched on 35 count cream linen

I did decide to backstitch the hens as they did fade into the fabric a little bit too much.

Each evening I have been stitching on my Just Nan choice - the Witching Hour Cube:

stitched on 32 count purple linen

The borders are charted for Weeks Dye Works but I used DMC 333 for the main purple outline and then some silks for the inner borders.  I was gifted the silks kit for Counting Bats and as Nan uses the same colours for many of her designs I thought this was a good chance to use them again.  Those greens are so pretty.

I have chosen a new design for my Dark Thirteen stitching tomorrow but today I have been stitching on my oldest WIP - Yiota's Coffee Fairy.  So far I have outlined a biscuit!

January Plans

Since 2011 I have chosen a number of projects to focus on that year, starting with my "11 in '11" and increasing to "24 in '24".  Last year I decided not to attempt this and focused on 2 larger pieces and then spend the rest of my stitching time on the series I have started.  I intend to do the same this year.

This is the list for 2026:

1. Mirabilia - Fairy Idyll - 6 WIPGO numbers
2. Yiotas Cross Stitch - Coffee Fairy - 6 WIPGO numbers
3. Cottage Garden Samplings - 12 Days of Christmas - 2 WIPGO numbers
4. Nora Corbett - Trick or Treat Fairy - 2 WIPGO numbers
5. Nora Corbett - Zodiac Girl TBA - 2 WIPGO numbers
6. Cottage Garden Samplings - Year in the Woods - 2 WIPGO numbers
7. Cricket Collection - Autumn - 2 WIPGO numbers
8. Satsuma Street - Taurus - 2 WIPGO numbers

As you can tell, I am also taking part in WIPGO again.  This is a FB Bingo group.  You choose 25 goals for the year and each month the Admin pick two numbers to focus on.  When you have met your goal, you tick off that block.  You can give yourself rewards for completing a row or a column.

Here's my WIPGO board:

For January the numbers 2 and 7 have been called.

Number 2 is Day 3 in the 12 Days of Christmas series by Cottage Garden Samplings.  Here's what it will look like:

And here's my progress so far:

stitched on 32 count Cream Linen

My evening projects this year will be a mixture of whatever I feel like stitching!  I want to get some of my Just Nan Halloween designs stitched and the Random Number Generator chose this one:

Just Nan Witching Hour Cube

stitched on 32 count Purple Linen

The border is stitched in DMC 333 and the fabric is pretty much the same colour.  The chart calls for some WDW for the borders but I'm using plain DMC.

I have already stitched the mouse shown on the cover so she will be happy to have a cube to sit on now!

Miss Hazel Fun Witch Mouse

The Coffee Fairy from Yiotas is currently my oldest WIP and will look like this:

Currently looks like this:

Round Up of 2025

As you've probably realised, 2025 went pear-shaped some point in May and didn't really recover.  Several things took a hit and blogging was one of them.  Fortunately stitching limped on and recovered remarkedly well.  Thanks in part to my WIPGO plans and the fact that I love all my current projects!

I came into the year with 14 WIPs and started 23 projects over the course of the year of which only 2 are still WIPs. I also completed 6 projects started prior to 2025. My current WIPs are:

Prior to 2020 5
2021-24         3
2025              2
Total            10

So that's a total of 27 finishes this year.  12 were the Annie Beez 12 Days of Christmas Stockings.  Some have even been sewed into a stocking shape and just need their trim.

Here's the rest of my finishes in order:

January

Shannon Christine 

12 Days of Christmas Day 1

Life in Stitch

Aslan

The Steady Thread
Temperature Tree for 2024

February

Cottage Garden Samplings

Year in the Woods - Swans

July

photo to follow!

Cottage Garden Samplings

12 Days of Christmas Day 2

August

Satsuma Street 

Aquarius

Shannon Christine 

12 Days of Christmas Day 2

September

Living on the Rainbow

Fall Bookshelf

October

Heart in Hand

Tiny Halloween Town

Nora Corbett

Evanora

Nora Corbett

Scorpio

Living on the Rainbow

Haunted Bookshelf

November

The Steady Thread

Halloween Shelf

Craft Collection

Art Nouveau Head

(my oldest WIP!)

Cricket Collection

Summer

It does look like I didn't stitch much between February and August but that is when I was starting a lot of my WIPGO projects which got finished later in the year.

WIPGO was a great success and I ticked off every box this year.  Even if my Longest Day Marathon ended up taking place in November and not June!  Literally the first day I had with nothing else on so I decided to treat myself to a whole day of stitching.

I also made incredible progress on my Mirabilia Fairy Idyll project.  She started the year looking like this:

By the end of November, she looked like this:

I stitched her for the entirety of December and now she looks like this:

I am so happy with my progress on her!  I plan to stitch her for at least 12 weeks next year.  She has 6 numbers on my WIPGO board the same as this year.  Who know, we could see a finish next year?


Thanks to a computer malfunction I lost a lot of my statistics including Stitch from Stash and the Pie charts so no updates there.  I know I didn't spend much due to a lack of actual money.  I also lost my WIP photos from May to November.

Let's finish on a happier note!  I have some great stitching plans for 2026.  I do plan to "WIP down" further if I can.  I want to get my oldest WIP completed again along with Fairy Idyll.  I want to stitch more Nora Corbett and more Just Nan as well as the other series I have started.  I'm undecided about a Temperature SAL for 2026 as I have two uncompleted ones already!

Finally,

Have a very Happy Old Year's Night

and a very Peaceful New Year's Day

September Stitching

Apart from a short break to stitch the Living on the Rainbow Fall Bookshelf, I focused entirely on Mirabilia's Fairy Idyll in September.  Specifically the over one skin for her face and arm:

Isn't she beautiful?

She started the month looking like this:

And finished like this:

stitched on 32 count Vinyard Murano from Crafty Kitten

And here's the area I was working on, I started with her hair and floral crown.  Then started on the skin which seemed never ending so I alternated with some of the gold dress as well.

My evening project was Annie Beez's 12 Days of Christmas Stocking and here's Day 9:

stitched on 28 count Black Jobelan

Latest Finish

 

Living on the Rainbow - Fall Bookshelf

Stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

I couldn't wait to start this one, bought it as soon as it was released and started stitching straight away.

Gifted Gorgeousness July Link-Up Post

      

Welcome to the July Gifted Gorgeousness link-up. The link-up date continues to be the 15th and I will keep the link-up open until the end of each month so you have plenty of time if you are late posting.

The format remains exactly the same, there is a list of rules on the main sign-up page if you want to check what is required but basically anything connected to the word "gift" is allowed, whether it was a gift TO you or is a gift FROM you.

None of my daytime pieces have a gifted component so I can't share them today, but fortunately my evening piece does.  This is, as ever, Annie Beez's 12 Days of Christmas:

stitched on 28 count Black Jobelan evenweave

This one isn't a gifted piece but I'll be stitching it on the 13th of every month for Dark Thirteen so you'll see this every GG post too.

This is Halloween Tiny Town from Heart in Hand Designs

stitched on 32 count Tobacco Belfast linen

Finally it is your turn to show us your Gifted Gorgeousness for the month.  Please use your name or your blog name in the field and NOT the words "July Update" so I can easily see who has linked up this month.  And link to the actual post, not just your blog.  It is easier if you copy and paste the link, rather than typing freehand.

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June IHSW

IHSW or International Hermit and Stitch Weekend always starts on the third Friday of the month.  It's a chance to lock yourself away and focus on your stitching for the weekend.  You can take part on your blog or via the Facebook page - IHSW on Facebook.

This year I am attempting International Hermit and Blackwork.  I do love blackwork and have a couple of projects I want to try fit in to my rotation without being on the WIPGO Board.

My main blackwork piece is the Halloween Blackwork from The Steady Thread.  It went from here:

to here:

stitched on 32 count tea-dyed linen

Always exciting when the border meets up!

This is the part I worked on over the weekend:

I'm a little bit behind with my Temperature Chart but here is the most recent photo, lots of lovely oranges and a bit of red to be added:

stitched on 14 count Aida banding

Finally the next IHSW will be 18th - 20th July so make sure you note the date in your diary or come and join us in the Facebook Group - IHSW on Facebook. If you don't do Facebook then you can check in here by leaving a comment on my post.

Gifted Gorgeousness June Link-Up Post

     

Welcome to the June Gifted Gorgeousness link-up. The link-up date continues to be the 15th and I will keep the link-up open until the end of each month so you have plenty of time if you are late posting.

The format remains exactly the same, there is a list of rules on the main sign-up page if you want to check what is required but basically anything connected to the word "gift" is allowed, whether it was a gift TO you or is a gift FROM you.

None of my daytime pieces have a gifted component so I can't share them today, but fortunately my evening piece does.  This is, as ever, Annie Beez's 12 Days of Christmas:

stitched on 28 count Black Jobelan evenweave

This one isn't a gifted piece but I'll be stitching it on the 13th of every month for Dark Thirteen so you'll see this every GG post too.

This is Halloween Tiny Town from Heart in Hand Designs

stitched on 32 count Tobacco Belfast linen

Finally it is your turn to show us your Gifted Gorgeousness for the month.  Please use your name or your blog name in the field and NOT the words "June Update" so I can easily see who has linked up this month.  And link to the actual post, not just your blog.  It is easier if you copy and paste the link, rather than typing freehand.

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Finally Fully Finishing Fun for June

  

Hosted by Rachel the Ten Hour Stitcher

This SAL is designed to motivate us all to do something with that box of Finished pieces instead of just storing them under the bed.  We will all be linking up on Rachel's blog on or after the 10th of each month (10 Hour Stitcher - 10th of the month).

Following a total wash out last month, I was determined to FFO something this month.  By now I should have 5 of my 12 Days Stockings completed but I only had Days 1 and 2. 

I usually stitch these as my evening project but left them during May in favour of my annual Just Nanathon.  So Day 5 was finished early this month and FFO'd already:

I started Day 6 as soon as I'd done with Day 5 and here they are both are together:

stitched on 28 count Black Jobelan evenweave

 

Finally, I will attempt to catch up with Days 3 and 4 later this month and maybe have 3 to show you in July?