Knyttwytch's Crafts and Stuff

OMG I did it!

Finally after pain suffering and months/years of stitching I have finally finished the Map of Durham!

Just needs washing and then I can give it to Mum :D

Quick update on the year

1. Read 214 books - 121/214 (on track with this)

2. Knit 16 squares  - 10/16 (hmm need to get back to this and soon!)

3. At least 1 new recipe every 4 weeks – done

4. Use make-up at least once a week – 25/52 (still playing catch up and will be until the weather is cooler!)

5. Finish sweater  (currently on hold, but will start again soon, again when the weather is cooler or I take it down to the pub and do it there as it is cooler there!)

6. Finish tapestry (main background colour) – done!!

7. Finish Map of Durham – hopefully one more week will see this done, I really want this finished, washed and given to Mum

8. Read all the Terry Pratchetts (Discworld ones) – 32/36 (well on track with this)

9. Use up all the odds and sods of lotions and potions! - done!

Okay a lot of the crafting stuff is in abeyance at the moment, this seems to be where I need to have my focus, I think finishing the Map of Durham will help with this - so that is my plan for this week!

Hmm I need to have a bit of a sort out of my crafting stuff and a sort out in general, but I suspect that along with a number of other things that will need to wait for cooler weather *sigh*, we grumble all Winter about the cold and damp, but we North Europeans can't take it too hot for too long either!

Need to step up a notch

Everything seems to have ground to a halt, my weight has stalled (dagnabbit!), I haven't crafted in two weeks and I am 6 books behind on my target! Oh and add in to that I haven't worn make-up for three weeks and things are not looking too good Wytchy wise (grumble).  So taking my cue from Carolyn at http://1940sexperiment.wordpress.com/ I am getting my act back on track.

1. Read 214 books - 80/214 - okay I need to crack on with this, audio books could be my friend again whilst I craft.

2. Knit 16 squares 10/16 - actually I am on track with this, but I want to get more done and start to stitch the throw together.

3. At least 1 new recipe every 4 weeks – 11/13 - this is well and truly on track! I have one to type up on my recipe blog but other than that things are looking good.

4. Use make-up at least once a week - 18/52 - okay currently 3 behind on this and this week ain't going to happen either! But if I start to wear make-up on a Monday when I go to the crafty afternoon then that will help.

5. Finish sweater - at the moment this is on hold whilst I deal with the other crafty stuff first, hopefully I will get lots done on holiday though.

6. Finish tapestry (main background colour) - this is my main focus at home at the moment, if I can get the main background colour done this year I stand a chance of getting the whole thing finished in a year or two.

7. Finish Map of Durham - this is my crafty afternoon project and it is coming along nicely, once this one is finished I will gradually work through the other cross stitch projects I ahve, I can just about manage an hour a week.

8. Read all the Terry Pratchetts (Discworld ones) – 23/35 - these are my bedtime reading at the moment, and again I am nicely on target, of course these do count towards my overall total which helps!

9. Use up all the odds and sods of lotions and potions! - 13 down - I have a couple to finish off so again this has worked rather well (but has taken a bit of a backseat along with the make-up thing, so I need to get back to it.)

The soggy weather is not helping my pain and get up and go any, but if I want to succeed at all they I need to push past that a bit (but not too much or I can end up a lot worse!), I think the bad weather is affecting the dogs as well, they are either spark out (which is nice and cute!) or manic (not so nice and cute), today (thank the Goddess!) is a spark out on the sofa day :), as they are nice and quiet I reckon I can finish reading a book on my Kindle, wash up my lunch bowl and then work on the tapestry with either an audio book or the TV on for background noise.

one week later

okay no real knitting has happened (well okay I got another couple of sampler squares done and did a bit on the sweater but that was it!) but I did get some done on the Map of Durham (yay!) and more of the background colour done on the tapestry.  I hope the photos actually show there being a difference :D

First off the Map of Durham last week and this week

and then the tapestry last week and this week

Now the question is do I keep hammering away at the tapestry, or do I stop that for the moment and work on the sweater? Both have been hanging around for a while, and whilst I want to get both done I am a little worried about the sweater, I am finally losing weight and the speed at which I knit I am getting a little concerned that by the time I get to wear it, it will be too large (oh Goddess the thought of having clothes that are too large!)

Hmm maybe this answers my question, get the tapestry finished and work on the sampler squares (and yet I really want to get a proper piece of clothing knitted and worn - aaargh!), confusion reigns and I am not happy about it!

Stuff done

All the laundry is up to date, I finished the 2nd lot of fingerless mittens and started (only just lol) the sweater.  Having been put on Beta Blockers earlier this week I was shortly taken off them, as with most medications I ended up with all the side effects and non of the benefits *sigh*, ah well back to herbal medication it is!

I have a a few things I really want to get done sooner rather than later, one is to play catch up on my reading - I have 10 books in my Goodreads "to read" section and I want to actually read them! Secondly get the sweater done, the fingerless mitts are very nice but they are also very simple and I want to stretch myself slightly, as well as this I need the Map of Durham "stunt stitching" and OH has offered to do this, I am hoping that two weekends would finish that off and then that will be part of my Mam's Christmas pressie.

Finally I need to get the sofa and my desk cleared, these two are major hotspots and I don't like seeing that amount of clutter around, however necessary it is! So my job is to get the house clean and tidy (and that will be a job and then some)

WIP list

I'm not really sure I want to do this but I think I need to :-

1. Crochet - fingerless mittens
2. Knitting - socks - need to decide about these, I no longer wear socks other than trainer socks
3. Stitching - Map of Durham
4. Perfect Pets
5. Medieval Sampler
6. TW The Castle
7. Greenman
8. Computer Whizz
9. Element Dragons
10. Wallace and Grommit bookmark
11. Winnie the Pooh x1
12. Winnie the Pooh x2
13. The Aerodrome
14. Needlepoint - Medieval Dog cushion cover
15. Book - murder mystery

Ouch - and these are the ones I thought of, and doesn't include those kitted up and not yet started! Stage one, finish the crochet, see if the needlepoint is easier to work in with the numb hand than the stitching, and hope to get back to stitching sooner rather than later!

Monday 21st March

Okay a quiet day, last day of Dr Tempewytch being off, so started with weighing in and another ruddy pound ON! then a bath (bliss!) and got dressed, time for a quick mug of tea (after tablets) and then The Furry Wytch (tm) to the vets, he managed to escape his harness!! and so the next thing I saw whilst locking the door was a small furry bullet closely followed by Dr Tempewytch hurtling down the road :D, luckily he stopped to pee (Furry Wytch (tm) NOT Dr Tempewytch lol) and was grabbed and then off to the surgery (where they said they wanted him to shift a few ounces *cough*), back in time for lunch (Dr Tempewytch took The Furry Wytch (tm) for a quick walk) then an afternoon chilling whilst Dr Tempewytch took The Furry Wytch (tm) out for a LONG walk (The Furry Wytch (tm) is now spark out on the sofa), I tracked my food and I am slightly under but not by much so I am obviously doing fine on the food front - the only thing that is wrong is the medication I reckon.

Tomorrow is a get up and DO day!! Cleaning and stitching being the main things

Plans for the week commencing 7th March 2011

Okay I have a few bits and bobs I want to get done this week, some are fun some are not but they all are on the list!

1. Sort out and file Art of Crochet
2. Sort out stitching bags
3. Empty bins
4. Bins out
5. Kitchen sink
6. Bathroom sink
7. Loo
8. Stove top
9. Send magazine to Marie
10. Stitch on Durham
11. Work on Book
12. Filing (statements and postcards)
13. Clear desk
14. Clear small table
15. Dust and sort coffee table
16. Go the White Horse for birthday dinner (Monday!)
17. Check if Ota wants a small yarn travel bag
18. Meet people next Sunday for afternoon drinks
19. Get some ribbon for ornaments
20. Track food (even allowing for Monday night!)

some of these are ones that will need doing over a couple of days, others are nice and quick!  Either which way I will be glad when they are done.  Pictures of stitching to follow during the week - hopefully *grin*

Map of Durham catch up

I managed to get some stitching done last Wednesday and then pain kicked in and ..... nothing BUT I hope to get a bit more done and this at least shows what I did manage to get done!

Map of Durham 4th January

A bit blurred in place but it gives the general idea, it is going a little more slowly now as I have reached the fiddly bits (trees/mountains/churches etc!) but none the less it is getting done and I am pleased with the daily check to see how I have got on!