Ten Things for a Tenth Blogaversary

I started this blog post on April 13, but Blogger wasn't co-operating. I wasn't able to add the photos properly, so I stopped and then forgot to come back to it until today. 

Jo at Serendipitous Stitching just celebrated 10 years of blogging on April 8th.  She has posted 10 questions on her blog and has given us the list if we would like to participate as well. 

1.    The tenth project you completed was a very small project I stitched way back in 1997.  The pattern is from one of my Cross Stitch and Country Craft magazines called Rabbit Bookmark.  You stitch the 2 sides on one fabric and then I folded the edges over and glued them underneath.  Then I glued the 2 sides together like a book.  The book mark goes on the corner edge of a page.  If I was to stitch it again I would stitch the edges together like I do with my Just Nan mice instead of using glue.

2.    The tenth blog post you made on March 25, 2012 Liebster Award

3.    The tenth blog in your blog roll (or your reader or however you follow blogs).

I use My Blog List which is located on the right side of my blog and is sorted by most recently updated. This list changes by the minute.  I selected the blog name from the actual list where I add and remove them to show up on my blog (hope this makes sense).  Stitch Bitch is the 10th entry in this list.

4.    A designer you have stitched more than ten designs. I have several designers that I have stitched more than 10 of their charts... Dragon Dreams (30), Just Nan (25), and the closest to the number 10 are Country Cottage Needleworks (12). 

In 2013, I stitched Santa's Village 12 buildings all in a row.  Design stitched area is 62" long by 7" high.  I hang it on my ledge in the basement at Christmas time.  I used a candy cane swirl fabric for the edges and back.

5.    A project that took/is taking more than ten years to complete. I have only ever had a few projects take more than 1 year to stitch, but none over 10 years to complete.  The closest was the Plaid Trousers I completed last year, but it wasn't because the project was too large it was more I procrastinated because I hated the inconsistency in the designer's chart.  Actual stitching was probably only a month once I got it all re-charted.  You can read about Plaid Trousers as a UFO and the Happy Dance.

6.    A design on the theme of "ten". In 1998, I bought and stitched a Leisure Arts chart called Baby Keepsakes for my oldest son Jaspar's Kindergarten teacher.  I have now stitched it 10 times for teachers, co-workers, and friends of the family.  Each time I have changed it to make it more personal. 

Leisure Arts Leaflet 540 - original design

I stitched it for the 1st time (as charted) in 1998, for my oldest son Jaspar's Kindergarten teacher.

I stitched it the 2nd time (pink) in 2007, for my brother Dan’s first granddaughter.  This was one of the first big projects that I planned using my cross stitch program on the computer.  Motifs were free from Ellen Maurer-Stroh. I also found a pattern for small handprints for the bottom.

In 2008 I stitched the pattern 3 more times without the baby information and handprints. 

3rd (green) and 4th (blue/boy) both were gifts for co-workers. They both had boys, but at the time only one knew she was having a boy.  I used the same motifs as above. Blogger has decided the blue one should go first.

5th time was for a friend of my youngest sister Denise.  The parents are Reptilians, so she wanted me to stitch reptiles as the theme.

In 2010, I stitched the pattern for the 6th time for a friend’s first granddaughter.  I added the baby info and their nursery theme was butterflies.

I stitched the pattern 2 more times in 2011.

The 7th time was for my sister Pam’s best friend’s first son.  She had a jungle theme, so I added jungle animals to the baby info.

The 8th (2011) and 9th (2014) times were both stitched for a close family friend’s 2 daughters.  I stitched the first daughter in pink, so I did the second daughter in purple.  I added baby info only because we didn’t know if they had a nursery theme at the time.

The 10th time was also stitched in 2014 for one of my sister Pam & Denise’s friends.  Pam was crocheting a palm tree with 5 jungle animals (lion, tiger, monkey, elephant and giraffe) that stack on top of each other.  I cross stitched the same 5 jungle animals.

7.    The tenth colour on your current project.  Do you use this colour a lot?

DMC 666 is listed as the tenth colour on the ACNH SAL.  I have used this colour more in the past year because Stewart at  Cunning Cross Stitch also used it on the Harry Potter SAL in 2020. 

8.    Your tenth WIP for WIPocalypse, WIPGO or whatever list you make.  

I'm usually a One-at-a-time stitcher, so I don't have a list of WIPS.

9.    Your tenth finish this year (or last year if you haven't finished ten so far this year).  

I have finished at least 10 small motifs on my current 2021 ACNH SAL.

10.    How has your stitching style changed in the last ten years?

When I started stitching 26 years ago (1995) all I did was stitch gifts for other people (teachers, friends and family). Ten years ago I slowly stopped stitching for everyone else, now it is just for myself to display in our house.