WIPocalypse - November edition

It looks like the end of November is already here (how did that happen??) and so it's time for another WIPocalypse! It's the second to last WIPocalypse of 2015 already and Christmas is nearly here. The Christmas markets around here opened last week and we already visited a few (we had a lot of delicious food and drinks and bought some things to decorate our home for Christmas).
We had some snow here in the last days and it already feels like Christmas =)
And like every year, I am still hoping for a white Christmas (I only remember this happen once...)

But now for WIPocalypse!

First I want to answer this months questions which is:
Which designer has inspired you to stitch the greatest number of designs and why do you think that is?

Okay, it's obviously Haed. I have a ton of charts and most of my WIPs are Haed lol.
I really love their charts. They are very detailed and I just love those moments where you fight a ton of confetti and you only feel like stitching a giant colorful bubble and then you step back and it looks amazing.
I love that Haeds don't have backstitching or speciality stitches so they are easy to work. Haed has a lot of artists and designs I like and I love that they carry a wide range of designs (I mean you can find everything from landscapes and animals to fantasy and the style varies from anime like to realistic). I am also very happy with their costumer service, whenever I had a problem with a chart I got a friendly and helpful reply in no time.

Apart from Haed I like the Dimensions Kits. Sometimes I just feel like stitching something with backstitching and french knots and half stitches and something on a lower count (with Aida I even stitch in hand). I like their designs, especially from the Gold Collection. So I have a couple of their kits in my stash and stitch them then and again.

Ok and now for my updates. The last WIPocalypse I did was the September edition, so here are some more updates:

First up are the updates on the two pieces I worked on for the Haed challenges on facebook.
I worked on Das Rheingold by Kinuko Craft:
Last time:

And now, 1600 stitches added:

I will try and finish the page I started during December but my mojo to work on this is not really back yet..
I also did some work on Iris. Last time:

I added 1200 stitches during the challenge and I am very close to finishing page 2:

And I did some work on Eternal Promise. Here is how it looked last time:

And now, about 2000 stitches added:

I am currently working on QS Theatre of the Absurd. It is so close to a finish (about 300 stitches) so I will try and finish it today (I planned on doing so yesterday but then we spent so much time on a Christmas market so I was to tired to stitch...). I know I should try and finish the page I started on Rheingold but I really feel like working on Yule Angel since it's a Christmas design.... So maybe I will work on that for a few days ;-)

So I hope all enjoy the weekend and spent some time with your stitching and I will be back in a few days with a finish on QS Theatre of the Absurd! =)

Gifted Gorgeousness - November

I don't really feel like blogging or writing a lot of stuff. So I will just share a quick update on my Map of Middle Earth for the Gifted Gorgeousness SAL.
I only got 1000 stitches into this one, which is ok. I used to get about 2000 stitches in per month earlier in the year and I hope that I can find my pace again to do that much. I want to pick up Wolf Kiss for a few days this month and so there will hopefully be a little update on that next month. But here is Middle Earth:

The last time you saw it:

And now:

Back online - a ton of updates!

I am finally back in blog-land, yay!
We had a lot of chaos while moving and but now it's done and we are settled in our new place. It's a lot bigger than my old place (more than twice the size) so I have a lot of room for all my crafty stuff lol. We have a bigger couch now so both me and my boyfriend can sit on it without squeezing and there is still room for my floss boxes (and there is still room on the couch left!). So stitching here is way more comfortable then before and I feel like I made a ton of progress during the last weeks. Another reason could also be that until last Saturday we didn't have internet access here (which is also why you didn't hear from me).
But now I am back online and can share my progress with you and read all your blogs and watch flosstube and procrastinate and do many many things instead of housework :D

Since I didn't make it in time for YOTA or WIPocalypse or any updates at all during the last five weeks, this is a combined post updating on everything I did during the last weeks.

First up is what would be my YOTA update. I worked on QS Theatre of the Absurd during the last week of October and I am NEARLY done with it. I am actually missing a partial column but I will definitely finish it in this months UFO week!
Here is where I got in October:

Then, as I mentioned in my last post, I did some work on Eternal Promise. It's just two and a partial column so far but it's still 1600 stitches:

I really love this piece and will pick it up for another column or two soon. I love the contras between the blue border with those amazing flowers and the dark and green colors of the forest and it has a very nice and manageable amount of confetti =)

Michele from Heaven and Earth Designs put up two stitching challenges on facebook. Both involve doing 100 per week on a chosen WIP. One was launched in the supersize group, so the plan is to stitch on a supersize (since I only have one so far, this was an easy choice) and one was for the official Haed group and one could pick any project. I chose Das Rheingold because I haven't worked on it for ages and it needs some love and maybe I will get my mojo back to work on this. The plan is wo work on those two projects from Friday to Sunday and see how much I can get done. From Monday to Thursday I will work on a different project and I am currently planning to change that weekly. During the first week I worked on Eternal Promise and now Middle Earth is on the frame. I am unsure if I will turn to Eternal Promise for another one or two columns or pick up something else (maybe Yule Angel?).
Anyway, I did work on Das Rheingold on Friday and Saturday morning. I stitched one full column (wich makes me happy, one column is a good goal to stitch in two days and it will ensure progress on Rheingold). So another letter appeared and here is how Rheingold looks now:

On my goal list for 2015 is to finish page 5 on Rheingold and I hope this challenge will get me towards meeting that goal (apart from that I only have to finish QS Theatre of the Absurd and a few more stitches on Kreimhild).
From Saturday evening to Sunday I worked on Supersized Iris Keeper and did 300 stitches. It's not that much but I am putting my focus on Rheingold. Iris is a lot of fun to stitch but now that some confetti is coming in the progress is slowing down. Unfortunately I didn't take a picture before putting Middle Earth on the frame, so the pic to follow is new to you guys but not up to date. I finished the first 10 columns at the end of October and I originally planned to put this away for some time and work on something else because I had so much Iris in the last weeks. But now I am working on it again... Anyway, here is Iris as of the end of October with 8000 stitches complete:

I really love the colors. They are so vibrant and it's completely amazing to see how well they work together. I am very pleased with my work on Iris and it is always hard to put her down. 

And by the way, I did request the SK Wine Shelf to be supersized and it's on Micheles List :D I don't know why I like supersized SKs, but there seems to be something with them. After all, I also have SK Storykeeper as a supersize in my stash :D

And since we are already talking about supersizes, I ordered my first Haed Kit! The shipping was very expensive but I desperately wanted one of those beautiful frog swords and a laying tool and I think the kits also come with one of those nice needle threaders? And since I needed the material anyway I decided to got with a kit as a christmas present for myself =) I am sure I will also have to pay taxes, so I don't think I will order all my kits from Haed all the time but I really wanted to give this a try. 

But it's late here in Germany now and I am off to bed. I will be back in a few days with a Gifted Gorgeousness SAL update (I'm working on Middle Earth, so there will be a few stitches to show! I hope I can manage at least 1000). So I hope you haven't forgotten about me and there is someone out there reading this (and hopefully enjoying ;-)). I guess I'll update more regularly now =)