In a few days, I will be closing Olive Hope Design. I’m saddened by that, but also excited about what the future holds. This will likely be my last post here, but I’m not leaving the blogging world just yet. I’ve started a new blog here, which will be in some ways much like this one, without the new design updates and other biz related stuff, and likely some more personal stuff than I felt comfortable posting on a business blog.

I’ve gotten back to stitching, and I’ve been working on the EMS Rose Sampler. I plan to post progress pictures on the other blog soon.

I hope all of you will follow me to my new blog. Don’t forget to update your bookmarks and links! Have a great day, and take care!

At some point this summer, I will either change this blog to a less business oriented one, or I will create a new one. I do enjoy blogging, and sharing the progress on my projects, and hopefully once the “biz stuff” is out of the way, I will make time to blog more often.

Ever find yourself knowing you have something, but can’t find it anywhere?  I’m having this problem now with a knitting bag and accessory pattern, and some fabric that I’m positive I had cut out, pinned, and had ready to sew into a zippered pouch. Last weekend, in preparation for getting back to some sewing, I’d reorganized my sewing box. I moved everything to a larger container, and browsed through all my patterns, and realized the one I was planning to use, was missing, as well as this cut-out fabric. I didn’t have time to continue searching then, and my search was further put off by getting sick.

This morning I finally resumed my search. I’ve looked everywhere. Well, everywhere I can logically think it might be. Obviously I haven’t looked everywhere, otherwise I’d have found it, right?

I’m kind of scared of where I might eventually find it. I know I started this project before we started our bathroom reno, and then abandoned it to focus on the reno and our summer activities. I likely stuck it away somewhere that may or may not have made sense at the time, with good intentions to move it to my sewing box eventually. Since our house has yet to return to “normal” I really wonder where the pattern and fabric will turn up. And will I have an “aha” moment, remembering exactly why I chose that particular place (or at least remember why I left it there)?

The past 2 weeks I’ve felt like I’ve been trying to do a number of things, but not really finishing much of anything. Last week my son got sick with some stomach virus (the first one for him!). He was only really sick for 1/2 a day and then his energy was mostly back. I felt a bit under the weather after that, and took it easy for a couple of days. I’d always wondered how I would deal with a sick, vomiting child, as the smell makes me gag. I was amazed to find that I could just go about cleaning up the bedding and my son without gagging or feeling nauseous. It wasn’t pleasant, but at least it wasn’t made worse by me getting sick to my stomach as well. We’re both fine this week, which is good, because it’s been a busy week, plus I decided to start spring cleaning this week. I decided to start, but that doesn’t mean I’ve accomplished much yet I did finish the worst (for me) job – cleaning the fridge. Amidst all this, I’ve had little time for stitching.

I started a group on yahoo, where I’ve started a SAL for this Teacup Sampler:

Teacup Sampler byOlive Hope Design

I accomplished a little stitching on this sampler last week, but haven’t had time this week:

progress as of May 8/09

To join in on the SAL, join the group here.

I’ve also been working on the EMS Rose Sampler. Most of my progress on the 4th part (the letters) was accomplished earlier in the month of April:

progress as of May 4/09

I also have a finish to share! After working on it sporadically for almost a year, I finished knitting a sweater for my son, and it actually looks like a sweater:

sweater finished May 3/09

I was having visions of sleeves being different lengths, back and front not lining up, etc. It’s a little big on him, which is fine, as then it might still fit him by fall so he can actually wear it. Next time I will try using long enough needles to knit both sleeves at once. At least then I won’t have to concern myself over if they’ll be the same length

I’ve let my etsy shop sit empty for a few weeks. Partly because I did forget when the last items were expiring, but mostly because I was trying to decide what to do with it, whether to keep selling, or to close the shop. I will no longer be selling my cross stitch charts through etsy, unless it’s a special release or limited edition, etc. I do have some items that I want to work on over the next month to add to the shop. So while there’s nothing there now, the plan is to have some items there within the month.

In other news, we had a bit of snow this morning! Yes, snow in May. Somehow I don’t think the fish will be biting very much for Opening Day tomorrow – and I definitely don’t want to be out on the water in this cool weather!

The Needlework Show opens in one week! I finally finished everything up yesterday, and aside from getting a few last minute things ready, I’m all set. I have 2 new designs (just put the last stitches into the last model yesterday morning) ready for this show, for a total of 6 new designs since the October show. Now, to plan some things to keep my mind busy so I’m not constantly checking my email, booth stats and orders. Hmmm, maybe I should plan to do some spring cleaning next week.

I’m continuing to make progress on the EMS Rose Sampler:

Apr 8 '09 progress on EMS Rose Sampler

I’ve had to frog a few times, but so far it’s not too discouraging. As much as I thought monochrome stitching would be boring, I’m finding it quite relaxing. (Sorry for the ripples on the fabric – I was quickly trying to snap a photo and get it saved to the computer before the batteries ran out on the camera.)

It’s supposed to be spring, right? Well, this was our back steps this morning:

the bottom step is hidden under the snow

and the street out front:

I saw grass just 2 days ago!

I took these around 11 this morning, and it’s still snowing! I *think* it’s supposed to stop tomorrow. Now that I have no reason to venture out into the snow, I can say it looks pretty. But it was not fun trying to walk through a 1-2 foot snow drift to get my son off the bus. Next week is spring break; I’m hoping there will be lots of melting. I wonder how much this new precipitation will affect the flood forecast?

In other news, if anyone has been having difficulty accessing my website (like me!), my hosting server has been experiencing some issues today. Hopefully it will be resolved soon. In the meantime, I’m off to make some Thai Chicken pizza for supper.

I admit it. I procrastinate.

I procrastinate when the task feels overwhelming.

I procrastinate when I don’t feel like doing something.

Mostly, I procrastinate because the task feels overwhelming, and so then I don’t feel like doing it. That’s likely why I can’t manage to succeed at blogging every day

I put off updating my website. It seemed like an overwhelming task. I thought it would take me a good chunk of the day.  I’ve put this off for a couple of weeks, but yesterday I decided that it was going to get done, and I would start my week off by completing this task. I knew it wasn’t difficult, only time consuming (and monotonous). Well, after finishing up washing the dishes that had piled up over the weekend, doing the vacuuming (hmmm, sounds like I was using housework to procrastinate even more, doesn’t it?), I sat down at the computer to begin the daunting task.

I started at 9:25, and at around 10:30, I was done uploading my website changes. This daunting task that I’d put off for weeks, done in about an hour. And yes, I do feel silly.

Progress to March 4, 2009

My progress on the Ellen Maurer-Stroh Rose Sampler; not as far as some of the other stitchers taking part in this SAL, but I’m on track to finish it by the end of the year (which is the group’s goal). Surprisingly, I’m really enjoying this monochrome stitching; I though I would find it boring.

I’m not doing very with posting each day, so far. But, it is getting me to think more often about what I can post on, so I think I am accomplishing something with it, even if I don’t end up with 20-30 posts by the end of March.

We’ve been suffering through a cold here; my husband and I had it 2 weeks ago, and this week my son has it. Only one day of school missed (Tuesday), and with plenty of rest each day, this morning he announced he was “all better!” Well, the nose still sounds a little stuffy, and he was still coughing, but he was more talkative during breakfast, and in all seemed to have more energy, so I believe he is over the worst of it. We’ll see how much energy he still has when he comes home from school. Yesterday he wasn’t even home half an hour before he was off for a nap. I’m guessing he’ll still need a nap, but perhaps it won’t be needed quite so soon, nor quite so long of one.

…until the end of March. At least I am going to try a post a day Monday though Friday until the end of March. If I can get a post or two in on the weekend, I will, but it will be quite an accomplishment just doing Monday through Friday.

I hope you won’t find this post too boring, especially since I don’t have any pictures to show, but I’m just going to talk about my day today (well, and a little about yesterday). I will definitely have more posts with pictures more often.

First, what I accomplished yesterday: I finally finished knitting the first sleeve of my son’s sweater. That was quite an accomplishment! I knitted and ripped the same sleeve three times, and finally the fourth time, I have a sleeve. I’m not without my reservations, though, but I’m trying to hold out scrapping the whole project until I’ve at least finished the second sleeve. I’m crossing my fingers it’ll actually be wearable out in public when it’s done. If not, I think I may stick with scarves and slippers for a while.

Today, I framed a birth sampler that I should have had finished long ago for a friend’s son (he’ll be 2 in August!). We’re getting together tonight, so that spurred me on to get it finished in time to give to her.

I also finished charting two new designs today. One will be part of a set of Christmas ornaments, and the other is for a group exchange. It may end up as a complimentary chart on my website, or it may become part of  a set. I’m just not sure yet.

I know spring is officially only a few weeks away, but I love a good snowfall. And we had another one last night. I enjoyed watching the big snowflakes start to fall as I was beginning preparations for supper. The snow continued all evening, and when I headed to bed last night at 1 am, it was still coming down. Beautiful!

I’m able to enjoy these snowfalls best when I have no where I have to be, like yesterday and today. Often I’ll plan to curl up on the couch with my knitting or stitching, but last night I decided to read. I still can’t believe I finished the book in one evening, but I just couldn’t put it down! I was reading The Breaking Point by Karen Ball. A really good read, and I highly recommend it.