Well, looks like I overestimated on my scrapbook page completetion rate. Its actually more like just over 200 pages a year, not 300 hundred.

I haven't done any needlework in a week. I had planned on getting some done on the weekend but the camp put paid to that. I am not going to be able to finish the garment in time for the competition. I hope I will be able to get it done for the following weekend, as we have one of our two big events on and I'd like to wear it then.

Linn comments that I've been to the Big Banana. Yes, I have been there a couple of times. It's on the main highway to Qld, so just about everyone in Australia has been there at one time or another. I've also been to the Big Pinapple, drove past the Big Oyster and the Big Prawn and several other oversized vegetables, fruits, insects and animals. They are a bit of a tradition here in Oz.

Anna over at The Stitch Bitch, has asked me how I am able to do on average 300 pages a year when scrapbooking. It's a hard question to answer. Here are the strategies I think help me:

1. KISS - Keep It Simple, Sister!! While I can appreciate the end results of the doyens of the scrapbooking world, for most people achieving those sorts of results just isn't practical - they take too much time. It can be done but you will only ever get a few pages ever finished. I tend to keep my layouts simple. If you were to look through my albums (I have 14 finished, 12x12 albums) I'm sure a pattern would emerge of say 4 or 5 basic layout designs that repeat themselves over and over. I don't really feel the need to have ever page a unique masterpiece. You may think this would lead to bordem, but it doesn't. Variety is given to the pages by the photos and the changes in colour. Also, when I do an album for a specific event, such as a holiday, I tend to pick one page layout for the whole album and then individualize the pages by changes in colour, inclusion of unique memoriblia etc. I finished my Northern Territory album in just under 4 days. That was 44 pages, 12x12, with each page having hand cut title letters. (If your in Australia, check out No 5 of Scrapbooking Creations, there is a page from that album in there). So keep it simple, you don't have to create a masterwork with each page.

2. Time - It sounds silly but making time or setting aside time is a great way to get pages done. I don't have kids, so my time is pretty much my own. I don't have a problem finding time to do my pages. But one strategy is scrapbooking weekends. If you can work in crowds and don't need alot of "stuff" to do pages, a couple of days away from home can be very productive.

3. Planning - Have a plan. This isn't necessarily an idea of how the page will turn out, but what page you are going to do. What photos you are going to use, what papers, tools, embellishments etc.

4. Cull - Be ruthless and realise you don't have to scrap every photo you own!! You can only effectively fit 6 photos on a double 12x12 layout, so if you can "capture" an event in that many photos, dispose of the rest (give away to other people in the photos, give to kids to play with or make own albums, chuck in recycling!!). You save yourself alot of time and grief once you can cull what you are scrapping.

5. Tidy up - I find I work better if I clean my desk after every layout. This isn't so important when doing a theme album, but if you are doing unrelated layouts, clean everything off the desk between layouts so you have a fresh working area. It helps mentally, and practically (you can find things quicker if you know where they are!)

I think those are the main things I do that keep me sane and let me get alot of work done.

BTW, my record is 40 12x12 pages in one day at a scrapbooking retreat (no journalling though - but that wouldn't have added much time).

A few pages to give you an idea of my style:

Well, it was craft related activity for three days solid.

On Friday, it was a 5.30am start for the early train down to Sydney. I had arranged to meet Adams' Mum and a friend of hers at the train station. We were supposed to get the 6.30am train. They didn't make it. The train left early. I then got a call from Adam, his Mum and friend were on the 6.30am train. I'd gotten the wrong one!! I felt so bad, but there wasn't a 6.20am train in the timetable!!

Anyway, we all end up down there by 9.30am. The crowds weren't too bad. I can't say there was anything that caught my imagination. I did manage to pick up some cloissonee enamel beads for a future embroidery project. I also managed to pick up a new Sizzix die. Finally, someone was selling Sizzix stuff.

I also checked out the quilt show. Nothing spectacular, not the best show they have had.

I ended up leaving at about 1pm. Adam's Mum and friend left as well, but decided to stop off at Paddy's Market. I had to be home by 6pm so I decided to go straight to the station. Got to the station and had to wait until 2.15 for a train, which was an express.

I got home about 5.30pm. I'd rung Adam on the mobile at 5pm and he ordered Chinese that we could pick up on the way home. I scoffed tea down and had to get ready to go away for a two day scrapbooking weekend.

I really didn't want to go cause I was tired and not interested in doing any scrapbooking. But I'd bailed on the previous weekend and promised I would go on the next one. I through a few things into my scrap tote and waited to get picked up.

It took an hour and a half to get to the camp ground where we were staying. Some sort of church camp. I was in a crabby mood!! I didn't do anything that night, just hung around and talked to people. In bed at 10.30pm.

Up early the next morning. Started with bacon and eggs for breakfast. That always puts me in a good mood. We had a few demonstrations of new techniques through the day and I sort of worked on a page. I picked photos, mounted a couple, but I didn't have everything I needed for the pages so I just left that layout. I wandered around, looking at other peoples stuff, and helping people use my Sizzix machine. People loved my Sizzix machine.

The people who run the weekend like to put a big effort in for Saturday night dinner, so the dining room was all decorated and lovely white linen table clothes etc. Nice tea, raost dinner. Yum. I'd brought a book with me, so by after dinner, I was in a relaxing mood, so I sat down near the fire and read my book. It was very pleasent.

Next morning, up early again, and more demos and wandering around and reading. We headed home about 2pm. I got home by 4pm. I missed my kittens and they missed me. I got a huge cuddle from the boy and the girl needs hugs too.

Didn't do much when I got home, just cuddled with everyone and tried to wind down. I ha a great weekend. I didn't do any pages. But I feel like scrapping again. I used to average about 300 pages a year, and in the last 18 months I've done nothing. So I am re-invigorated for scrapbooking. I think I will start to organise the two wedding albums I have to do.

I have been very unmotivated to blog the last few days. I don't know why.

I have been working on a new project, a collar and cuffs for an Anglo-Saxon outfit. It's a bit big to put on the scanner, so no photos as the digital camera is playing up. I was working on it for a competition but I don't think I am going to get it done in time. So I will aim for our next Barony event, which is mid-July. It's coming along quite quickly, but because I am using a fine wool, it is taking time.

I hate being sick. All my sewing and needlework plans for the long weekend went out the window when I got the flu. So for the last 5 days I been doing nothing but groaning and watching crappy tv. I am now back at work, so hopefully, I will be able to get back on track. Thanks to all those who sent me get well wishes, they were much appreciated.

I have the flu. I hate the flu. Back soon. Must get back to concentrating on how to breath.

Uh oh, looks like I've done it again.

I didn't mean to have a go at cross stitchers. When I said that what I make has a purpose, I meant it has a purpose for ME. That doesn't mean cross stitch is without purpose. If you do cross stitch because you want to put it in a specific place in the hallway, then go for it. For you, it has a purpose. To be honest, one of the reasons I don't do cross stitch is that I think it's much harder in some ways than free form embroidery. I have a terrible time keeping track of stitches and if you get the count wrong, the whole thing has to be done again. I just find free form easier.

And yes, I probably have some excessive tendencies. I don't know any crafter who doesn't!!

Sorry, You Forgot To Give Me A Lobotomy With My Nametag

Over at Stitch Bitch, Anna has suggested that the stitching world falls into two categories, those who like to start projects and those who like to finish them.

I consider myself someone who likes to finish projects. As someone who is neither new to stitching or anal-retentive, I have some thoughts to offer.

Firstly, I am not a cross stitcher. This isn't a put down, or brag, just a statement of fact. I think that cross stitching as a style of embroidery lends itself to the put down and pick up something else method of working. Also, many of the projects that people take on are huge, taking hundreds of hours. I think this lends itself to bordom setting in. As does the repetitive nature of the stitch. Since I do freeform embroidery, it can vary the stitches I am doing and I also think you tend to get more coverage and faster completion with surface stitches.

Secondly, I tend to do projects that have a specific purpose. I don't belong to the stitch it and stick it on a wall brigade. All of my projects have some purpose, whether it be to put into a competition or to use in some way. Having a deadline or purpose for a project tends to give one more focus and drive to finish. Maybe its the competitive streak coming out in me?

Thirdly, I don't like feeling guilty. If I have a project sitting there, it nags me to finish it. So I try not to have more than three projects going at once. One tends to be the main project, that I want to get finished most quickly. Another is a not quite as urgent item and the third is my, "chuck it in a bag and drag it around with me and work on it if I get five minutes spare" piece that is finished when its finished. This is usually also a fun piece that I work on when the other two are annoying me. That way I am always stitching and therefore not feeling guilty.

So, there are a few comments on starters vs finishers. What do YOU think?

No stitching last night. I was busy playing with the colouring pencils. I only did one colour way. I decided that the blank pattern I was using was too big. So I have just shrunk the design and will do some more colouring in tonight. I have put a couple of images of one of my Anglo-Saxon designs up here. They are only small, just to give an idea of what I am going for. When the handout is done, I will be putting it up on my website and anyone who wants it can download it.

I finally bit the bullet last night and got out the materials to do the gold braid stitch that would finish off the scissors sheath. I tried to do the plaited braid stitch a la Mrs Christie and Leon Conrad and couldn't get it to work. I think part of the problem was that the imitation Jap Gold that I was using was either too thick or too thin. I tried another braid stitch and that didn't work either. Finally, I ended up using a Knot Braid stitch I found in a kit of instructions for Elizabethan Sewing Accessories that I got from Thistle Threads by Tricia Wilson Nguyen. It gave the appearance of a braided stitch but worked up really quickly. I did it in No3 Kreniek Jap Gold. It took me about three hours to do the two sides. This stitch is really fast to work and looks great.

I was able to do it, even leaving it to last. But next time I try it, I will definatley do the goldwork first as it was actually catching most on the silk thread. I thought for sure it would catch and stread on the silver thread.



When I finished the goldwork, I added small (1/8") pailettes to the middle of each flower and added a real freshwater pearl to the middle of that. All I have to do now is put it together. I am thinking of putting a leather liner in since the whole point of this project was to produce something that would protect my scissors and my work from the scissors! If I don't go with the leather, I am thinking of red silk.

The other thing I have to do is decide about the handle. I am thinking of doing fingerloop braiding for the handle and maybe adding a couple of covered beads like on the original, if I can work out how to do patterns on there. There is a handmade button book that I really need to get hold of that has all that sort of info in it.

Yesterday, I also picked up some Appletons wool to start work on my Anglo-Saxon keyhole neckline. That was sort of what prompted me to finish up the scissors sheath. I don't like having more than three projects on the go at once. So now I have to do some colouring in to work out what colours I want to use on the neckline and cuffs.

I finally sat down at the computer on Saturday afternoon (after being harassed all morning by two cute but persistant cats). I managed to get 8 pages done for my handout on Anglo-Saxon clothing. This is a very rough first draft, just getting all my thoughts down on paper. I spent Saturday night entertaining my Dad. Well, not that much entertaining, he just watched TV. Where he lives they only have satellite TV and he only gets stations from Central Australia. So he knows all the goings on in Alice Springs but not what is happening an hour down the road! He came down cause he wanted to buy a new computer from the computer markets on Sunday. While we were siting there, I started to do the key hole neckline designs. I am basing them on a contemporaneous Insular manuscript, the Codex Eyckensis also from 10thC Northern England. I have done 6 keyhole necklines so far. I will need to do matching straight lines of the patterns, which would be used on cuffs and hems. We have a long weekend this weekend, so I hope to get a good start on the embroidery for my keyhole neckline, which I will be entering in the next WCOB competition.

Not alot of needlework done over the last couple of days. Adam has been off work sick with the Flu. I've been busing it to work, so I am pretty tired by the time I get home. I left work early yesterday, wasn't feeling that great. Had a quick trip into a couple of op-shops on the way back. I managed to get some wool, a quite nice wool skirt. Small size but should be enough. Now I just have to draw up the designs. I am just about to start writing up the notes for my embroidery on Anglo-Saxon clothing handout. Hopefully, I will have a first draft written this week.

The Göss Vestments are a set of three eccesiastical garments which date to the 13th Century. They were sewn in silk on a linen ground using a variety of counted stitch techniques including brick stitch, stem stitch and a type of basket stitch. Vestments represent an ensemble of stylistically matching liturgical garments, for the priest, deacon and sub-deacon, supplemented by a festive altar cloth. They are currently held and on display at the Museum für Angewandte Kunst (Museum of Applied Arts) in Vienna.

For extremely close up images of these vestments, visit the Rubens Art Server. Be prepared, there are lots of images (60 odd with amazing detail, you can count how many thread stitches are done over) and they are large (over 1 mb each). Also, there are symbols whose meaning has changed significantly in the last 5 decades (swastika) which some people might be offended by.

Yesterday was an interesting day. It started when the washer in the taps in the shower went. We had to end up turning the watetr and the hot water service off until we could get a washer.

Then on the way to work we saw the start of what we later found out was the beginnings of a huge Police chase. We were driving to work and saw a car hoon around a corner. Then a police car, with sirens and lights, went after it. We then saw both go down a parallel road. We kept on going to work and about another 100m down the road, another police car went past. When Adam dropped me a work, I could hear the sirens at the back of the Uni, so I knew they were up at Shortland. When we got home, we found out that by the time they got to Raymond Terrance, they were on the wrong side of the road, with a missing tyre and 20 police cars behind them. This is pretty big news for us. While we are a big town, we don't get alot of police chases. It turned out these four guys had been on a bit of a rampage. They had knocked off half a dozen cars, carjacked a couple of women and done a ram raid at once of the big shopping malls. Of interest, one of the suspects that got caught was from my suburb. No name yet as they are in court this afternoon. So I should find out the name then.

And finally, the first whales of the season were spotted off the coast yesterday. They should increase in number over the next couple of weeks. There is also talk of a mother with two albino calves. It makes my anti-whaling letters of the mid-70's (when I was about 7 yrs old) seem like work well done. You can stand on the coast and see whales only a 100 feet out to see. It is very cool.

On the stitching front, I've been working on my tent stitch and split stitch. I was actually able to do almost two hours on the split stitch last night and my eyes didn't feel too bad at all.