Greetings and Warm Welcome to you, my friends!
I thought I would share my progress to date on my:
Santa of the Forest
by: Lavender and Lace
Marilyn Leavitt Imblum
I am stitching him on 28 count natural raw Zweigart Linen
2/2
DMC and Kreinik
Here is where he stood on May 1: I had determined I was stitching monogamously on him all through the month of May
Here is where he stood at the end of May after stitching on him pretty much every single day of May:
(I may have missed a couple of days, but I pretty much stitched on him every day) I did not stitch on any other thing in May.
And seeing the huge amount of progress I got on Santa being monogamous on him, I decided that I would continue stitching monogamously on him with the hopes that I would get him finished by my birthday, July 5. What a huge, wonderful goal that is to finish him by my 53rd birthday!
I don't think I'm going to make it. I took about 12 days off of stitching at all (I had pressed hard on him in May and I'm really busy in my finishing service.) I have about 2 weeks left in my personal goal, and here is where he stands as of today:
Here is the cover photo of the chart:
I've got the bunny and wolf, a whole lot of green and red, the staff and the gold banding along his cloak. Probably 10-15000 stitches left, I'd guesstimate. Can I do it?
Probably not...ha ha!
But in all reality - it WILL be done before Christmas and to me that's a goal I didn't even think I'd make at the beginning of the year, to be honest. So good on me! But we won't celebrate yet, because that would be a death knell for me and my stitching...ha ha!
I share my progress on social media outlets...
as most of you may know. I go on Facebook and Instagram for social interactions with people of like minds. People crafty, hobby focused....I have met many genuinely beautiful, caring people online.
It can be, however, a real drain on one's emotions at times. For instance this morning: I had a comment left by a stitcher that said, "I'm not a Santa person, but the bear is cute." Now I try not to jump to conclusions when I get comments like this. I try to take a deep breath and step back and look at it from all sides. I even showed my husband, Keith, who is about as cool as a cucumber when it comes to other people's words and deeds and said, "am I jumping to conclusions about his comment?"
He agreed it could be taken in many ways, but the over-riding feel was snarky.
WHY?
Why do people seek to sort of tear down rather than celebrate? I responded to the comment with, "I am not a fan of many things, but I still seek to positively encourage and cheer others stitching what they love." to which the commenter responded: "and I'm being positive with you, I don't like Santa, I do like the wildlife."
I blocked them. I don't understand and I do not have time for that.
Some may say: that's exactly why I don't do FB or IG or any social sharing at all...
but again I will say, the connections I have made online have been long lasting and I am learning that the negative experiences reflect more on the person leaving the negative than on me, on my work. I see a lot of things every day that is not my cup of tea. I celebrate with them, encourage their hard work, try to understand their struggles. Life is short. I try to leave a fingerprint on other's heart that is positive. My legacy alone will be my memory. Others won't remember me as a great stitcher, mother, microbiologist or anything else, but if they remember as a kind human, I will have fulfilled my goal.
Kindness matters. Words matter. Actions matter.
Not to leave this blog post as a negative, but maybe as a learning reflection for all of us, including me. I don't like controversy. And my day got started off on the wrong foot through what could be a misunderstanding on my part. All could have been alleviated however with just a rewording/reworking of some individuals thoughts, words and actions on my personal work.
Until next time....
fingers crossed for a stupendous finish...because that is what this Santa will be to me...
my largest, most stupendous finish, ever.
Peace, love and stitching,
Vonna xxxx
