Slow Sunday Stitching - October 25, 2026 AND 2026 Rotation #8 Slot #2 (Historic) Changeover

My rotation is all messed up after being sick for a couple of weeks and not being very energetic.  I'm feeling marginally better, though the cough is still lingering (darn asthma that lets every virus that floats around land right in my lungs).  So, I'm afraid I might have to break the streak of pumping through the entire set of projects in a month.   That's OK; the annual plan is to get through the rotation every 6 weeks at a max (which when you drop out 'Full Coverage February' gives 8 full rotations a year).   I'm currently on Rotation #8 for 2026 so I don't mind slowing down the pace a bit. 

Andrew over at The Runner Stitcher (link to his YouTube channel) is hosting the second #WIPintoShape as he prepares to run the London marathon in late April next year.  Last time when he was setting up for the New York marathon, I worked on my pictorial, which was "Mead Dragon" at the time.   The marathon stitching got me through the boring background on that piece, but I decided that I didn't want to do another pictorial since "Santa of the Forest" is so close to a finish that it wouldn't get me very far into the challenge.  My next pictorial project is still in the 'charting into Pattern Keeper' stage (more on that in a few weeks when the Santa is closer to a finish) so it's not really challenge appropriate either.

I settled on using "A Quaker Christmas" for the challenge piece.  Andrew reports his training miles every day and we are stitching 10 stitches for every mile he runs.  He's even set up a Google doc to track everything.  I'll also be reporting on my progress here the last Sunday of the month.

Since the start of the challenge, I have stitched 888 stitches.  The project is at 15.66% as of today's stitches. Like all conditioning plans, this one starts out with small, achievable goals.  Therefore, I have less progress this rotation than some, but as we get further in, the distance (and the number of stitches) will increase steadily.  This first bit is all under 100 stitches a day, most days are 3.5 to 5 miles (35 to 50 stitches).  Tomorrow's goal is 100 stitches for his first 10-mile run.  I feel like we have reached a milestone!

Here's where I am at the first month's check in.  All the stitches were in the 'cluster of stars' half medallion and the word beside it.  

And what the whole thing looks like now.  I'm still heading down the left border of half medallions.  This next motif is one I've named 'butterflies and branches' and it will get me all the way to the bottom left corner.

And here's where I was at the start of the challenge.

I'm going to hop over to see what the rest of the SSS crew is up to this week.  (Link to the roundup here.)

Slow Sunday Stitching - October 18, 2026

 Still have a cough and sinus infection (ugh) and zero energy 😫.  

I did get to 65% on "Moonlit Garden" - which is on pace for a finish this month!  But no progress on knitting or quilting at all since the first week of October.  

But the big news is the mid-month check in for "Santa of the Forest".  He's 92.35% finished!   And I'm down to the last color of DMC; unfortunately, that final DMC color has about a thousand stitches left, but I'm thinking I can get through it by the end of the month with no problem.  That will leave the gold metallic and two metallic/DMC blends and beads yet to do in November.   New Goal - finish the stitching and beading by Thanksgiving and do a temporary mount over canvas or stretcher bars to display for the holidays this year.

Still making some progress, so I'm linking up with the SSS crew - here's this week's link party.

Slow Sunday Stitching - October 11, 2026

 I'm late and I don't have much to report.  Honestly, it's been a terrible week for crafting.  I'm down with a head cold and am still very raspy and sneezy.  Ugh.   What little tiny bit of attention I have had over the last few days has gone into the Blackbird Academy piece "Moonlit Garden".  I am at about 42.5% (including the verse) and have finished a couple of the colors.

The first of the week, before I got sick, I did finish the Vintage German needlepoint piece (Finish post is at this link.)  And I did manage to get 890 stitches into "Santa of the Forest"; there were a couple of days with very minimal progress, but any stiches count, right?  

I apologize to the SSS crew for the late posting.  Hopefully I'll get to feeling better soon. Link to the current week round-up here.

FINISHED NEEDLEWORK: "Alter Bauernhof / Old Farmhouse " By Tapex Vienna

 

Vintage German Needlepoint Kit attributed to Tapex Vienna Company c 1965

Gifted to me by my mother-in-law, who found it unstarted in a secondhand shop in Wiesbaden

Kit materials plus extra DMC Tapestry Wool where the kit material ran short

10 Count "Penelope" canvas with printed design

Stitched in half cross - using basket weave technique wherever possible, a tiny bit of straight stitch embellishment

Begun 11/23/2025

Stitching Finished 10/7/2026

Approx time = 88.5 hours: 18,600 stitches

Frame/Finish TBD

Slow Sunday Stitching Oct 4, 2026 AND 2026 Rotation #8 Slot #1 (Not Counted X Stitch) New Project Options

 I have been ALL OVER the place with my crafting this week.  I'm bouncing from project to project like a demented squirrel getting ready for winter.  And we are sneaking into Autumn here in Kansas (finally).  The leaves aren't really turning yet, and we haven't had a hard frost, but I pulled on a hoodie to let Dela out yesterday morning.  Sweater weather is coming!   And look!  I have a sweater shaped object to report on.   The Brown Study Sweater (link to my Ravelry page on it) has been getting steady attention over the last few weeks, though I have barely mentioned it.   

I am up to where all the decreases are done and the neck shaping starts; I'm planning to do a short row neck with three or four turns on each side (depends on how it fits when I try it on).  And I'm noodling about the neck finish.  Even though I used ribbing on the bottom and cuffs, I think I'll do an I-cord edge on the top.  This sweater will be worn over collared shirts or turtlenecks and so it doesn't really need a ribbed crew neck.  An I-cord edge gives a nice smooth finish and quite a bit of structure - win/win.  But before all that happens, I need to close the underarm seams so I can try it on.  Right now, they are on rigid stitch holders; the pokey ends would get in the way and affect the fit.   Even if the worst happens and the yoke fit is wrong, I will only pull back as far as the lifeline, which is above the underarm seam.   So the next report will be underarms and fit.  Keeping my fingers crossed that all my numbers were right.  

The month end happened in the middle of last week, so I did my update on "Santa of the Forest" (details in the changeover post).  But if you don't care to click through, I'm happy to share a pretty picture.  When I finished the bit of the robe that goes 'over' the bottom border, I reached the bottom of the project!  There's still about 5K stitches though, so no happy dance on this one quite yet.  I did put in another 419 stitches since the first and finished off the gap in the robe on the right side. I am currently at approximately 87.23%

There WILL be a happy dance soon on the vintage German needlepoint "Alter Bauernhof".  I have gotten to the point on this one where I just want to power through to the end.  Look for a FINISH post later this week! (ETA:  See the finished post here.)

and the back - not much left!

And that upcoming finish means that I get to choose a new "not counted X stitch" project.   It will be one of these two - both of them are cutwork type white work.  

On the left is "Five Band Sampler" by Catherine Scott, published in 'Sampler & Antique Needlework: A Year in Stitches, Vol II'.  Ecru on raw linen - Hardanger, drawn thread, pulled thread, needle weaving.   On the right is "A Lady's Sampler" by Linda Driskell, published as three parts in 'Antique Sampler and Needlework Quarterly' (Vol 15,16,17) White on white - drawn thread and surface embroidery.  Whichever one I choose, I won't start it until the next rotation.  (Just a note:  The above printouts are working copies; I own both the book and the CD collection of magazines.  Respect Copyright!)

I also had a new start on the first for the Blackbird Academy SAL - "Moonlit Garden" is now at 12.52%.  It's on the larger size for a monthly project (aprox 5,750 stitches), so it might not get finished this month.  We'll see.  

Oh, and I finished the Maple Leaf LOSY Hat (link to my Ravelry page or here on the knitting quarterly roundup) and it's already in the donate bag.  I haven't cast on another travel project yet since the Santa ornament is still travel appropriate.  It's up to the 50% mark after I put some time in on Monday and Tuesday, so I'd better figure out something soon - maybe a pair of socks?  Or another Musselburgh Hat?

Woof - I did warn you there were lots of projects this week!  Want even more projects?  Go check out what the SSS crew got up to lately (link up post is here.)

FINISHED KNITTING PROJECTS - Q3 2026 (July, August, September)

Maple Leaf LOSY Hat

Brown Study Sampler Hat

 Muchness Cowl

2026 Rotation #7 Slot #4 (Pictorial) Changeover

 

 4,437 stitches this month / rotation period.  That brings the total stitches to approximately 29,850 or 86.02%

Here's where I was at the beginning of the month for comparison:

Basically, this month brought the right side of the robes down to row 200 (matching where the dove's lower wing ends), then I focused on the wolf.  Got it done, did the little bit of greenery behind the wolf's head, then went back to the right side of the robes.  The main part of the robe goes down to row 230 (where the bottom of the wolf's head stops) with more greenery off to the sides and a narrow(ish) dangling drape over the edge on each side (the drape on the right side is done).  So, still not near a finish, especially when you look at all the metallic stitches and beads that will go in at the end.   That blank area of St. Nick's staff / bishop's crozier is really bugging me.  I am itching to get the bling added LOL.