Check-In Post - May 8th 2025

[badly_knitted]

Hello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.

Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?

There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.


This Week's Question: Do you change crafts with the season or stick to the same crafts year round?


If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.

I now declare this Check-In OPEN!

Comments

[badly_knitted]

It was decidedly chilly out today, supposed to be 15C but felt more like 10C, so I stayed in and worked on the cross stitch. I'm making progress, but it's very gradual, and I also need one of the threads I ordered, but they haven't arrived yet. What I've done so far looks good, but the magazine estimates 70 hours of stitching, so...


Caterpillar count: 31

[wiseheart]

70 hours of stitching? Good grief!

Congrats to the caterpillar count. You seem to be getting the upper hand. *fingers crossed*

[badly_knitted]

I just hope I can find that many hours to stitch before my friend's visit!

I can only hope.

[nagi_schwarz]

Whoa! Seventy hours? Also waiting on supplies really is the worst.

[badly_knitted]

I can keep working upwards on the lefthand side until I get the thread I need to continue along the bottom.

I think I worked out that the design is 15,680 stitches, so it would be 224 stitches an hour... Not sure I'm even getting that much done per hour, there are so many colour changes. I think I've already used nine colours.

[peaceful_sands]

That's a very determined amount of stitching that you need to do there - I don't think I've ever gone into a stitching project with an idea of the amount of time it would take to complete - I'm not sure if that would motivate or put me off! Are all the caterpillars in the neighbourhood heading for your plants?

[badly_knitted]

Most of the magazines give an approximate stitching time for projects but I don't generally pay any attention to them. It's just that this project is a gift for a friend who's coming over from American in June and I would love to be able to give it to her then, but I think I should have started it a month ago at least, instead of doing the last rose first.

The small gooseberry sawfly can apparently lay eggs four times between April and June/July. The larger one with the spotted caterpillars only have one hatching a year, but that's not the kind I've got, because of course it isn't. Everything else in the garden is running rampant, so why not the pests as well? *pouts*

[wiseheart]

I forgot to check in yesterday, but I've made good progress. I've sewn on all 36 remaining buttons, prepared the thread bundles that will go into the little sewing kits, hunted down the mini security pins and the press buttons. All I need to do is to decorate the plastic jars themselves, and then they're good to go.

No crafting today, but I made extremely yummy strawberry and vanilla custard slices that even look pretty. That counts, right?

[badly_knitted]

Excellent, well done!

Culinary crafting definitely counts. Sounds delicious!

[nagi_schwarz]

I would say making pretty (literally) yummy food definitely counts! Also yay on such excellent progress on sewing the buttons!

[peaceful_sands]

Well done on the progress and the custard slices sound lovely.

[nagi_schwarz]

Managed a couple of rows on the six star blanket. Also I made a new batch of paper, which will net me nineteen sheets this time. I decided to make bigger sheets that I can cut down to the finished size instead of making more but smaller sheets. I used about three times as much paper but did not net three times as many sheets but I’d say my process and technique definitely improved! Hoping to work on puzzle purse letters tonight and maybe a bit more letter scrapbooking.

[badly_knitted]

Sounds like you're gradually getting the hang of paper making!


Well done with blanket progress, and good luck with the puzzle letters and scrapbooking!

[peaceful_sands]

Sounds like you're making excellent progress on lots of things.

Done!

[ysabetwordsmith]

I sowed flowers seeds in about half of the telephone pole garden. I filled multiple pots with flowers. I would've gotten more done but it rained a couple times.

Re: Done!

[peaceful_sands]

Well done for making so much progress between the rain.

Re: Done!

[badly_knitted]

At least the rain will encourage the seeds to grow!

[fadingfootsteps]

I did bring my scale bag to work but tbh did very little with it, was more in the mood to just scroll reddit than anything else.

Still, a couple more scales down and 9 million to go!

(Seam ripper status: Missing still)

[peaceful_sands]

Sometimes a bit of time out to scroll through things to read is what's needed.

[badly_knitted]

Sometimes you just have to go with your mood. A couple more scales is still progress.

Maybe try standing in the middle of the room and telling the seam ripper to stop hiding might help?

[sister_raphael]

I've been waiting for some fake fur to arrive for a surcote I'm giving a glow up, and it's arrived! It looks very promising!

[peaceful_sands]

Glad it's arrived and good luck.

[badly_knitted]

Yay! Glad it looks right for you!

[peaceful_sands]

Progress was made on the cushion cover - less than a third to go and then patching the spots that need it. Have worked long hours this week, so have been tired by the time I get to start - have a long weekend so hopefully I'll be able to get through and get it finished.

[badly_knitted]

You're making great progress! I wish you a relaxing long weekend with lots of crafting time.

[nagi_schwarz]

Thank you! Also I finished all four puzzle purses, and I feel pretty good about that.

[badly_knitted]

Great work!