Christmas Holly Stitch-a-Long, part 5

Hi everyone! Summer gets so busy it feels like I don't make the time to stitch. But I've had a good couple of evenings at home, stitching, so I'm happy with my progress. 

Here's where I was last time: 

I love these berries!

And here's where I am now: 

I still didn't finish the berries in the lower left -- I ran out of floss and only just got more. But I really like the greeny colors of the new sets of leaves. I'm missing a couple of berries and a little bit of the leaves toward the bottom, but other than that, this piece is halfway done!

Now, normally that would mean that I would feel pretty positive that I could get the top finished before Christmas. 

But I've found a distraction. 

I've been a fan of Kaffe Fassett for years and years. I've never actually made any of his quilts or any of his needlepoint pieces (let alone knit anything...), but I have acquired books and tried to decide what to do FIRST. This resulted in not doing anything. Ah, the paralysis of choice!

I didn't let myself buy any of the needlepoint kits because, well, I had a lot of kits to get through. But you all know that I have diligently been stitching them up ... since 2018 when I joined this SAL I've completed (and made up!) Fox, Swans, Acanthus, and Tiger. 

But it turns out that Kaffe Fassett is coming to do some classes and give a lecture at the giant amazing overwhelming (and aptly named) Quilting Mayhem. I decided against taking a day off and going to a quilt class (one pattern felt really simple, the other really complicated), but I think I'm going to attend the lecture in October. The event info says "stay after and get Kaffe's autograph" which seemed sweet and silly. 

So I decided that I am going to ask him to autograph a piece of fusible interfacing, that I will then use as a pattern to embroider it on the back of something. But what?

Well, what could I do but decide to add to the green-tinged menagerie in my living room? I have loved this fellow for years, and he seems like he'll fit right in: 

Amusingly, it's 10-count fabric. TEN COUNT. I think my eyes are doing their own happy dance at the prospect of 10-count rather than 18-count. 

I've decided to go full-on fangirl and attempt to complete the stitching before the lecture on October 8. At least to complete the frog and his lilypad. I don't know why I think he'll find it amusing, a stitcher showing him a project at a lecture hall full of quilters. But I am hopeful. 

So I'm going to spend a few days getting to halfway on the holly piece, and then set it aside to stitch Mr. Frog. I haven't stitched tapestry since... February of 2021! I think it will make a nice change. I'll report back in three weeks with my progress!

In the meantime, don't forget to check out the amazing projects my fellow stitchers are working on -- I love seeing what they're up to! Avis, Claire, Gun, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Sharon, Daisy, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Cindy, and Mary Margaret.