WIPocalypse 2018

I had initially decided not to sign up for any stitch groups because I'm not good with the follow through, but as the days of January have been flying by, I'm starting to change my opinions on lots of things (like in the previous post). I've always been a fan of WIPocalypse because the rules are so loose and free and that's right up my alley right now!

So, for January's question: Introduce yourself, your projects, and any goals you have for the year!
Hi, I'm Keiley (pronounced Key-Lee), but my friends call me Keebs. I'm an Asper with OCD and numerous other conditions not important enough to name, but all of which make me an incredibly dedicated stitcher. I live in Northeast Arkansas and I work in I.T. in the medical community. I have two monster Shih-Tzu's, Bam and Bugs who are potentially as nutso as me. I am extremely Disney obsessed (as evidenced by the memorabilia covering almost every square inch of my home), but my annual trips to Disney World have been waylaid a bit until I get my finances in order. Aspers can go on forever about themselves, so I'm gonna shut up now and get to the stuff we're all here for.

Stitch-wise, I would LOVE to do Jo's 18 in 18, but I do tend to do big projects, so I'd have to dig up some small ones to round out the count and since I'm kind of doing this post off the cuff, I might have to come up with the rest of them in next month's post (plus, I need some thinkin' time on it to come up with some).

I hope I'm not repeating myself here from my year-end post, but right now I'm working on HAED's Maleficent by Annya Kai (and yes, my copy says Maleficent since I bought it the day it came out (although they did spell Maleficent wrong on it)...I don't go by the Evil Queen title because A) it's inaccurate and B) it's an affront to Maleficent herself, copyright infringement or not).

As of my last posting, I had only put in one day's worth of work on row 4, but my tentative goal for the year is at least one full row on each project, so that's what I'll be working towards this week and next, which, at my current rate, might get me halfway through the row unless the sky falls (which, in my world, is VERY possible on a weekly basis).

I always have at least one HAED Jasmine Becket-Griffith in rotation, and my largest HAED ever, Alice and the Bouguereau Princesses, just got row 4 finished in November of last year, so I hope to finish at least row 5 this year:

Jessica Clark's Snow White (a retired HAED), got row 1 finished in November as well, and I hope to finish row 2, but this is an incredibly difficult project to work on because the fabric is wonky. I'm not sure if it's because it's too thick, too soft, too tufted, or all of the above, but it's it a total pain, especially in confetti'ed areas because, after a few colors, I can barely get the needle through anymore. She's gonna be fab when finished...if I ever get there. I don't know why I just didn't start this over on a better piece of fabric. Maybe I should.

Another HAED, Annie Rodrigue's Night Wish, got it's first row finished in November too (November was a good month I guess), and my goal is row two by the end of the year. At least the next row won't have an entire skein of white in the moon because there will be a head in there!

I also (finally) started Sleepy Hollow Mural by Lewis T Johnson (another retired HAED) last year and made it about a third of the way through the first row. Since it's a horizontal piece, I'd be happy to finish the first row, but I'm not counting my chickens.

Also, I am NOT diggin working with Qsnaps, so I'm going to get big enough scroll rods to hold this piece. People tell me all the time I stitch fast, and I don't think I do at all, but I do stitch two-handed and since none of my stands like the Qsnaps, it's become a one-handed thing and it slows me down (well, I stitch two-handed and I have no life, so I have plenty of free time to stitch). I've seen the videos on how to make a Q-snap stand, but I'm not crafty like that and I don't like the way they sit, so it wouldn't help anyway.

I'm not sure I should even mention this one because I'm seriously considering drawering it (as in drawer of shame), but the eternal thorn in my side, Christmas Contest Suteki by Aimee Stewart (another HAED), if she stays in rotation, will hopefully get row 2 finished (although I've been perpetually stuck in the middle of row 2 all year):

Thorn #2, Tartan B. It's not hard, I just have a very difficult time staying focused on this piece. I can never work on it for more than an hour at a time and, so far, I've rarely worked on it more than a couple of hours per year. So I won't put in a goal more than that for this year either. If I ever do finish it, I'm going to make it into a pillow (when I learn how).

Next up is The Bride Dollmaker (or Doll Making, depending on which of the documents I'm looking at) by Medusa Dollmaker from GeckoRouge. Despite my initial concerns with this kit and the fact that it's the most expensive cross stitch kit I have ever bought, it turns out that it is my absolute favorite one right now! I cannot believe how beautiful she's going to be! I was a bit shocked that I couldn't even tell it was her face until almost the final 100 or so stitches in that area, but once she started to "appear", it was almost magical and I couldn't put her down!

Since the next two rows of her have to do with Freddy Krueger, I'm going to try to finish both rows by the end of the year. I love me some Fred!

Next up is Neni Design's Happy Haunts. I flew through her Lilo and Stitch project so fast that I thought this one would be the same, but it hasn't been the case. I've struggled with it all year. I'm not sure if it's because I did Stitch on 28ct and I'm doing this one on 18 or what, but the next Neni I do will definitely be on 28ct. I'm hoping to finish at least two rows of Happy Haunts year, but again, no chickin' countin'.

As of a few days ago, I decided to drawer two other thorns in my side and start four new projects:
Another HAED Jasmine Becket-Griffith, Faces of Faery 167, my first on 32ct. If all goes well, I would be happy with two row finishes, but I'm aiming for a total finish on this one.

Addict to Cross Stitch's Everest on my usual 28ct. Since it's horizontal, I think a row finish is ambitious, but not out of the question:

Tilton Crafts Once Upon A Time's Captain Hook by Daniel Kordek is on 28ct (shocker), but I'm using a tea color since all that white background is stitched (nightmare!). Hopefully at least one row will be finished by the end of the year. Night Wish is pretty monochromatic, but it's a purple monochromatic which is a LOT different that sepia. Hook could turn into my thorn piece for the year, but come on, it's Hook, he's too gorgeous to be a thorn!

And finally, for my first DoNa Stitches, I'm going with Rapunzel. I figure 18ct will be better (and I'm going with opalescent fabric). I don't see any reason why I can finish this project by the end of the year:
So that's at least 13...I need to come up with five more by next month! I definitely have enough stash for it, that's for sure!