Stitching Year In Review

My “Work in Progress Wednesday” posts have been devoted to projects that I have been stuck on.  I finished eight of my stuck projects and the ninth ( the beaded shawl) will soon be finished.

I finished the big quilt after working on it more than two years. In addition, I finished the machine cover and the apron that were also hexagon projects.
 

 

Eight miniature stitched pieces were finishes and several blackwork pieces.

Other favourite finishes from this year were “Hokkaido has four seasons” and the USA map.


 

 

 All in all, a good year for finishes. (You can see all of my 2015 finishes at the tab above.)

I Have Said It Before!

I love my birthday.  I love it so much that I celebrate the entire month of December, not just one day.  I hate for it to end, but soon December will be over. Thank you to everyone who has helped me celebrate.  You have no idea how much I appreciate you all!

 

 

 

Take a Stitch Tuesday 24 - Palestrina Stitch

Using four strands of Bravo! Thread, I followed the curve of the yo-yo that was already in place.  What do you think?

You can join TAST at anytime. Check out Sharon B’s stitch instructions here.

Monday Morning Star Count - New Project

I have an idea for a new project!  I cut these out before I left on my trip, so my new project will be all ready to work on when I return from my trip.  I look forward to getting started on this soon.

2015 Kanji of the Year

The kanji an, which denotes safety or peace, was chosen as this year’s Kanji of the Year in Japan.

It was selected based on votes cast by the general public. Of the 129,647 entries received this year, an ranked at the top with 5,632, according to the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation.

At Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto, where the result was announced, chief priest Seihan Mori handwrote the winning character using a giant calligraphy brush on a sheet of washi (Japanese paper) 1.5 meters high and 1.3 meters wide. It was the 21st annual poll since the event began in 1995.

Last year, zei (tax) was chosen as the kanji symbolizing the year that people faced greater financial burdens following an increase in the consumption tax.

The Shungo Show

These are three of my University English students performing at a University event. Is the correct idiom "a barrel of laughs" or "a barrel of monkeys"?

Merry Christmas!

Cash Only!

When I lived in the US, I rarely carried cash.  I put everything I purchased on the credit card – groceries, gas in the car, stamps at the post office, etc.  I’d charge everything and write one check to pay it off when the credit card bill came. 

Here in Japan, pretty much everything runs with cash.  You can make plane reservations online, then print the reservation and pay for it at the 7-11!  The ryokans (Japanese inns) I’m staying at on this trip don’t take credit cards!  Hotels and other accommodations anywhere else would insist on having a credit card number. I’m not crazy about carrying cash around, but that’s the way thing work here.

Holiday Trip 2015

I'm on a big Japanese Adventure!  I won't have internet for much of the trip so I have posts scheduled for while I am gone and will give all the details on my trip when I return.   I'll be back before I know it and will have pictures and stories as soon as I can. I think this is going to be the best holiday trip ever!

As always, I have three small stitching projects to bring along.  Hopefully, I’ll have some kind of progress to show when I return.

Take a Stitch Tuesday 23 - Cable Chain Stitch

I tried this stitch before, but for some reason the post is labeled TAST 25 (see it here).  I tried it again on a very short section, then added a few more stitches to it. 

 

You can join TAST at anytime. Check out Sharon B’s stitch instructions here.

Monday Morning Star Count - One Coaster

It’s been a busy week!  I wanted to make several of last week’s flowers into coasters, but I only had time to finish one.

Five Finished Gift Fobs

This one is my favorite

The Japanese Christmas Party

This week I was invited to and I attended a Christmas party, with an international guest list – USA, England, China, and Japan. 

We played games, sang Christmas carols, saw the Christmas story acted out, had a gift exchange, and ate.  Very Christmasy, indeed!