Happy New Year to each and every one of you! I hope that the recent holidays brought you an opportunity to rest, relax, regroup, regenerate, and perhaps stitch a bit!

And I hope that 2021 proves to be an exceptionally stellar year for everyone. As with any year, on a personal level, it will be what we make of it, I suppose. Don’t let what you can’t do keep you from doing what you can! Here on Needle ‘n Thread, I hope to make 2021 a Great year!

I have Plans, you see… so let’s start out by chatting about a couple projects and unfolding some January Plans!

C’mon! Let’s go!

A few years back, the concept of “A Year in Stitches” appeared and gathered great force in the online embroidery world. I thought it was a great initiative and a fun way to explore hand embroidery in little bits.

Even before that, Sharon Boggan’s TAST Challenge (Take-A-Stitch Tuesdays), where she explores a stitch a week, was already a popular and organized way of exploring embroidery stitches and committing to stitch at least a little bit every week.

I love both initiatives!

In mid-December, when I came across a leftover piece of linen that’s approximately 7″ wide and 36″ long and that had no real purpose, I decided that I’d incorporate these notions into my own Stitch Fun 2021 Sampler that I’ll work on in conjunction with another project of sorts that I committed to with a friend.

So I set the linen aside for January 1st, and thought no more about it.

At the beginning of the year, I ironed the piece of linen, neatened the edge with a zig-zag stitch on my sewing machine, stuck a 4″ hoop on one end, and penciled in 2021. It seemed like a good place to start.

My plan is to stitch something on this strip of linen every single day of 2021.

As an aside, this will actually be an accompaniment to another “project” of sorts. With a friend (and it’s something a couple of my sisters are doing, too), I committed to listening to a Bible-in-a-Year podcast, so I figure I can do the two things at one time.

There are no real rules to this Stitch Fun 2021 sampler, except this: I will not use new threads on it. It will only be scraps and leftovers from previous projects. No New Threads.

As for stitching, it really will be whatever occurs to me at the time. I have no doubt there will be chunks of band stitches, groups of isolated stitches, and even surface embroidery motifs here and there. It might contain words, small designs, practice bits, experiments. Who knows? There is absolutely no stitching plan for it, beyond No New Threads, and Stitch Whatever You Want.

Now and then, you’ll probably get a little update. Do you want to join me? You’re most welcome to! I’ll post progress here occasionally and on social media. On social media, you can find me on Facebook here and you can find my Needle ‘n Thread Community group on Facebook here. On Instagram, I’m @needlenthreadmc, and you can find me here. I’ll use the hashtag #stitchfun2021 with sampler updates, so if you’re stitching a yearly sampler and you want to connect, feel free to use that hashtag, too!

Other January Starts…

I also started an M monogram last week from Elisabetta’s A Sea to Stitch book that I reviewed here. I’ll have more of those books in stock soon – if you want one, please contact me for advanced notice when they arrive. I’ll send you an email when the new stock is in.

I’ll share more information on this project, my approach to it, my plan for finishing it very soon!

Are you interested in the linen that Elisabetta uses on these monograms? I’m using the same linen, and I’m considering making small pre-cut pieces available for you. It’s a lovely linen to stitch on, and smaller pre-cuts would be an affordable way to work with it. Let me know your thoughts!

And I finished altering this goldwork design last week. I’m re-stitching it with the alterations. I’ll have more on that soon, too!

And, finally, I’m putting together a small series of finish-able projects for 2021, that I’ll be sharing with you throughout the year. The first one is a hangover from last year (this heart), so keep an eye out for those!

Lots coming up! I’m looking forward to 2021 with heaps of hope and optimism! Join me!

Happy New Year!