Happy New Year, my friends!

I hope you enjoyed a peaceful, joy-filled holiday season and that you’re already testing the 2017 waters and finding them just fine.

2016 ended on a very quiet on my end of the computer screen – which is a good thing!

I indulged in quite a bit of stitching (not to mention 3.5 audiobooks). I didn’t enter the workroom once with the intention of organizing. (Why is it so easy to put that off until the “new year”?) And I filtered a lot of paperwork while messing with editorial calendars, idea lists, and all kinds of planning and goal setting. It was a semi-productive week!

Spending some time looking back on Needle ‘n Thread in 2016 helped me gauge my ideas and goals for 2017 (and 2018). So here’s a little glance backwards, and a broad glance forward!

2016 was a bit of an odd year for me. As many of you know, I was diagnosed with cancer at the end of 2015, so most of my treatment happened through 2016. That kind of slowed things down a bit!

The First Half

In the first half of the year, the only projects I worked on much (and blogged about) were Late Harvest and a bunch of little kits – especially beaded miniature kits and the like (like this one, and these). I didn’t work on anything taxing at all, or anything that required much brain juice.

In short, I didn’t accomplish much that I had on my Grand List for the Year, but I managed to eke out a little bit of stitching!

The Second Half

By the end of June, when I started feeling a bit better, production picked up a little bit. I also started growing a little hair back by then, so, much like Sampson, I began to feel I could conquer things again!

I realized that the business side of Needle ‘n Thread was flagging seriously and needed a boost, so I published this e-book, Favorite Monograms, and I worked up this whole bunch of embroidered monograms to give you some ideas of what you could do with the monogram designs in the e-book. That added to the coffers a bit (thank you to all who purchased the e-book!) and helped float me and the website for a while longer.

During the last half of the year, besides that slew of monograms, I stitched up a couple test projects with 2017 in mind, including a few “kaleidoscope” projects – this one and this one and this one. They were a bunch of fun! Those kaleidoscopes and a few others will be making their way into their own spot on Needle ‘n Thread in 2017.

The End of the Year

And in the last couple months of the year, with an eye on 2017 as well, I set up several projects that I’ll be sharing with you as I make progress on them. These are kits designed by others – for example, the Mellerstain Fire Screen Kit in crewel embroidery, this surface embroidery project called “Modern Crewel,” and some others I haven’t shown you yet. One is a 56-count silk gauze project that’s terribly engrossing!

In all, I have five kit projects designed by others that I’ll be working through in 2017. I’ll share tips and little things I learn while I work through those projects. And, who knows? I may add more into the rotation, depending on what develops throughout the year.

The Techy Stuff – Last Year and This

Last year, in October, the new format for Needle ‘n Thread launched, and that was a Huge Thing! There are still changes and tweaks coming, and 2017 will see some significant changes on the site and in the background. The internet is a constant changing thing, always “improving,” and always demanding improvement. So 2017 will see the ongoing development of some technical changes on the site.

I’ll also be adding a whole new section to Needle ‘n Thread, and I’ll tell you more about that as we approach March. In the first months of the year, I’ll also be making some improvements to the newsletter that goes out with every article.

On a Personal Note

Thanks to so many of you who have written with seasonal greetings, who’ve inquired about my health, and who have been so very supportive throughout 2016! You occupy a warm, cozy corner of my heart!

I don’t have a health update for you yet, beyond “I feel pretty good.” I had tests done through December, and the follow-up isn’t until later this week. We’ll see how it goes!

Looking Forward to 2017!

I’m super eager to jump in to 2017 and see what the year brings and what we bring to the year! I’ve worked up my plan for Needle ‘n Thread, and I hope you’ll accompany me on our ongoing needlework journey ahead. There’s lots in store – I promise it’ll be fun, inspirational, and educational!

Wishing you all that is good for you and your loved ones in 2017!