Orange you glad for these updates?

🤣🤣🤣 I couldn’t help it, sorry!

I’ve finished all of the orange boxes! The bottom one (week 27) took a bit of concentration haha. I’m now halfway caught up (16 and 2 half boxes out of 34!) if you forget about my temperature SAL…

Next I can either do red, with the really annoying fraying satin thread OR I can do yellow, which you can barely see at night and it makes your eyes go funny. And has a lot of big boxes. Sigh. I’d skip it entirely but you can’t have a rainbow without yellow!

This is the Peppermint Purple stitch-along for 2021 done on 16 ct white aida in my chosen colours.

Feeling green…

All up to date with the green boxes! I think I’ll try to finish the orange boxes next.

This feels like a good time to remind you all that this is the Peppermint Purple Stitch-Along (SAL) for 2021. I’m stitching on 16 count in one strand from stash colours (mostly DMC and Anchor) not the pattern colours. It’s free to join in and there’s a vibrant community over on facebook.

SAL progress

So we’re on week 33! I’d done 8 boxes on the rainbow piece and 10 on the temperature piece. If I want to catch up by November I have to stitch a box a day… which is a bit ambitious, but hopefully we’re moving house before christmas so I really want to catch up.

Anyway, tonight I had a bash at the rainbow piece and completed week 21 and finished week 19, which I’d already started. I’ve made a start on week 13 (the long box) so if I can finish that tomorrow and then week 29 the whole green centre section will be finished and I’ll feel great!

Week 29 done

• 

Left is 14 count, right is 16 count

I was stitching the red box, got to the bottom and discovered that all the boxes on that row were one stitch short. Tears, frustration. I ripped out the bottom and managed to salvage it but now I have to do the other boxes on the row too, sad face.

Up to date! (ish)

So it turns out I really like doing boxes, not so much filling them. I love working out the average weekly temperature and seeing how it changes. Now the boxes are up to date (for the next 6 days at least) I really need to knuckle down and fill some in.

Progress update

In short – not a lot has happened. The garden and allotment are claiming a lot of my free time, which hasn’t been much because both kids are going through some awkward sleep phases. The motivation has just not been there.

Peppermint Purple’s 2021 SAL (square) colour choice mine

I’m also doing a weekly average temperature chart using the 2021 fillers in the 2020 frame. Here’s the snag – I looked at the average weekly temperature for the last few years to inform my colour choice and added an extra one just in case. It’s already as hot as my hottest colour and it’s only June! I’m going to see what the weather’s like by the time I fill in the cooler boxes because I think I’m going to have to change my colours!

• 

I finished the top row!

Bit by bit by bit

SAL progress update

We’re now on week 9 but as you can see I haven’t quite got that far yet. My red thread is a silky one and it frays like anything so it’s really frustrating to work with. I started my second SAL this week though which is a bit more complicated! I’m doing the average weekly temperature which doesn’t really work with the 2021 framework so I’m using the 2021 fillers in the 2020 framework. It’s fun working out what colour each box should be! You can see the state my brain is in with all the half finished boxes but now I have my stitching bug back in sure I’ll catch up in no time!

Peppermint Purple SAL 2021!

So with the 2020 SAL finished and framed it’s time to start on 2021! This year Claire is giving us 2 different frames for the SAL with the same filler each week. I’ve decided to do both! The ‘square’ design as a rainbow to show the lessons I’ve learnt from last year, and the rectangle design is going to show the average weekly temperature where I live. This year I’ve picked all the colours ahead of time and made little ‘project kits’ so hourly I won’t get as mixed up as last year!

(The 4 green squares are the centre)

I decided to stitch the whole frame for the square first because the weeks don’t follow an obvious order like they do with the rectangle. It will also make it easier later on because I won’t have to think about which colour has to go in which box. Once the frame is done I can fill in the first 4 (5?) weeks and start the temperature SAL too! Phew! It’s absolutely worth doing the prep at the start though to save time and confusion later.

The square is on 18 count white aida using Anchor, DMC and Madeira threads from my stash and the rectangle is on 16 count so the size matches the 2020 SAL. I’m hoping that I can display all 3 together as a set.

If you want to join in go to PeppermintPurple.com or look for the Peppermint Purple SAL Group on facebook.

Bonus – my colour guide (which I’ve already changed!)

PP SAL finished and framed!

This year I’ve had moments where I’ve been all caught up and waiting for the next box, and (far more) weeks where I was so far behind I couldn’t motivate myself to pick up my project again! Overall a box a week was a good pace for me and I really enjoyed properly trying out blackwork. I’ve learnt so many lessons. Colours look different on the bobbin and as a single strand against white. I had too many colours so I mixed up a few and put them in the wrong order (52 boxes in 52 colours over 52 weeks though!). Some of my colours were too light; some I frogged and redid, others I left. Overall I’m really pleased with it and I’m proud of myself for actually finishing something that lasted so long! I’m really excited to start next year’s stitch-along!