I’m super busy at work, need to pack and send two swap envelopes before the 20th, I have another swap item to finish next month, there are a million things that need to be done around the house.
So I found a simple Christmas cross stitch kit in my stash and started that 
Haha of course! I have 2 neglected sock patterns, a crochet bag and a pillow cover WiPs already so today of course I started a baby blanket for someone that ai dont actually know. Like ya doooo haha
Lol I have two long-term WIPs, both are baby quilts, and they’re earmarked to go to two boys who will hopefully be born this summer if all goes well. The WIPs not only pre-date the conception of both boys, they actually pre-date the relationship of one set of parents. And the baby boy on the way is not their first kid…
I don’t think I have ever started blankets for people that I don’t actually know though. Just for babies that didn’t yet exist. Maybe that’s something I could try next time 
I have been in a bit of a slump, particularly around finishing things (I have been getting ideas and starting things and then getting overwhelmed by all the started things I have to finish). So I did what anyone would do - started a jelly roll race quilt with a Christmas jelly roll I got on clearance.
I want to heart this more than once. 
You guys are my people! Guess what I am working on? I started packing away my embroidery supplies and found this unfinished piece from last Christmas! I mean, Christmas 2022!!
I realized that I wasn’t working on it because it really had way too much backstitching. I prefer patterns that only need a bit of it. Plus, it was really large…about 11x8…
So, I undid portions of it that I disliked, simplified the design, and just added the simple snowflakes to finish. It’s about 6x8 now, and later, I can turn it into a nice picture for my mantel for the holidays!
Yeah–I should have been packing or cleaning… 
Beautiful and elegant - and great to get it finished!
Is anyone else planning for some “Christmas in July” projects? I’m going to daydream all this month for what would be fun to work on. First up will be my long overdue Christmas socks!
I will be busy moving in July and setting up the house and all…but, since we will be home near family and friends, I really do need to do some more decorating and gift giving (other than just a card with money in it… ).
I think a bunch of scarves are in order since it has been a few years since I last made everyone scarves.
Scarves are a great summer-make- not too hot to tote around. Good luck with the packing up! Did you decide on your big trip with your nephew? That would be no e to look forward to.
Great idea!!! We could do some sort of Christmas in July challenge?
A while ago I stitched this:
Then last week I ironed it and framed it in a red plastic hoop that I found in my stash. Honestly I feel it needs a bit more, maybe beads or something. Then I’ll finish the back.
I have a WIP/UFO (at which point does a WIP become a UFO?) embroidered tablecloth that I want to get done. I think it’s at least halfway done and it’s really quite fun to work on. It just doesn’t happen often for some reason.
I also made lap quilt for Mr. Imma for Christmas last year but somehow I never got around to binding it 
maybe I should do that this weekend.
Then, I guess gifts and decorations for this year?
Great ideas!
I am not sure as my sister has decided that we all go to Japan in 2025 for her 70th birthday. She already has the trip planned out…not sure if I want to go twice in such a short period of time, but, I might!
Well, I’d say, two trips are better than one! But international travel + a house move is a lot, so I can imagine not wanting to do all of it at the same time.
We keep dithering about planning a big trip - Japan? Europe? USA? Eventually we’ll just flip a coin and book something …
I’m certain I have some unfinished Christmas-themed projects, so a Christmas in July challenge sounds like a great idea to get a few things out of the ‘in progress’ pile.
We’ve never gone on any “big” trips (intercontinental). We always say that one day, we’re going to, but somehow life always gets in the way. I have always had this vague idea of travelling to the US in the way that millions of people did - on a transatlantic ship. And then maybe explore the US by train. I’m a fan of slow travel. I haven’t managed to convince anyone that this would be an amazing trip. I’m sure it would cost a fortune but it would be the experience of a lifetime. I can just see myself sitting there on the ship with my knitting or my embroidery!
I finally bound this one today:
It needs some ironing after sitting folded up in my mending basket since Christmas. It was a gift for Mr. Imma as he (jokingly) asks for a dog each Christmas. We’ve decided that right now a dog doesn’t fit into our life but having a dog is another thing we want “one day”.
I think that would be a neat trip, and train travel here can be affordable. But the problem is that there are huge areas of the country not connected by train. I remember when I went to the Women’s March on Washington in 2017, that I had to drive from Nashville to Washington, DC., which was an 8 hour drive. A friend from the UK asked why I didn’t just take the train. When I looked it up the nearest train station to me in Nashville, was Chicago. Which was an 8 hour drive away…
You would be very disappointed in our trains…they are mostly transits from one major city to another, like Philadelphia to New York City…and there are so few of them in comparison to other countries…
We’re more of a DIY country - road trips are the best way to experience most of the landscape. But, I would bet that there are some great bus tours and you can rent RVs, too. When we were younger, and before we had kids, we used to do long road trips…Route 66 (we did Chicago to Las Vegas), up North (Michigan), out East (up the East Coast), out West (the Northern route to Yellowstone), down South (Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Florida). There’s still 12 states I’ve never seen, and I really want to see Montana before I’m gone. I’d love to take the kids out West this year, but we’ve got the remodel. 
I have been stalking the Amtrak website for literal years!
It’s true it’s not comparable to Europe, but there are a couple of interesting long distance train routes. For example NYC - Chicago (I was specifically recommended that one by my coworker) or Chicago - St. Louis - San Antonio - Los Angeles (that last trip, if you would do it all in one go, is 65 hours!!!).
In a trip that would be measured in weeks, not months or years, it’s impossible to see the whole country of course. But a cross-country train journey would allow me to see different areas in a relatively manageable amount of time, getting off the train in places I’d like to explore, and potentially renting a car or RV there for a couple of days, because it does look like that’s the most convenient way of going from A to B in the US. But as someone who isn’t a confident driver and is not used to driving long distances or big vehicles, I don’t feel like a long roadtrip would be the smartest idea.
Although my sibling, a super anxious driver who rarely drives, hired a massive RV in CA and said it was the best driving experience of their life because the whole state was so empty it’s impossible to hit something even if you try
Another option would be flying to different areas, which would be faster, but it also means seeing less of the landscape. Good thing we still have plenty of time to think about it!
