Amnicon Studio: 2025

Monday, July 21, 2025

Flosstube podcast 32 - Unintentional Christmas in July and time to do some organization

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I'm on Instagram: AmniconStudio

Email: AmniconStudio at gmail.com

Current Works in Progress (WIPS)

Project name: One Stitch at a Time
Started: Jan. 10, 2025
Finished:
Designer/Source: La-D-Da Stitches, purchased at 123stitch.com
DMC conversion: 501, 3799, 315, 3826, 169, 05, 832, 3787, 3859, 640
Fabric: 28 Charles Craft DMC "Tea Dyed"
I'm participating in a stitch-along in the Across the Pond - Stitch and Chat group on the book of faces.

Previous update:

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Project Name: White Christmas 2022 ornaments - mailbox ornament

Started: Mailbox started July 9, 2025 (overall project started) Dec. 2, 2023

Completed: Mailbox completed July 17, 2025

Designer/Source: Primrose Cottage stitches

Fabric: 14 count aida opalescent

DMC floss in called for colors

B5200, 310, 321, 435, 562, 722, 728, 761, 818, 898, 954, 3841

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(Forgot to take a photo and it was quicker to take a screenshot)

Project name: Licorice vanilla socks
Started: 5/3/25
Finished:
Needle size: U.S. 1 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll "Licorice Tweed"
Yarn color: Charcoal grey with flecks of color
Yarn Purchased: Stash yarn that was given to me.

Previous update:

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(Same thing, forgot to take a photo)

Project name: Beach Cruise socks
Started: June 1, 2025
Finished:
Needle size: 2.5 mm (U.S. 1)
Yarn: Knit Picks Felici "Beach Cruise"
Yarn color: Yellow, orange, blue
Yarn Purchased: 2025 Knitpicks order

Previous update:

New Starts

Project name: A Daily Reminder
Started: June 25, 2025
Finished:
Designer/Source: Brenda Gervais, purchased at Farm Girl Dry Goods

Fabric: Stash Aida

Color: Hand dyed by me, brown and splashes of green

Fabric Count: 14 count

DMC: My own conversion, as I go along. So far I've used: B5200

I'm participating in a stitch-along with Sarah at Sarah's Stitchy Spot, Holly at Hobbies of Holly, Judy at Stitching Bunny, and one other gal named Marcy.

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Project Name: Red Panda, part of the Endangered Species club

Started: July, 5, 2025
Finished:

Designer: Lindy Stitches

Purchased from Lindy Stitches.com

Fabric: Hobby Lobby Aida

Color: Ivory

Fabric Count: 16 count

DMC: B5200, 355, 310, 3835, 3776, 951, 3836, 03, 436, Weeks Dye WORKS: 1236 (Mocha), 4111 (Lucky), 1267 (Kris'' Bon Bon)

Needle size: 26

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Finish (FO)

Project name: Black Bellied Whistling Ducks
Started: 5/3/25
Finished: 6/21/25
Designer: Lindy Stitches, part of the Bird Crush Club
Chart purchased at Lindy Stitches in 2023
Fabric: Hobby Lobby 14 count aida
Fabric color: Mist
Fabric count: 14 ct
Floss used: DMC 310, 605, 827, 644, 08, 3064, 712, 838, 3819, 3782, 3863, 603, 3790, Threadworx - Rustic Red

Previous update:

Fully Finished Object (FFO)

Project name: Nevermore
Started: 6/22/25
Finished: 6/24/25
Designer: Lizzy Kate
Received the chart from Ashley and Gianne over at “We stitch and we know things.
Fabric: Stash Lugana
Fabric color: Ivory
Fabric count: 28 count
Floss used: DMC 310

A Finished Object but needing one last thing, maybe.

This is a needle punch kit I won over at

mrs_azfamilyzoo

's instagram account. The one thing I haven't done is add the rhinestones to the blue background.

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

I'm still here!

I didn't fall off the face of the earth, I swear!

July is speeding by on me. I got the text notification that my paycheck was deposited and I was like "Oh snap!" Two weeks, or so, have sped by me.

The last few weeks have been a bit atypical and definitely not how I expected July to be going. Events mentioned in this blog post may be out of order. Because, well, I can't remember what order things happened. This is what I get for not sitting myself down and writing. I've been kind of all over the place this month.

It started with the long holiday weekend. We were able to get out and do some fishing.

Proof that I've been successful fishing this month.

Something wonderful happened.

Way back when, either for a Mother's Day, my birthday or Christmas, my husband promised me a new fountain for the back yard. We were waiting for it to go on sale, for at least a year. I was beginning to think it was never going to go on sale.

Then it finally went on sale! My husband checked the Menard's website, just on a lark, saw it on sale and said "Guess what we are getting today?"

I know, the box isn't so great to look at. This is the one we've been waiting for. It's over 6 feet tall and it is perfect for the space by the deck.

It's so pretty at night, too.

The cherries finally started ripening.

I still need to get out there and harvest them before the birds spot them and eat them.

The sweet, darling, little babies ...

Well, they started getting their feathers in and stinking up the house.

This girl in particular ... she is so smart. Any time I opened up the tote to do anything she immediately flew up and out of the tote and then I'd have to give a quick chase.

Out they go!

It was kind of a job to get them an outside space set up. See, I wasn't really anticipating getting chicks this year.

I got them in a big open space and they were SO happy.

The big girls were hanging out next to the open air coop, checking out these new neighbors. Then quickly lost interest.

The big girls are doing well.

I saw these girls laying in the grass when I was looking out one of the windows. What a life they have. Laying in the grass, in the shade, without a care in the world.

I haven't done much cross stitching this past week, or so. I got to a certain point on my projects and then decided to iron them and have them all pretty for my next flosstube. (Yes, I know I'm late recording)

I did decide to pull a project out of hibernation.

Project Name: White Christmas 2022 ornaments - mailbox ornament

Started: Mailbox started July 9, 2025 (overall project started) Dec. 2, 2023

Finished:

Designer/Source: Primrose Cottage stitches

Fabric: 14 count aida opalescent

DMC floss in called for colors

B5200, 310, 321, 435, 562, 722, 728, 761, 818, 898, 954, 3841

Needle Size: 26

Made For: Myself.

Since I haven't had a lot of cross stitching going on I have been paying a bit more attention to my quilt project.

It's the Dancing Stars quilt I purchased from Fat Quarter Shop, ... I think in 2023, but didn't start until 2024. I'm finally closing in on the finish line. If you do a search on my blog for Dancing Stars Quilt you will see previous updates. I've been so picky/careful/whatever you want to call it, about making sure the points are good and everything is as lined up as it can be that I've been dragging my feet on this one.

It feels good to have made lots of progress on it.

Oh, I also *finally* tied my first fishing tie.

I forgot to retake a photo after I got the eyes on it and it was all done. Once I decided to do it, it was so much fun. My hubby took it on a work fishing trip this week and he caught fish with it. I was pretty stoked to hear that.

What else ...

This past weekend, the warmest days of the year, so far, I decided it was time to organize the yarn stash.

This isn't the full stash, of course. ... I have more than 6 totes full of yarn. I had it all out on the deck, spread out, and I was sorting it by acrylic yarn, wool yarn, cotton ... sock yarn. (Told my hubby sock yarn doesn't count as stash. He looked at me funny. 😆 )

It's all back in the she shed and I need to decided how I'm going to stack the totes and where to move what where. It wasn't nearly as overwhelming as I worried it would be. I saw I have a TON of handspun that I need to do something with. Problem is it's my really early handspun and it still feels precious.

I also need to expand on the containers that I'm using to hold my DMC floss, and figure out a way to store my cross stitch fabric and charts.

And then ... Mother Nature decided to keep us on our toes. The area has had a few days of really warm temps and humidity. Then yesterday it stormed and rained the entire day. Well, today as well. Today's temps were much cooler.

This is a photo from yesterday. The chickens wanted to stay outside, in the rain. This girl was walking in front of the house and she was SOAKED through.

In other news: Independence day weekend I started having what I thought was a flare up. It got bad enough that I contacted the doctor's office and discovered my body decided to be extra, or something. Despite my body trying to remind me who's in charge, I managed to get some stuff done. It was (as still is a little bit) painful when I bend down or stoop down to do anything. I took it easy whenever I could. Last week I wanted to record a flosstube in the early part of the week. Things were just too hectic and then the latter part of the week I needed to focus on publishing deadlines.

I'm feeling improved now. Actually, probably the best I've felt in a few months. Every time something happens I feel like I'm gaining a little bit of knowledge about what's going on and what is not going on, and I try to use that knowledge and keep the healing journey going. I keep telling myself that at some point this will all be a memory. (Gosh I hope so).

Hoping to record a video this week. I thought I'd be able to record today. However, since it was raining I knew the lighting would be bunk. Also, I need to update my show notes.

So that's what is up with me. Thank you to all who take the time to read my blog posts. It means more to me than you know. 🥰

Monday, June 30, 2025

Another trip around the sun

This past week was my birthday. I've told a few people that I woke up that morning, sat up, thought a moment and then figured what my age was and thought "That can't be right."

Oh, it's right.

For the most part I don't pay much attention to my age. I think I stopped counting when I was 25. At that time I was a mom and more concerned about making my son's birthday's feel special. Now he's done with school and I'm lucky if he's around for any significant days. He's busy living life and trying to figure things out, I suppose.

Anywho ... despite the weather the day was a nice day. I took the day before off work and did a few fun things for myself. I made a cake (yellow with chocolate frosting, my favorite) The actual day I worked, which was fine because it rained. I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast and enjoyed a couple with a big mug of coffee. Then made homemade pizza for supper. I've been making homemade sauce lately, too. So yummy.

The rest of the week was pretty quiet and low-key and we've had enough rain to make doing things outside almost impossible. I've spent a few evenings working on my quilt squares. The one night I told my husband I had three colors left, so "only 15 more squares."

Oh, I almost forgot to share about my birthday gift from my hubby and son.

Can you tell what it is without looking at the booklet?

Oh yes, a new hobby! There is one particular fly that I really like and it's next to impossible to get new ones. So I'm going to do what any normal crafter does: I'm going to make it myself!

I've been watching videos and I'm almost brave enough to give it a go. Who would have thought that fly tying would have about as much supplies as all the other "crafty" crafts? I didn't. I knew there was a lot of stuff you could buy, but really, the possibilities are endless.

I also got a few other goodies, which I'll share on the next flosstube I record.

Speaking of flosstube ...

I did put out a new flosstube. You can find it here:

I received some fun mail this past week. My "Hope Song" arrived home after being fully finished by Kenzie over at Mudpuppy Stitchery. It's *so* good. I now get it. A nice FFOing really makes a cross stitch piece.

I'm still deciding on a place for it.

On my birthday I started a new cross stitch for a birthday sal I'm participating in.

A Daily Reminder by Brenda Gervais. I dyed the fabric myself.

It's been a while since I dyed anything. It's fun. I also had a momentarily panic about it. I'm better now. I also forgot that the fabric would lighten up when it dried.

The cross stitch itself is going along quicker than I thought, which is nice.

Oh, the chicks are doing well, and growing like crazy. One of them figure out they can jump up on the waterer and she gave me stink eye and lorded her new roosting spot over the rest of them.

What else ... yeah, that's pretty much it for this week. This past weekend we had more rain. More thunderstorms ... I said to my coworker that I wonder if this summer is going to be a repeat of last year, where it rained almost constantly for June and then was drought conditions for the rest of the season.

Thursday, June 26, 2025

Flosstube podcast 31 - WIPs, FFOs and a new SAL

Thank you for stopping by and watching my video. I am so glad you stopped by! If you like what you see, please subscribe and click the notification bell to be notified of when I load new videos. Sign up to receive blog posts by mail.

Instagram: AmniconStudio

Email: AmniconStudio at gmail.com

Current Works in Progress (WIPS)

Previous update:

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Project name: Black Bellied Whistling Ducks
Started: 5/3/25
Finished:
Designer: Lindy Stitches, part of the Bird Crush Club
Chart purchased at Lindy Stitches in 2023
Fabric: Hobby Lobby 14 count aida
Fabric color: Mist
Fabric count: 14 ct
Floss used: DMC 310, 605, 827, 644, 08, 3064, 712, 838, 3819, 3782, 3863, 603, 3790, Threadworx - Rustic Red

Previous update:

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Previous update:

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Previous update:

Fully Finished Objects (FFO)

Love, Hugs, and Kisses

Started: 5/9/25

Finished: 6/3/25

FFOed: June 15, 2025

Designer: Arlene Cohen of WorksByABC

Chart purchased: Just Cross Stitch Feb. 2023 issue

Fabric: Stash aida

Fabric color: White

Fabric count: 14 count

Floss used: DMC 816 garnet instead of the called for DMC Mouline EtoileC816.

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Bedelia Bunny

Started: Jan. 10, 2025

Finished: April 12, 2025

FFOed: June 23, 2025

Designer/Source: The Artsy Housewife, purchased at 123stitch.com

Used DMC colors. Changed color of bunny to DMC 03 to match the color of my little Feffer's fur. I also used Classic Colorworks - Blackbird for the eye and the few other spots in the flowers

Fabric: Stash Hobby Lobby Lugana 28 count "Ivory" color

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New SAL

A daily reminder by Brenda Gervais. – Doing my own conversion.

Purchased from Farm Girl Dry Goods. Still need to dye fabric and choose colors

Other Flosstubers in the SAL are @Sarah’s Stitchy Spot, @Hobbies of Holly, Judy@Stitching bunny

Mail

Charts from Ashley and Jan @We stitch and we know things. Thank you so much!

Kimberbell Needlepunch kit from Alison over at @ Mrs. AZfamilyzoo Stitches

Channels mentioned during my video:

Kenzie @mudpuppy Stitchery

Bernadette @Bern Stitches

Becca @Sambrie Stitches

Other channels I’ve watched since my last video.

Patty @Stitching with my kitties – She has been making crazy quick progress on jessiechallinor1904

Roberta and Lenny @Sable Stitchers

Nancy @Disorderly Stitcher – New patriotic SAL, along with @stitcherwithalaughingface

Kathy and Molly @Linen and Scraps

Dottie @Stitching Scottie

Stacy @911 Stitcher

Sheldon @Sheldon in Stitches

Jason @Jason Cross Stitches – had really kind words at the end of his last video. I encourage everyone to go take a listen. Episode #7

Shellie @Antique Needleworkers – fun video of her with Holly @Hobbies of Holly, Kari @Tiger Lily designs, Lisa @Lady Huzzah and Jessica. She said she will start up her flosstube.

Joshua @Cross Stitch and Cambria

Monday, June 16, 2025

Vacation is all done

As the day winds down I thought I'd write a quick post and share a few photos from last week.

Well, turns out there isn't a whole lot of photos. So I don't know how this blog post is going to wind up.

My hubby and I were really looking forward to having the week off together. Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate as well as we would have liked.

The highlights: We went fishing almost every day. I was out-fished almost every time.

I was bundled up almost every time we went out. It was hilarious because in the past it's been the opposite of that.

I spotted a Loon on the lake and tried to take a photo of it before it dove back under the water. I didn't see a mate.

When I took video earlier in the week I'm sure this was the loon I heard calling.

I *finally* got the garden in. I'm still working on a video. I've been fighting the weather with this project, too. As I'm writing this it's thundering and storming outside. Yeah, more rain. ...

I spotted this moth in the garden on Sunday. I thought it was pretty. I'm hoping it's not something that eats tomatoes.

And we got a few picnics in, but not nearly enough, because of the weather. Yup, I brought my knitting with me.

I don't know why I took this photo, but hey, whatever works, right?

There was some pretty irises down by the water.

And Water Forget-Me-Knots.

This has been a chilly June so far. My friends and I have all been turning the heat back on, running our wood stoves and pellet stoves and lamenting how chilly this June is.

On the bright side, the mosquitoes haven't been a problem. On the flip side of that, the ticks have been AWFUL. Either the girls aren't doing their job or there is a poo-ton of ticks out at the lakes.

One other fun thing happened this past week. We were cruising through Rice Lake and decided to stop at the Blain's Farm and Fleet to get chicken feed. As soon as we walked in to the store I could smell chicks. If you are a chicken person you know what I'm talking about.

The store had a whole lot of chicks available for purchase. My hubby asked me what breeds were there and after hearing the list he said "Let's get four." I said "Really?" and he said "yeah."

The funny part was when the worker was getting the chick box ready we heard a female voice coming from the back saying "You've heard of chicken math, right? Give them five." I'm guessing she was eager to get the chicks out of the store. Fine by us! So we got five babies for the price of four: Three Americaunas and two Barred Rocks.

They are the quietest group of chicks I've had in a very long time. One of the Americaunas has already figured out how to get to the top of the tote. She looked confused. I tried to quick grab my photo to snap a photo and she must have sensed what I was about to do because she turned around and hopped back down and ran to the group.