...well, it's time to look at a year in review, and to set the goals for next year.

Let's start with the year in review....

New Starts:
Well, there wasn't much in the way of new starts in 2004, unless you count an RR that I'm in, and a couple of very small pieces. Mini-Mystery H (a birthday gift from someone with acreage and TW's Futurecast, as well as TW's Knotwork bookmark were started this year. Oh, and Dracolair's Phoenix - which would be the only big start. The Knotwork bookmark almost doesn't count as a start - it's got a whole 8 stitches in it, and is my work project for when the systems go crash.boom. But they've not done that since I brought it in - just my luck.

Finishes:
I had about a dozen finishes throughout the year, if you include the RR pieces, and don't include those items that I spent time framing.

The finishes include a Mill Hill ornament kit, 5 bugs for the RR I'm in, Victoria Sampler's 'Butterfly Garden', 'Because Nice Matters' (which still needs framing), Blackwork Acorns (that I did as a shop model for PawPrints), my CATS nametag, B's Christmas Stocking (the Angel Stocking from Just Nan), 'Above the Clouds', and Mini-Mystery F, which I managed to finish on the last day of the year.

I can't believe I let Mini-Mystery F sit until the last day of the year... I only had a couple of treasures to put on it. That took all of two minutes.

I was so proud of finishing 'Above the Clouds' because it was a piece that I had named as a goal to finish in the very first State of the Stitching and I actually made it. There really wasn't any progress on any of the other WIPs that I had, but hopefully that will change in the coming year.

Goals for 2004... met or missed?
The original goals were to finish Guardian and Above the Clouds and to make significant progress on Fortunate Traveller and Desiderata. I was supposed to be supporting someone else with her goals (and she with mine) but it just never really happened.

Despite that.... I finished Above the Clouds, and I made some progress on Guardian. I didn't touch Desi or Fortunate Traveller, however. I've decided to change out the fabric on Desiderata from the bone lugana that I had it on to 30 ct white or ivory murano (I have lots of it due to hoarding), but I'm still counting it as a WIP since I've waffled on it long enough and haven't de-kitted or frogged the old one yet.

So, in short, I missed most of my 2004 goals.

2005 Goals
Well, I already stated my 2005 goals in a thread on the Wagon but I'll restate them here with a small bit of editing.

I want to start and finish the BHG Holiday Workshop stocking for DH. He's been waiting long enough for a handmade Christmas stocking from me.

I want to do Chatelaine's Mini-Mystery H - I'm already in the class, I just need the supplies (but I'm on the Wagon, and I'll start stitching late). That shouldn't take too long.

I'm going to finish Shimmering Mermaid and The Phoenix. The Dimples RR finishes in a couple of months, and I'll have that piece home to stitch a buggie on and do the borders for the buggies. I can't wait to see it when it makes it back to me.

I intend to make significant progress with Guardian (I know, I say that every year) and at least one more TW (tbd). I'm thinking that the unknown piece will be 'Castles by the Sea' which should be out in February at Market (which was part of the reason the Wagon Challenge came into existence)

I found out that a dear friend is going to be a dad come September, so there's a project that I need to put together for him (same guy that I stitched and framed the Wedding Sampler for)

Any of this could be derailed by a certain dragon model job (also tbd) which would eat 3 months of stitching time.

So that's the year as it stands at the moment. 2005 is going to be the year of finishing big pieces for me. Well, finishing at least 3 big pieces.

So that's the current state of the stitching and the goals for the coming year. I'll see you in 3 months and we'll see where I am.

Until then, Happy Stitching!