How do you measure progress?

[spinnerbeck]

I see where some people count stitches - and I wonder if anyone here stitches things...i.e., a tree in a pattern, a doorway, etc. or how anyone else here measures progress (I heard that alternative somewhere). I used to only think in terms of how long I stitched per day but am liking some of these other ideas. Hope everyone is having a restful and enjoyable Sunday afternoon!

[mechie]

I do that! At least I do when the pattern is such that I can see the thing in the pattern. I tried to do that on my HAED, but the pattern is such that I can't really see the thing I'm looking for amongst the background. On my Fall fairy, however, I first stitched the tree, then the leaves, etc., etc. Now I'm working my way through the sky. It gives me a sense of accomplishment doing it this way, kinda like finishing a bunch of mini projects.

mechie

[Emma1977]

I've never counted stitches to measure progress but I do like to stitch an object at a time on projects like samplers. For larger, solid designs (like HAEDS) I usually measure the progress in stitching time

[rcperryls]

I have never counted stitches either. Since I "cross country stitch" it strikes me as hard to do. Since joining the forum I like to take photos even if I'm not posting all of them. Depending on the project I like to pay attention to objects and for others I guess it is how much of a page I seem to have gotten done. I never really thought about it before. As long as I can see that more has been done from when I picked the piece up, I feel like I've made some progress. I hope that makes sense.

Carole

[Mystonique]

I judge by chunks of colour. I feel I've progressed when I've finished a chunk of a particular shade or colour: like all the pinkish bit or all the dark bluish bit.

[Rose]

I judge by the amount of time I spend on a project that and I like to take a picture at least once a week. Usually in the morning Monday. That gives me the week end to get progress done. Other then that I just like to see how a particular pieces is moving.

[Mrs Milkybar Kid]

I'm one of the stitch counters - but only for HAED/full cross stitch coverage designs! I have a spreadsheet with a tab for each design I'm working on and make a table that has columns and rows that match the page of the design. Then at the end of the stitching session/week I enter how many stitches I have completed in each 10 x 10 grid (as I too am a cross country stitcher although now seem to be a parker!) and the spreadsheet adds them all up and works out the percentage of the design I have completed. For other designs I just make a note of when I start the piece and the date I finished it.

As Carole mentioned another excellent way of measuring progress is taking regular pictures - we all like lots of pictures here!

[LastingAllure]

I judge by the amounts of thread I have snipped off and were too short to put back Sometimes there are so many changes in color that you feel like you haven't accomplished much then you look at the snippets and realize how much you have actually done!

And I also like to take photos of my progress

[Lessa54]

I judge a bit by what feature of the design I've done - eg the tree trunk, a person etc and a bit by how many stitches. It feels quite good to look at it and think I've put in about 1000 stitches. For my SQ because it's so confetti heavy, I often end up setting mini targets, like I'll finish these two 10x10 boxes tonight.

[Nachstenliebe]

Most of my projects right now are bigger sized with page by page charts.. I usually count my progress by the completion of a page.. but every stitch always leads up to the end result.. so no matter what if you're stitching you're always making progress
Faith

[Corey.G]

If I can see a difference in the photo before, and the one I just took, then that's progress. Don't know why but photos seem the most effective for me, I think using a counter, for me, would be too daunting looking at how much I've got left.

[tiffstitch]

I definitely use objects in the pattern, or pages rather than count stitches. I think like Corey said I'd feel overwhelmed, especially with HAEDs.

[LadyS]

I don't count stitches but on HAEDs I judge progress by each fully stitched row in a page, I actually look at the chart and how much of it's been highlighted since the begginning of the rotation.

On non HAEDs I feel I've made progress by completed sections, like in my Garden of Miracles, the watering can being a section, then the nest, then the flower pot, etc.

[destructiveernie]

I've thought about counting stitches but to be honest

With the baby Afghan I split it up, finishing the edging on a square is a little finish, finishing the lettering is a little finish then finishing the picture is a big finish because that means the square is finished.

With my HAED, Butterfly Wood I was so focussed on getting my first page finished that I've finished the page and haven't touched it since.

My next start will be HAED's Sistine Chapel and I'm thinking I would like to record my progress a bit more on this one as its just a large piece but I'm also concerned that this will just depress me if progress is slow, which is likely.

I have asked the people who I have done gifts for that I never kept pictures of to take a picture and send it to me!!!!
There is one project that sticks in my mind on that, a wedding gift for a friend who has since divorced and I would love to have it back as it wouldn't take much to alter it into something completely different. But I dread to think what she did with it.

[carolanne]

Oh I had that happen. The couple was divorced before I mailed it But now what to to with it? It wouldn't take much to alter, but is it hexed? on Progress, I don't think much about progress except to see how much of the fabric I've covered. Sometimes I can measure quarters or halves or some fraction. I really don't need to do more than that.

[pattiebelle]

I don't count stitches but on HAEDs I judge progress by each fully stitched row in a page, I actually look at the chart and how much of it's been highlighted since the begginning of the rotation.

On non HAEDs I feel I've made progress by completed sections, like in my Garden of Miracles, the watering can being a section, then the nest, then the flower pot, etc.

this sounds like me on both counts! ( i've just started my first HAED and found i was judging progress just this way. )

[LadyS]

Great minds ....

[CuriousKitty]

I judge based on color-bunches. If I finish a section of color, then move onto the next- then I judge based on sections finished.

I just don't know how you people who do it by grids manage to stitch like that, it would drive me nuts changing colors so much and/or leaving a certain color just hanging out of your fabric! O.O

The project I'm working on now, Hummingbirds & Fuchsia, I decided to do a side project of taking a picture of progress after every row or so- then stringing it all together in a video (let me tell you, I'll hit 400 pictures easy >.>).

Every time I stop to take a picture, I do a real-world literal version of: