Ornament of the Month 2020 SAL Announcement Post

When I first started this SAL back in 2015 I wanted to make an ornament a month for an entire year so at the end of it I'd have twelve ornaments for my Christmas tree. I chose birthstones as my theme and then discovered that which stones they are depends on where you live. So instead of just picking one and leaving it at that for every month that had more stones, I made more patterns! In the end I'd made 19 patterns which I tried to stitch twice every month - which I didn't always manage.

The garland version

The larger ornament version

I have been very happy with these in my tree in the years since I made them and in 2018 I decided to go for another round of Ornaments - this time I offered the option to make little 3D pyramids, square or triangular ornaments. The theme for my colour choices was rainbow.

Not many were finished but these are the few that are.

As I didn't have much time I opted to do a square and a triangular version, where I stitched the triangle twice and only did one side of the square. Unfortunately this is one of the projects that got left by the wayside and was part of my Finish it in 2019 SAL.

The first four ornaments of 2019

For 2019 they were square again... but with a difference - they had a hole in the middle making them doughnut shaped! But like in 2018 I gave you options to make it your unique embroidery, which I know many people like. The theme for 2019 year was sparkle - each pattern featured one DMC thread and one Kreinik as well as the usual French knot, colonial knot, or beads.

For 2020 I will continue with the one DMC, one Kreinik thread and coordinating beads as I really enjoy the sparkle Kreinik gives and the added texture of beads. The good news is that the pattern contains no holes this year! The theme this year is colours of the month - many sites offer different versions but I liked this one as it gives options for multiple colours a month.

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What: 

• This is a SAL to make twelve ornaments.
• The pattern is adaptable.
• The pattern is whole cross stitch, backstitch, French knots/Colonial knots/beads and occasionally other stitches based on groupings of straight stitches. 
• There will be twelve monthly patterns. 
• The pattern is given in two colours, one is a DMC thread the other Kreinik.

 Where: 

• All patterns are posted here on my blog.
• There is a Facebook group to share progress and talk about the project here.

When:

• Patterns will be given every first Friday of the month - there will be a "calendar" in the side bar so you can see the exact dates, which will be added in December after the last of the 2019 patterns.
• I will start on the 3rd of January 2020 - if you are able to keep up you have twelve new ornaments by Christmas 2020! Admittedly life happens and so do other projects but the SAL will stay on this blog so you don't have to worry about the patterns vanishing. You can find the previous Ornament of the month posts linked here.

Fabric:

• I have rounded up the numbers working from the actual size of the stitching to make sure you have enough fabric. 
• Fabric amounts are given based on stitching over one bunch of Aida or over two threads of evenweave. 
• Fabric amounts are given working on the basis that you will make the ornaments as I envisioned and so will stitch the front and use the same fabric for the back.
• Make sure you stitch the front and back ten stitches apart so you have sufficient seam allowance.
• If you are stitching everything on the same fabric and plan to assemble them all at the end you will need less fabric - I have given it below, this is based on leaving exactly 10 stitches between each section. 
• The area you need to stitch everything is 230 x 120 stitches, I will give a layout for this with the first pattern.
• If you decide to stitch over one you will of course need less fabric and floss. 
• I have given 3 inches / 7.62 cm of fabric on each side for finishing (for cm it's converted from inches). 
• If you only want to stitch the front then you will need the lowest number for your fabric x that same number so you have a square. 
• For example for 14ct you would then use a piece that is 8.9 x 7.4 inches/19 x 22.5 cm unless you are happy with less fabric on each side for finishing.) 
• If you are only doing fronts and want to stitch them all on the same fabric then you will need 115 x 120 stitches - you will use half the layout mentioned above. 
• To calculate fabric you need to take the full sized version width, take off 6 inches (which is needed for finishing), divide by 2 and add 6 inches (the finishing amount you took off before the calculation). 
• The height stays the same.
• So for example for 14ct/28ct it would need to be 
• 22 - 6 (the amount added for finishing) = 16. 
• Then divide 16 by 2 = 8 
• Then add the 6 inches for finishing back = 14 inches wide. 
• This means you'd need a piece that is 14 x 15 inches.
• If you wish to calculate the fabric for yourself based on your plans or with less finishing space then this is a helpful tool. 

Size in inches per ornament:

• For 14ct Aida/28ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 3.6 inches x 2.9 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 10 inches x 9 inches.
• For 16ct Aida/32ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 3.1 inches x 2.5 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 10 inches x 9 inches.
• For 18ct Aida/36ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 2.8 inches x 2.2 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 9 inches x 9 inches.
• For 20ct Aida/40ct evenweave.
• The pattern is 2.5 inches x 2 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 9 inches x 8 inches.

Size in cm per ornament:

• For 14ct Aida/28ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 9.1 cm x 7.3 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 25 cm x 23 cm.
• For 16ct Aida/32ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 7.9 cm x 6.3 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 24 cm x 22 cm.
• For 18ct Aida/36ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 7 cm x 5.6 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 23 cm x 21 cm.
• For 20ct Aida/40ct evenweave.
• The pattern is 6.3 cm x 5.1 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 22 cm x 21 cm.

Size in inches for all twelve ornaments stitched on the same fabric:

• For 14ct Aida/28ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 16.4 inches x 8.6 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 22 inches x 15 inches.
• For 16ct Aida/32ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 14.4 inches x 7.5 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 21 inches x 14 inches.
• For 18ct Aida/36ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 12.8 inches x 6.7 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 19 inches x 13 inches.
• For 20ct Aida/40ct evenweave.
• The pattern is 11.5 inches x 6 inches.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 18 inches x 12 inches.

Size in cm for all twelve ornaments stitched on the same fabric:

• For 14ct Aida/28ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 41.8 cm x 21.8 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 58 cm x 38 cm.
• For 16ct Aida/32ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 36.5 cm x 19 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 52 cm x 35 cm.
• For 18ct Aida/36ct evenweave:
• The pattern is 32.4 cm x 16.9 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 48 cm x 33 cm.
• For 20ct Aida/40ct evenweave.
• The pattern is 29.1 cm x 15.2 cm.
• It requires a piece of fabric that is 45 cm x 31 cm.

 Floss:

• Floss is calculated based on using two strands over one (or two for evenweave). 
• Skein amount is given for DMC floss which has six strands and eight metres long - if you use another brand you may need more floss. 
• The amount given for Kreinik is based on their standard spool size.
• If you decide to stitch with one strand of floss over one fabric thread you will of course need less thread. You may also need to use a different weight of Kreinik. If you need help calculating this please do ask!

 Floss use per ornament:

• For all sizes you will need approximately:
• 0.1 skein of DMC floss as per the key for each month as it's released.
• 0.1 spool of Kreinik as per the key for each month as it's released.
• For 14ct #8 braid is best.
• For 16ct and 18ct #4 braid works nicely.
• For 20ct you may need to consider using blending filament.

I hope you are as excited as I am to do this SAL - it will be easy to keep up with due to its small size which will mean you could do this alongside another SAL or large project. I hope to see many of you in the fb group as well as here! If you have any questions please do ask! Either here or in the fb group works (a mention will help me see the fb post!) and I'll answer ASAP!