Cross Stitch Questions Answered

I have quite a list of blogs that read regularly.  Not all of them involve cross stitch, but many of them are and most of the rest are craft-oriented.  One that I like is Rachel's blog,What Looks Like Crazy On An Ordinary Day.  Recently, she offered a list of questions specifically for the cross stitcher.  I had written a blog post similar to this during the past year and it was fun.  I like the fact that this set of questions is different, and so I will answer them because I know that you want to know.

Question 1: How did you start? Who introduced you to cross stitching?  I would have to say that my mom was an early influence.  She taught me how to embroider and do stamped cross stitch at a very early age and let me embellish pillowcases with rather vivid color combinations. 

Question 2: Favorite theme or designer?  I like a lot of different designers -- Little House Needleworks, Blue Ribbon Designs, Blackbird Designs, Allessandra Adelaide, Ink Circles only name a few.  Just judging from my collection of charts, too many.

Question 3: What brand of floss do you use?  DMC and overdyed floss of all kinds. 

Question 4: What is your fabric of choice?  28-count Lugana or Jobelan tops the list.  I like linen for smaller projects and the max I'll stitch on any fabric is 32-count.  My current, most active, project is being stitched over one on 18 count linen.

Question 5: Do you use a needle threader or are you a floss licker?  Once a floss licker, always a floss licker.  Nothing wrong with that if you're the only one using that particular piece of floss.

Question 6: What brand of stitching frame (or hoop or otherwise holder) do you use?  Hoops for me.  In hand for small projects.  I tried the q-snaps, but they were too heavy for my delicate wrists.  You didn't know that I'm a delicate flower?  So I traded my little collection of q-snaps with my friend Trish for her little collection of hoops. 

Question 7: How many projects have you finished?  I don't know the answer to that.  I've been stitching for a long time and haven't been organized enough to keep track.  Wouldn't it be nice to have a little photo album of all of the projects you've stitched?  Yeah.  I've given a lot of stitched pieces away, so I honestly have no idea.

Question 8: How many completed works are hanging in your house?  Easier question.  Nineteen.

Question 9: Do you stitch for gifts or keep for yourself?  Both.  It's probably about half and half.

Question 10: Favorite finished stitched piece?  An All-American Santa that I stitched for my sister, "Peppermint Twist" by Blue Ribbon Designs, and my Pledge of Allegiance Flag (sorry, I can't remember the designer at the moment).

Question 11: Worst experience while stitching?  When my husband and I were first married, I was stitching a gift for my mom, a sampler that I designed myself.  Mark accidentally spilled tea on it when I was about halfway through stitching.  Luckily the dry cleaner got the stain out, but didn't know what to write on the ticket describing the item, so he wrote "flag".  I also stitched a piece with floss that I hated and came to dislike the piece.  It's folded up and stuck in a box somewhere.

Question 12: What do you love and hate about cross stitch?  Cross stitch is relaxing; I love seeing the design developing right before my eyes;  I like the varied colors of floss and seeing how they go together; What a great feeling it is to complete a project!  I can't really say that I hate anything about cross stitch, but I am a very slow stitcher and it takes me a while to finish projects.

Question 13: Have you introduced anyone else to cross stitch  My mom!  Yes, she WAS the one who introduced me to needlework, but I showed her how to do counted cross stitch on Aida.  She became an avid stitcher!

Question 14: The first project, did you finish it?  Probably.  I don't remember even what it was.

Question 15: How do you store your floss?  DMC in bobbins in those little boxes and overdyed floss in Floss Away bags on rings.  OK, and some of it is stuffed in a box. 

And there you have it.  Everything you wanted to know.  Ha ha.  If you're a stitcher, maybe you'd like to answer these questions too.  Go right ahead!  I may have done it in a lighthearted way, but it does make me remember quite a few stitching memories.  No photos today.  It seems that transferring old photos to a new computer can be a process filled with glitches.  Not to worry.  I'll have them up and running soon!