Month: Sep 2019

Posted in Uncategorized

Cross Stitch, Footy Finals and Blogging

Posted on by Kristen Gawronski

Hi Everyone

It’s been a big week. I’ve successfully completed my first full week at my new job, finished my second week of three days at the gym and I’m exhausted. I’ve been really tired and slept through the majority of the night, but my quality of sleep hasn’t been great. I know that a lot of it’s to do with not drinking enough water, I’ve been taking on bucket loads of information and my muscles are sore (a good sore though!).

In the lead up to this weekend, conversations and news items on the tv have grabbed my attention about footy finals and I’ve been mulling over in my mind, what I want to write about this week for this blog post – both of which I’ll talk about a little later.

Cross Stitch

For all of this week I’ve been able to get some cross stitch done and I’ve managed to stick to one project! I’m still working on the fishing project and I really should have taken a progress shot last week, so that you could see how much more I’ve done. However, the picture below shows what I have been able to do over the last few months – most of which has been done over the last few weeks…

‘Fishing on the River’ / ‘Out Fishing’ – Designed by Collette Bispham – my progress so far

The strands of floss you see to the left and right of the WIP are for when I get to the next stages of the pattern. Also, in an earlier post, I had called this pattern ‘Fishing on the River’. I had used this name based upon sub-heading the Cross Stitch Gold magazine had used. Meanwhile, I’ve found that it’s been called ‘Out Fishing’ on the pages of the actual pattern and its details. As a result of this, I’m gong to call this project the fishing project just to keep it simple. Also, it’s the only fishing project I’m working on at the moment.

The other important thing to note with this project, is that I’ve chosen to use a brown Aida, rather than the recommended cream Aida. It is still 14 count though. I decided to use the brown Aida because I had the right amount for the pattern and enough excess for framing (or whatever I choose to do for the finish). Also, I thought that it would give the project an interesting finish because of the brown border the finished project has.

Now that I’ve taken the fishing project out of the hoop and ironed it to show you the progress, I’m itching to start a new project or move onto an existing project. I’m still umming and arrring about a new Christmas project. A lot of this is due to the patterns and fabric for the projects are in my stitching corner (I’m currently residing in my lounge room on the chase part of the couch), and I can see them every time I sit down to work on the fishing project or any other one I choose to work on. What’s holding me back at the moment, is figuring out which threads I use – DMC or Anchor threads. The patterns have listings for both brands and I have no doubt that I have all of the called for threads. Two things that are holding me back on starting a new project are:

  1. It’s another new project. I have so many other projects at the moment. Do I really need another one? Also, if I do start a new project, which one should I start? Should it be a small, easy one that I can finish in about a week and finish as a card? Or should it be one that will take a few months (at least) to finish?
  2. Where and how am I going to store the project if start a new one? Many of the YouTube clips I’ve watched over recent months have talked about and shown us their project bag collections and new additions to that collection. I don’t have anything like that at the moment and I’m starting to think that I need to have some. I do have a couple of Lincraft bags I use as travel bags for my WIPs and I’m currently using them for existing projects that I’m actively working on.

I’m also leaning towards going back to my mini mushroom project.

Mini Mushroom WIP – image taken back around the end of June 2019

I’ve stitched a lot more since the above image was taken. I’ve really enjoyed seeing it come to life so far because it’s one of my own designs and like any project, I love seeing it come to life.

Additionally, I had a reminder come up on my IT devices about finishing and sending off a finished project to the framer’s, to then enter it in the 2020 Sydney Royal Easter Show. I haven’t finished my intended project for this show, but the reminders about the framing, reminded me of the plan/s I have for my stitching and what I want to achieve with it. I will achieve and complete those plans. It will just be on a slightly different timeline to what I had initially intended for them!

Footy Finals

It’s also the AFL (Australian Football League) Grand Final this weekend and NRL (National Rugby League) semi-final. I’m not a regular follower of the NRL, but I’m mentioning it now because the Canberra Raiders have made it to the Grand Final – 25 years in the making! So for the next 7 days at least, there are going to be a whole heap of local businesses getting behind the team with Raiders paraphernalia, green decorations and green food. It would be so good if the Raiders won because it’s been so long between drinks and if I had to support an NRL team, why not my home team?!

Meanwhile, today (Saturday 28 September 2019) is the AFL Grand Final and it’s going to be HUGE! We have Richmond Tigers versus the Greater Western Sydney (GWS) Giants. The Tigers have been part of the AFL for over 100 years whilst the Giants have only been around for 8 years and this is their first grand final. The Tigers have a number of flags under their belt – most recently, a couple of years ago. So, I’m really hoping that Giants win because they’re such a young team.

Update – The Tigers won. Their experience meant that they completely thrashed the Giants – 114 to 25. That said, it was a history making game in so many ways. What I hadn’t realised until the commentators said it, 100 years ago, the Tigers were in their first grand final, now 100 years later, the Giants were in their first grand final.

Blogging Mojo

I feel like I’m loosing my blogging mojo. Or at least, I think I need to re-adjust the direction I move with my blog. This may assist with me practising what I’m preaching with regards to promoting cross stitch and the designers who are having such a huge influence on the direction that cross stitch is going.

Alternatively, I’m thinking that I could have posts a lot like everyone else’s, and have weekly or monthly updates and have WIP (work in progress) parades, finishes, full finishes (e.g. framed, cards etc.) and starts. The challenge I’m working through with this, is the fear I have of being over-looked or my posts being considered ‘yawn-fests’ because I’m talking about very similar things to everyone else. The slight positive is that I’ll be stitching things a little different to everyone else!

Your help is needed

Any feedback you can provide on what you want to see and read about cross stitch would be great! Do you want to know about what others are doing? What I’m stitching?

Until next time, happy stitching!

Posted in Uncategorized

Cross Stitch Xmas Ornaments and Bucket Loads of Cross Stitch

Posted on by Kristen Gawronski

Hi Everyone

What is it with Murphy’s Law that as soon as I properly relax on a holiday, that I then get sick? The upside to spending a week and a half on the couch and binge watching Netflix, is that I have been able to get a bucket load of cross stitch done!

Moonlit Waters Fairy Progress…

The deal/rule I have with myself at the moment, is that I’m not allowed to move onto another project until I’ve completed a page. This rule applies to the larger projects I’m working on and it drives me a bit batty when I start getting an itch to start a new project. So, as a result of this rule and getting sick, I was able to finish a page on the Moonlit Fairy project (see below) and start some work on some Christmas ornaments and Christmas related projects.

Progress of Moonlit Waters from earlier this year.
Progress as of 22 September 2019

Christmas Ornaments…

The Christmas ornament I completed last night (20 September 2019) was Snowflakes from Ultimate CrossStitch Christmas Volume 19 2018. I bought it during my Christmas holidays at the coast and I want to stitch all the things in this issue.

Ultimate Cross Stitch Christmas Volume 19 2018 magazine cover

One of the things I really enjoyed with this project, was stitching on plastic canvas. All of the projects I’ve worked on in the past have been on Aida or Evenweave, so it was a nice change to work on something different. The main challenge I had with working on the plastic canvas, was it being clear plastic and getting my bearings with where I needed to put my next stitch.

I decided to stitch two snowflakes in two different colours – purple and blue and I had contemplated using ModPodge glue to stick them together or double sided tape. My concern however, was that neither would hold very well and I didn’t want there to be much of a gap between the two snowflakes. I could have made the joining of the snowflakes extra decorative with the use of metallic threads for the seam and beads. But I wanted it to be seamless and the focus to be on the snowflake and the clear edge around it, which triggered my light bulb moment. My boyfriend is an avid fisherman and has a variety of fishing lines that I may be able to use to join the snowflakes together!

Packaging of the fishing line I used for joining the snowflakes
This is how fine and clear the fishing line is – best used for fishing in super clear water!

The line was a lot more flexible than I thought it would be, based upon what my boyfriend was initially saying about the line. Also, because of how fine it is and that it’s so clear, on the snowflakes, I can’t see where I’ve stitched with it!

Blue side of the snowflake – can you see where I’ve used the clear fishing line?
Side view of the snowflake
Purple Snowflake

Stitching with the fishing line gave me a new appreciation of stitching with metallic threads and similar threads that can be difficult. They’ve got nothing on fishing line! I appreciate that fishing line is just that – it’s not meant to be stitched with. I can also appreciate how easy it is to get tangled and knotted whilst being used as fishing line and getting snagged. For the majority of last night when I was joining the snowflakes together I was internally cursing and swearing like a sailor because it was knotting up and getting caught on the rough edges of the snowflakes. Then there was the additional challenge of re-threading the needle with the line. Oh. My. Gosh. The line is clear and curling up and not wanting to play nice. It took a large bundle of my patience and stubborn perseverance (this line was not going to beat me!) to get it done before I went to bed.

But it’s done and I love the result of my first attempt at stitching on plastic canvas and using clear fishing line. I don’t know if I would use fishing line again. I would probably use some pretty, decorative paper to line the back of the snowflake so that people wouldn’t see the back or ensure the ornament hung in a way that people couldn’t see the back when it’s on the tree.

Fishing on the River project work in progress…

For the last few days – since completing the snowflakes – I’ve been working on the ‘Fishing on the River’ project whilst trying to hold off on starting any new Christmas related projects. It’s been progressing a lot better since I photocopied the pattern so that I could have a working copy. I found that trying to just eye-ball the pattern and not mark where I’ve stitched doesn’t work very well. I found myself getting a little muddled with where I have or haven’t stitched – especially when it came to stitching the half stitches.

Fishing on the River project – Cross Stitch Gold – Issue 87 – year unknown

My aim at the moment it is to stitch it for my boyfriend for his birthday or Christmas. Whether I get it done by this birthday/Christmas or next year, is debatable at the moment because there are just so many projects I want to work on at the moment!

Projects I’m itching to start…

While I’ve been working on the fishing project, I’ve been really keen to start on ‘The Candy Express’, ’12 Days of Christmas’ and ‘Santa’s Coming!’ from the Ultimate CrossStitch Christmas Volume 19 2018.

At the moment I’m thinking that I’ll stitch ‘The Candy Express’ and ‘Santa’s Coming!’ on the marble green fabric (see below) – even though the pattern calls for ‘Santa’s Coming!’ to be stitched on 14-count white Aida and ‘The Candy Express’ to be stitched on 28-count Sky High evenweave.

Green marble fabric

At the moment I have my nephew in mind for these two projects. He’ll be turning 5 very soon and I’m uncertain at the moment about how much he may appreciate the projects. However, if I stitch some more Christmas ornaments, he may enjoy putting them on the tree – especially if he knows that they are his special ones!

Running Update…

I’ve been very, very quiet on this front because I haven’t really done much for what feels like a long time. Yesterday (21 September 2019) I did some interval running for 3km and it was good to get out and about again.

On 10th November 2019 I’ll be participating in the 5km leg of Canberra Times Fun Run with the aim of getting as close as I can to the 30 minute mark. I’m a bit worried about whether or not I’ll be able to reach that time because of how unfit I’m feeling with running. The good thing though, is that I’m participating in my local gym’s 8 week challenge, which will help me with getting my fitness up!

Until next time, happy stitching and wish me luck with making decisions and progress on my projects!

Posted in Uncategorized

The Top 8 Things I Love About Cross-Stitch

Posted on by Kristen Gawronski

Hi Everyone

I really love cross stitch! What helps at the moment is that I’m recovering from a cold that’s kept me mostly home bound for the best part of a week. Resulting in a bucket load of cross-stitch getting done and not much else!

So without further adieu, here are my top 8 of things I love about cross-stitch:

8. The Internet and Techie Devices

The Internet is a wonderful thing and I love having the option of accessing it through a variety of techie devices. I love that the Internet has enabled a lot of us to connect with each other via Flosstube, Facebook and other groups to form cross stitch communities and share with each other our starts, progresses and finishes. I also love being able to search for a variety of ideas on what to stitch next and any tools of the trade that may help me to finish a project or make it pop!

7. Mobility – Being able to stitch anywhere, anytime

I love being able to take my cross stitch nearly anywhere to stitch. I would love to be able to stitch on a plane if there weren’t any security issues (in Australia we’re not allow to take scissors in our hand luggage, otherwise the scissors will be confiscated. I’m also aware that there are alternate options scissors on a plane. I just don’t want to risk it as I could see my needles or other aspects of my project being confiscated and I’d then be stuffed!) or problems with elbow room.

I do however, love knowing that I can move around the house and sit wherever I want to stitch. This can be applied to any destination I’ve travelled to, once I’m off the plane or whichever mode of transport I’ve taken. I’m happy as long as I have a comfy seat, good light and full charge on my earphones and phone so that I can have some background noise.

6. Fabric

I love that there is so much variety when it comes to fabric and that the possibilities are endless. I love that we can get fabric ranging from Aida to Linen to Evenweave and that it comes in so many different colours. Below is just an example of the variety of options out there…

Fabric I purchased earlier this year from Victoria House Needlecraft

5. Threads. Skeins. Silks. Floss.

When I first started stitching, I thought that the only thread option was DMC cotton or what was supplied via the kits. Based on what I’ve seen via Flosstube, I can’t wait to try the silks and other brands that other stitchers have talked about.

Meanwhile, I love the colours available within the DMC range at least. As much as I might grumble at the time, metallic threads have their place in the world of cross-stitch! I love the texture and sparkle they bring to a project. I’m also really keen to use more of the variegated threads in a project and the life it can bring to the finished piece.

4. Seeing the project come to life

I don’t know about you, but I usually pick a pattern for a reason and when I see that project coming to life, it makes me smile because I’m creating the way that it’s been intended and it reassures me that I’m on the right track. If I’m stitching it for a family member or friend and I know they’re going to love it, that spurs me on even more, just thinking about how they’ll react when they see the finished piece.

Then there’s the special stitches, backstitch and embellishments that really make the piece. Sometimes I’ve contemplated not backstitching because of how much there is. Seeing the finished picture and how much the backstitch enhances the work I’ve put into the project makes it all worthwhile. Also, I believe that the designer wouldn’t have put the backstitch in there if they didn’t think that it wouldn’t make a difference!

3. Tools of the Trade

I love needle minders and I wish I had come across them sooner! Also, I can’t get enough of the hoops. They are a necessity for me to cross-stitch. I’ve tried stitching without a hoop and whilst the project turned out okay, it just didn’t seem right to stitch without it.

2. The variety of options. The endless possibilities

Like the patterns, I love that there are so many different options and possibilities to finish a project. Pillows, biscornus, cards, framing, banners and pin cushions to name a few! As nervous as I am to try something other than framing a project, I’m also keen to see how cool it could look!

1. Starting something new

I love the excitement of deciding on what to stitch next. I love looking through the various kits, patterns and magazines in my collection and searching the Net. I also love that there are endless possibilities to what we can stitch and what we use to create that finished piece. Currently I’m starting to think about Christmas and the possibility of cards and decorations I could make. However, we do have Halloween just around the corner and I do love my horror/thriller movies and tv shows…

What are your favourite things about cross-stitch?

Until next time, happy stitching!

Posted in Uncategorized

What’s Your Stitching Legacy?

Posted on by Kristen Gawronski

Earlier this year my boyfriend and I had dinner with his family, and a part of the conversation got me thinking about what would happen to our cross-stitching collections once we pass. I realise this is a morbid topic, but something that I hadn’t really thought about until now.

My boyfriend’s mum had said that when his grand mother had passed away, her embroidery collection had been given to charity or passed onto members of the extended family who may have been interested. I’ve also been told that my boyfriend’s grand mother was part of the Embroiderers’ Guild ACT and was very proud this and her embroidery.

Thankfully I’m not the only one who has thought about this topic and written about it. In 2014 Little Thread Crafts (LTC) wrote a blog post about this titled Save the Stash from the Trash! LTC talks about the importance of us stitchers ensuring that we have other stitchers around us who will be able to save our collections from the trash and other places that our collections really shouldn’t end up. LTC also talks about the major finds they have come across in charity stores that they have then added to their own stash. For example, patterns, threads and other stitching equipment that are out of production and for a portion of the price in regular retail stores.

Alternatives to charity donations

Don’t leave it until it’s too late and you’re unable to see the joy that others will get out of your stash. If you already have some items in your stash that you know you’ll never stitch, why not pass it onto someone you know will enjoy it? They could be friends and family or fellow stitchers’ you are yet to meet. The point here, is to get the word out through whichever channel you’re comfortable with.

If you’re really happy with the stash you have and you aren’t ready to part with it yet, it may be worth having some formal documents in place listing what is in your collection and what you want to have happen to the collection upon your passing. It’s morbid, I know! Just don’t live in denial, thinking that you’ve got plenty of time to worry about it later.

Our legacy is more than just our stash

When I’m stitching, I feel calm and peaceful. All other thoughts (most of the time) leave my mind and I’m able to properly focus on the task at hand. Partly because my projects will punish me later if I’ve been too tired or distracted! The other part is, when I’m not stitching, I’ve usually got a few other things going on/happening at once. For example, as I’m writing this post, I’m listening to some really nice instrumental music whilst checking the time to see if it’s too early for my boyfriend to be home yet (it’s his first day back at work after a nice, relaxing week away!), and wondering whether or not I should get up and turn on the heating and questioning whether cold or not. All the while trying not to be too distracted by the sore muscles in my neck from sitting on the couch doing cross stitch and watching tv at a slight angle. Which leads me to wonder if I can get away with re-arranging the lounge room so that I don’t get a sore neck. All the while ensuring that it benefits my boyfriend as well, when we’re able to chill out together again once I’ve recovered from my cold! Which leads me to question whether I really should be trying to rearrange the lounge room when I’m sick.

I appreciate that from a reader’s perspective, the previous paragraph is very much a ramble. It’s also a perfect example of why I need to stitch and do other things to get such thoughts under better management!

Telling our story. Sharing our legacy.

Aside from some a wide range of projects completed, partly completed and barely started ones, how many people will know how much time was put into those projects? Unless there are people around me to see me working on the projects or I’m remembering to document the amount of hours that go into them, no one is going to know. This is the true point of it being more than just the stash!

We need to document in whichever way is comfortable and easy for us, the amount of time we put into our projects. Why we started working on them then stopped at a certain point. Why purchased the patterns/kits in the first place. Which projects we found easy and which ones were challenging and why. Why we framed one project and turned another one into pillow or wall hanging or card.

Thankfully the Internet and social media has made all of this a lot easier to do. Just by posting a picture and a few sentences (or a video) about our works in progress, finishes, questions and challenges, we’re documenting what’s happening. We’re sharing our stitching legacy!

Related articles and sites

Posted in Uncategorized

How much money is your cross stitch worth?

Posted on by Kristen Gawronski

Have you ever tried to place a monetary value on your time?

When you’re purchasing a cross stitch kit or individual supplies for your project, you know what you’re paying for. You’re paying for the pattern, fabric, threads, needle, needle minder, scissors and any other tool to help you complete the project. You may also know how long it will take you to complete the project. But since you’re doing the project for the love of stitching, the thought of putting a monetary value on the time it will take you may seem daunting or preposterous. I mean, who’s going to spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on a beautiful cross stitch picture, right?

Pricing Schedules and Formulas

Many of the pricing schedules and formulas promoted on the Net for arts and crafts are assuming that you’re going to be making jewellery, painting, sculpting, card making etc. The level of complexity and time taken to produce the end product will vary – many of which can rival the time taken to completely finish a cross stitch project (framing/finishing options included). This is what you need to determine when you are deciding on which pricing schedule or formula to use. Other questions you could consider include – How complex and intricate is your project? How many different colours are you going to use? How large is the project?

I really like the article by Dave Nevue who talks about pricing art and the different formulas that can be used. One of the most common and popular ones is shown below:

Cost of Materials + Hourly Rate x time taken to complete project = cost of project + GST = Sale Price Using one of my projects as an example, this formula would look like:

Materials:

  • 148 DMC colours x $1.50 per colour = $222
  • $15 worth of 14 count Aida fabric
  • Total cost of materials = $237

The formula:

$237 (cost of materials) + $41.49 (my hourly rate) x 225 (the hours taken to complete the project) = $9,687 +10% = $10,655.70

You will see that with this formula, I’ve not included any costings for framing or any other type of finish. I’ve intentionally left out the cost of framing or other types of finishes because I don’t know who’s going to buy it and where they live. Also, at this point in time, I don’t know if I will sell it online or in-person.

Determining your hourly rate

What are your expenses? How much money do you need to ensure you can comfortably live and not be stressed by money? If you are already have a steady income and you are happy with that income, crunch the numbers to find out if that is a feasible amount to be charging when you’re pricing your craft. If you’re not sure or you think that your prices are too high or too low, talk to an accountant.

An alternate pricing option

Rather than assigning an hourly rate, some cross-stitch forums have suggested assigning 1 to 5 cents per stitch, and calculating the cost based upon how many stitches there are in the project. For example, the Heaven and Earth project I’m working on at the moment (pictured below), is 400 stitches wide by 509 stitches wide.

Cover page for the current cross-stitch project I'm working on. Pattern name is Moon Lit Waters. Designed by Michele Sayetta and artwork by Julie Fain. The image has the sillouette of a female fairy in front of the moon, hovering above the water. The water below her has a rippled reflection of her. The picture has a lot of dark colours around the edges, with lighter shades throughout the middle.
Current project I’m working on.

Using the pricing schedule suggested in some cross-stitch forums and basing it upon the Moon Lit Waters project, the formula would look like this:

(400 x 509) x $0.05 = $10,180

This is also assuming that I have already been supplied with the materials I need for the project. If we factored in the price of the pattern and materials, the price would be getting closer to $15,000.

Insuring your cross-stitch

This can be a great way to determine what your cross stitch is valued as and may be an alternate way to determining how much money your cross stitch is worth. Imperial Needlework Appraisal for example, can appraise your cross stitch and provide you with a valuation certificate.

Do your research – Test the market

If all of this still seems daunting and you think the price you’re asking for your art is too high or too low, test the market. Do some searches on the Internet. Talk to people in the industry.

Etsy, Ebay and Gumtree are just three of the places you can go to, to see what prices people are selling their projects for. This can also give you an idea of where your projects sit within the market. For example, the more complex the project, the higher the amount of money you could ask for.

It may also be worth checking to see how long the items have been sitting on the market for and getting in contact with the sellers to find out what their most popular products have been. This may help you with determining the future trends and themes.

Understand your customer

Who are you stitching for? Who is your ideal customer? Why are you stitching for them? What do they want?

Answering these questions can help you with determining the monetary value of your cross stitch and what you end up stitching. For example, you may really enjoy stitching cards for various seasons and events. They can be as simple or complex as you want the designs to be and people appreciate a thoughtful, handmade card.

Alternatively, you may have the passion, drive, patience and ability to stitch beautifully large pieces that are complex in design and are worth the time and effort that has been put into them. There’s a market for that too. The challenge is finding the right buyer.

Marketing – Promote yourself. Tell a good story.

This is applicable to all of your projects – especially your higher priced ones! Your customers will need and want to connect with the project you are selling. More importantly, if they can find a connection with you and understand why you are doing what you do, it will enable your customers to appreciate the work you have done and the price you have placed on the product.

Consider the following questions in association with a project you’re working on – why did you choose to stitch this project? What do you love about it? Did you experience any challenges whilst stitching it? Was there something happening in your life that had an impact on the project? Is there a special meaning behind the project?

Sharing your story with your customers can help them with wanting to purchase your projects. The Artlandish website for example, provides an explanation on the stories behind Aboriginal art and why certain symbols, designs and colours are used to convey their messages.

You are worth it!

If I’m struggling for motivation to get something done, I remind myself of the following quotes (I don’t know who said them. But I have seen these words quite a lot on the Internet):

Related posts and articles