I've got a question for you today. What do you want from a stitch guide? Or do you see the point of using them?
I'm still tent stitching that amazing gown....
Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow
5 comments:
Stitch guides are important for those of us that don't have that much experience so besides "guiding" us through the project it also teaches us for the future. There are so many threads and so many stitches and only experience will tell is which ones are the best for a particular project. Like your discussion on threads and colors and stitches for your lady.
After relying on stitch guides for 3 years I know feel kind of bold with small projects. Sometimes I get it right, sometimes I don't (in which case I wish i had a stitch guide).
Another advantage? it saves us time :)
Hello Jane,
I relied on stitch guides when I first started stitching painted canvases to introduce me to new threads, number of plys needed, and a variety of stitches. I think a good clear color photo and correctly drawn diagrams are key to a good stitch guide.
A well written stitch guide can be like taking a class from a creative and experienced stitcher.
They still peak my interest when I see some of the wonderful stitch selections that stitchers make and think, "I would never have thought of that!"
Now I might opt to purchase a stitch guide but it would be just that a guide, I don't have to follow everything but can cherry pick and add my own ideas.
Gretchen
I kind of like doing my own thing, but I have just spent hours, months, yea, even years trying to get the background stitch for my Melissa Shirley Vogue Witches just right. Last night I settled on 3 plies of Splendor in a plain old basketweave. I admit defeat and am resigned to the ordinary . However, I must say, it does look better than the fancies I tried. I could have used a stitch guide that is for sure.
When I started needlepoint, I relied completely on stitch guides....so no stitch guide, no project. Now that I have been stitching a while I still occasionally use stitch guides, but I don't always follow exactly what they say. I pick and chose things I like and dislike, but I still appreciate their ability sometimes to get me started!
Hi Jane,
I'm learning that stitch guides vary. Some are hardly more than a list of stitches, while others, as Gretchen observed, are akin to a class with a great teacher. I, of course, love the latter but appreciate that they require a lot of time and effort. If I had to pick out one quality that's especially important to me it is the thread choice. There are *so many* fibers out there that I'm often at a loss as to what to use where. One of the reasons I so enjoy your blog is your discussions of not only *what*you're doing but *why*.
Indiana Robin
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