Cross stitch

Anyone have any experience?

I've bought this for my sister's baby (first one in the family, due in December) but I'm not sure where to start! It says on the instructions to start in the middle but there is no middle!



Waiting for my hoop to arrive so I can get going... Actually I forgot to check if I have a needle! Poo!

Ooh no Rosie I have never attempted cross stitch.
Looks a bit fiddly to me  

Maybe it is where the writing is so you are sewing that bit first and working out the way so that the material doesn't get bumps in it ?

We don't know a name or birth date yet though, not even if it's a girl or boy!

I think I'll have to find the middle somehow, and do each character separately... But will that make the fabric bump?

I don't really know, I will ask my Ma cos she knows about this sort of thing   There might be something on youtube showing you how.

Sorry Rosie I've never done one looks like it'll be fab

I hope so! Or they'll all end up looking deformed. It's the thought that counts, that's what I'm relying on!

Mum used to cross stitch, I think! She might be able to help you!

To find the middle you fold the picture and the fabric in half then half again, so once it's open there is a cross so it gives you the middle and you go from there

From what I can remember these kits usually come with a needle, failing that find one with a fairly wide hole to thread the strands through.

I can also remember another member of the forum that used to do these, sadly I cannot remember who though, sorry.

Good luck, I can just about sew a button!

The reason they start at the middle is so that you get everything centred properly.

What I used to do then was work by colour blocks, radiating out from the starting point. So if the middle is, for example, lettering in black, then I'd do the whole of that block of colour. Then I'd move outwards around the first lot of cross stitching, changing colour where necessary. Does that make sense?

Always make sure that you do your stitches in the same way; eg: bring the needle up through the top right hole & down through the bottom left, then up through the next stitch's top right & down through bottom left. When you finish a line of colour, go back the opposite way - up through the bottom right & down through top left to form the X.

Hope that helps!

I used to do a lot of cross-stitch too, and Caryll's advice is good.

However, being me, I used to do it differently! In the case of your kit, I would start with the border to give me an edge. Then I'd do each picture individually, counting in from border.

It'll be beautiful!

I agree with how to find the middle of the material. Most charts have an arrow or a mark half way along the sides of the picture so you can see where the middle is.

I'm sure it will look lovely.

Thanks guys! I followed your advice and got some help from my mum and I'm on my way! This is the beginning of Peter Rabbit...



It's very time consuming but very easy to get engrossed in it and just keep going. I've just finished the brown, looked up and realised it's nearly 2am! Think it's time to go to bed before I start another colour and sit doing it for a few more hours hahaha!

It's looking really good!

Looking great Rosie

Thought you might like to see the progress I've made so far! All that's left to do on Peter is the floor which should be fairly easy, and then I'm moving onto jemima puddleduck!

Rosie that's fantastic! I've always fancied doing a Stafford one but thought they'd looked hard xx

They're not that bad! It's fiddly to begin with and you have to count a lot to get the first pattern right but after that it's all kind of working around the pattern you've got and it's much easier to count. I messed up the green bits because I counted something wrong so I improvised and I don't think you can tell haha.

You should do it, it's very therapeutic. I can spend hours doing it without noticing!

I think I may give it a go

Rosie that looks great.  

Darcy-May, if you do want to try it, you could get a cross stitch book mark to try on or maybe one of these

http://www.ilovecrossstitch.co.uk/cross-stitch-kits/beginner-cross-stitch-kits?gclid=CNC44fTMrboCFXHJtAodLC0A0A

Maggie1 wrote:Rosie that looks great.   

Darcy-May, if you do want to try it, you could get a cross stitch book mark to try on or maybe one of these

http://www.ilovecrossstitch.co.uk/cross-stitch-kits/beginner-cross-stitch-kits?gclid=CNC44fTMrboCFXHJtAodLC0A0A

That's brilliant Maggie, thanks.

Rosie, that's looking fantastic! You're doing so well, and so neat too!

 

looks great Rosie!