Question of the week Catch up

August 16, 2004
Heirlooms

If you were to stitch something to be passed on to future generations
of your family as an heirloom, what would it be and why?

I would like to stitch any of the Teresa Wentzler large dragons, and for them to be kept as a heirloom. Not that I’m intending to have children myself to pass them on to, but I would hope when I die they aren’t just binned, that someone will love them as I do. I haven’t as yet stitched a large dragon only Tempest, I started The Castle but it was on aida, and never got very far. I intend to stitch on a loverly hand dyed fabric deep green sea and blue sky.

August 23, 2004
Designer wishes

What would you most like your favourite designer to design next?

I would love Teresa Wentzler or Jennifer Aiken-Smith to design a large ornate Phoenix. I like this one a lot but it doesn’t quite fulfil what I had envisaged. So hopefully between them TW or JAS could design it for me.

August 30, 2004
Patience is a virtue

Firstly, thank you to Valerie for her question suggestion:
Do you feel cross stitching requires patience?

Of course it requires patience; it is not something that can be done instantly. It takes time to complete a design. The larger the project the more time it takes. The more projects you want to do, the longer it takes to work through them. Yes at times I would like to blink and then have a completed project in front of me, but most of the time it’s the stitching that is just as important as the end result. When I stitch for other people I usually think of them as I stitch, so I end up putting a lot of love into the design.

September 06, 2004
Er... what do you do again??

How do you explain cross stitch to non-cross stitching people? Do they
get it or do they say "Oh, right.. you do knitting then (or sewing, or
needlepoint)"?

I don’t normally need to explain it all. I get asked what am I doing now, followed closer by my mum/grandmother does that. Yeah I know the majority of people think its an old lady pastime, but I’m not an old lady. So don’t dismiss it.

September 13, 2004
Small or large?

Thanks to Renee for this week's question:

Do you stitch small projects one at a time that you can finish quickly,
have numerous large projects going at once that you rotate,
or both? How does your current system work for you and have you
thought about changing it?

I’m normally a screaming rotator, what screams the loudest is what I work on. But usually what screams the loudest is my current gift stitching, which means I rarely get any time to stitch on something for me. This will change come the end of October when my Latin exam is over and done with, and I’ll have more time to stitch.

September 20, 2004
Shop Dreams

If you could design your dream needlework/cross stitch shop, what would it be like?

My dream shop would be large, it would have a large selection of hand dyed fabrics to fondle. It would have lots of yarn, silks and floss, a large range of patterns arranged logically. The best shop I seen for this was Wye Needlecraft, it also had a chair and table to allow easy browsing. There would be an area where you could sit and stith. There would be crochet and knitting and quilting and cross stitch supplies available. Friendly and knowledgeable staff, who are preferably easily distinguishable from the crowds of shoppers. It should be easily accessible with large free parking and be local to Milton Keynes. 