The backs of many of my pieces are a "hot fluffy mess"! 🤣 I think I've come to accept that I just enjoy the process and don't stress about perfection on the back - particularly once it's framed. Thanks for the tip, all the same!
I've been cross stitching for over forty years. I have pieces I never finished when I first started stitching. Sometimes I look at them debating if I I want to complete the project. But, when I look at the backs of if these projects, I cringe and put it away. Eventually I learned how to keep my backs neat. It seemed to come naturally as I got more practice
I absolutely agree with you that your back gets nearer with practice. Tips can help but a lot of it is practice. The backs on my early pieces are scary! But don't let that put you off finishing pieces. If you don't love the piece, then leave it, but if you still love it then you could try continuing it and see how you go.
Hank you so much 😊 I'm thinking of doing a little crosstotch pattern on a teatowel, that will have to go in the washingmashine quite often, so I guess the "under 3 stitches" is not enough?
I'm so glad this video was helpful to you 😊 I think you are right that 'under 3 stitches' is not enough for a towel. I would suggest running under 3 stitches in one direction and then back under 3 stitches above or below that in the opposite direction. So the thread once it's run in will make an elongated U shape. This should lock it in place a little better.
I always leave a couple centimeter long piece when I start. Then I just work the first few stitches over the tail. I like your finishing idea though. I always end up leaving a longer tail than I need to. I guess my head hasn't figured out that the ends really won't come loose.
I definitely left longer ends in the past because the paranoia is real 😂 Only after gradually reducing the number of stitches I ran under and ends not coming loose did I really believe it!
Thank you for the informative video! I always learn so much from your videos. I would like to know how you strategise how to stitch designs that have quite a few color changes. I am never sure what my plan of attack should be.
Thanks so much 😄 I have been wondering about doing a video about how I tackle a pattern and decide what strategy to use to plan my stitching...in fact I've half written something but finding it hard to pin my thoughts down into a cohesive video rather than a long ramble 😂 Definitely watch this space because now I know it could be useful I'll revisit it!
@@catkinandlillie I'd find this interesting too. I've recently completed a large colourful piece, and am currently working on an even larger, more colourful piece (nearly 100 different skein colours, size 50x35cm, every square filled). I tend to focus on doing colours first that have larger sections on the pattern, as I find these larger blocks easier to see and follow on the pattern, and fill in the smaller bits around it later. But I'm open to other suggestions.
@@catkinandlillie I really would like such a video. I actually came in search of that. I was introduced to cross stitch as a little girl and I’m in my 40s now and I’m trying to follow some patterns. I forgot how to keep the back neat, without stitches criss crossing.
I like my backs to be as neat as possible but I am not obsessive about it. Do you have any tips on stitching with a single strand of floss starting and ending when your pattern has confetti stitches sprinkled around the pattern not close to any stitches that can be used to start or end the thread. Thank you for all your tips. I am always eager to learn and gather tips on how other stitchers work on there projects.
I'm so glad you're enjoying my tips! I have to admit that my experience of single strand stitching is only on a very large full coverage piece...and because it's full coverage there's always somewhere to run my thread in at the back. Especially because I don't work cross country; I always work the next nearest stitches and try not to leave gaps. Confetti stitches completely away from other stitches is definitely a tricky one. I think the way a lot of stitchers deal with this is to use a pin stitch. I've seen a few videos on this technique but I have yet to try it out! If I do then I'll almost certainly be making a video on it, but until then I reckon you could search on UA-cam or Google for 'Pin stitch for cross stitch' and find some good stuff.
Hi, I was wondering if going under three stitches is always enough to keep it secure or if you should do more than that if you're stitching on clothes or pillows etc (like if you use it instead of framing it, I figure there's probably more strain on the stitches)? Because otherwise only needing to go under three stitches is an excellent tip which I'll definitely use :)
I haven't ever made anything like a cushion or clothing but I definitely might be tempted to run under an extra stitch or two just for peace of mind. I believe adding a piece of interfacing on the back after all the stitching is completed can also be helpful as this helps to keep it all secure and stops anything catching.
Is running under only 3 stitches also sufficient it the finished project will become a pillow or something that will get a lot of wear as opposed to being framed and put up on a wall?
That's a really good question and I'm not sure I know the answer. I can see that anything that gets more wear on the front could risk pulling ends loose. I think if you are in any doubt and have the space on the back I would run under 4 or 5 stitches just to be sure. I also wonder if an alternative would be to put interfacing on the back as this would stop ends coming loose. This is something I've been meaning to try but haven't got around to yet!
Do you use other methods for finishing your thread when working with high “confetti” areas? The method you’ve shown is lovely for blocks of colour but I’m finding a lot of bulk and mess has set in when burying threads multiple times in an area!
Yup, I always use this method even in confetti heavy areas. There are other options for finishing threads such as the pin stitch but I haven't tried any others. I find that even in confetti heavy areas, as long as I limit myself to running under 3 threads I might only have to re-use the same spot a couple of times on occasion, so it stays flat enough. It will never be quite as flat as blocks of colour but it's pretty good. I've also had my framer's seal of approval on my backs...he says some are very lumpy and harder to frame, but mine are apparently good!
The backs of many of my pieces are a "hot fluffy mess"! 🤣 I think I've come to accept that I just enjoy the process and don't stress about perfection on the back - particularly once it's framed.
Thanks for the tip, all the same!
I'm glad you enjoyed the tip but I totally agree with just enjoying the process 😄
I've been cross stitching for over forty years. I have pieces I never finished when I first started stitching. Sometimes I look at them debating if I I want to complete the project. But, when I look at the backs of if these projects, I cringe and put it away. Eventually I learned how to keep my backs neat. It seemed to come naturally as I got more practice
I absolutely agree with you that your back gets nearer with practice. Tips can help but a lot of it is practice. The backs on my early pieces are scary! But don't let that put you off finishing pieces. If you don't love the piece, then leave it, but if you still love it then you could try continuing it and see how you go.
Love your tips, and only needing to go under 3 to end is very useful, thanks
Yay! So happy you're enjoying the videos and finding some useful tips 😄
Thanks for the great video. The back of my stitching could definitely do with a more ‘neater’ approach 😂.
I'm glad you enjoyed it...and I will have more tips for neat backs in future 😜
Hank you so much 😊 I'm thinking of doing a little crosstotch pattern on a teatowel, that will have to go in the washingmashine quite often, so I guess the "under 3 stitches" is not enough?
I'm so glad this video was helpful to you 😊 I think you are right that 'under 3 stitches' is not enough for a towel. I would suggest running under 3 stitches in one direction and then back under 3 stitches above or below that in the opposite direction. So the thread once it's run in will make an elongated U shape. This should lock it in place a little better.
I always leave a couple centimeter long piece when I start. Then I just work the first few stitches over the tail. I like your finishing idea though. I always end up leaving a longer tail than I need to. I guess my head hasn't figured out that the ends really won't come loose.
I definitely left longer ends in the past because the paranoia is real 😂 Only after gradually reducing the number of stitches I ran under and ends not coming loose did I really believe it!
Thank you for the informative video! I always learn so much from your videos. I would like to know how you strategise how to stitch designs that have quite a few color changes. I am never sure what my plan of attack should be.
Thanks so much 😄 I have been wondering about doing a video about how I tackle a pattern and decide what strategy to use to plan my stitching...in fact I've half written something but finding it hard to pin my thoughts down into a cohesive video rather than a long ramble 😂 Definitely watch this space because now I know it could be useful I'll revisit it!
@@catkinandlillie I'd find this interesting too. I've recently completed a large colourful piece, and am currently working on an even larger, more colourful piece (nearly 100 different skein colours, size 50x35cm, every square filled). I tend to focus on doing colours first that have larger sections on the pattern, as I find these larger blocks easier to see and follow on the pattern, and fill in the smaller bits around it later. But I'm open to other suggestions.
@@catkinandlillie I really would like such a video. I actually came in search of that. I was introduced to cross stitch as a little girl and I’m in my 40s now and I’m trying to follow some patterns. I forgot how to keep the back neat, without stitches criss crossing.
I like my backs to be as neat as possible but I am not obsessive about it. Do you have any tips on stitching with a single strand of floss starting and ending when your pattern has confetti stitches sprinkled around the pattern not close to any stitches that can be used to start or end the thread. Thank you for all your tips. I am always eager to learn and gather tips on how other stitchers work on there projects.
I'm so glad you're enjoying my tips! I have to admit that my experience of single strand stitching is only on a very large full coverage piece...and because it's full coverage there's always somewhere to run my thread in at the back. Especially because I don't work cross country; I always work the next nearest stitches and try not to leave gaps. Confetti stitches completely away from other stitches is definitely a tricky one. I think the way a lot of stitchers deal with this is to use a pin stitch. I've seen a few videos on this technique but I have yet to try it out! If I do then I'll almost certainly be making a video on it, but until then I reckon you could search on UA-cam or Google for 'Pin stitch for cross stitch' and find some good stuff.
Hi, I was wondering if going under three stitches is always enough to keep it secure or if you should do more than that if you're stitching on clothes or pillows etc (like if you use it instead of framing it, I figure there's probably more strain on the stitches)? Because otherwise only needing to go under three stitches is an excellent tip which I'll definitely use :)
I haven't ever made anything like a cushion or clothing but I definitely might be tempted to run under an extra stitch or two just for peace of mind. I believe adding a piece of interfacing on the back after all the stitching is completed can also be helpful as this helps to keep it all secure and stops anything catching.
Is running under only 3 stitches also sufficient it the finished project will become a pillow or something that will get a lot of wear as opposed to being framed and put up on a wall?
That's a really good question and I'm not sure I know the answer. I can see that anything that gets more wear on the front could risk pulling ends loose. I think if you are in any doubt and have the space on the back I would run under 4 or 5 stitches just to be sure. I also wonder if an alternative would be to put interfacing on the back as this would stop ends coming loose. This is something I've been meaning to try but haven't got around to yet!
Do you use other methods for finishing your thread when working with high “confetti” areas? The method you’ve shown is lovely for blocks of colour but I’m finding a lot of bulk and mess has set in when burying threads multiple times in an area!
Yup, I always use this method even in confetti heavy areas. There are other options for finishing threads such as the pin stitch but I haven't tried any others. I find that even in confetti heavy areas, as long as I limit myself to running under 3 threads I might only have to re-use the same spot a couple of times on occasion, so it stays flat enough. It will never be quite as flat as blocks of colour but it's pretty good. I've also had my framer's seal of approval on my backs...he says some are very lumpy and harder to frame, but mine are apparently good!
Thanks for your response! :)
Would rather you used a harder thing not a simple thing.
?