Carole, I am loving that idea, I am going to copy you if that's ok

I dread the backstitching until I get to it, then I can't seem to stop once I get started!


I panic so much with the french knots, I really should sit there and just practise doing them over and over at some point. I get so frustrated with them my language gets quite blue.

I also seem to struggle still with quarter stitches. Sometimes they look great, but when you have two different colours occupying the same square it can look too bulky when I do it, must be doing it wrong or something.

I don't get bored with anything yet, I just get frustrated but I think it's because I am still quite new to it all. Should be more patient with myself

I have to agree with others I hate French knots, mainly because I am utter rubbish at them!! They drive me insane!

Carole, I really like your idea using the plastic boxes. I currently use the little baggies on a ring and I'm really unhappy with that set up. I once used the smaller box and it worked pretty well for a smaller project.

There isn't really anything I hate consistently on most projects. I am doing a small project with flowers right now. Due to the 3 shades of yellow/gold they use, I ended up fudging a bit on the flowers....now I'm finding that I must fudge the back stitching! Fortunately it looks ok.

I'm really pleased that my system looks good to some of you. I think sometimes it is kind of silly and was a little hesitant to show it, but when I say I hate threading needles, I HATE THREADING NEEDLES. And though it can get cumbersome with big projects, cumbersome is still better for me. And I rearrange the thread a lot too, depending on the size of the work. I use the plastic bags for storing extra skeins. I tried using them on the metal rings before I came up with the containers and it didn't work for me. Also tried some of the card holders(?) instead of bobbins, which one of my stitching friends (actually my only stitching friend) swears by. I am amazed at how clever and creative we all are in finding things that work. and working around the parts of the stitching that we don't like.

Carole

Maybe it would help to work on the area you don't like for x number of minutes and then switch to an area that is more exciting for x amount. That way you get the best and worst.

ps I agree with Purvislets, I can't stand french knots. I use beads instead.

Wonderful idea, if it's ok I think I am going to copy this too!

I took Carole's idea and added little bits of paper with each colour with their colour number and symbol and as I move to different areas I just bring the colours I need in the front boxes, it's great, thanks again Carole! Here's a picture to show you what I mean:

I used to hate so much the re-threading of needles until I used needle threaders and my homemade needle organizer. Now it's easier specially with those blended/tweeded threads.

You can see the my favorite Dritz needle threader here, second photo:

http://toni-favoritethings.blogspot.com/2011/05/goodies.html

And my homemade needle organizer, 8th photo onwards:

http://toni-favoritethings.blogspot.com/2011/02/clothes-clips-styrofoam-clipboard.html

Lenne, I like what you did with my system. That is a great idea for projects that have a lot of colors, especially blends. I think I will try that on my next big one. I have a few fairies that I know have lots and lots of blended threads as well as an HAED which is showing up soon. My next immediate project is a bit smaller so probably won't have to use that. Glad that you liked my system.

Toni99 reminded me about needle threaders. I had one a long time ago and stopped using it. I think I might have to start those again. Looked at your blog with the homemade needle organizer. Very nice. And its always good to save money.

Carole

I've never had this problem. I like doing every bit of a design wasn't keen on French knots as I could never get them right. Have mastered them now so like doing them.

My current Disney project is starting to annoy me. All that water I've got to stitch it's so slow going! At times I feel like putting it down and giving up on it. When i get like that I post a picture in the SAL and the comments I receive give me that boost to keep going. That's why there's loads of sea pics in my SAL

What ever the case you just have to think that the end result is worth all the trouble and time thats gone into it

Toni.. when the time comes, I am absolutely going to borrow your homemade needle organizer idea. I don't hate Hate HATE threading needles.. but I can see how much faster it is.
The design I was working on last week has 2 shades of green. Its a Christmas Holly type border and I was switching between two greens with the same needle. Then *a ha moment* I figured out I could pull another needle and keep them both threaded.. genius I tell you.. so_ much_ faster (and I was only switching between 2 needles)

I also hate threading needles, but I can't work with several loaded ones as I'd end up knotting the threads.

And I'm with everyone else on French Knots. They're detestable! It always takes me forever to do a single one (had to do two today and even hubby came over to ask why I was grunting so much ).

Yes Maggie, try the needle organizer. It's so cheap since it's made of styrofoam. And the stitching goes so much faster

I HATE white threads! kills my old eyes

I am weird I love doing backstitching

Reading back through this thread reminds me how worried i was about doing the back stitching on my first ever project--(wish i had a picture of it but i had to move across the country suddenly so the friend it was made for has it now and i'm not in contact with her) Anyway, it wasn't as bad as i imagined but it was boring!!

The design i'm working on now doesn't have nearly as much back stitching to look forward to as the first one did, so the parts i'm really hating are the sky areas that has soooo much of slightly similar colors and blended colored that i can't tell if any of it even looks any different until i hold it farther away!

I don't really *hate* any of the stitching, otherwise I wouldn't do it I get frustrated if there are massive blocks of one solid colour as I want to use a different colour. Equally, I get frustrated with large areas of bad confetti (ie no more than one or two stitches to a colour rather than at least 3 or 4) just because it feels as if I'm making no progress. Usually though by the time I'm getting frustrated, there isn't that much of the section to do, before I progress to the next bit. I have however taken to backstitching as I go along on projects that are heavy with backstitch for my own sanity!

I dislike backstitching but for some reason like doing it on blackwork.I also dislike doing lots of single threads dotted everywhere.A designer once said that a design should be good enough to have no backstitch at all to enhance it.

I don't mind backstitching at all-- it means I get to 'move the hoop', that is, I'm finishing one section, and get to move the hoop or q-snap to a new section of fabric. I don't like it if the backstitch color is the same as the darkest cross stitch color; I'll switch it up to one shade darker. If I'm going to backstitch, I want its effect seen.
Large blocks of one color are great for awhile; it lets me speed up my stitching. But why are those large areas, where you can really cruise along, always white, black, or some other really dark, boring color?
While confetti stitches are not fun and quite tedious, if I can see some subtle color changes, or the dramatic color changes, that make the really cool shading in a picture, then at least it makes sense and I can see how it all comes together. I hate it when some of the different stitches are basically the same color, and I have to wonder, what was the purpose in even bothering to change to a different thread for one random stitch or two. I'm tempted to keep on going with just one of the colors, but then I feel like I'm cheating, so I don't

I start a different part. On my current one, there are a million half-stitches of six strands for the sky and it gets tedious, so I switched over to finishing off the cabin and a tree on the other side of the pattern. You can see what I did here:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=14284&p=386472#p386472

I usually alternate the stitching between the parts I like stitchingwith the parts I don't like. For example, right now I am working on Summer in the Village by Stoney Creek and I hate stitching the trees and the big box at the bottom that goes around the verse, but I love doing the actual houses. So I stitch one thread of the trees or box and then one thread of the houses. That way stitching the parts I love is kind of like a reward for stitching the parts I hate.

I agree with a lot of you about backstitching. I LOVE IT. It DOES bring out the details.
I just finished a 12x16 mother wolf with 3 cubs on a log in a winter scene. It's a kit. I made it 2 x's. 1 for my hubby, as he found it a yard sale a couple yrs back, and the other for a dear friend's child, as he LOVES wolf scenes. I started in Jan 1 of this year, and just finished last weekend, July 21.
The pattern was on front and back page and I copied each side off of the printer and folded the edges of the pattern to CONNECT to make 1 WHOLE pattern. It has A LOT of backstitching, but that is what MAKES the project.
To BREAK UP the BORING repetition of trees, I did them in 1/2 stitches and backstitched the tree trunks, as there wasn't ANY. The sky and ground snow went the same way using 1/2 stitches. The ground snow was blended with white and 2 differ colors of blue for contrast to show shadow.
Last year, after completed 10 baby remembrances, which I do A LOT of, I decided to do a 11x14 Guardian Angel picture for my oldest sis for Christmas. I started in Sept, and got it finished 2 weeks before Christmas. On the wings it had A LOT of white, cream and LIGHT gray, 726. I did them ALL in 1/2 stitches and I was AMAZED at how AIRY the wings looked.
My next projects to finish out this year and will continue into next year are 14, In Loving Memory Remembrances. 4 will be done by Christmas and mailed. My aunt gave me a poem, and on the project, I am ADDING 2 small angels. 1 in the upper left corner and 1 on the lower right corner. 1 of the Remembrances will have ANOTHER poem she wrote and it will become a pillow for a dear friend that is in a nursing home.
Also, when I was doing a couple of baby remembrances a couple of yrs. ago, I had a pattern that had the design in a BOXED LIKE border, so I just did the border in 1/2 stitches and the border looked like WICKER. I was PLEASED at that look, so on ANOTHER baby project, I did the 1/2 stitches for a bassinet and the lace around the bassinet.
So I DECIDED when I have projects with WINGS, LACE or BASSINETS, I'll use 1/2 stitches.
So DON'T FRET over backstitching, as that is what BRINGS the project to LIFE.
Enjoy cross stitching as a HOBBY and NOT as an ORDEAL.

HAPPY STITCHING IS STITCHING LAND