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Hi everyone I was wondering when working with a scroll frame which side do you feel is better to work on. I.e do you work with the back of the stitch over the scroll bar or with the front of the stitch over?

Do you find either way to be better than the other?

I always scroll my work OVER the top of the bars,& I use a grime cover to keep the scrolled areas clean.
Just a personal preference for me.

I always loosen the tension when not stitching!

Joan

I scroll under, also known as stitching in the well. no particular reason its just how I first rolled one and I just kept it that way

I stitch in the well. I like it better because it's the backside of the fabric that is "exposed" when wound around the rods on the scroll frame; or if I'm working on a hoop or Q-Snaps, I'm handling the backside of the fabric instead of the front. Also, the backside is flat so if you have to anchor some tails, your fingers aren't bumping against the frame if it is even a little close to the edge. When working on a scroll frame, it also gives me a 'shelf' across the bottom of the work to hold stuff like my key page and the chart page in progress. If you're working on a scroll frame, you can switch one of the rods and mount the fabric in an "S" configuration so the fabric is wound under one rod and over the other. Each time I start a new project, I mean to try it in an "S" as someone once said the tension holds better that way, but I'm so used to mounting the fabric the way I've always done it and I forget until I'm already underway.

I always stitch in the well - scroll frame, hoop, stretcher bars, anything. I've always done that.

In well stitcher here

I don't stitch in the well. I hold the frame in my hand, and stitch without glasses on. As I am very short sighted, the fabric is 7-9" from my nose, and to stitch 'in the well' would get the bars too close to my face for comfort. I stitch old shirt sleeves over the rods to protect the fabric from grime.

Regards,

Richard.

I have fabric over the bars. Didn't know you could do it any other way until I got a cross stitch book a year or so ago. The few cross stitch or tapestry complete with frame I have bought in charity shops have always had fabric across the top.

Do you think it's a case of different countries using different ways?

Edit: Just seen a well stitcher is from UK so maybe my theory is not right

fccs wrote:I always stitch in the well - scroll frame, hoop, stretcher bars, anything. I've always done that.

Me too!! I can balance the chart next to my stitching as well that way. Plus it keeps what I've stitched clean!

I also stitch over the bars. As usual with embroidery, it's what's most convenient and comfortable that usually is the order of the day.

I stitch "on top" - it just feels more natural to me . An exception is when I work on a very small project in a very small hoop, then working in the wel means I can finish off threads more easily.

The lady who posted demonstration videos of the Millenium frame and the various stands (Nicola P something, can't remember her last name) said she always stitches in the well because it keeps the fabric cleaner, and I can see how that would work, but I have my bar covers so the scrolled bits don't get dirty, and I find that I like resting my non-stitching hand on the fabric sometimes, which is more difficult in the well.

In the end, as Serinde said, it boils down to what is most convenient and comfortable for the individual stitcher.