Been a year of cross stitching....

[kathyrineparks]

Hello

This year has been a crazy year of cross stitching for me. I have done two large projects, I have already shared about them and now I am working on a cute little owl birth annoucement for a childhood friend of my sisters. Surprisingly this one has gone so fast I started it Friday and I will have it finish tonight. Ill post pictures.

But I have a question for you hard core cross stitchers.
Do you get bored with it?
I have been non stop stitching this year and I have one more big one to go. I have gotten super bored with it and I actually want to learn to crochet.
I am just curious if anyone else experiences this..

Thanks Katie Parks

[Allyn]

Hello

This year has been a crazy year of cross stitching for me. I have done two large projects, I have already shared about them and now I am working on a cute little owl birth annoucement for a childhood friend of my sisters. Surprisingly this one has gone so fast I started it Friday and I will have it finish tonight. Ill post pictures. But I have a question for you hard core cross stitchers. Do you get bored with it? I have been non stop stitching this year and I have one more big one to go. I have gotten super bored with it and I actually want to learn to crochet.
I am just curious if anyone else experiences this.. Thanks Katie Parks

I don't get bored stitching, I get bored making Xs all the time. When that happens, I'll switch to a sampler with specialty stitches and/or I'll do something in tent stitches (which goes fast and gives me some 'finish' satisfaction.) The projects I like to do are large -- usually taking a year or more to finish just one project -- and sometimes I need to take a break from the monotony of the X. Taking an evening and banging out a sampler band with pretty specialty stitches is just want I need.

Other folks here spin, knit, crochet and do other crafts to break their own monotony, so if you feel like you want to do something aside from stitching for a while, do it.

[MaggieM1750]

Yep.
I've actually spent most of this year sewing and knitting.
I've not made much progress on my stitching projects at all.
Some progress, but very minimal.
I've not started anything new, and I've not finished any either.
It is what it is.
I'll come back to stitching when I get bored with sewing or knitting.

[Rose]

I can't say that I have gotten bored but I have found a couple stitches that I just hated finishing. I normally find that I am bored if I do not stitch at least an hour or more every day. As was said before we are all very different and if you are getting bored and want to try a different stitching technic then you should or you will resent the project and that is never good.

[richardandtracy]

Bored with stitching?..
No, not really. I do stitching when I'm sitting down with the family in front of the TV. For me it is a way to productively use time that would otherwise be unproductive.
I must admit I came here because I had reached the limit of the challenge posed by what I was doing in May this year, and it was just becoming tedious. But having seen the magnificent work done by many people here, I have new goals, new challenges, new things to learn, and the interest has been sparked quite powerfully again.

Regards,

Richard.

[curly sue]

I took a couple of years away from stitching to crochet seriously. I wanted to learn to read and follow patterns and to learn more stitches. About a year ago I resumed stitching and have completed quite a few projects (small ones) and I still crochet from time to time.

[Mystonique]

Yes. I also do creative tapestry and have tried knitting, punch needle, origami, embroidery, long stitch, playing various musical instruments on an on it goes... now I'm learning to ride a motorbike.

But cross stitch is easy, pretty and I go back to it regularly. I try not to do more than one other hobby at a time so I can actually finish projects.

[wendywombat]

I also knit and crochet....but if I get tired of just doing x's then I do some hardanger...that was a real challenge to learn but very satisfying.

now I'm learning to ride a motorbike.

I try not to do more than one other hobby at a time so I can actually finish projects.

Me too!! Don't always manage it!!!

I have a motorcycle licence too...but I no longer ride We decided to part with our last motorcycle this year as we are getting a bit long in the tooth and our joints are getting creaky!

Enjoy and stay shiny side up!!!

[rcperryls]

In the past when I got bored with stitching it was usually because the piece I was working on stopped being fun and since I then operated by the law of only project at a time, I would just stop stitching. Usually turned to books and a variety of word puzzles like crosswords (Sunday size) or suduko. Now I move to another project and like the others it might be a specialty stitch sampler or hardanger (and I do need to start into the Blackwork also) or if I need a big break, computer games like Candy Crush and my new obsession Mayan Jungle (I think that's the name). Usually only lasts a day or two and then I'm back to stitching. You'll know when its time to get back to the stitching. But that doesn't mean you have to stay away from us.

Carole

[Lulu22]

It'll be great to see your projects

I don't stitch every day and I have more than one on the go I think that helps, because sometimes when I've been on a page for too long I do get fed up, I do try my hand at different crafts through the local college, cross stitching is my favourite but I know if I did it everyday I'd probably get bored!

[Strawberry Fields]

I get bored with specific projects (not to brag but I'm simply amazing at starting ones - not so great at finishing). The act of stitching itself though, no, I don't get tired of that.

[crosstitcher1]

I don't get "tired" or "bored" with this hobby, as of July 24, I started my 31st yr. After I got laid off in Nov. 2008, 2009 was "catch-up" year, as I had several interruptions before 2009, to get projects done in time. 19 projects total. Different sizes and different kinds of patterns.
Before I got laid off, I only worked 2 days on sewing. Sat. and Mons., as last job was a 3 day weekend. Now I work 6 days a week on hobby, 8-10 hrs. days, M-S. No Sundays. I always plan a year to get my projects done, as I sew for ever how many people I have to do for in that particular year. This year (17 projects) was done for 5 people. Some projects were 11/14's, 5/7's and a few "odd" size. 3 of the 17 will not be mailed. Will post on my website in Dec. after they are framed.

HAPPY STITCHING IN STITCHING LAND.

[pattiebelle]

I think we all need to take a break sometimes, and how we do that is different for everybody. Like many have said, I rotate projects - from big to little, from complex to easy, from holiday to seasons of different colors. Sometimes I stop for a week or two and read, read, read! -lol And it's great fun to come back to stitching with renewed vigor...

[BizzieLizzie]

The closest I've come to getting bored with stitching was when I was doing the beige background on Adobe White a couple of months ago. It was the only project I was working on as I wanted to get it done for my Dad, whose health has not been great recently and I was on a drive to get it finished but I really did get sick of all that beige. Generally, though, I don't get enough stitching time to give me the chance to get bored, it was just doing so much of the same colour that killed my stitchy but for a while.

I'm picking Adobe up from the framer on Saturday so all that beige will be worthwhile in the end.

[bookknurd]

I agree with a lot of what others have said.

I don't work on one stitching project at a time, and the ones that I work on are often quite different from each other. Some are small and simple, some have different stitches, more shading, etc.

I have been stitching for about a year and half now. Although stitching was my first (and I do greatly enjoy it), it was actually the thing that showed me that I have a passion for the fiber arts (I say passion and not obsession because my obsessions don't usually last this long). Sewing, knitting, spinning, stitching; I want to (and try to) do it all. I could talk about it for hours (and I have gone to retreats to do just that), and it's what I spend the time I'm not crafting thinking about. And while the fiber arts are all related in one way or another, the processes are also quite different and if I'm not in the mood to knit, I'm usually in the mood to stitch or sew (and vice versa).

There are other hobbies I like to do that I'm not as passionate about. For example, I love playing video games and can do so for a long while, but eventually I get burnt out on it. And I leave it and don't play again for a few weeks or months. And that's okay. Video games aren't going anywhere, and I know they'll be there when I want to get back to them. Same with jigsaw puzzles. Perhaps stitching is such a hobby for you. You may enjoy doing it for long stretches of time but then your brain may want to do something else for a while. Odds are, you'll get the hankering to do it again in the not so distant future if you enjoyed for this long. And that's perfectly okay! There's no point in making yourself do something you find boring. In the end, it's probably just going to make you actually not like stitching.

Basically, I'm trying to say that it's perfectly normal to feel bored.

P.S. - I highly recommend trying other fiber arts (like crochet). You may not like all of them, but odds are you'll like at least some of them if you enjoy stitching. Plus, it's just fun to try new things.

Careful though, if you're like me, you'll end up doing everything and then you'll just be running around in craft frenzy.

[kinley626]

I wouldn't say bored, but sometimes, I just don't feel like stitching. My WIPs are all very different, so that helps with breaking up the monotony of working on long-term projects. But when my knitting needles call to me, I pick 'em up with a vengeance.

[NeedleAndFork]

I'm multi craftual... if it involved thread or fiber of any sort I'm probably interested in it. That helps break up the monotony. In fact I came to cross stitching after years and years of being a knitter and spinner. I was so burned out I needed a break but missed doing something crafty. Now I switch things around often. I have a few different projects on the go so I can choose which one fits my mood. And by a few I mean 2 or 3, only one of which is a BIG one. I rarely get bored though sometimes it feels like abit o a drag when I have to work on one when I'd rather work on another but have a deadline. That's what's happening right now since I am working on a couple of comissioned pieces and I miss my HAED! So what did I do? I took a complete break for a couple of weeks and spent some quality time with one of my spinning wheels. Got what I was after accomplished and now I'm back at my cross stitch again, raring to go!