Questions re: thread untangling and speed of stitching

[Aesandre]

What is the name of the thing that you can wear on your finger which has a needle-like object on the end which you can use to straighten out your thread as you stitch? For the life of me I cannot remember what it's called.

I'm becoming concerned with the rate of my stitching, as it can take me up to 3 hours to complete a 10 x 10 block. I have a few huge projects and I'm starting to worry that I won't realistically have enough time to complete them if I'm only able to complete one or two blocks per day. Do you think that the parking method is relatively fast way of stitching? I've never tried it because a) it looked messy having threads dangling everywhere b) I was worried about wasting thread running it from the top of one 10 x 10 block down to the bottom c) I'm renowned for having the back of my cross stitch as neat as the front and d) I didn't fully understand the technique. However I've recently come across a youtube video that was extremely enlightening and I'm desperate to improve my speed. Are there any other tips you can give me on becoming a speedy stitcher?

Thanks in advance.

[Arianwen]

The needle thing I think is called a Laying tool, and I think Fizzbw sells some too.

As for speed I'm not the fastest stitcher but I try not to change colours too much - I'm a cross country stitcher - I work all of one colour in an area before changing - parking could come in handy for that (I'm just exploring this myself so I can't give much advice here). I don't worry much about my back, as long as there aren't any major lumps or bumps, and my ends are neatly clipped, it doesn't bother me how it looks.

Another way to speed up would be to prethread your needles and have them ready and waiting for use. I think practice is the main way to increase your speed though

[Rose]

You did not mention if you are a 1 hand stitcher or a 2 hand stitcher. I think that stitching 2 hand speeds things up.

ie.... 2 hands is when you have a hand on top of the fabric and your other hand on the bottom of the fabric and you push the thread back and forth between the 2. This requires that you stitch in a hoop/scroll/or frame. And it also helps if you have a stand to hold those.

[MaggieM1750]

The thing you wear on your finger is a trolley needle.

I don't worry about my speed.. So can't help with tips on that.
My projects get done when they get done.
I also don't park, and I don't care what the back of my project looks like.

[Allyn]

What is the name of the thing that you can wear on your finger which has a needle-like object on the end which you can use to straighten out your thread as you stitch? For the life of me I cannot remember what it's called.

It's called a trolley needle. You can get one from NordicNeedle.com. They also have something called a celtic laying tool that looks like a trolley needle with a fancier finger 'ring.' I use a trolley needle. I like it better than a 'regular' laying tool because it acts as an extension of my finger rather than a separate tool that I have to manipulate.

...I'm becoming concerned with the rate of my stitching, as it can take me up to 3 hours to complete a 10 x 10 block. I have a few huge projects and I'm starting to worry that I won't realistically have enough time to complete them if I'm only able to complete one or two blocks per day. Do you think that the parking method is relatively fast way of stitching? I've never tried it because a) it looked messy having threads dangling everywhere b) I was worried about wasting thread running it from the top of one 10 x 10 block down to the bottom c) I'm renowned for having the back of my cross stitch as neat as the front and d) I didn't fully understand the technique. However I've recently come across a youtube video that was extremely enlightening and I'm desperate to improve my speed. Are there any other tips you can give me on becoming a speedy stitcher? Thanks in advance.

The parking method is faster for me, but I am doing it without giving it conscious thought. My eyes and hands just do it without my brain having to kick in and contribute. That took some practice, but after the first couple of pages doing it, I had it down. Your experience may be different.

What is it that you feel slows you down? Are you spending a lot of time counting? Or maybe you spend a lot of time studying the chart looking for symbols? Three hours to do a 10x10 block does seem a rather leisurely pace. Normally, I would tell you not to worry about speed and just enjoy the stitching, but I understand when you say you have big projects coming up and you're concerned about getting them done in a reasonable amount of time. The projects I do can take a year or more to complete, but that's doing between 250 and 400 stitches in a sitting.

Rose hit on a good point: Two-handed stitching. You'll need a stand to hold your frame to free your hands up. I have stitched two-handed, but I usually don't.

[Aesandre]

Hi all,

Thanks for your replies. I used to use standing frames when I first began stitching but I found them too cumbersome. Having read your suggestions I've started to use them again. I may need to stick a few books underneath the feet to raise it up a few inches, as I'm working on 25 count and I'm having to bend forward to see the holes properly.

I attempted two-hand stitching over the weekend but I'm not used to performing such delicate tasks with my left hand so it appears that I'm actually quicker one-handed. I suppose that will improve with practice though.

I think what slows me down is having the urge to poke and prod my stitches to ensure they look neat and are laying correctly. I've invested in a trolley needle so hopefully I can sort that out as I'm going along.

[Allyn]

....I attempted two-hand stitching over the weekend but I'm not used to performing such delicate tasks with my left hand so it appears that I'm actually quicker one-handed. I suppose that will improve with practice though. I think what slows me down is having the urge to poke and prod my stitches to ensure they look neat and are laying correctly. I've invested in a trolley needle so hopefully I can sort that out as I'm going along.

Your brain has to teach your off-hand what to do. It's awkward at first, but it'll happen if you stick with it.

It sounds like you're fussing too much over individual stitches. Using the trolley needle as a laying tool should help your stitches be neater and then you can stop fussing. That'll go a long way to speeding up your stitching.

[BizzieLizzie]

I attempted two-hand stitching over the weekend but I'm not used to performing such delicate tasks with my left hand so it appears that I'm actually quicker one-handed. I suppose that will improve with practice though.

Yes, it absolutely will. I've been working on improving my stitching speed over the last few months and two-handed stitching practically doubled my speed. It took me a very long time to get used to it and I find it easier to have my dominant hand on top whereas most people seem to prefer their nondominant hand on top but the lovely people on this forum gave me lots of encouragement and advice, and now I find stitching one handed more cumbersome!

Other techniques that have improved my stitching speed are using a stand and scroll frame, starting and finishing my threads on the front, having my chart attached to the front (with lovely pincushion-magnets from Fizzbw) and keeping my scissors etc. on the front. I don't flip the frame at all now, which saves tons of time.

I know everyone says stitching speed doesn't matter, but like you I have lots of projects I want to finish and not much spare time for stitching, so anything that boosts my speed is worth looking into.

[NeedleAndFork]

Yes, it absolutely will. I've been working on improving my stitching speed over the last few months and two-handed stitching practically doubled my speed. It took me a very long time to get used to it and I find it easier to have my dominant hand on top whereas most people seem to prefer their nondominant hand on top but the lovely people on this forum gave me lots of encouragement and advice, and now I find stitching one handed more cumbersome!

I'm one of those people who prefers my dominant hand on the top too. I can stitch either way and sometimes I'll switch depending on where on the frame I'm working if the other way is easier, but it's definately faster with my left hand on top.

The one thing that made things go way faster for me was starting and ending my stitching from the front. I do this whenever possible and it makes a huge difference. No flipping, no trying to push short tails of thread through the backs of stitches. In the time it takes to start and end a thread I can easily do another 5 - 10 stitches.

Parking is useful for patterns with a lot of colors and confetti in a small area, or on a high count fabric where I am stitching over one. But for lower count fabrics, where there is less chance of piercing the floss when I come up from the back on a shared hole, I cross country all over the place.