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JA Fan wrote:My tip is to always make sure you have good lighting, and, if necessary, magnification.
I use a lightstand that has a daylight bulb and magnifier. It has proved invaluble.
I can't mix up threads that have very similiar shades, I can see the holes better and I find I can stitch longer without risk of eyestrain.
We are only given one pair of eyes for our lifetime. It's up to us to take care of them.

Amen. My eyes decided to demand glasses in 5th grade. My eyes are off the chart of "bad." After that, I stopped using the computer at night without external light. Now it irritates the heck out of me if I don't have sufficient light. Which kind of sucks where I live, the couch I like to sit on has no overhead ceiling light. All I have is a desk lamp about a foot to my right. It works, but I'd prefer one of those standing lamps that you can adjust the neck on.

CuriousKitty wrote:

JA Fan wrote:My tip is to always make sure you have good lighting, and, if necessary, magnification.
I use a lightstand that has a daylight bulb and magnifier. It has proved invaluble.
I can't mix up threads that have very similiar shades, I can see the holes better and I find I can stitch longer without risk of eyestrain.
We are only given one pair of eyes for our lifetime. It's up to us to take care of them.

Amen. My eyes decided to demand glasses in 5th grade. My eyes are off the chart of "bad." After that, I stopped using the computer at night without external light. Now it irritates the heck out of me if I don't have sufficient light. Which kind of sucks where I live, the couch I like to sit on has no overhead ceiling light. All I have is a desk lamp about a foot to my right. It works, but I'd prefer one of those standing lamps that you can adjust the neck on.

That is what I have. I can adjust the necks on both the lamp and the attached magnifier so I can angle them any way I want. The lamp is expensive, I'm not denying that, but to me it's well worth it.

I also have a light stand that was a bit expensive but I totally needed it (that was my excuse to hubby ). Having good lighting makes a huge difference.

I like to scan my patterns into my computer and open with Paint and enlarge the area I am working on, and cross off as I go using the pencil in Paint. Saves on printing ink, and you can pack your pattern away neatly so it doesn't get soiled or where you keep folding and unfolding the creases tear etc.

For completed pieces that I haven't decided what to do with I pop them in plastic sleeves in ringbinders and seal closed with cellotape so they don't get dusty. Only works with smaller pieces unless you don't mind ironing out the creases if you fold it away.

Use decent scissors! It's stating the obvious but for the first six months I used a small set of scissors I got from a pharmacy. I never realised how proper embroidery scissors made life so much easier- can snip closer, and get right in there if you're frogging.

Before i start my project if I always take a photo copy of the original chart. That way I can colour the parts that I have done on the photo copy and the original you can refer to if you need to because some of the print has faded or you've coloured over it in error

Jules

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Most of the stitching I've done has been given away as presents. Recently I made a really good stitching friend (minij you are the best!) who showed me photos of ALL the work she had done. I wish I had thought of that! We spend hours making "friends" with the pieces we are working on and then loose track of them when they move on to their new home.

I'm not sure who said it.. or which thread it was in.. but someone said they use Fray Check on all their buttons on sweaters, coats, shirts, etc. to prevent threads from breaking and the button falling off.

Well.. thanks whoever it was. I thought about that when I bought a new sweater last weekend. The first thing I did when I got home was to grab my bottle of Fray Check. And since I was thinking about it.. I went through my closet did it to whatever I could find that had a button. One dab on the front, one dab on the back.