Hello everyone, nice to meet you. I have just done the traditional thing of typing a long message and then it got eaten by the browser, so this will be shorter than planned!
I'm a quilter in general, you can see my work at http://www.craftsy.com/user/48661/projects" target="_blank, but I've taken up a bit of fairly basic cross stitch to do when I'm at my partner's over the weekends, as it's more portable. I'm doing some of the prints for Breaking Cat News https://society6.com/breakingcatnews/pr ... new&page=2" target="_blank, with an eye to turning them into patterns she can sell on her site when she's a bit less inundated with new baby plus toddler. So far I've done http://www.dropbox.com/s/5drsyrgydi0yly ... 6.jpg?dl=0" target="_blank on A4 size, 14 count aida (the photo was taken in a rush and is wonky but the fabric isn't, don't worry). I'm disabled with ME/CFS which means that I'm mildly visually impaired and have concentration difficulties, so I found this surprisingly tricky and had quite a bit of unpicking to do. The next one I'm planning is the morning news desk, with the desk cut short just under Puck's tail and the text BREAKING CAT NEWS under the desk, as that's a version she's done a few times. Or possibly the one where the three boys are all climbing each other and saying "Ma'am?", but after the trouble I had with Tabitha's face, I reckon I'll find that more confusing and should do it as a third one.
Stitching white on white is a nightmare for me, and this has one white cat and two with white shirts. Cream aida, do you think? I'm buying online from Sew and So in the UK. They have quite a nice teal colour http://www.sewandso.co.uk/Products/14-C ... 19x25.aspx" target="_blank, and I've seen a version of the "Ma'am?" print where she gave it a teal background. What's it like stitching over a stronger colour? Does the white still show up OK?
I hear fishing line is good for gridding. Last time I used lavender embroidery thread, which definitely helped but also got caught up and moved around and so forth. Red fishing line in 4lb, right? How do you fasten it at the edges? I use a Q snap frame, if that's any help.
It's a bit of a pity that she picked Puck, the black kitty, to have his eyes shut, although the look is very Puck. Should I outline the eyes and nose in a lighter colour, or should I just put eyes in? It's kind of an iconic print, she uses it quite a bit in various places, and it would be nice not to have to alter it.
Right now I'm creating the patterns by overlaying a grid in GIMP image editor, and doing various versions with the image more faded so that I can see where to draw in the section lines by hand. I'm using half stitches. Does anyone know free or very cheap software I could use for writing it up?
Also any suggestions for a font for when I put the text into this one?
For the hints of aqua in the coffee mugs and the paper, I'll have to use the same thread I used for Tabitha's suit, I think that was the lightest version of that colour you could get. It's probably a bit dark for this, though, especially for the paper. Should I do one strand aqua with one strand white instead?
I think I picked threads that were too dark when I did Tabitha. Should I go for a bit lighter next time? The suit was a good colour, it was the fur tones that ended up darker than I expected. I've noticed that Elvis, the Siamese, has different tones to him in those two prints, which gives me a bit of choice, and the reds (Lupin's tie, Elvis' braces) are deeper in one as well.
Quilter who somehow got recruited
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Re: Quilter who somehow got recruited
https://www.dropbox.com/s/h3675863rspxl ... r.jpg?dl=0" target="_blank That's what I have so far, plus versions where the image is faded. I did quite a bit of wiggling about to get the eyes positioned well, that's still tricky. Since I've not increased this one in size as much, the watercolour outlining doesn't look as thick and won't get in the way as much when I'm working out my section lines.
Any ideas how to do that narrow bit on the watch on Lupin (white cat)'s wrist?
By the way, I'd be really grateful if people could refrain from using moving images (including smilies) or coloured text when commenting on my posts. They don't play well with the visual impairment and neurological problems.
Any ideas how to do that narrow bit on the watch on Lupin (white cat)'s wrist?
By the way, I'd be really grateful if people could refrain from using moving images (including smilies) or coloured text when commenting on my posts. They don't play well with the visual impairment and neurological problems.