Hand-Lettering Makes Cross Stitch Cards More Personal

I love to use little motifs to make cross-stitch cards, but one area I always seem to fall short in is adding lettering. Printing it out or using stickers is no longer my only option.

Annie’s Attic recently released a book titled “CardMaker’s Hand-Lettering Workbook” and it is the bee’s knees. Not only does it give you all sorts of alphabetical inspiration, each set of letters is accompanied by a brief lesson in how to create the letters, how to shade them, and how to adapt the designs to make them even more your style. The book has loads of ideas for using the alphabets to make cards. The cards shown are embellished in all sorts of ways, not just with fabric or floss, so you will be inspired with all manner of ideas.

Check your local craft shop for CardMaker’s Hand-Lettering Workbook or order online today!

Thanks DRG publishing for the review copy of this book.

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Bee Cross Stitch Patterns

It’s not really that close to Halloween as I write this, but as crafters we’re always looking ahead and spooky season is one of my favorites. If it’s yours, too, or you just like things on the Gothic side, you should enjoy browsing and stitching projects from Ars Onirika on Etsy.

There’s a lot of pop culture inspired designs with a dark twist, from Harry Potter to Beetlejuice, Lord of the Rings to Edgar Allan Poe.

The biggest section of the shop is just called Easy Cross Stitch, but it covers a lot of ground, from text-only designs to stained glass windows, tarot card-inspired designs (I was going to share this one called The Stitcher as it’s relevant to our interests) and a green absinthe fairy.

I decided to talk more about that one instead just because I wanted to call out that while it’s in the easy section, it is labeled more accurately as being an intermediate design, so check those skill levels if you’re a newer stitcher. This one measures 122 to 169 stitches, which comes out to 8.7 by 12.12 inches or 22.2 by 30.8 cm on 14 count fabric. The pattern notes don’t say how many colors it uses, but it looks like a lot. This would be a great one to make for lovers of Art Nouveau or who have a fancy bar.

You’ll also find a large section of medieval and gothic designs, which includes lots of designs inspired by medieval artwork; a fantasy and magic section, filled with Harry Potter designs, fairies, Outlander and more; and classic art patterns, which is pretty much what it sounds like.

There are also alphabets and samplers you can use to make your own projects, a few literary samplers, and a set of Victorian cat designs you can personalize with your cat’s name.

If any of that piques your interest, you should definitely head over to Ars Onirika at Etsy and browse through their designs. Let me know if you see something you like!

[Photo: Ars Onirika]

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