How to Store Embroidery Needles

I have a complicated relationship with my embroidery needles. Which is a fancy way of saying I don’t really take care of my needles at all. Even though I know I have embroidery needles to use for cross stitch and sewing, needles that are certainly still in their packages, I can rarely find them when I need them.

So when I saw this post from Crewel Ghoul about how to store your embroidery needles, it hit close to home for me.

It doesn’t really say anything I didn’t already know, but it is good advice that might also serve as a reminder for you to take better care of your needles when you cross stitch or do other hand-sewing projects so that you’ll be able to find your needles again when you need them.

It would help me a lot if I had a dedicated place to keep needles I’m not using, including the needles that are still in their packages from when I bought them. You’d think I would keep them with my embroidery floss but apparently you would be mistaken about that.

Another good idea for me is to have a place to put needles I’ve been using when I am done with them. Because goodness knows I’m not going to put them back in the package. (Which may actually be a good thing because then I know which one I’ve been using and which ones are fresh. Not that I replace my needles regularly, but still.) I own pincushions but I don’t really use them for anything, which is silly.

Check out the post at Crewel Ghoul to see all the options available for storing your embroidery needles properly. I’d love to hear what you do, especially if you have a better system than I do (which, honestly, would be any system at all).

[Photo: Crewel Ghoul]

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Tips for Stitching a Large Cross Stitch Project

I’m always looking for different approaches to holidays in different crafts, and this year I’m noticing a lot of cute ghosts. Check out these adorable ghost cross stitch patterns for tons of cute without the creepy.

Cute Patterns by Maria has a set of six adorable ghosts doing ghosty things like reading a book, talking to a crow, decorating with pumpkins and mushrooms and more. Stitch a single one, all six on one canvas, or each on individually to make your own adorable set of ghosts to scatter around the house. Each ghost is 67 by 86 stitches; the full set is 205 by 174 and uses 28 colors.

Another cute set is this little three pattern set of ghosts with pumpkins and mushrooms. Designed by Wild Bluebell Patterns, the dimensions vary on them but they are super cute all stitched and hung together in hoops as shown.

This set of hipster ghosts is meant to be stitched up as ornaments for you Halloween tree or to display individually, or you can make one big piece. These designs are from Artmishka Cross Stitch and show ghosts getting coffee, reading a book, riding a broom and more. The whole set uses 11 colors.

If you have a dog friend in your life you’ll want to stitch up this sweet puppy ghost pattern from Holly Deer Stitch. The puppy is carrying a cute jack ‘o lantern with a candle and the project measures 7.14 by 6.79 inches (18.14 by 17.24 cm) on 14 count fabric. It uses 14 colors.

Find a ghost among the wildflowers with this design by Woven Wild Crafts. They call it spooky but I disagree. The design is 10 inches/25.5 cm square when worked on 14 count fabric and uses 19 colors.

Or keep it super simple with this little fall ghost cross stitch pattern from Crystal Feather Crafts. This little one is 56 by 47 stitches, which comes out to 4 by 3.4 inches or 10.2 by 8.5 cm on 14 count fabric. It uses 13 colors.

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