Tips to Make Cross Stitch More of a Habit

This is the cross stitch page, so of course I’m talking specifically about cross stitch here, but these ideas for making cross stitch more of a habit really work for any craft or hobby that you want to deliberately spend more time on.

I got to thinking about this because of a post/podcast from Hannah Hand Makes, which talks about something she started doing that made it possible for her to cross stitch more. Briefly, though you should go read the post, she says she felt more energized to do cross stitch after finishing her evening chores when everything was set and ready in her crafting spot.

This makes a lot of sense. I always have a knitting project (OK, usually more than one) on the couch so I can pick it up whenever we sit down to watch TV or have friends over. There’s no excuse not to do it if it’s right there and ready to go.

In addition, having all the supplies you need handy makes it easier to get started and keep going. If you have different places in the house where you like to craft, invest in some basic tools in duplicate (like little scissors, needles, needle threaders if you use them) so you don’t have to hunt them down while you’re stitching.

I think it also helps to have a specific time that you intend to work on cross stitch or any other craft during the day. Say it’s 20 minutes after you take the kids to school or half an hour after cleaning up supper. The best way to form a habit is to tie it to another habit or something that happens every day so you’re less likely to forget about it.

I would love to hear your thoughts and if you have any ideas or tips that make it easier for you to work more cross stitch (or other crafting) time into your day.

[Photo by ? Monika ? ? Schröder ? from Pixabay]

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35+ Sunflower Cross Stitch Patterns

When you put all the time and energy you do into making a great cross stitch project, it’s worth taking the time to frame it in a way that will make it look its best.

Often for smaller designs we’ll choose to frame projects in a hoop, which is cute and a fine option, especially for seasonal projects you might want to change out through the year. Others will send their finished projects for professional framing, which is a great option for gifts and heirloom items that need to be preserved, but it can also be quite expensive.

Crewel Ghoul has a great tutorial for a way that you can easily frame your cross stitch projects at home with just a few supplies.

She uses adhesive mounting board (but you can use non-adhesive board if you have some one hand or you need a size that’s not available in an adhesive version) and a few other basic supplies to secure the sides and corners of the cross stitch fabric around the board before putting the design in the frame.

This requires a bit of hand sewing, but we’re cross stitchers so I’m sure we can handle that.

Framing your cross stitch like this gives it a little padding in the frame, which makes it look better than if it were just flat in a frame with no special finishing. It’s also a great idea to use a frame without glass or to leave the glass out of the frame so it doesn’t crush your stitches.

And though this is super secure it’s not 100 percent permanent if you decide you don’t want the project framed in that way any more. Or you can take it out of the frame and the edges are still all nicely finished so you can display it a different way without having to do anything else to it.

Check out the tutorial at Crewel Ghoul.

[Photo: Crewel Ghoul.]

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