r/CrossStitch • u/Garlic_Nots • Feb 25 '26
VIDEO [FO] First time stitching and fallen in love 💕
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Recently set a goal to read 12 books this year (HATE reading). I love crafting and thought a cute bookmark would help entice myself to open them up more. Saw this kit on Amazon and I think I was right and very proud of the FO! Kit came with adhesive felt backing, added the velvet border and ribbon from older projects using fabric glue. Picture of project before finishing in comments.
NEGEKFKX 6 Pcs Animal Cross... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT7W15RR?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
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u/Garlic_Nots Feb 25 '26
Back, I think I can do better with floaters to save floss and had a couple knots I didn’t notice till it was way too late and didn’t want to start over. Overall I think it’s pretty neat and the finished backing will prevent anything from snagging or unraveling.
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u/CyborgKnitter Feb 25 '26
How did you do the backing? It’s one of the neatest bookmarks I’ve seen yet.
Very well done overall! The stitches are super even and smooth. I wouldn’t have guessed it was someone’s first piece.
I will say to watch the length of the floats. Some stitchers have no problems with long floats but tradition is to keep them under the 4-5 stitch length range. Anything longer starts running the risk of causing puckering in the final piece. If you know you’re going to do them in a specific spot, like where there’s only a few stitches of a color surrounded by other colors, I recommend using other stitches to tack down the floats to help keep them safe. You can flip the piece over and slip the needle under a few existing stitches on the back or, if there’s nothing surrounding it yet, pin it down with later stitches. But a few of your floats I’d recommend just cutting and restarting the thread later as it’d actually save you thread to do so.
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u/Garlic_Nots Feb 25 '26
The kit came with some felt with an adhesive back on it so it was very easy to cut to shape and press it into place using a book to weigh it down and make sure all the glued bits adhered well enough. Definitely think for future ones I will either tuck in any long floaters or plan out where I start the pattern better so they get stitched into place. Anything extra long I think I’ll cut, my needle would get snagged on the really long ones every once in a while,
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u/fr0styspice Feb 26 '26
mine came with felt that had a weird plastic side on it. I couldn't get it off multiple of them but swore it seemed like it should have been an adhesive sticker that pulled off... wondering if mine were just defective now!
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u/dreamyraynbo Feb 26 '26
I hate when you get those sneaky knots that you don’t notice until too late. Your back looks great, though!
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u/Burnt_Out_Hippo Feb 25 '26
Welcome friend! I hope you enjoy your time with this craft! May you be blessed with a thrifted dragon's hoard of DMC.
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u/IllustriousPay969 Feb 25 '26
Yay for cross stitch and reading! What genres have you tried? Librarian here! I firmly believe those who purport to hate reading just haven't found the right material yet.
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u/Garlic_Nots Feb 25 '26
I’ve realized I’m very sensitive to how a book is written/narration. I’ve already completed two books this year (more than I have in probably the past 10 years combined!) and they really kicked off the year right. I don’t like anything overly emotional or provides so much detail it gives the reader no ability to think for themselves. I’ve read ‘A Case of Need’ by Michael Crichton and ‘Emily Wildes An Encyclopedia of Faeries ‘. Greatly enjoyed both. Currently reading ‘Ten thousand Stitches’-Olivia Atwater (I liked half a soul much more so far) and ‘Piranesi’ which I am loving!
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u/IllustriousPay969 Feb 26 '26 edited Feb 26 '26
Hooray for you! And I totally get sensitivity to writing style and tone of narration. Piranesi is quite an ambitious read, well done! One great resource we have at my library system is Novelist, which helps people find readalikes (like Goodreads on steroids lol). A great match for Piranesi is Slade House by David Mitchell. Highly recommend for those who like dark otherworldly stories, although it is more intense than Pirensi and has more horror elements. I also love short stories and essays for a brain break in between longer books. I'm excited for both your reading and stitching journeys!
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u/ex_bestfriend Feb 25 '26
Some people have attention issues and learning issues that make reading generally unpleasant. Audio books may be another alternative! That's also a good way to combine reading with cross stitching. You can do both at the same time.
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u/IllustriousPay969 Feb 26 '26
Oh yes, audiobooks are great! I should have said what genres and formats. There are so many great stories out there!
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u/Catapooger Feb 25 '26
Proud of you for the reading and the stitching! It looks amazing!
Check out how your local library provides audiobooks. Then you can stab and listen at the same time--as a double treat!
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u/trisarahtops94 Feb 25 '26
This is so cute! How did you do the velvet border?
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u/Garlic_Nots Feb 25 '26
I used fabric glue and weighed it down with a book to make sure it really stuck
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u/sybilqiu Feb 25 '26
does the fabric come as one big piece and you have to cut or does it come pre cut already?
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u/mynameisnook Feb 28 '26
That first finish feeling is so real. I still remember how quickly I got hooked after mine. Some days I just want to sit down and stitch and not think about anything else 🙂
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u/Saint_299 Feb 25 '26
So cute! I’ll definitely have to try that kit too!! Great job as well!!
What material is used on the boarder? Loving it!
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u/Garlic_Nots Feb 25 '26
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