Free Hand X Stitch

Since my Buddy Lori,Notforgotten Farm, posted a her "crash course" yesterday on her blog about how to do free hand X stitching,I thought I would share mine with you. One nite well before Christmas I was enjoying one of our phone visits,when we talk about everything under the sun!!! I was kinda feeling lost,as I often do. So many things that I was working on,none of them finished,wondering what I could make that people would want to buy. One of the things that we were talking about was the free hand stitching that she had shown pictures of on her blog,that I of course LOVED. She told me just DO IT!!! I started getting excited about it and ideas started flying into my head of designs to draw!!!! Soon as we hung up, I got my stuff out and drew a Christmas tree!!! It was already late when I started so I had to make myself put it down to go to bed. Next day I finished it. Lori wanted to see it so I sent her a picture. She said that she loved it!!! I said,are you crazy woman!! LOL!! Then I drew JOY with the holly and stitched it.
I had too many ideas on how I wanted to finish the tree and wondered if anyone would want to buy these very primitively stitched pieces. As a result you can see that these 2 pieces never got finished,because I just took these pictures of them today.

In the early 80's I had a cross stitch & needlepoint store. I called it, The Magic Needle. I chose that name because to me it WAS Magic how you could take a needle,a piece of thread,and some cloth and end up with something beautiful!!!

I'm to this day self taught with everything I do. I have taught classes to oodles of people. Perfect stitching,no knots and if I missed a stitch,out it would all come!!! There was a joke John had that he'd often say to me as I worked,"Isn't it time for you to tear it out yet??"

 

I've sold my work for over 40 years now and when my sister was still alive,we'd call my work "Perfect Primitive". If people were going to pay good money for my stuff then it needed to be right!!!

So with this type of stitching I need to let myself go which would probably be good for me lol!!!

Something different that I do though is to use a washable marking pen instead of a pencil,because I'm sure that there will always be that part of me that might just have to be able to wash it out if it's not quite right lol!!! Also I like to use 1 long thread that I can fold in half so I have a loop at the end to slip my needle through for a lock stitch. See what I mean,no knots on the back of your work lol!!! I did order Lori's new patterns even though I can draw they are HER wonderful designs and I can't wait for them to get here!!!

Hoping that I can just let myself go and stitch lol!!!!

 

Sherry.....OUT