Getting Stitched on the Farm

Starting a Stitchalong

I have been thinking about starting an embroidery "stitchalong" for a really long time now. I have been fascinated by the “knitalongs” that I have seen popping up when a new knitting book comes out. As I have been researching these knitalongs, I noticed that they were being administrated not by authors, but by readers. Is it inappropriate to have an author running her own stitchalong? I hope not – I just want to see what (if anything) is being stitched and to start a little embroidery community where everyone can share ideas. If this gets to be too much for me to handle, I have a friend who has volunteered to help with some administration (thanks Sara!).

Here is the link and as you can see, there is just one lonely project waiting for company. I was going to wait until after the holidays to start this thing because I know how busy you all are this time of year. But then I thought about it -- What about all the stitchers who are making potholders like on this post? If they took photos before wrapping a gift, they could join after the holidays. So, if you are doing hand-stitching on holiday gifts, think about joining us.

If you don’t want to join the Stitchalong because you just don’t feel technologically savvy enough, you can still participate. Send me a photo of your finished project (72 dpi, please) along with a brief description of what you did. I will then post the project for you. Make sure you identify how you would like your name listed and if you would like your town or country listed also.

I have had real “fear of failure” with this project…. What if noone joins? What if noone is stitching from ideas in either Colorful Stitchery or Kids Embroidery? Don’t let me down folks. And I would love to have your kids involved too. I’d love to see (as I am sure others would too) what your children have done with ideas from Kids’ Embroidery.

If you are interested in joining the Stitchalong, e-mail me by hitting my e-mail button at right and I’ll send you an invite. In the subject line, include I want to join the stitchalong. And spread the word please!

If you don't know what a "Stitchalong" is - here's my brief description. Check out this one to see one in action.
1. Join the stitchalong and become a "team member."
2. Stitch something inspired by one of my stitching books.
3. Take a photo of the object.
4. Convert the digital photo to 72 dpi if it isn't already.
5. From blogger dashboard, choose create post on the Colorful Stitchery Blog which you are a team member of.
6. Upload your photo to the post.
7. Write a brief description of the project - i.e. fabric stitched on, thread used, how you did it, who it is for. In other words, whatever you think other stitchers will be interested in.
8. Publish post in Blogger and share your creation with the world.

It's easy and fun (after the first or second time, that is.) You can always use the other option which is to email me the photo (72 dpi only) and I will post it for you.