So, in addition to craft ADD I am a bit of a craft snob. When I got into embroidery as an adult it was ribbon embroidery that caught my attention. It was so striking and unlike anything I’d ever seen that it seemed better than anything else. I wondered how anyone could not be into ribbon embroidery if they’d heard of it and concluded most people didn’t know because it didn’t seem very popular. Well, that is the wrong attitude to have-pride goeth before the fall and all that.
I soon moved on to embroidery with cotton floss (it appeared to have it’s uses-that and my mother had a huge stash) and crewel work but I vowed never to get into counted cross stitch. I’ve moved on once again and the thing that’s caught my interest at last (hopefully permanently) is blackwork. I found working counted thread embroidery to be extremely relaxing and meditative. But I still thought counted cross stitch was lame.
It seemed too easy to me. Just following a pattern and laying down colors. Of course, this can describe all embroidery.
So arrogant! So judgmental!
I regularly search eBay for embroidery kits. In an effort not to miss any because sellers are often woefully inaccurate (or creative if you want to be positive) when they list I simply search for “kit” in the Needlecrafts & Yarn subsection of Crafts. In fact, I have a saved search set up to notify me when new things were added to eBay that matched my search terms. This is close to 600 items a day. How do I know this? Because I quickly made use of the RSS feed button at the bottom of the search results page and added the feed to my Google Reader and the reader counts each new item.
The new Search Experience eBay is betaing doesn’t include the RSS feature so I’ve opted out for the second time.
Casting such a wide net exposed me to all sorts of embroidery, including the dreaded counted cross stitch. But there, amongst the rough was this diamond:
Oh my god! RV Cross Stitch! Are you kidding me?! After cackling like mad I bid and won the auction. I don’t mean any disrespect to Full Hookups Inc. because if they hadn’t produced this kit I wouldn’t have been able to complete it. But it’s just so fantastical. And weird. Here’s a picture of the chart:
I hadn’t done counted cross stitch since I was a child so I did the best I could. I didn’t know to mark every ten blocks with thread or why one should work a section completely before moving on. As a result there are a few mistakes and why you’ve seen the development of the piece color by color.
I should have known I’d find counted cross stitch just as relaxing and meditative as blackwork and I’ve been thoroughly cured of my CSS prejudice. Well, except for the really lame kits.
I struck gold twice! I found another RV kit-this time for the Class C Motorhome.
Like anything in life “practise makes perfect”. I think you did an excellent job on this piece. Keep on stitchin’…
Carolyn
http://www.stitchopedia.com
An encyclopedia of needlepoint stitches…
Thanks! And thanks for leaving your address, I’m definitely going to check it out.
The RV’s look like fun.
Loving the RV pattern. So bad it’s awesome! Great work!
Thanks! That’s exactly what I was thinking when I saw it. Thanks for visiting my blog.
Hi, inwhich!
Imagine my surprise when your blog came up during a “gee I’m bored” google search…
I am the original designer of the Full Hookups Included cross stitch kits! Yup!
While you are cackling away, remember that this kit was designed in 1991! The chart might look terrible now but back in the day, it was a great improvement on hand-drawn charts which were a real nightmare to read.
The type and colors of the vehicles are as dated as the chart, but again, in its heyday, there was nothing to compare!
You did a great job on the stitching, by the way. I was a bit fanatical with the half- and quarter- stitches. I sure wouldn’t do it that way again.
Thanks for the trip down memory lane….
grace
Oh my god! OMG OMG OMG!
Thank you so much for contacting me! I tried to do a search online but couldn’t find any more information and chickened out of writing a letter to the address on the kit. I’m going to write an email stat!
I want to assure you my laughter wasn’t malicious. It wasn’t my intention to put down your work–I loved working this pattern. Other people do too, it’s the most visited post on this blog! The people on Craftster loved it too.
It has a retro-kitsch thing going for it (even though I can remember 1991). The pattern isn’t bad–it’s just the subject matter. You have to understand–this is also coming from a non-RV person. I’ve never owned an RV and never will own an RV. Not because I think it’s terrible, but because I’ll never have that luxury.
So there miiiiiight be a little bit of bitter envy seeping into my attitude towards the type of woman that could have stitched this kit while traveling cross-country with her husband.
But anyway, handicrafts are at a weird stage right now. There’s an older generation with their own traditions that have to coexist with a younger generation struggling to adapt tradition methods to their particular worldview. In a lot of cases, that includes making a statement that the crafter is breaking from/rejecting the past.
So, excuses aside, I want to apologize, sincerely, if I’ve been callous and injured your feelings. This must have taken a lot of work (my boyfriend and I have speculated on just how much) and I respect that.
-Beth
Beth,
It is a pleasure to hear from you again! I assure you I did not take offense, quite the opposite! I’m flattered that you took the time to do the kit! I wish I had more to send you. We’ll look in the attic and see if any survived.
You hit the nail on the head about the folks who bought our kits: they were criss-crossing the country in their RV, visiting far-flung kids and grandbabies, retired with an income that actually allowed them to buy the gas for the RV. I doubt that will come around again.
I camped with friends when my kids. All my friends did. It as an inexpensive way to vacation and yes, see the country. We camped from Maine to California, though always in a camper of some type. In fact, the family names you see on the cover of the kit are my friends’ names!
I know that crafts are in a weird place now. Needle kits are hot but not decorative stitching, it seems to me. Decorative painting is out, too, and I enjoy that as well. I say anything that the younger folks do that they like and produces something to be proud of is a good thing!
You have my email address, please don’t hesitate to write anytime!
Best,
Grace
The RV rocks, man! Keep on keepin’ on. And how about updating your page once in a while. Isn’t there a stonehenge you need to be posting?
Oh man, srsly. I’m making crazy progress (three day weekend!) but it’s a little soul crushing because it’s mostly shades of gray or yellow. Have a nice rest-of-the-weekend.
Oh, and could you embroider me a butt flap? Mine old one has seen better days.
Are they seriously called butt flaps? That’s what I always called them in my head but I never wanted to say that out loud in case there was a more punk rock term.
Where can I get these patterns?
I agree about their being so few decent cross stitch kits, if i do X stitch i generally pick abstract stuff (or try and convert it to another medium). and I too love blackwork, even though it makes my hands hurt. Right now I’m being inspired by Islamic patterns.
Wanna be blackwork buddies?