Hi there! So I originally found you through your Good Omens blog and fell in love with the pattern you’ve been posting there—obviously I wouldn’t be ready for a project that big any time soon, but it’s made me want to get into cross stitch myself. Do you have any recommendations for beginners in terms of resources, equipment, etc? Thank you so much and tell Darcy dog she deserves all the scritches!
oh my gosh welcome!! i’m so excited that you’re looking to try stitching!!
so basically cross stitch is pretty simple stuff. you need fabric, floss (thread), a hoop, a needle, and a pattern. THIS website is a great resource - i have linked to a beginner’s ultimate tutorial but there are lots of tutorials and explanations for various things, like what needle to use, what fabrics are available, and what certain terms mean. i also like the tutorials from HERE - scarletquince makes patterns that are probably more complicated but their tutorials are very good. there are also some good tutorials on youtube (usually posted with a title containing the word flosstube) if you just search how to cross stitch or whatever particular thing you are looking for.
THIS is the website i use to buy my materials from - they have a good selection of everything although be mindful that right now esp some things are having a hard time coming into stock because of the pandemic. i have also used 123stitch, chartingcreations, and a few others, but everythingcrossstitch is typically my go-to. you can also pick up all the basic materials at any hobby lobby or michael’s type craft store.
patterns! this is the very fun part. the DMC website (DMC is the top floss manufacturer) has some free patterns that i think are very good, you can view them HERE. you do have to sign up with your email but the patterns are free and some are very very fun.
you can also get patterns on etsy and there are some very good shops at varying levels of quality - stitchrovia, satsumastreet, stitchingland, 2x2stitch are places i see a lot from. my word of caution about etsy is this: if the pattern picture does not look pixelated or is not a irl version of the finished product - that is to say, if you cannot tell what EXACTLY the picture will look like stitched up - then be careful, because while some sellers are making gorgeous patterns, other sellers are just transferring photographs through a sort of pic2pat software and they do not come out looking good. if you’re not sure, look in the comments! are there progress shots from anyone? what does the finished project look like?
i also think the subreddit for r/crossstitch is very fun to follow, i don’t really participate but i like looking through the patterns everyone has done and it’s fun to see different creators!
best of luck!! feel free to pop in if you ever have a specific question and i will do my best to help! can’t wait to see what you create!
