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5 things to do when your stitching gets frustrating

Stitch Mess Up

Has this ever happened to you? You're going along, stitching normally, and then the mother of all knots appears. You try to remove the knot, but what happens after this can only be described as catastrophic. The floss frays and splits, more knots appear, you start crying, and then the scissors or seam ripper comes out.

I'm here to tell you that you're not alone.

I've been stitching for a while now, learning from books, videos, blogs, and much of my own trial/error/practice. I've blogged, taught online classes, worked with people one-on-one, and even written a book. In my mind, I should never have trouble with stitching. Ever.

My mind doesn't know what it's talking about.

You see, it's normal to think that when you're just getting started with a new craft or technique that you will run into problems. That you'll make mistakes or struggle for a bit. But the expectation is that you'll reach a level of mastery where mistakes don't happen.

I think that's a lie.

Lately I've been doing all the same things that I've been doing that have been working well for so long. But I've run into issues. Far more than I have had for a long while. Threads knotting or pulling through. Needles catching and floss fraying. Or maybe the embroidery just doesn't look like I want it to. And maybe this is a new lie that I'm telling myself, but I think that these things just happen sometimes. No matter how long you've been at it. Sometimes you just get in a stitching funk.

But there's hope. Any time that these issues come up, I have a few ways to be able to press on.

1. Try it again. But not too much. It's good to not give up, but the more you run into the same problem over and over, the more frustrated you'll get, and that usually makes it worse.

2. Look for an alternative. If a particular stitch or material isn't working, see if you can substitute another.

3. Ask for help. Going to an expert is great, but even just putting the question out there to your crafty friends will help you get ideas for fixing the issue.

4. Stop. Just stop and work on something else for a while.

5. Take a breath and move on. This can be hard, but learning to accept that these are just little blips is the best thing you can do. Keep stitching because it's going to be okay.

Remember, this post comes to you because I've been working through my own stitching struggles. Seriously, you're not alone. Keep on stitchin'!

8 comments:

  1. Oh it's so frustrating when this happens! Sometimes I find that crafts I find really really easy just don't click (normally if I've got my mid elsewhere!). I always just stop and take a break (and maybe pour a glass of wine haha)
    Hannah x
    Http://crafternooncabaretclub.com

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  2. Oh it's so frustrating when this happens! Sometimes I find that crafts I find really really easy just don't click (normally if I've got my mid elsewhere!). I always just stop and take a break (and maybe pour a glass of wine haha)
    Hannah x
    Http://crafternooncabaretclub.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. I couple more things to try...
    A new piece of thread and or a new needle. Sometimes the thread is just getting a little worn and sometimes your needle gets a burr. I also sometimes find that letting the needle and thread dangle down can do wonders - the thread will calm itself right down. My fina l suggestion is the same as Hannah's - a nice glass of wine - it does not necessarily fix the problem but leaves me much better able to cope! ��

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  4. Great advice! I'm still quite a novice at embroidery and sewing, and I have found that when I get to that point where it feels like nothing is going right with what I am wanting to do, I simply put it down for a bit and do something else. It saves me a lot of frustration and tears!

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  5. Love your honesty, Mollie!

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  6. So frustrating. I find that once it starts it seems to keep happening and it's best for me to just put it down and walk away for awhile. That may mean working a different project for awhile or just taking a break and picking it up later that day or the next. Working on a project while frustrated just leads me to more mistakes and frustration.

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  7. When I am ripping out more than I am stitching, I just quit for the evening and start again another day. This has always worked for me and I have been stitching for a long time.

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  8. When I am ripping out more than I am stitching, I just quit for the evening and start again another day. This has always worked for me and I have been stitching for a long time.

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