What are you working on? You haven’t posted anything in a while.”
Oh boy. So you remember the Problama?
The law of Chateau Andrews state that if one child has gotten something as a parental gift, the other child shall receive an equivalent of the same type. So if one gets a handmade sweater, the other must also get an item of handmade clothing.
Kid 1 is not a great fan of llamas, but she is a great fan of Fate/Stay Night manga and anime. In particular, she likes Saber.
So I found some fan art free for personal use. And then I went to DMC site.
I can hear the cross stitchers groaning.
I thought a chibi, which is a cuter, chubbier version of the character, would have fewer colors. I was wrong.
The image is really detailed and has a bazillion colors.
It’s the hair and the armor, and this is old school, meaning I made a paper pattern and none of it is printed on canvas, so it’s all counted. I am really enjoying working on it. I’ll probably finish by the end of the month and I am debating on whether to outline it with darker thread or not. I kind of think eyes and mouth should be outlined at the very least. Thoughts?
From my point of view, yes to outlining the eyes maybe to outlining the mouth. Will you make the pattern available?
Love this design.
+1 on the outline. I would say I wanted the pattern, but I am trying not to lie to myself about what I can actually get done this year. (Spoiler alert: it’s not going well.)
Right there with you @toni
Toni, I think a few of us are in the “It’s not going well” camp. I am a maker, and my family wants handmade over anything I can buy so I start early. This year, carpal tunnel decided it wanted to party with my right hand. 2 weeks out of surgery and feeling the pressure. ( I did LOL at your spoiler alert)
Sabby, I hope your hand is recovering nicely from your carpal tunnel surgery/ My wife is going in for the exact same surgery in a few weeks. I hope your hands return to some normalcy!
+1 on the outline.
And you’re really brave to tackle that one. The No Probllama, sure it’s doable, but the chibi one? Nah
But again… in one of my reading challenges groups, my team was named Flava Flav, whom I never have heard of (I’m from Portugal), and after some googling I decided it was cute to crochet a big golden chain and a big watch to match. Sure, the result is not perfect – I’m not that expert at crafting – but I had a lot of fun doing it, and it was cute.
I’ll try to upload the result
I love this! Super cute
Several months ago Ilona posted about beautiful yarn she’d gotten for a gift and showed us 4 (I think) possible shawl patterns. I really liked one of them so I bought it and the appropriate beautiful yarn. To make it easier on myself I bought variegated yarn to substitute for the stripes. I thought it would be perfect for fall. Spoiler alert: maybe fall of 2022. ????
Agree, eyes and mouth for outline. Colors are so close they almost fade into each other. Outlining will really make them pop.
Love the Saber\anime cross stitch piece as is. I know I’m in the minority, but that’s what really caught my eye right away, it’s unique. Immediately reminded of those waterbased\colored tattoos that are so popular nowadays. They have no outline and have that soft seamless look. If you choose to outline, my taste wouldn’t go traditional black, I’d go with a few shades darker of the nearest thread. Either way, it looks fantastic!
Beautiful!
Nice Job!
Just happy to see a new post.
Great work on both patterns. I agree the outlining is a good idea. I am sure your girls will really love them. I keep telling myself I will find time to get back to cross stitching one day. 😉
Yes to outlining. The last major cross-stitch project I finished was a samurai kit (don’t ask me how long ago). It looked great with just the cross-stitching, but it really popped when I added the back-stitch and other
Here is a photo of the kit. Mine looks just like it, only framed. 🙂
‘Back-stitch and other detail’. I meant to say.
If you want to see a bigger image, just google ‘samurai cross-stitch’. It took me a decade in between other projects, but I’m still really proud every time I see it on the wall. 🙂
Backstitching does make the details pop! I would definitely add the outlining…..
It is cute!
(My daughter also charts out anime and retro computer designs on her own…..)
You did an amazing job! ????
Ok, so I’m bored in a waiting room and attempted to outline those areas. Please ignore the bad job, I did it on my phone. I think I like the outline though. ????
It’s anime art so you wouldn’t outline the eyes in a closed look like that. The outline would be the upper and lower lid lines with a small gap on the outter bottom edge and a bigger gap for the inner corner of the eyes. I would guess outlining would be done in a darker shade of the current colors and not black as well. You’d want it to pop more without actually looking outlined.
Agreed
Agreed. I’d go for a dark gray for the partial eye backstitch/outline. The mouth is trickier since a full outline would be distracting. I’d suggest a couple of backstitches of a deeper lip color at the points of the Cupid’s Bow to give the mouth some definition.
Outline mouth. No to eyes
Remove from eyes. Glasses???
Looks lovely.
I can’t sew, knit or any of that sort of thing at all. I am terrible at it.
Sewing a button back on is quite the undertaking (used to pile up any sewing projects and give it to my mother-in-law when she was visiting 🙂 ).
Gorgeous! And solely counting!!!! You go!!!!
Careful Kid 2 may feel slighted…..
Yeah. It needs the outlines.
Really gorgeous piece!
+1!
Wow!
Vote for outlining.
I am not the biggest fan of doing the back stitching but I am always amazed how much better it looks after. Right now I am trying really hard to finish the cross stitching on a christmas stocking that I am making for my mom hopefully for this christmas. Foolish me thought the ones were almost the whole stocking is stitched was a great idea.
I decided when I was pregnant with my first child I would stitch all of my kids’ stockings so they would have it for a lifetime and know how much I loved them and wanted them to have something they could treasure like that. He is now 4 and I finished his stocking in November of last year. Baby number 2 is about to turn 2 in December and his stocking isn’t even halfway done. And now I’m going to have baby number 3 in May. I keep promising myself I’ll have the stocking done before Christmas but if I’m honest with myself, it probably won’t happen lol! I wish you luck with your stocking project!
My Mom made me a stocking with an embroidery kit when I was very young, and started to cross stitch a different (very pretty) pattern for my little sister (2 years younger), only to realize halfway through that they were going to be very different sizes… She made Abby one to match mine, and then spent a decade finishing the cross stitch. So fair warning, check the size before you get too far along.
Wow! You are super talented. Thank you for sharing this. If you hadn’t pointed out that the stitch needs to be fixed, I would of thought it was part of the pattern. Such a cool gift. My son loves these anime’s which means I get to watch them too. Saber, female Arthur, first time I saw this my eyebrows went up. Then, I shrugged my shoulders. Japanese art is so interesting and makes you think.
I think the back stitching would really make it pop. I would go with just one strand. Several shades darker but not necessarily black. Gorgeous work!
I agree with the shade should be a lighter for outline. Ilona, you create a lot of beautiful things that bring happiness to this sad old world….
I think you’re right. The eyes tend to bleed into the face and the mouth kind of disappears, and outlining them would definitely make them pop. Why not ask Kid 1 if she wants the whole figure outlined or not? I haven’t done counted cross-stitched in ages, it’s just too hard on my eyes, even with cheaters. But it looks really cute and I think both Kid 1 and Kid 2 will be happy with their finished projects from Mom.
Soft/light outline. Hard outline would be too distracting because the rest of it is sort of muted.
I love to Crosstitch. I am of the personal opinion that outlining is important. It adds dimension. Especially in something like cross stitch it can cause it to have a “blurred” look. I’ve never regretted outlying but have always regretted NOT doing so.
I’m a weirdo, but I actually like it with the white spaces throughout. It gives it a mysterious aspect. It might not look so good in real life, but that picture looks very cool.
Also, I think no outline.
And also 2, thanks for a new anime recommendation. I’ve been having a heck of a time finding a new one to watch so I’ll check this out.
Be careful with this rabbit hole 🙂
The Fate universe is massive and can be difficult to get into if you don’t realize it’s based on a visual novel that has multiple routes and good/bad endings.
There are multiple series for the original Fate Stay/night, made at different times by different studios under different licenses following the different endings and while watching out of order doesn’t fully ruin things you can get spoilers for previous arcs or end up really confused. I’m not saying don’t get into it, but maybe do a little googling to get an idea where you would want to start. There’s some wild spin offs as well that sit in different genres even though they’re still in universe. There’s a youtuber named Gigguk who has a couple funny videos about trying to understand the Fate universe.
So starting with the Netflix series is not the way to go?
Personal opinion, but the Fate/Stay Night anime is probably the best jumping in point for the Fate series (also called the Nasuverse after the series creator Nasu Kinoko). If you like it, go to Infinite Blade works next and then branch from there. Also, some other series that I enjoy, if you are looking for recommendations, Sword Art Online, Ninokuni, Bleach and Inuyasha are all on Netflix. For anime-inspired western animation I recommend RWBY, The Dragon Prince, and Castlevania (gory but SO well written!). If you’re up for a Donghua (Chinese animation) I loved Heaven Official’s Blessing.
You could arguably start with Unlimited Blade works and skip Fate/Stay Night original but I think you’d miss some of the nuances.
For recommendations I’d add
Overlord – power fantasy
My Next Life as a Villainess – mostly light hearted reincarnation story
King’s Avatar – either the animation or the live action, esports drama sort of underdog story
My sons got me into the Fate world. If you really want to get into it – try the mobile phone game. “Fate Grand Order” aka Fate GO. – 635 days of logins – no money spent. The game gives enough free stuff to keep playing. Even after 2 years my sons still shake their heads and keep trying to show me high level strategy. I wished they had done homework and research papers the way they research for their games.
Camp no outline here. The softness goes with the chibi-ness. Outlining could feel almost… aggressive? But the. Again maybe that goes with the character. I mean, she does have a sword…
+1 to the no outline. Love the flow of the colours.
Omg. You are a talented overachiever. When do you sleep and how do you get your feline friends from eating…I meaning helping with any string like activity? I can’t get my sneakers tied without help.
Your needle point looks fabulous!
Very cool looking! I like outlining on projects like this, but at minimum you should outline the eyes/mouth and probably the sword.
That’s beautiful! I like backstitching with one strand, maybe not black but the color of the messed up stitch, not so eye-liner looking.
Thoughtful outlining is something I like. I suggest outlining eyes, mouth, and hair shadows. Good luck, and I’d love to see the finished edition!
Sounds like a time commitment, good that you’re enjoying it so much! And I must admit it’s looking pretty darn nice. I think the eyes and mouth need a little something to delineate them better. I wouldn’t go very dark or thick though.
wow I love this!
Cute! You might try outline with a darker colour in the gold-brown family, and see how you like it. Also, maybe just outline the bottom of the eye first, and the bottom of the mouth/lip. Might read more as a shadow instead of eyeliner/lipliner. That is a very tiny cross-stitch, looks very nice.
I need to get back up to the sewing room — I stopped in the middle of making pillows from old printed canvas bags, and I need to get back up there and finish sewing them closed. Oh yes, and the ironing.
I always dread the backstitching, but I’m always glad I did it. Go for the outlines!
Ditto.
Though I have changed from counted cross stitch to more free form embroidery and thread painting type projects lately. Although I have one of the printed canvas cross stitch projects for mindless meditative stitching while listening to audio books.
Definitely do the outline. It might be nitpicky, but it makes details pop so nicely.????
Awesome ???? +1 vote to Outline eyes
I don’t know but I think that the ethereal quality given by the lack of outline is apt.
O.M.G. BEAUTIFUL!
Now I want to get back into cross-stitch…..
Oh.. wow !! Very beautiful !
I would outline the mouth and the eyes. Maybe first on the picture you took of it , just to be sure of the color of the line.
Very good parental rule by the way !
It looks like the original image has outlines.
Wow. My vote though is no outlining eyes, yes to mouth. Maybe outline eye bottoms with white/lightest color used and mouth with darkest pink/lip color used. ????
I am laughing at the “the law of parental gifts” because it is a rule my parents (mostly my mother who was always in charge of gift giving) adhered to. I also have a younger sister so my parents also had to deal with the repercussions of raising two daughters. If I received anything of any sort whether it be clothes for school, new shoes, a book, my sister would inevitably pipe up and demand “What about me, what about me?” We are in our early 30s and to this day my mom makes sure to buy things of similar nature which doesn’t happen as often as we are adults. My sister left her what about me refrain behind awhile ago but we still tease her about it every once in awhile!
As for the cross stitch, it is beautiful though anime isn’t my thing. I can’t do anything with needles so always in awe of the creativity of others.
There was a time when everything had to be exactly the same but in different color. Their interests have diverged now, but the rule still stands.
I have a sister who is 11 months younger than me(sadly we haven’t spoken in a very long time), and growing up anyone who bought us presents (including mom) would get us the same thing down to color. It was awful, because we are as different in every way as 2 people could ever be, from apprearance(her red hair and green eyes to my blonde hair and dark eyes) to interests(my crochet and reading to her philistine-ness and smoking????????). It was the worst getting the same thing when we are such very very different people, as if we had no identity of our own. Just like people always called us “the girls” instead of ever by our names. Hated that as a kid SO much.
I have two boys and try to do the same parental rule. Realized this weekend there are issues with that. I have a ton of hand-me-downs from coworkers for my younger son and the older needs winter clothes. So, even though he doesn’t need any, younger son gets a shirt too. May need to rethink this rule when it comes to clothes…
Yes to the outlining. I would love to see the final when it’s finished.
Wow!
In my family it was my dad who had to keep things balanced between my sister and I, even when we were grown up and didn’t know he’d gotten something for one of us. There were a lot of times when my dad would say out of the blue that he was going to get me…whatever. Depending on how big a whatever it was, I knew he’d gotten my sister something. As a compulsive dad, he also did it when he wanted to fix something for us, but couldn’t. I remember the time I had an epic cold, so after bringing me chicken soup and flowers, he told my mom, “Nora, we have to make sure Julia has warm boots!”
Try a medium gray in one strand–maybe a DMC 417. Then leave it overnight, and look at it the next day. If you don’t like it, you can try one shade darker.
Your Dad sounds amazing❤️
My Dad was born in 1928, even though I was born in the 1990’s(he was a LOT older than my mom), so he was very very hands off as a parent-total product of his generation and upbringing. I’m going to remember what you said your Dad did for you when you had a cold with the flowers and soup with my own child????
Yes to outlining. I’d use a darker brown from the hair color for the character outline. As for the under eye area and lips, a light brown or slightly darker flesh tone would look nice. Any dark outlines would be harsh against the warm, pastel character.
Me being lazy wonders if it’s easier to paint a night sky behind the character instead. It would pop. Add a few stars… Done.
I agree that outlining will add definition to the piece. I’ve never tried to create a pattern from something I saw and liked. I’ve always stuck to pattern books. But that’s limiting when your tastes are more fantasy than country kitchen.
You are very brave.
There is a website called everythingcrossstitch.com …tons of patterns including many many fantasy ones… in my first browsing passthrough I’d put well over 500 items in my “wishlist” ….. just patterns and a couple kits.
Thank you, I just checked them out and I think that place could get me in trouble! Very interesting patterns. And having the link to all the materials right there with the pattern. They make it so easy!
Wooow….
As a “heck-no” person to stitching, sewing, knitting or anything of the sort, when I read “I’m really enjoying this” I immediately thought: sarcasm?
But it’s so gorgeous I thought this was a picture of a printed sample. Well done
As an embroiderer, yes, I agree on outlining the eyes and mouth. I commend you for making your own pattern! I do it often, but mostly with animals, flora and insects. People, not so much. Your cross stitch work is beautiful and excellently done!
when i still did cross stitch, i would run a basting stitch through the canvas making a plus sign. then do the same on the pattern that’s the only way i could county accurately, but i too have some that had stitches that had to be “fixed later”
i also have a huge dragon project that i just have to finish the very intricate border, it’s 3/4 through and it’s now about 32 years in the making.
I prefer hand made gifts, so for the teachers I had my children choose all the colours and create what they felt the teachers looked like, right down to hair and eye colour. It’s a beautiful tradition but I now have 4 kids and am working on 8 dolls this year.
Yes. Eyes and mouth will pop so much more with backstitching. Both projects are fun.
Lovely. The eyes and mouth need definition and possibly the sword and armor. They are well defined in the image but look a bit soft in the cross stitch. In my opinion only of course.
+1 to doing some light outlining on the armor! Personal preference only, but I always liked having “soft” things like hair, fur and fabric blend with no outlining and having “hard” things like weapons, armor, jewelry, etc. pop a little more with some judicious back-stitching.
So so pretty! Honestly I think it will be beautiful either way. You almost make me want to go back to a couple of my counted cross stitch project in progress. But that ship has mostly sailed for diamond painting now. It’s so much easier on my body
Still you tempt me….
Also tempt me with the anime too. Especially since it’s the second time I’ve heard of it in a week and I do love visual novel games. Working my way through one now.
You are truly a woman of many talents and interests! (She bows with great flourish ????♀️)
I have no knowledge of cross-stitch, but I love Saber, would be happy to provide mailing instructions if Kid 1 takes a pass for some reason.
Yes. Outline the eyes only.
Personally, I would outline everything, but especially the eyes and mouth. When you’re looking at cross-stitch from a distance the outlining helps the image not to blur together where you don’t want it to blur together. And since you only use a single thread for backstitching, it’s a fairly subtle way to distinguish different parts of the image. But so far it looks beautiful, and I love the pattern. I hope your daughter loves it.
That looks beautiful! Yes, I think outlining the eyes and mouth is needed, maybe even on the hair, here and there? It would make her look more like an anime drawing that way, imo at least. ????
I think you can set max number of colors on some cross stitch sites.
I just got a weaving loom and have dived into weaving. I have discovered that I love variegated and tonal yarns far more in weaving than in knitting, so I’m now on a mission to stash bust all of the gorgeous multicolor yarns I have been hoarding for years even though I rarely knit with them. It’s just, they’re so pretty…
I cross stitch as well and sometimes make small adjustments. I would do the eyes since the pictures shows big eyes and nose more then the mouth.
Beautiful work! Yes, I think outlining the eyes and mouth is a good idea. There is not a big difference in the shade and outlining would make it more visible. Maybe use just a darker shade of the mouth and the bottom of the eyes.
Ugh! One twin shalt not have more Christmas presents than the other twin, even if the girl loves getting stuff and the boy is the least materialistic person I’ve ever known.
Wonderful that you all do things.
My mother made all three of us girls do sewing, embroidery, etc. at least once. Nothing took for me. I stick to my talents: reading and horse racing.
Beautiful work.
Please let us see the finished version?
????????????????
Wow that’s amazing. I’m not giving advice on outlining. You’re getting enough advice from others. I’ll just sit back and admire. ????
I vote outline.
Thank you, Ilona Andrews for the interesting post. My niece who is fascinated with this art form also says either way works. Sigh.
OMG you guys are so talented! Love all of your creations! My sister is a self-declared otaku in love with all things manga and anime-related and she loves what you have stitched so far.
Definitely outline. I’m always surprised at how the outlining makes a cross stitch project pop.
Crafting/arting creating is good and helps fix all that ails us. I’ve been doing origami eggs. I have no one to re-home eggs to so I’ll be planting/hanging origami eggs around town. Hoping someone see’s one and smiles.
Oh wow!!!! Hope she loves it
Anime tends to be more suggestions than harsh outlines so I wouldn’t backstitch around it or around the facial features.
Good work!
What an impressive task you set for yourself. A job well done, too. Yeah, maybe outline the nose and mouth; otherwise, from a distance it looks a little like Holly Hobby.
It would stand out more if you used back stitch to highlight the eyes and parts of the body.
Most of the cross stich kits I use to this. It makes the pattern details pop.
This post reminded me of wonderful knitting cartoon on y-tube 🙂
https://youtu.be/M6ZjMWLqJvM
When I was doing cross stitch I always do outlines because it makes the colors come alive and gives definition to the image.
It is so cute!!!
I would certainly agree with mouth, it is hard to see currently and yes to eyes to make them pop more. It looks fantastic though.
I like to outline. It always makes the image look crisper and accentuates the detail. If I were doing it, the only things I wouldn’t outline would be the hair and maybe the bottom of the dress. The inspo pictures seem well defined. I think it needs it, but it isn’t my project. Art is a very personal expression and I’m not all that familiar with the character.
Just the eyes and mouth it wi make it pop
My mom did a lot of counted cross stitch and if she wanted an area to pop she would outline it with one thread.
I tend to prefer outlines and most templates that I get have outlines.
Look into Thomas Kincaide Disney cross stitch. I’m working on the lion king one. SO MANY COLORS!
Dang. That looks crazy hard! I’ve never tried cross stitch, but yours looks beautiful!
Man years ago when I was a Waldorf teacher, I learned that to create an animal that was identifiable you needed only two features to be accurate, how they eat, and how they escape being eaten. I would say outline stitch her eyes and her hands/weapon.
Outline mouth for sure. Not so sure on the eyes. Backstitching makes things pop, but if you are going for a softer look, you might not want the pop.
It’s awesome. Also Saber is my fave as well. Taste <3
I like the appearance as it is now without outlines.
It feels right.
heart hugs
I vote for outlining the eyes.
I think the eyes should be outlined because they kind of fade into the face on the bottom. But then I’m not a cross Stitcher
I know nothing about cross stitch, but it looks beautiful!
This looks so cool!!
Hmmm ???? I like the eyes as they are. Perhaps the mouth should be outlined.
I’m currently working on one that switches colors every 5 seconds as well I’m hoping to finish it for my dad for Christmas.
Outlining creates great fine contrast and makes some of the sections pop. I use only one strand of thread in black, dark navy or grey or dark brown, and doing the eyes and the outline around the body might make a huge difference.
I love cross stitch but patterns like this with lots of colours take sooo long to make. I did a huge piece once with library shelves and a cat and it took me months to finish. Not sure I’ll ever tackle a project that big again lol.
I think adding outlines, especially just around the eyes and mouth will really add to this piece. I can’t wait to see a picture of the finished piece!
This is an amazing work of devotion (and possibly insanity)? As someone who has a hard time committing to crafts that take multiple sittings, I am in awe. I tried cross stitch when I was much younger and kept forgetting to do things that needed doing when they needed doing. Needless to say, I remember a lot of un-cross stitching…Have you printed out the picture with an outline to compare? My initial vote would be to outline. I think the Fate anime is more angles and sharper lines.
I think you would be much happier with the result if you outline it. It always seems to me that the outlining is what really makes a counted cross stitch pop.
KID1 YOU ROCK!!!!! ARTORIA IS EPICCCC!!!
I vote no on outlining. The fan art does not show outline around the eyes. I am in awe of anyone who does cross stitch or who sews, crochets, or knits. My craft of choice is painting kindness rocks and making them into fridge magnets.
Well done, you!!! My Elder Daughter is becoming addicted to the lure of cross stitch, and my Younger Daughter is a devotee of Anime, et al. (Does Kid 1 like the new live-action (I think) Cowboy Bebop? YD is in alt.
I also vote for outlining the eyes and mouth, but in a medium brown, not black. And maybe the sword? It kinda gets lost in the rest with those muted colors. 🙂
I think it looks so good right now. I admire anyone who creates like this.
So beautiful! I have taken up cross stitching recently and the complexity of that has me gulping. Do you like to pass your thread underneath other stitches once you come to the end of it? Or do you try to put it under new stitches?
As a cross stitcher, I love this! It is detailed, but it is awesome. The problem will be what you do for the other kiddo. Have fun stitching!!
T lovely, so much more detailed then the jewel painting I’m doing
I love that you converted an image into your project. I converted a photo into a cross stitch before. Except I used a combination of different tools because I edited the photo (Photoshop) and wanted to limit the number of colors among other things. It came out amazing and is my favorite piece ever.
What a lot of work! I would outline the mouth for sure, and probably the eyes too. You can always pull it out if it doesn’t look right….
I would outline all of it, not just the hair and mouth. I love how cross-stitches that are outlines absolutely snap into focus.
Regardless, your Saber looks awesome!
I do love your cross-stitch, both of them. There is a person on Etsy who makes inappropriate cross-stitch patterns. They are excellent. Unfortunately, I can’t remember the seller’s name. When I do, at 0200 tomorrow morning, I will add it to my comment. I am trying to stay away from anymore craft projects. I am making a few quilts for friends/family for the holidays and am a wee bit behind. I am on time for 2025. Enjoy your cross-stitch I think that it looks great.
It would make an amazing pillow. A bit of outlining would look great!
Backstitch outlines make a world of difference. Everything pops with outlines.
That is a cool design! Yes, there are a lot of color variations but that is what makes it look good.
I would definitely outline the eyes and hair. It would really make them pop. Maybe the whole thing…hair and eyes first and then decide.
It looks like a fun project and you are doing a nice job on it.
Yes, good thought on the outlining eyes & mouth.
Beyond the obvious: start with the eyes and mouth and see what it looks like from there… nope…
I used to do weaving and cross stitch when I was young, from some kits that were christmas presents, but I never kept with it after the kits were used up.
I thought your knitting projects looked really neat, so I started to learn how thanks to youtube. I am on scarf #2, and when I finish that I think I’m going to do a bunch of sample squares to learn the more complicated stitches. I’m sticking to the cheap fabric store yarn right now, but I have a bajillion gorgeous hand dyed merino wool yarns saved to my etsy boards. Once I get used to all of it I have a sweater pattern from the blue mouse I really want to attempt.
Some outlining could help things pop. I’d be temped to outline the hair as well. Looking at the images, it almost looks like the hair is outlined in the show. (Though admittedly I’ve not seen it). Not so sure about the mouth. It’s not very distinct in the pic. Might be better off leaving it as is, or do outline with only very subtle contrast.
Also, in case you haven’t heard of it- there is an app called Stitchly which allows you to import images and convert to cross stitch patterns. I haven’t really used it enough to give a review, but it could be worth trying for future projects.
I do think outline would make it pop, but I am going to disagree on the eyes.
Looking at the drawings you included I would instead outline the face, hands, and sword, possibly some outline on the top. Similar to the outline of the actual drawing. This would also add some depth and separation of the colors that are blending together around the face.
I think you did an excellent job with the lashes and top of the eyes based on the anime style that the eyes don’t need additional outline. But a little detail around the eyebrows might help them to stand out from the bangs. Would not be a tracing in a circle, but more of a single broken line showing where they peek through the bangs.
The mouth I am torn on but definitely not a circle or closed moon if you do any on the mouth similar to the brows, more like and accent line to give it definition from the chin.
And of course adjust the outline color to a darker shade of the colors it is outlining, not black on everything.
Can’t wait to see the end result!
I have enough trouble with crocheting…could not pay me enough to try cross stitch. Looks like it would be the devil’s own time trying to do that without royally messing it up. Kudos to you for doing those for your kids.
One of the things I like best about this blog is that it shows that you can be successful AND do the kinds of hobbies I enjoy: knitting, baking, etc.
The stereotype is that only grandmotherly types who have nothing better to do with themselves do this kind of stuff.
Thanks for proving the stereotype is wrong.
That’s my fave tooo!
I agree with you about the eyes and mouth. Especially the mouth since it’s kinda hard to see. But you are doing an awesome job! Brava!
Outline where it is needed it will make the project pop and look great. I know I know back stitching is a pain but it makes your work look great
I would take a copy of the pattern if you made it available
I love it! Do you leave them in the hoop for display or sew them on to pillows (or sweatshirts?)
I was recently seduced by We Are Knitters hand painted sparkle wool. I’m not complete sure what I will do with it but I bought too much so… anything I want?
I like the eyes and mouth the way they are; the original anime doesn’t have an outline either. Maybe darken the eye brows? An outline on the sword might make it look sharper.
That’s pretty good. I started a piece a LOOOOONG time ago that was a riff on the Ballad of the Harp Weaver. Started caving when I realized that the copyright was still in effect through a trust.
So far, it’s still just a mostly completed pattern. (It got pretty elaborate with ribbons, clothes and a customized alphabet…took forever to graph!)
This is gorgeous. I absolutely would not outline though.
Having given it some thought, it would depend on how you’re finishing it. If it’s for a display piece, then just a little outline with a slightly darker floss so it’ll pop in the frame. If it’s for a pillow, then it’s fine as is.
Maybe not black for an outline. It might be too harsh. Though you’ll probably have a selection of colors to choose from at the end with all the extra floss.