December has been a month dedicated to slow stitching on a Christmas cross stitch. It is a very old fashioned looking Quaker inspired pattern that has a tree and lovely repetitive motifs. I have stitched on this most evenings and I feel that once I get the bottom row of the tree done then the rest of the stitch will start to go much faster.
Why slow stitch? I love doing hand work in the evenings. I recently picked up cross stitch again and I had forgotten how zen I feel when stitching those little x’s over and over. I especially enjoy charts that have bright colors and motifs that are easy to stitch. I enjoy stitching in the evenings while watching tv. Cross stitch doesn’t hurt my hands like knitting does, that is why my wrap is still not finished. I love crochet also, but the yarn is expensive.
Cross stitch is a lovely craft that is gaining popularity again. I must say patterns have come a long way in recent years. They are much easier to follow and make lovely projects!! It is not expensive to cross stitch. The materials needed don’t take up a lot of space either. The projects are also quite portable if you want to have projects on the go.
I encourage you to explore slow stitching. I feel it is very grounding to engage in while we live in a very fast moving, chaotic world. You need to be mindful while working on your project and this is very important for me to keep in the present moment. While I am recovering from long covid, I need to be in the present in each moment. Having a focus helps me as I am recovering and my brain needs time to heal, rewire, restore some lost connection and glitches that Long Covid left me with.
And making is healing in so many ways. I feel so proud of what I made; it really makes me feel good about myself. And cross stitch is tapping into a different part of my creative mind that I really enjoy. It is also the embodiment of my creative process that working on something a few minutes a day adds up to something really beautiful.
Vicki
Our Creative Souls 