How to start a (good) Flosstube channel

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Just me trying desperately to fit about three years worth of questions and learning into as short a time as possible...and still coming out at nearly half an hour. Oops! Also at one point I said high-pass filter for echo, I definitely meant low-pass...clearly I am a true expert and should definitely be teaching it to others.

[@sherryzimmerman9220]

I feel very SEEN and am just- in love with your sweet sunny disposition …..I so appreciate learning how other crafters go about their work…..picking up an idea here and there to incorporate into my processing…l could go on and on….but I do love the much used phrase “ team work makes the dream work “….and I do love being a dreamer…..

[@Sewmena918]

Hi there. Thanks for posting a link to this video on Midsummer Stitch. I have been looking for this kind of information for a while. I don't have a channel, but I have been thinking about it a lot. You are so easy to listen to and clearly have this figured out. So glad I found your channel.

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Welcome to the channel, happy you found it useful

[@Sewmena918]

@@TheGiddyStitcher It sure is! 😀

[@niamhcreely5182]

You manage to be efficient, specific, informative AND cheery, friendly and welcoming. Thank you!! 😊😊😊

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Aw thank you, that's made my day 🥰

[@AModNamedMel]

Will I ever start a flosstube? Nope! Do I love listening to you talking.. obviously!!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Haha, well here's a full half hour of exactly that and tbh, the next in-progress crafter's log episode might be even longer. Gotta give you enough to keep you going while we're on honeymoon in two weeks time 😄

[@AModNamedMel]

@@TheGiddyStitcher Looking forward to it!! Enjoy your honeymoon to its fullest!!

[@savageangel907]

Happy Channelversary!!!!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Thank you! Feels like just yesterday but also like it's been forever, haha :D

[@IdRatherBeeStitching]

Congratulations on reaching 1K!! 🎉🎉 I love all yournew starts! ❤ I'm sorry to hear about your nerve pain - I hope it's better now. Strawberry, if it's not too late.😊 Happy stitching!

[@LouiseCalton]

I love your vids! I came for a random tutorial ages ago and now will happily watch knitting even though I'm absolutely rubbish at it and stopped when I was about 11 😅. I also have zero intention of starting a channel but found this really interesting and joyful. You have 100% achieved your vibes goals.

[@jzsketchcraft]

Something that's really important for accessibility for those of us who are hearing impaired, SUBTITLES! It's not hard to do, especially if you don't instantly publish the video, give it a few hours to sit in the scheduled setting and KZbin gives you autosubs that you can then go into and edit to be correct as a lot of the time auto subs are inaccurate if they're even available at all and can make it harder for people who can't hear well or at all to watch while people cover their mouths with their projects while speaking (making lip reading useless in those moments and subs the only option)

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Good point, well made! Excellent addition to the list. Some of us, naming no names, definitely need to work on that whole "uploading videos more than 15mins before they go live" thing, though... 👀

[@jzsketchcraft]

@@TheGiddyStitcher XD you'd think as crafter's we'd have the whole patience to post a video thing down but we never do do we? XD

[@nete1209]

Love this. Have always enjoyed your channel very joyful and inclusive. Always so imformative.

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Thank you, really happy people are taking this in the constructive way it was intended and not as a personal attack on anyone, haha 😅

[@nete1209]

@@TheGiddyStitcher not at all. It's a brilliant channel. Love it! I'd watch you make a pot noodle.

[@mylifewithmarmalade4624]

A couple tips on sound quality from a music and call center background: If you find you’re getting a lot of echo one of the easiest solutions is a rug. A room with soft squishy carpeting is almost impossible to get an echo in. So even just throwing a cheap rug from the big box store or a couple big thick blankets under you and your recording equipment while you record will help reduce the echo. Incidentally “moving blankets” work great for this. They can be pretty affordable and are very durable. If a rug or blankets under you isn’t enough, you can also use those removable wall hooks to hang moving blankets along the mostly empty flat walls in the room as those will be the major sources of echo If you find a lot of background noise or you are too muffled, yes a lapel mike is your best fix, but if that isn’t something you have right now, try connecting a pair of Bluetooth earbuds that have a built in microphone to your phone when you are recording. Most people already have a pair that that would work. Yes you will obviously be wearing earbuds, but it effectively moves the mic closer to your voice so it can help make you louder than the background noise.

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Yes! Great tips, thank you. Can't believe I forgot the soft furnishings tip, I literally spent the first six months of my channel covering this room with blankets whenever I was recording it works a treat 😄 I'd never thought of bluetooth headphones, am not much of a bluetooth accessories type at heart, but it certainly explains a lot of vlogs I've seen where they were wearing headphones and I didn't know why. Haha, I am so with it 😎

[@Stitchycatlady]

Great video Michelle, as usual! I think the main thing I need to do is MAKE AND PUBLISH CONTENT! Three videos in over a year just won’t cut it! (Not counting the very short kitty videos.)

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

That definitely does help as well, but given how hard it is for me to keep up with making them sometimes I certainly can't judge :D

[@lubiehaftowac]

Thanks for the tips 😊 I started my flosstube out of a random whim and I've been loving it! I love trying out new things whether it's filming, editing, thumbnails or cross stitch projects. KZbin is my creative outlet ❤

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

I think that's how most of us start really, we just wake up one day and it seems like a good idea! 😅 There really are so many different skills involved and it's really interesting and fun to get stuck in learning them all. Looks like you've definitely got off to a solid start, best of luck and I hope you enjoy it for a long time to come!

[@lubiehaftowac]

@@TheGiddyStitcher thanks a million 💕

[@Cali_Jeni]

Wow, that was impressive, hugely helpful, AND entertaining. Nailed it!! Super impressed with your knowledge and presentation. Loved it and favorited it. lol Awesome job! 😊

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Thank you so much! All tips learned by making a LOT of mistakes, but also doing a LOT of research, haha. Happy to pass it along, the more great crafting channels out there for me to watch the better 😉

[@Cali_Jeni]

@@TheGiddyStitcher lol.. well much appreciated!!

[@marie-low-stresslife7374]

That was really interesting Michelle! It is very clear you put a lot of effort in this video, packed with useful info! Congrats on your 3 year anniversary! 🎉🥰

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Thanks! 🎉 This honestly took the longest it's ever taken me to write an outline and I'm still realising stuff that got missed out. Oh well. I need a nap 😴

[@ChantalS-mr4vh]

You definitely hit the mark on all 3 fronts! You always put a smile on my face!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Woop! Goal achieved! Thank you 🥰

[@x-stitchandchill]

Always love your channel! And one of the first things they tell you in film school is that people can forgive bad video, but they cannot forgive bad audio. They always used The Blair Witch Project as an example, haha! Great tips, I'll be following the growing your channel advice. I know I need to put more content out there. I have plans and ideas, but just need to get it together and do them! Thanks always for the inspiration!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Hah, that is a perfect example! Thank you for the backup on this audio thing, I know I banged on about it a lot. Honestly same, so many plans but so little time to implement. We can do this! We'll be exactly as craft rich and famous as we each want to be in no time at all (not very, in my case, but I feel like you'll go far 😉)

[@maryannjohnson5410]

As always love your videos and watch them all even if I'm not going to do whatever it's about. It was interesting learning how to start a flosstube.

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

You never know when you might wake up one day with the urge, and now you know what to do if that happens! 😄

[@IdRatherBeeStitching]

Thanks for the great tips!! 😊

[@clover.compton]

Thank you so much for this video! This was perfect timing as i get my own content off the ground :)

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Oh how exciting! Fingers crossed you enjoy it, I will follow along and keep an eye out for your videos :)

[@clover.compton]

@@TheGiddyStitcher Thank you so much! that means a lot!!

[@AmandaStephensKarnalDesigns]

my biggest turn offs for watching a floss tuber is that they watch themselves in the view finders . i love it when channels look at the lens instead like you btw. and YAS audio is a big one

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

The viewfinder thing can be very off-putting, definitely agree with you. Although I have to say it's a natural mistake to make when you're new and takes practise to stop doing, so we should always try and look past it when they're just new. Talking to a camera is a surprisingly difficult thing 😅

[@angelawhite7870]

Love this! You definitely hit your goals of making me at least feel inspired, joyful, and seen. It was your video of the culottes you made, with your positive attitude and honestly showing the challenges you encountered and overcame, that made me think I might be able to do that too (and laugh through the mistakes and persevere) and now a year or so later, I only buy undergarments and sports wear-everything else is me mades!👏💕

[@EnlightenedFlamingo]

All GREAT tips! The audio, though... Girl! Like you said, it's such an easy fix & so many don't bother! So, I don't bother watching em anymore. 👋 😅

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Haha, definitely fair tbh!

[@betzie_paintz2284]

Thank you so much for the tips!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

You're very welcome, hope some of it comes in handy :)

[@musketeersplus2]

One thing I would add to the flosstube tips section is to know what your verbal tics are, and make an effort to overcome them. What I mean is things like how may times do you say the word 'like' in a minute (I've unsubcribed from some channels for how annoying this is!)? Do you use a word as punctuation, and do you say it in an "interesting" way? The way to find out about this is to first ask your family & friends to be completely honest with you. Or, record a sample of what you plan to do, and come back to it a few days later with a critical ear. Michelle, you don't have any that I can identify (and I'm autistic, I hear this stuff EVERYWHERE), but there are channels that I just can't stand to watch because all I hear is 'like' over and over or that punctuation word and the content gets lost outside that noise.

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Oh yes this is a really good tip! What sounds normal when you're saying it can be so cringe when you hear it back and realise you use the same word or phrase over and over. A few years ago I was experimenting with streaming on Twitch (it's not for me, I cannot do live public performance!) and noticed in all the clips I was just saying "oh my god" as my go-to reaction, but I was saying it ALL THE TIME. So now I'm really paranoid about it and will do a second take if I notice I've done it, haha. Definitely great advice!

[@lisahager1825]

Great content

[@jylromain6439]

One thing that was a turn-off for me in a different creator's video...and I mean turned off the video...was the presenter yawning several times. If you're that tired, take a nap and come back later. Why would she think that was a good look? This was great advice. thank you!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Oof yeah, that's a weird choice! For me it's sneezing, I have really bad allergies and often have to cut out a lot of sneezing so it annoys me when other people don't. All comes back to my point about respecting the viewer's time. But I do try to be a lot more patient with that sort of stuff if it's a new channel, because I remember only too well how much new stuff gets thrown at you when you're first starting out 🙈

[@solveigfrank]

liking b4 the video actually running

[@jessicawakefield4833]

Wow! Very interesting ❤

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Glad you enjoyed! Thanks for watching 🥰

[@thecozydh]

I'm feeling very called out by your 'how to choose your vibe' section. Thanks for the video!

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

I'm glad it was interesting even to the non-Flosstubers, and of course very glad I'm hitting at least the "seen" part of the vibe goals. Dave laughed at your description of my disposition though, how rude of him 😂 Thanks for watching, always look forward to your comments 🥰

[@LauraSallaerts1]

I have never considered starting a Flosstube, what is this feeling... Am I inspired?? 😱

[@TheGiddyStitcher]

Dun dun DUUUUUUUUN!

[@LauraSallaerts1]

@@TheGiddyStitcher 😂