Pros and cons of buying cross stitch and hand embroidery kits

[@STITCHESCOSTARICA]

Hello Dana, greetings from Costa Rica. I had been checking your videos today while I stitch. And I enjoyed a lot. I agree with all the info you gave here. For example it is difficult at Costa Rica to get a lot of the supplies we can see on internet because we have to pay taxes for everything. When I started all what I did was kits. Now after 12 years stitching I use kits and also I make my own kits and choose different options. The stitching world is so big and amazing, there is always something new to try or discover.

[@peacockandfig]

Glad you enjoyed the video, sorry it's so hard for you to get supplies though... ❤️

[@CaffeinatedWarlord]

Thanks Dana. I'm still doing kits and I also started to kit up projects myself. The decision making process can be tedious as to choosing fabrics, amount of threads, where to buy, etc, especially if conversions are involved; but to see what's out there and all those wonderful selections is amazing. We are so spoilt by all the fantastic items and creativity in this world. It's a good thing 😀

[@peacockandfig]

I know right, the good thing is there's so much good choice you're unlikely to make a mistake when buying your own materials (assuming you're getting good quality supplies and not randomness from Amazon or eBay... ). 😂

[@CaffeinatedWarlord]

@@peacockandfig well... I did get a kit off Amazon and so far so good. It's huge so I'm unlikely to finish it any time soon. Let's hope when I wash it the colours of my threads won't come off 😂

[@peacockandfig]

@@CaffeinatedWarlord Haha yeah, that's always a problem with Amazon kits, and sometimes they're actually stolen art too unless it's from a reputable stitching company. Which sucks, as people don't know, and it encourages scammy companies or sellers to keep doing it... 😭

[@wildflower4795]

Wonderful video! Very informative. I really enjoyed it!🙂

[@peacockandfig]

So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂

[@SapphireStar23]

Honestly, I don't mind kits. However, I like being able to buy my own supplies. That way I can see what is available to me much better. My town has a craft store however it is limited to what you can get for cross-stitching. You can't always get everything you need from it. For example, I went to see if they had any 14 count Navy Aida. They had it but it was too expensive for my tastes, considering it was DMC fabric. So I went online to get a cheaper alternative, it's working out very well for me so far.

[@peacockandfig]

Awesome, that's great to hear! Yeah fabrics can be expensive, especially if you buy good quality ones, but I've never regretted the extra money as the finished results look so good, and the stitching process is so nice. 🙂

[@FrostyXStitch]

Of course I know most of what you said, but some points did make me think 🤔 Thank you for putting all the information together 👍🏻😊

[@peacockandfig]

You're very welcome Dawn! 😊

[@alikc25]

Thank you for the video very helpful.

[@peacockandfig]

You are very welcome Lily! 🙂

[@alikc25]

That for the reply.

[@kalacs32]

Domestically sold kits are extremely traditional and boring where I live (and DMC is far from the most popular/cheap floss here), so I've always done PDF patterns I've separately chosen threads for. Would be so much easier and nicer if some of the more modern kits were available locally.

[@peacockandfig]

You didn't say where you are, so it makes it hard to speak about that -- most modern kits are actually done by the designer, not some big manufacturer. So it's an incredible amount of work to find retailers, keep them stocked, pay for shipping and insurance and fill out customs fees.... That's why many more modern kits are often only available online, it's just so difficult stocking retailers far from you live. 😊

[@petermatten3315]

D.m.c. threads are good, but they are not the be all and end all of threads I have used d.m.c and anchor for the last fifty years, and don't see much difference between them.

[@peacockandfig]

DMC is much more available globally than Anchor (and I believe has a much bigger colour range), which is why most designers use it. 😊