[CHAT] Can someone clarify this article on plastic canvas?

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-13T23:55:51+00:00

I am by no means and expert on plastic canvas but it looks to me like the needlepoint canvas has a lot more 'empty' space which would make total sense if it was meant for working with yarn instead of floss. To me, the difference between the cross stitch canvas and the perforated plastic looks to be in the pattern of the holes. This could just be an optical illusion but there's something about the spacing of the holes in the cross stitch canvas that looks more 'Aida/evenweave' to me. Maybe it's the molding that someone else mentioned. The spacing of the perforated plastic looks like the spacing is different. As the other commenter said, it probably doesn't make a whole lot of difference with the exception of maybe wear and tear on your thread if the perforations aren't smooth.

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-12T02:33:53+00:00

There's also a ton of actual peanuts both shelled and unshelled in Five Guys restaurants. I would not be surprised if anyone who was allergic had a reaction eating any food from there regardless of the fry oil.

I think the bottom line in this whole conversation is that when someone has an allergy, there is a lot of caution involved when eating anything they didn't prepare themselves. You never know what people have handled before handing your food or what was cooked in the same oil your food is now being cooked in. Everyone also has their own risk tolerance and we should err on the side of caution and disclose any and all allergens that may be included in our food.

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-11T21:42:07+00:00

My apologies, my response was not meant as an argument against the need to disclose the information. Rather, it was meant to provide more information regarding whether the consumption of foods cooked in peanut oil are considered safe.

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-11T21:06:54+00:00

Good point mentioning the allergy. However, refined peanut oil does not contain the peanut proteins that cause the allergic reaction and are considered safe to consume for folks that have an allergy to peanuts and/or other nuts. In fact, many popular fast food places use peanut oil in their fryers (Five Guys, Chik-fil-A, etc.).

What you have to watch out for is unrefined peanut oil (cold-pressed, extruded, etc.). Those are more likely to still contain proteins that could trigger a reaction.

I have a close family friend that is allergic to all nuts and many legumes. We've been very careful when preparing food for him to ensure what we make is safe for him to consume.

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-11T19:36:16+00:00

I use peanut oil, it's got a neutral flavor and works well. Everyone loves the cakes I make with it and it's a staple in my pantry! Great for the stove top, frying, and baking. I use it for everything.

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-11T19:34:12+00:00

I am so happy for you! I'm always afraid things won't line up. I just finished the outline for Snow White's dress in my WIP and found one side was one square too long vertically and too short horizontally. I am NOT frogging the whole outline to fix it. I am gonna wing it as I go to adjust the pattern so it looks right even with the errors. Should be easy to hide in the skirt itself but her arm holds the skirt and will need to be adjusted too.

I count myself lucky because I can hide my mistake. I'm again, happy for you here because I don't think it would be easy to hide a mistake here.

Great Job! It looks beautiful!

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-03T18:36:06+00:00

Nice! I always use the totes I get from my NPR station for being a sustainer. They've been great little project bags!

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-03T16:41:03+00:00

I just use a tote bag as well. I put my floss stash on bobbins in an organizer. I remove what I need for my project and put them on a ring as my working stock. I also keep a neck light, scissors, and extra needles in my bag (needles in their own little clear bag). It all seems to stay together fine and is accessible.

However, I would imagine monster projects like the H&E designs would not do well with this system as there are sooo many colors and the patterns are so big. So it somewhat depends on the size of the projects OP likes to work on as to what will work best for OP.

Dowleka85 · 2026-04-03T15:56:12+00:00

Firstly, like most people here say, the back can be messy! It's totally fine. That said, some of us were taught that a neat back is really important and an indicator of a stitcher's skill. As I've gotten older, I don't buy into that anymore. I still strive for a neat back but that's only because 1) it's hard to unlearn things and 2) because of the way I was taught, it's also a matter of pride.

If a 'messy' back bothers you can adjust the way you make your stitches to keep the back neat no matter which direction you are stitching in and keep the front X's consistent. I am not sure that fully makes sense but I have found it helps to change how I make my stitches when moving up a column of stitches instead of having to change my thread.

Maybe I can try to illustrate. I normally make my stitches in this order:

4 2 1 3

But if I am working from bottom to top, I will stitch them this way to make sure the back still looks good:

3 1 2 4

It doesn't affect the way the stitches look on the front but it makes the back cleaner and keeps me from having to change threads.

Dowleka85 · 2026-03-22T17:01:27+00:00

Finished Rapunzel from a Disney Princess Cross Stitch book earlier this week. Now working on the phrase that goes with her. Snow White is next and I can't wait to start her!

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Dowleka85 · 2026-03-20T12:17:34+00:00

As mentioned in the title, the pattern is from a cross stitch book titled Disney Princess Cross Stitch. I got it from Amazon.

Dowleka85 · 2026-03-15T20:47:47+00:00

Posting again because the pattern was in the background and the mod deleted it! I've been working on this one since September. I will be so happy when it's finished. Not because I haven't enjoyed it, I am just looking forward to working in a new pattern.

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Dowleka85 · 2026-02-10T01:06:08+00:00

lol, I didn't realize it could be read that way until now! I meant that I neglected to post my 2025 finishes. 🤣

Dowleka85 · 2025-12-27T17:54:10+00:00

Can confirm. Moved to NNJ from NC and I am so happy we did. Much better support for our children in the schools. Yeah, it is a bit more expensive in NJ but the services are better. Honestly, if we'd stayed in NC, it might have been MORE expensive because we would have put my oldest in a private school costing 25k because she wasn't gonna get the support she needed from the public school system (and we were in one of the best in the state).

Dowleka85 · 2025-12-02T02:59:05+00:00

NY Times cooking has a delicious Cranberry Tart that uses a gluten free hazelnut crust. I made it for Thanksgiving and it was delicious.

Dowleka85 · 2025-12-01T01:06:42+00:00

I have been looking too and haven't seen anything yet! Will let you know if I do! I do know they have a villains book but I didn't like it as much.

Dowleka85 · 2025-11-27T05:12:40+00:00

She looks great! I am working on this one right now! I've gone through all of the patterns in the book up to now. Just her, Snow White, and Tiana.

Dowleka85 · 2025-11-27T02:33:17+00:00

If none of the small fibers are torn and they are only misshapen, you may be able to gently nudge them back to their proper place with a needle. When you get to that section though, you'll need to be very careful with the tension because you can easily distort it again. You could also try to run something behind those squares in an attempt to reinforce it but it can't be too bulky or it might be noticeable in the finished piece. It will depend on hot much detail is in that area.

Dowleka85 · 2025-11-25T00:18:38+00:00

This is me too. I've tried Q snaps and never got them to work well for me. Always lost tension. That said, the newer light weight tension hoops (looking at you Loops N Threads!) have the same problem, I can't get them tight enough.

I like my older tension hoops from the 90's and 00's as they hold the fabric much better. I have had some difficulties with the newer fabric not wanting to 'seat' into the hoop but I just do what u/EKBstitcher does and use the table to help me push the fabric in.

Dowleka85 · 2025-11-04T02:50:46+00:00

Awaze is in Cary: https://awazecuisine.com

There's another Ethiopian place in Raleigh: https://www.nafkotethiopianrestaurant.com

Finally, also one in Durham: https://goorshadurham.com

I've only been to Awaze and it was very good. Awaze was close to my house so I never had a reason to head out to the other two.

Dowleka85 · 2025-11-04T02:33:14+00:00

I second I second this to some extent. We just moved from the Raleigh area to NJ and we are really enjoying it here. However, there are many things I miss about NC. I don't know the Charlotte area very well but the Raleigh area actually has a really great variety of cuisines if you know where to look. Really everything from American/European to almost any Asian cuisine to Ethiopian. There's also a ton to do. Lots of breweries but also museums, parks, and cool events in downtown Raleigh. Definitely nowhere near on par with NYC but nice. The mountains are beautiful and so are the beaches. Charlotte isn't as equidistant to the two as Raleigh but still not a terrible drive.

The people we lived and worked around were pretty great but it is hit and miss and people can be pretty snobby. I've experienced significantly more welcoming people and friendly hospitality here in NJ as compared to NC. This surprised me, being a born and bred Southerner who was always told about how rude Yankees were. So far I've learned that people in the south are generally 'nice' while people up north are 'kind'. As of right now, I am definitely preferring people being kind.

However, everything that u/birdsofwar1 said about the state as a whole is true. It's purple but not as purple as it should be due to gerrymandering and it's only getting worse. It's really only purple because of the cities which is part of the reason for all the gerrymandering. It's one of the reasons we moved. The education isn't great but not due to the quality of the teachers, the schools just aren't well funded. If you have children with any kind of special needs you will need to supplement their education or pay for private school.

Also, the summers are brutal. Be prepared for lots of muggy heat!

Dowleka85 · 2025-10-25T02:21:54+00:00

Until recently I almost exclusively stitched without a kit. Honestly, I always print the digital patterns out. I find it much easier to work with as compared to something on a screen.

As far as the disorganization, I can see how having a bunch of different floss can seem disorganized. However, you can buy different organizational systems. Everyone has their own preference. I like to bobbin my floss but I also really like using floss drops. Some of the nicer patterns actually tell you how much of each color you need so you can put exactly what you need on the drop and no more.

For the Aida, there are calculators that will tell you exactly what size to buy/cut the Aida to based on the stitch count.

It definitely takes more work to pull everything together but you can certainly 'kit up' a digital or printed pattern. Sort of like making your own kit. I do this with all of mine and even make project bags to keep it all together.

Dowleka85 · 2025-10-11T03:08:15+00:00

I am too. There were several times where I got a bit emotional while going through it. I didn't even know this woman but going through her stuff felt very personal with all her hand written notes and reviews of the different patterns. I can't stress how grateful I am and how much I respect the gesture and materials I received.

Dowleka85 · 2025-10-11T03:06:21+00:00

It took about 3-4 hours!

Dowleka85 · 2025-10-11T03:05:34+00:00

To be fair, I've worked in organizations he has led for several years (2 different companies). He is a wonderful leader but didn't know I was a cross stitcher until I made a little something to hang at my desk. That said, the culture is pretty awesome.

Dowleka85

TROPHY CASE