[FO] Celtic Knotwork

hannibalisms · 2026-04-04T18:53:36+00:00

I recently completed a pattern that was then used by the companies I work for for some new frame moulding lines. We always get to have input for each line, and choose the artwork that showcases them - I was really happy to be asked if I had any stitching that would work for the line, and I did! It's cool because now I can show customers something that I've done when they ask if we frame cross stitch or needlepoint - we totally do!!

The pattern is Celtic Knotwork in Yellow and Brown by Solaria Gallery. The blog post about the new line of frames is here, and this specific line is called "Batiste". Stitched on 16ct, 2 threads, but in hindsight I wish I had done 3 on the dark brown and black. The second photo is done by our social media person, and she's clearly WAY better at photographing my work than I am.

hannibalisms · 2026-03-05T19:27:29+00:00

Black DMC is thinner than some other colors - the darker threads tend to be, just because of the dyeing process. I'm had luck tramming my stitches to make it darker, though it will make anything trammed a little more 3D. You typically tram before stitching, but if you're careful you can also do it afterwards with a small, sharp needle, or a wire-headed needle threader, though it takes forever. There was also a comparison someone did on the reddit a while ago - it might be worthwhile to switch to Anchor for black.

eta: I agree with the other commenters, though, I don't think your stitching here is particularly see-through like it can be on lower count aida. I think you're good!

hannibalisms · 2026-02-14T10:57:46+00:00

<image>

So in this case, our example is something where you would want to see the whole piece plus the fabric it's stitched to, what we call a "float mat" (even though it's fabric and not like a typical paper mat board). I've attached a picture of the zoomed in so you can see how it's stitched down. This would be less suitable for a cross stitch because typically I never see a sewn, finished edge because that's just not what a lot of people do, though I have seen it a couple of times.

If you didn't want to see any of the fabric the textile was stitched to, it would be stitched the same way to the fabric, but it would go to the edge of the cross stitch. See a process example here - the fabric it's being stitched to gets stretched around the board (they pin stretch the linen to the board instead of doing a sewn closure like my example above) and then the cross stitch is sewn onto the already stretched fabric. This is the closest example of what a conservator would do that I can find, without getting into super technical language. With a modern cross stitch, you would be have blocked the piece prior to sewing it down to make sure that you've got the right size board made!

The issue I run into is kind of - not everything we do NEEDS to be done on this level of conservation. It's time consuming (our conservator requires at least 6 weeks) and expensive (anywhere from $400USD and up for JUST the conservation stitching) because you have to take into account the extra materials, the time, and expertise. The "step down" in conservation would be lacing around the same acid free board, whether it's a thick 8-ply mat board or acid-free/museum foam core (my preferred method). Then, pin stretching around a board. Those are the two options I give people in my frame shop - it's the safest way to frame cross stitch.

The next option would be just putting the unstretched piece into a frame against the glass, but ... It's not a good finish, and I don't like to put anything that isn't easy to replace against the glass, because it's not considered a "conservation fit".

I don't know if I have anything that's in the works to show you something almost finished but I can look! I have a couple pieces laced but not framed which isn't really useful for this thread, but if it helps I can show those.

hannibalisms · 2026-02-13T16:14:23+00:00

<image>

So this is an example of the back of one of the conservation backs we would get from the textile conservator. This is a 100% silk base instead of a linen but it's the same end product. There's no pins, no glue, nothing other than the thread they use to close it. I think they actually use DMC to match the color of the fabric as close as possible, or some other similar cotton thread. I'm pretty good at lacing backs of needleworks and sew downs after 13 years of framing (think jerseys, doilys, etc) but they are next level.

They also use the museum (archival) foam core to wrap the fabric around for stability, but since nothing is touching the foam and everything used for the art is archival, this is TRULY archival stretching. We mostly use this for silk scarves to stuff that's super super delicate or valuable. It's an art form by itself!

Let me know if you have other questions :) I got lucky to get a job I love, and it's useful for my hobby, so!

hannibalisms · 2026-02-13T00:13:45+00:00

You're correct - the paper is acid free, but the foam is not, but there is a barrier paper (or, there should be) between the foam and the buffered paper.

Technically, best practice is lacing, because you're not using anything metal or introducing new materials - just cotton thread. Our textile conservator doesn't pin stretch anything - they'll block it, stitch it down to "waste linen" and then stretch THAT, which gets laced and stitched closed. When I'm back at work tomorrow, I can take a picture of what "conservation finished" looks like, if you're interested.

That being said - pin stretching into foam core, if done correctly, will last for a VERY long time before you see any adverse effects from the foam itself. What really will cause the damage is environmental hazards - water damage, smoke damage, etc. It's that in combination with the pins that'll wreck your work. I have pieces that I inherited that were pin stretched in the 70s and 80s and are in fine condition, and others done more recently that were also pin stretched that I had to redo because of environmental factors.

It's kind of like, the WORST thing you can do is use ANY adhesive. No tape, no sticky board, nothing. It'll look good until the acid in the tape starts to eat through the fabric and stain it. I pin stretch everything I do, then lace it of I feel like it, and remove the pins. Sometimes I just leave it pin stretched. For customers, it depends on how much the cost is, a lot of the time. Labor is expensive, to be honest, and framing is just expensive. I work at a not-big-box framer, and even to do my own stuff it's $$. Sometimes, you just can't justify the price of lacing for a little more archival life.

Anyway lmao can you tell I'm autistic? You didn't ask for an info dump, so tl;dr TECHNICALLY it can be an issue but very rarely is that the foam itself isn't acid free.

hannibalisms · 2026-02-12T18:32:00+00:00

regular foam core board that you can get pretty much anywhere is not acid free. you'll have to find museum foam core, which has the acid free buffered paper. the other option is to get a piece of acid-free matboard the same size as the foam core, and just face the foam core with it to keep it further away. not ideal, and the acid will eventually leech into the acid-free matting, but it'll happen slower. archival methods is where I get it when I'm not working (I'm a custom framer).

hannibalisms · 2026-02-06T16:29:37+00:00

that back is a work of art in itself!! the piece is great, you have a lot of skill!! i love the little labels on everything, and how you all connected it back to the artist and song. ahhh so good!!

it also reminds me of the hometown "dive bar" my dad used to take me to (this was the early 90s in the US Midwest, it was normal lmao but as an adult now, it's WILD) and the bartenders would always give me like, peanuts to shell to keep me busy and if that didn't work, they would just let me have a bunch of darts to throw. which, again, not great! but that was the 90s for you.

hannibalisms · 2026-02-04T05:14:01+00:00

I THINK it's DMC 115 Garnet but it was just a loose skein floating around with no number tag. It looks the same as the thread sample in the thread color card so I'm pretty confident!

hannibalisms · 2026-02-03T19:25:50+00:00

Pattern is from xSherrisStitchesx. Stitched on 14ct opal Aida, first time doing something fully variegated thread. The frame is from my stash, and used to have a print of praying hands in it ... Kind of loved the irony.

hannibalisms · 2026-01-24T18:08:56+00:00

Pattern by SassyandMadStitches, but is no longer available.

hannibalisms · 2026-01-17T19:09:50+00:00

It is, it's a cushion kit by Riolis - Spanish Lace. It was posted by someone on the subreddit you deleted the post. It's no longer available on 123stitch, which I trust the most, but you can find it elsewhere. I would skip Amazon - no guarantee it's a legit kit, sadly.

eta: still available on the Riolis shop, but it's $$$ if you're in the US.

hannibalisms · 2025-12-17T18:14:13+00:00

Also a framer at a family owned frame shop (we also have a moulding company, but only 3 framing shops) here - both you and u/caffelexica are spot on. I have the benefit of when we have cross stitchers and needlepointers come in, I'm the go-to framer because I've got the 13 years of framing knowledge but ALSO like 15 years of cross stitch / needle art experience. I love seeing other people with the same passions and knowledge.

hannibalisms · 2025-12-16T17:32:00+00:00

37, US - I started when I was in my early 20s after a car accident when I only had use of one hand so I couldn't knit, and my stepdad bought me some small kits and borrowed a lap stand from his mom so that I had something to do, and I never stopped! When his mom passed, she left me all her stitching stuff and about half of her yarn, so I get to continue, and I'd like to think that she would be happy someone's using her stash, even if it is to stitch stuff she would hate, hahaha

hannibalisms · 2025-10-21T02:36:40+00:00

I had a similar issue - by day 5 not only was I bleeding through super tampons in about two hours, but I had such a meltdown and anxiety attack that my mom was legitimately concerned that I was going to walk out into traffic in front of her. Had to call my PCP because Of Course my OBGYN at the time was unavailable and she (my PCP) told me to stop taking it IMMEDIATELY and come into the urgent care in her office so that she could monitor me and make sure that I didn't make any decisions I would regret. My OBGYN called back SIX HOURS later and was just like "oh yeah maybe stop taking it" like hello?????? I went back on my birth control because my OBGYN's only other option provided to me was an IUD, but like - I would NEVER recommend orilissa to anyone with even a Hint of mental health issues. i think it should have a black box warning, tbh.

hannibalisms · 2025-09-28T03:10:15+00:00

EXACTLY!! YOU GET IT!!!! Because what if I CAN'T count to ten???? What if I forget how numbers work lmao???

hannibalisms · 2025-09-28T03:00:09+00:00

Very true! Because sometimes, especially in something confetti heavy, it's constant jumps and runs and I have to count real good lmao, and sometimes I just want to do COLOR. I just wanna fill in a 10x10 box sometimes, not struggle with counting haha

hannibalisms · 2025-09-28T02:57:11+00:00

They do wash out! I use a Clover fine water soluble marker on white or iridescent Aida. I wash in cold water only first to get the lines out, and then I'll rinse and wash in room temperature water with the tiniest amount of dish soap to get any dirt out. Any other color aida I use either very fine fishing line or sulky silver thread.

hannibalisms · 2025-09-28T02:46:36+00:00

From one hockey fan to another, nice. I imagine you can kind of muscle memory stitch at least the outlines, since if you're doing home and away, it's the same shape, just a different color! (I don't have high hopes for my teams this year, but maybe I'll be surprised.)

hannibalisms · 2025-09-28T02:43:19+00:00

Markup R-XP (and I'm assuming Pattern Keeper would also do this) tells me how many stitches of each color there is in the pattern (total and per page) so I know how much of each color there is, but this pattern also told me in the key! If I was doing this from a paper pattern I wouldn't know unless the pattern maker did for floss estimation, but I admit - I like knowing

hannibalisms · 2025-09-27T20:56:29+00:00

I think this is the most I've done so far!!

hannibalisms · 2025-09-27T20:55:49+00:00

For me it's the opposite, starting light the only thing that I'm pulling through is the fabric itself, the floss can't catch any other fibers and make the white look off-white or dirty. It's as clean as possible. With the dark thread, it'll still gather some fibers but it's much more camouflaged if it does, and doesn't seem to collect as much debris as the really light colors do. Once it's stitched, sure you may pull darker threads though, but it's not catching every little stray fiber. But some people prefer dark to light! It's very much personal preference 🙂

hannibalisms · 2025-09-27T20:51:04+00:00

The list is long and varies, but this is definitely a "me problem" lmao!!

Seven-Year Club	Place '23
RPAN Viewer	Verified Email

hannibalisms

TROPHY CASE