Stephanie from Oh Sew Crafty

It's a double deal on Blogger of the Week this week - you get a Blogger and a FlossTuber all in one post.  I've been following this blogger for a little while, we bonded over the Joan Elliott 12 Days of Christmas kit we both have.  Her's is finished, mine is on the way.  When I started watching FlossTube it made sense to follow people I already knew.  It's nice to have both media, you get better photos on the blog and it's easy to find previous posts on a project, but on FlossTube you get to hear the stitcher's voice and see the project for scale, sometimes the sparkle shows up better too.
So, two links today to introduce Stephanie from

Oh Sew Crafty - Blog

Ms Oh Sew Crafty - FlossTube

1. Please introduce yourself – name, where you are from, family, pets etc.

My name is Stephanie and I’ve lived my whole life in the Washington, DC, metro area.  12 years ago I married the light of my life and we have a 3 year old little boy.  I am currently a thirtysomething stay at home mom, previously I worked in higher education / finance.  My son used to sit on my sit on my lap, as I worked on his birth sampler, when he was just 2 months old.

2. How long have you been stitching and how did you start?

I learned how to stitch when I was a small child, around 4 years old.  My mom and I did many crafts together and I faintly remember starting with tent stitch on plastic canvas.  I loved counted cross stitch from the first time I tried.  I stitched throughout my childhood and teen years.    This astrological design is the oldest I still have, from the mid 90's.  With the advent of the blogosphere in the early 2000’s, I learned about the wider world of stitching, like fabrics other than aida.  Then I started stitching in earnest after we bought our house in 2012 and suddenly had a lot of wall space begging for decoration. 

3. How long have you been blogging and what inspired you to start? Is there a story behind your blog title?

I was inspired to start blogging when my husband gave me an iMac computer for Christmas 2007.  My blog title comes from the username I devised for Ravelry and other online forums.  Ohsewcrafty is a cute pun, IMO.  I am generally very crafty… I’ve at least tried most forms of arts & crafts over the years (Everything from sewing to stained glass, among others).  The other sense of crafty also applies-  I like finding clever solutions for problems.  "Sew" because stitching and sewing are my oldest passions.  I tend to be highly strung and crafting is essential to stay sane- I find it calming, soothing, and engaging.

4. How would you describe your stitching style? Are you a serial starter, a rotator, a OAAT (one at a time), highly organised, random and eclectic, etc.?

I rotate and prefer “serial finishing”.  As for organization, I keep a spreadsheet with indexes of supplies and lists of projects, date started, fabric, other info.  My current schedule is a weekly rotation with the 4th week of the month divided for 3 smaller projects, and the few days at the end of the month are “bonus”.  Although I started with OAAT as a kid, there is no way I could do that now- I tend to work on large projects and I get burnt out after a week or so. 


5. Do you have a favourite designer or style of design you are drawn to?

My favorite designers are Mirabilia and Joan Elliott.  I prefer fantasy style designs- dragons, fairies, unicorns, mermaids, etc.  But I enjoy many other styles as well-  I like Lizzie Kate, Stoney Creek, and Imaginating, too.  There is always a Christmas project in my rotation... here is Joan Elliott's Christmas Angel.  Though I do full coverage sometimes, my favorites projects are the sort which involve fractional stitches, backstitching, beads, metallics, etc. on hand dyed fabric (belfast linen is my fave).  

6. Which piece are you most proud of in your collection?

The piece I am most proud of is my recent finish of The Castle by Teresa Wentzler.  It was one of my most challenging projects, and I am thrilled with the way it turned out- all the detail from the fractional stitches, the lovely shading with the blended threads, and the sparkle from blending filament.  It’s stitched on a beautiful hand dyed Cashel linen that suggests sky and water.  Topically, it’s high fantasy, and the sort of image that captures my imagination.

7. What has been your worst stitching disaster?

My worst stitching disaster probably involves my current WIP, Winnie the Pooh II (kit) by MCG Textiles.  The floss didn't work out... the fabric didn't either.  My third start (with DMC and new fabric) finally stuck.  Honestly, I probably would have ditched it entirely if I wasn’t meant for my son.  Winnie the Pooh was his first cartoon, enduring favorite, and I just couldn’t give up.  I am finally making progress!

8. Which new technique would you like to try, either stitching, finishing or another craft?

I would like to try weaving.  I think woven fabric is attractive and it would be another way to use up my huge yarn stash… I was a very prolific knitter for a number of years.  I still knit a little, but most of my crafting time goes for stitching these days.  

9. Do you have a box of finished-but-not-fully-finished pieces? Or is everything FFO'd? What's your favourite way to fully finish a project and what do you do with them?

I have a shelf, where resides a bag of finished but not fully finished pieces, rolled up to save space and avoid wrinkles.  My favorite way to fully finish is framing, which I do myself, and they decorate my walls, mostly.  Sometimes projects languish because I like to save up several pieces to frame all together, seems more efficient that way.   Unicorn Mystique was my first project with the circular mat cutter.

10. Which of your projects most represents "you"?

The project that most represents me is my finish of Athena, by Mirabilia.  As the goddess of wisdom, Athena represents something that I eternally seek.  I also love the colors in the piece, lots of blue, a little green (my favorite color), and jewel tones.  Besides that, she’s a reference to history and mythology, a few subjects which fascinate me.

11. Tell us a secret about yourself. Or a joke. About anything!

A joke about myself?  Well my husband calls me a vampire.  This refers to the fact I'm a night owl, and I also tend to be cold (and steal his heat).   He also calls me a Vulcan because I am highly rational and logical, not so (outwardly) emotional.  I did not grow up watching Star Trek (or a lot of TV in general, I was more fond of books) but I like the new films and identify more with Spock than with Kirk, that’s for sure! 


12. Anything you would like to add?

Don't be afraid to try new things and pick projects that may seem a little above your skill level... that's how we learn!