Faith from Faithfully Stitching

This week's Blogger of the Week is a fellow Christmas Ornie SAL Blogger and a long time follower of mine.  She also loves those rather confusing jigsaws where you don't have the picture!  Obviously an animal lover as well as a keen crafter, please welcome Faith from

Faithfully Stitching

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

I live in Tucson and have been here for 2 years.  Originally from Chicago where I had lived my whole life.  I live with my 2 adult children, my awesome grandson, 4 dogs (all rescues from shelters), a red foot tortoise and the newest addition to the bunch is a cockatiel.

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

I had dabbled a little with embroidery while I was growing up but it didn’t really stick at that time.  In 1995, I was going through some personal stuff and needed something to occupy my mind and time so I went into a local craft store and walked up and down the aisles.  The second to the last aisle was counted cross stitch. I sat on the bottom shelf and started browsing thru a leaflet they had there and found a simple design to stitch.  I gathered up all the supplies needed, went home, stitched it and an obsession was born!

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

I had to go look (LOL) I made my first post in January of 2010 but didn’t really start updating regularly until 2011.  My blog title is a play on my name.  I started blogging mainly to see my own stitching progress.  I had been reading other blogs and liked comparing the ongoing progress on the pieces they displayed.

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.?

Oh goodness… before I really got into stitching groups on Yahoo and later Facebook, I like many others was a one piece at a time stitcher.  Now I think I am a serial starter (don’t you just love starting a new piece, it is exciting!) who wishes I was disciplined enough to follow every rotation I put in place for myself.  Instead I just stitch what I want to when I feel like it.

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

I LOVE geometric and mandala designs, it is just something about the way they are laid out that attracts me.  I love Northern Expressions Needlework and Ink Circles for those designs.  I also love stitching bunnies (I collect them) and simple holiday designs.  However… I am not opposed to stitching most designs put in front of me!

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

That is a hard choice because I love so many of them but I think it is between the Spirit of the Eagle and Walk Softly. I stitched these for my Father and they were my first pieces with beads.

Spirit of the Eagle

Designer - Sally Smith

Walk Softly

Designer - Linda K Powell

7. What has been your worst stitching disaster?

That would have to be Bunny Collector.  It was my first and LAST attempt at stitching “over 2”. I just can’t get the hang of it for some reason.  I finally gave up on this piece, cut off the extra fabric around it and threw the stitching away!  I may attempt to do it over 1 someday in the future.

Designer – Alma Lynne

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

I used to crochet but my hands no longer like that craft.  I also like to sew but the machine still scares me a bit.  I would love to learn to quilt and it is on my list of things to do so the machine and I better come to an agreement soon.  Most of all though I would LOVE to learn how to finish my pieces off into “something” so they can be displayed.

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?

LOL, I have what many call “The Box of Shame” where most of my finished pieces go to rest while I contemplate what to do with them.  The easiest way of course is to frame them but I have even been slacking on that lately.

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

I also like quotes that serve as reminders for everyday living and encouragement so I think that may be Rules of Life which I stitched in my favorite color…purple!

Designer - Kincavel Krosses

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

I can’t think of any secrets off the top of my head.  I am very good at procrastinating and tend to let things pile up which is why I have lots of WIPs and stash!  I also love assembling jigsaw puzzles and that obsession has taken over when I can’t sleep at night.

12. Anything you would like to add?

Just want to say a big THANK YOU to Jo for creating this blog so we can get to know new stitchers and learn about others that we have been following for a while.  Thanks to all who took the time to read about me!