Splash Soul Gallery

  Cross Stitch Bookmarks: Finishing Your Stitched Page Markers A bookmark is a small thing. Tucked between pages, glimpsed briefly, slid back into place. But a handmade bookmark — your stitches marking your page in your book — that's different. Personal. Functional art you touch daily. Cross stitch bookmarks are quick projects with practical results. The stitching goes fast. The finishing determines whether your work looks handmade or homemade. Why Bookmarks Work The format suits cross stitch naturally. Narrow dimensions. Bookmarks are long and thin. Perfect for border patterns, vertical motifs, single repeated elements. Fast completion. Small surface area means hours of work, not weeks. Finish in an evening or two. Immediate use. No framing needed. Complete it, start using it. Instant gratification. Gift potential. Readers always need bookmarks. Personal, useful, appreciated. Skill display. Small format showcases neat stitching. Every cross visible, every technique ...

  Cross Stitch Christmas Ornaments: Stitched Decorations for Your Tree Every year the same ornaments emerge from storage boxes. Glass balls, family heirlooms, children's crafts from decades past. Now imagine adding something new. Something you made. Tiny cross-stitched pieces hanging among the branches, catching light, carrying your work into holiday tradition. Cross stitch ornaments are quick projects with lasting impact. Small enough to finish in evenings. Meaningful enough to keep forever. Why Ornaments Work for Cross Stitch The format suits the craft perfectly. Small scale. Most ornaments are 5-10 cm. That's manageable stitch counts. Finish in hours, not months. Simple designs. Christmas imagery translates well to small formats. Trees, stars, snowflakes, stockings. Iconic shapes readable at tiny size. Gift potential. Handmade ornaments are perfect gifts. Personal, useful, kept year after year. Recipients think of you every December. Low commitment. Don't lo...

Cross Stitch on Towels: Choosing the Right Fabric Towels aren't evenweave. The loops, the pile, the texture — nothing about terry cloth says "count my threads." Yet embroidered towels exist everywhere. Guest bathrooms, kitchen hooks, gift baskets. Beautiful cross stitch on impossible fabric. The secret isn't magic. It's choosing the right towel — or adding the right stitching surface to any towel. The Towel Problem Standard towels defeat cross stitch completely. Terry cloth loops: The fabric surface is three-dimensional. Loops everywhere. No flat grid to count. Unstable base: Even if you could count something, the spongy pile shifts under your needle. Inconsistent density: Loops pack differently across the surface. No reliable thread count. Disappearing stitches: Thread sinks into the pile. Stitches become invisible, lost in the texture. You cannot cross stitch directly on terry cloth. Don't try. But towels with built-in solutions exist. And ret...

  Cross Stitch on Clothing: How to Make It Last Stitching on fabric meant for framing is one thing. Stitching on fabric meant for wearing, washing, living — that's different. Clothing moves. Clothing gets dirty. Clothing goes through machines. Your beautiful embroidery needs to survive all of it. The stitching technique stays the same. Everything around it changes. The Challenge of Wearable Embroidery Framed pieces live protected lives. Hung on walls, behind glass, undisturbed. Clothing endures assault. Friction. Fabric rubs against itself, against furniture, against bodies. Stitches catch and pull. Stretching. Movement distorts fabric. Your carefully aligned crosses shift and strain. Washing. Water, detergent, agitation. Every wash cycle tests your work. Heat. Dryers, irons, body warmth. Thread and fabric respond differently to temperature. Time. Garments last years. Your embroidery must last equally. Without proper preparation and finishing, beautiful work deteri...