The Art of Cross Stitch

[MrsMoV]

Hello

Has anyone else subscribed to this collection??
It's UK based. I got the Art of Crotect and over halfway with making the blanket and I'm enjoying it.

I have subscribed to see what's it's like but just wondered if anyone else has and what do you think?

MM

[kingfisher68]

I have seen this in our local small shop but will not be subscribing to it or buying a copy. Have enough stash which includes, a few cross stitch books, & if I can't find anything I want to know I ask on here & I get good feedback.

[richardandtracy]

I saw the TV ads for this in the last month.

Sorry, but no. Not ever. No way. No chance.
Twee overload. Cure overload. Fluffy overload. I don't to twee. Or cute. Or fluffy. Or for that matter anything that looks 'Crafty'. And that is 100% what the magazine is about. In short, I don't want my stuff to look home-made and I don't want it to look as if could have been knocked off by an 8 year-old in the 1850's, and only take her a couple of hours. Instead, I want ambition in the project, for it to make me think, and as I don't want it to look home-made there will be no excuse for it not being as close to perfect as I can possibly manage. The 'home-made' look is often an excuse for a finish that is poor or for mistakes in the work. In interior house decoration, the epitome of this style is the crackle finish paint - a paint designed to give a catastrophic finish which hides hopelessly botched workmanship.

OK, I'll get off my soap-box & shut up. I do know my views are not shared by the majority of the craft magazine buying public (otherwise they'd all go broke). I just happen to disagree fundamentally with almost every single one of them.
I like the 'Cross Stitch Collection' magazine though. Different 'House Style' in that magazine with bigger, more ambitious projects.

Regards,

Richard.

[Mabel Figworthy]

I'm sort of with you on the home-made look, Richard - but I'm torn (not by the mag; simply not my style). I once had a non-stitching friend look at something I'd stitched and she said, "ooh, it could have been done by a machine!" She meant this as a compliment, I know - and I suppose it meant that my stitching on that occasion was very regular and neat , but I still didn't like the sound of it.

Perhaps it's because the original stitching/weaving/whatever machines were designed to emulate the best human endeavour; and now the best human endeavour is judged against a machine...

[wendywombat]

The trouble I find with publications like this is they get on the band wagon and churn out very ordinary simple stuff. OK for a beginner but I think you could quickly find it repeating itself. Also the 'free gifts' it offers include very cheap threads. They could make better value by not including the gifts in the price and increase the quality of the designs.

But having said all this my advice would be to buy an issue or two and evaluate whether the style of subjects suits Your style of stitching, before taking out a subscription.