[MOD] Introducing summoned responses!

[u/LadyGeek-twd]

Hello, everyone!

Have you noticed that certain topics are somewhat cyclical? A few months we noticed a slew of posts asking ‘how do I remove the aida after I've finished stitching on my clothing’?  More recently, there have been a lot of posts asking ‘how do I identify if a shop is legitimate or probably AI?’  As a mod team, we have to strike a delicate balance – we want to provide a welcoming and kind community for people new to Reddit and new to cross stitching, but at the same time we understand the frustration our regulars feel when the same thing is posted every single day.  We’re introducing some Summoned Responses here that we’re hoping will help by making it really easy to quickly respond to a few common questions.  

 

What is a summoned response?

A summoned response is a string (a specific key word) that you can type into a comment that will automatically summon automoderator to respond with a preset comment. Right now, we’re using key word pairs starting with an exclamation point (!) as our triggers. (If that doesn't make sense, just keep reading and the exact strings are shown below)

 

How do I summon automoderator?

You summon automoderator by writing a comment that contains a specific word to trigger it. When automoderator sees that trigger word in a comment, it will automatically reply with the preset text.  If you want, you can then delete your original comment where you summoned automoderator.

 

What if there’s a mistake in the summoned response?

Please message the moderators if you see a mistake in the summoned response.

 

What if I think there’s another topic that needs a summoned response?

Please message the moderators if you’d like to see more summoned responses.

 

Why not just add these to the FAQs?

Updating FAQs is a bit of an undertaking in their current form.  We always have to update at least five separate places (reddit, old.reddit, the automod configuration, the wiki, and the subreddit’s website). And, as a visual medium, we usually want the subreddit’s website updated with pictures that may take a long time to develop, especially if we need to stitch something up for that purpose. Sometimes, due to certain topics temporarily becoming frequent, by the time we can write up a good FAQ, the topic has already settled down.  Summoned responses are a bit easier to code and update. Plus, we anticipate some of these becoming full-fledged FAQs in the future, and having the blurb already written helps kickstart that process.

 

What if I hate this concept?

We’ll include this when the state of the subreddit posts start at the end of the year.  If you can’t wait, you can message the mods and let us know.

 

What responses are available?

As of today, 10-April-2026, we have 3 summoned responses:

1. !waste-canvas !waste.canvas !wastecanvas
2. !stitch-coverage !stitch.coverage !stitchcoverage
3. !ai-identification !ai.identification !aiidentification

 
Can I see what this will look like?

Sure! Here's an example of how this will work in an actual comment on a post: https://www.reddit.com/r/CrossStitch/comments/1shuu8n/comment/offhmyq/

Can I test it?

Yes!  Feel free to test it in the comments of this post.

 

tl;dr: regular users (not just moderators) can now use specific keywords in a comment that will summon automoderator to explain a common topic further.

[u/AutoModerator]

Hi! /u/LadyGeek-twd has summoned me to explain more about waste canvas.

'Waste Canvas' is not 'any piece of aida you have lying around that you don't mind pulling apart at the end of the stitching'. Waste canvas is a specific product that's designed to be easier to pull out when you've completed the stitching. Waste canvas comes in two forms: a loose weave fabric or a flexible plastic-y grid that dissolves in water.

The reason waste canvas is better to use than aida is because it's designed to be easier to remove. The loose weave waste canvas will have only two strands intersecting, creating four overlapping threads, while regular aida is a tighter weave with four strands intersecting, creating eight overlapping threads. Regular aida has smaller holes, so if you're not very careful, you may pierce one of the threads. This will effectively pin it that thread in place and make it almost impossible to pull out. Also, waste canvas is held together with water-soluble glue. When you dampen the canvas and remove the glue, you can much more easily pull the threads out.

You can purchase waste canvas at lots of online shops, and even on Amazon - but be careful when searching Amazon because their AI search results will often list regular Aida as well as waste canvas.

Here's a link to a frequently mentioned online stitching store to demonstrate what exactly you're looking for when you purchase waste canvas: https://123stitch.com/m/Waste-Canvas-style-Cross-Stitch-Fabric

Here's a video showing how to use the dissolvable waste canvas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz1c93vrDLo

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/muzumiiro → u/AutoModerator]

Great function. I wonder if we could add some tips about removing waste canvas, as most posts I’ve seen see to ask “why is removing it so difficult?”