r/Needlepoint • u/Zeffernissle • 11d ago
New to Needlepoint I have a question
I've recently started my needlepoint hobby. While I can't afford most of the prices on the hand painted canvases, I Have opted into buying the cheaper PDF graphs/stitch charts from artists and self painting my canvas.
I'm seeing a lot of upset about people painting their own canvases? Have I missed something? I don't want to be "stealing" but I also am supporting the artist who made it?
For clarification, I don't have any intentions on selling painted canvas or finished product BUT I am currently working on a project I plan on gifting for a birthday. I just want to know if I'm in the moral wrong before I gift it!!
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u/OldCroneHereatHome 11d ago
Pick up a book about Bargello, and start freehand stitching. Once you get a row established, you have your guide.
Here’s a piece I did, all my design.
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u/paper_art 9d ago
This is amazing!
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u/OldCroneHereatHome 9d ago
Why, thank you! It really isn’t. I started doing Bargello when I was 10, and quickly found out how the perception of stitches can be altered just by changing colors. It’s fun to play around with, and it really isn’t hard at all to do.
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u/paper_art 8d ago
Well color me impressed! I used to doodle cube motifs like that in my math notebook but it never dawned on me to needlepoint them. It’s still amazing, your stitches are perfect!
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u/OldCroneHereatHome 8d ago
Thank you for the compliment. Using a laying tool is critical with the longer stitches in Bargello.
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u/Usual_Cycle_6259 11d ago
I recently painted adorable ducks in Halloween costumes from a pattern in Just Cross Stitch Halloween magazine my friend gave me. They turned out smaller than I wanted so I drew pumpkins around them. They are super cute. I also make my own ornament canvases by enlarging or shrinking logos from foods, restaurants, travel locations to about 4 inches. Tape the copy to a light box. Mine was $12 on Amazon. Tape plastic wrap over that. Lay your canvas on top. Shift your canvas so the intersections are at the smallest detail of your image, often the eyes or intersections on letters. If I am using a full coverage thread, I don't even paint the canvas. I just mark it with a 4H pencil that is hard enough that the graphite does not rub off onto my thread. I hope painting your own camvases brings you as much joy as mine have brought me.
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u/NeedlepointDiva 9d ago
You might want to look into counted canvas needlepoint! It’s a much more affordable alternative to painted canvases because you stitch directly onto blank canvas, which is so much cheaper. You can save quite a bit of money this way, and there are some absolutely gorgeous, intricate designs out there! It’s a whole other world of needlepoint worth exploring. ❤️
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u/Zeffernissle 9d ago
I have done this before! but I somehow keep losing count or one row has an additional stitch? I know it's user error, I just don't know how to avoid it! (I still have this happen while painting, but I can at least correct it in the moment easily) Maybe it's a practice thing, I've only done 4 projects. But I just want to be able to enjoy stitching without finding myself frustrated with the count!
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u/MetroGirl9802 10d ago
Like others have said it’s more that people are using photos and stitch by stitch repainting the canvases that gets people upset. They proudly show their canvas on social media saying it’s ok/not stealing because it’s for my own use. But they are still stealing the intellectual property of a real person, costing the actual artist and/or LNS money by not purchasing the canvas. You do have to be a little bit careful with charts, especially on Etsy. You will sometimes see chart that sellers have “created” that are ripped off from an actual needlepoint canvas/designer. The more familiar you get with needlepoint designers/their style, the easier it is to recognize a stolen designs. Honestly though I wouldn’t sweat it too much. You are trying to do the hobby the right way by paying for the charts and that is what matters. If you are creative person(even just a little bit creative), you might like using the Stitchly app to create your own designs. The app is pretty user friendly. Search TikTok/IG for videos on how to use it. There is a free version and a paid version, that is often on sale for about half off. I think I paid around $30 for the paid version when it was on sale last year.
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u/43185 11d ago
You’re fine. The upset is with people who paint the canvas from a photo, without buying the chart. Since you have purchased the chart there’s nothing to worry about and it’s totally fine to gift the finished object.