I've been meaning to respond to Sanya Burgess's Sunday (London) Times article "I'll be Darned - Sewing's Trendy." Which demonstrates how the old lady craft, taken up by the hipsters brings cross-stitch from the ridiculous ("grannies and kittens and puppies!") to the hip (twenty year olds cross-stitch in bars!).
I just wish these journalists had the sympathy of a Sally Field so they could elevate their articles. Instead of relying on the old granny foil, how about really understanding what you're talking about? If you're looking for patterns beyond the puppies and kittens, how about going to a dedicated cross-stitch store rather than a big box craft store? And I'm not talking about Sew and So. I just went there because they are specifically mentioned in the article since 300,000 of their visitors (they don't tell you how many total visits) are between 18-34. Big.Box.Craft.Store. (Which have their place! But don't tell me you don't like their stock therefore cross-stitch is for old ladies.)
The other evidence they give for young people getting into "needlecraft" is that they are "beating their grandmothers to the best sewing machines and cross-stitch sets." The sewing machines are in bright colors, which apparently attract young people. (Ooh, shiny.)
Let's invent a cross-stitch where there's space for everyone.
So many benefits to health and friendships gained through wonderful craftng techniques
ReplyDeleteYour favourite topic! Such lazy journalism too. I couldn't read the whole article because I couldn't be bothered to find my subscriber number and log in but I can imagine what it said!
ReplyDeleteSewandso is run by enthusiasts and has a huge range of designs and fabrics including many not found anywhere else. We have so few LNS in the UK now thanks to Hobbycraft driving them out of business.
I had a woman at work tell me I look like an old granny sitting in my cubicle cross stitching during my lunchtime. At the time, I was working on a 'bless this house' type design with a Star Wars bent (it says "Bless this wretched hive of scum and villainy"), which I thought made it extra funny.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I'm enjoying about my own re-discovery of cross stitching is the blogs and Facebook pages where I see such a huge range of interests, and no one is wandering around being critical or snide about peoples' differing tastes in designs. It's all "love it!" and "pretty!!!" and "cool!!" and "beautiful stitching!!" etc. And it's honest! We can appreciate and love things that aren't our own personal taste, probably at least partly because we appreciate the work and time that goes into them. It's great.
If I'm able to do this when I'm a granny, I'll be shocked.
ReplyDeleteArticle is definitely condescending and not very well researched.
ReplyDeleteI'm a grandma who's been doing needlework since I was a teenager, crossing through five decades of my life. During all that time, there's been no shortage of materials to appeal to my changing tastes. Do the people who write about stitching talk to actual stitchers?
ReplyDeleteYou should send an article back, "I'll be darned, recycling the same old tropes is trendy" Youngsters getting into journalism are "beating their grandmothers to the best sexist and ageist assumptions"
ReplyDeleteThat movie looks great! I saw a preview and can't wait to see it. I love Sally Field and have since I was a kid and watched The Flying Nun!
ReplyDeleteIt is great to have a variety of stitching people AND a variety of designs. My daughter and I discovered a cross stitch shop a little over an hour from her. Now we make a few trips a year (at least).
Glad to hear some more good news about our obsession getting more popular. I think the fact that all the young people are online have helped all crafting to get more popular and that's all good. Too many uninformed people think of cross-stitching as still back in the 1980's with ducks and country themes and they don't realize the diversity and complexity of what is available for us. Thanks for keeping us informed on the trends! Your projects are looking good in your recent posts.
ReplyDelete"Florence Watts is addicted to cross-stitching" is the lede and yet in the photo, she's knitting/crocheting. And those British newspapers are tough - not even 5 or 10 free article views before subscribing?
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