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We had two most interesting chats about designing our own charts last week. :-) We focused primarily on the mechanics of graphing. A member sent me a thoughtful email in which she observed we didn't discuss where we get our ideas for designs, so I will schedule that as a class topic by itself very soon.
We began by discussing charting on graph paper, which is the preferred method for some stitchers in attendance. What they said they like about it is that drawing the charts themselves gives them the ability to erase whenever they need to do so. Of course, to do so, they use pencils and have erasers handy when they're working. While some of the stitchers preferred to use a regular black pencil and draw their designs with a symbol assigned to each color they use, others like to use colored pencils so they have an idea what the completed design will look like. The majority of those who use colored pencils color in the squares on the graph paper. The only fault anyone at chat found with using colored pencils is it's often hard to find as many colors as one may need to complete a design. The widest array of colors in pencils I've ever seen has been at art stores in my area. Graph paper comes in a variety of grid sizes. Some has a heavy line every 10 squares, while other graph paper doesn't. Much graph paper is stndard size: 8 1/2" x 11"; however, I remember finding some that was much larger long ago with drafting supplies at an art store. The stitchers at chat said if their design is too large to fit on one sheet of graph paper, they tape the sheets together. I've found rubber cement a good adhesive to use when I've had to attach several sheets of paper to each other. For me, it's easier to handle than is tape, and it doesn't have the stiff consistency of some other glues I've used. Once again, a matter of personal preference. I still sometimes prefer to work out a general design on paper, and with the cross-stitch design software I use, I can print out just a sheet of gridded paper with squares of any size I choose. More about software later. :-)
Our class moved on to tracing a design from something like a photograph through very thin paper. I never had much luck with this because the only thin, opaque graph paper I could find didn't give me a clear view of the item below it. As I've said before, though, I cannot draw at all, and I need all the help I can get. :-)
A third way to graph designs is to use transparent plastic sheets that are already gridded to match the thread counts of various fabrics. The brand with which I'm familiar is TransgraphX, although I'm sure there are others out there. This, you will find in needlework shops and in some needlework catalogues. I used this to chart and stitch the first building I ever did, an old church. I photographed the church, had the photo enlarged to the size I wanted the finished stitchery to be, and put the photo under a sheet of gridded plastic the same thread count as the fabric I was planning to use. I taped the plastic sheet to the photo so it wouldn't move, and I had an instant chart. I chose not to draw the graph of the church from this setup, so I don't have a permanent copy of the graph, but it worked well for me. And it didn't take any plotting on my part to figure out exactly how large the church would be when it was completed. One nice thing about the gridded plastic overlays is although they're rather expensive, they can be used over and over again.
Finally, we talked about using cross-stitch design software and designing on our computers. This is a method I use extensively now for several reasons. I can erase errors without an eraser by right-clicking the mouse over any square in a chart I'm designing. Repeat motifs such as those in some samplers, I can copy and paste or mirror image without having to draw the whole thing. This is a real timesaver for me. I can move a portion of one chart to another chart. I can change fiber colors at will. I can print the pattern or any portion of it in any size I wish. I can also choose whether to print in color solid or xes, or to use black symbols. And I can change any settings I wish as I work on my design. If I design something and want to center it, I can do so by copying and pasting within an existing or new chart. The big plus for me, however, is that my design software has the capability to import and automatically create a chart from a scanned image. I can now scan all those photos of wonderful buildings I've taken and kept through the years and turn them into charts. As with all methods of graphing, there are both pros and cons to using xs design software. The con I've run across most often is that a legible chart of any size must be printed on more than one sheet of paper. My software does mark each page to show where it connects with the previous one, but I still have to get out my gluepot if I want to have a one-piece chart.
I gave 2 sources for more info about cross-stitch design software. On the Internet, Kathy Dyer's Cross Stitch FAQ has an entire section devoted to programs and the information she has been able to obtain about them. There is software for both Macs and PCs, and it's all included there. The address is Also, I have written and once revised an article for AOL stitchers about design software. While it doesn't mention specific programs by name, I wrote it more as a consumer guide in which I tried to offer some things to consider when you want to purchase a program. I did so because this can be a large investment, and I know from experience ads don't always tell everything there is to know about each program. If you'd like a copy, just email me to request one.
Last but far from least, more than one chat participant was concerned with how to select floss colors for charts she designs. If you use a cross-stitch design program like the one I have, it will automatically select colors of the brands available within parameters that you set. Quite a few stitchers, including me, go by eye. Some of us get out all our floss of whatever brand and select what most closely matches the color in a picture. Something that helps me tremendously and which I couldn't do without is my DMC color card. It contains swatches of each of the DMC solid colors, arranged by color family and shade. The same type of color card is available for Anchor floss. I try very hard to match a major color in a picture. Once I do so, it seems easy for me to select lighter and darker shades of the same color just by using my color card. One suggestion from a number of stitchers: When you try to match colors, be they for a photograph or for any object, be sure to do so in bright daylight. Artificial lighting, especially flourescent lights, can distort the color. I take my color card and whatever I'm trying to match outdoors if the weather is decent. Another suggestion was to go to a sunny window to do your matching. Some shop keepers are not comfortable with it, but if I try to match colors for anything I'm purchasing from them, I ask permission to take things outdoors, away from their flourescent lighting, to do so. One of the benefits of owning a color card is that you don't have to ask to take something outdoors at a shop so often.
Copyright 1997 Jill Martz
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