Stitcher of the Month - December 2021

January 01, 2022

Welcome to the Caterpillar Cross Stitch 'Stitcher of the Month' competition for December  2021 where the winner will walk away with a £20 gift voucher! I love this community we've built together and I want to showcase the personality and story of a special stitcher each month.

Every one of you is so valued and I want to recognise and celebrate your contributions through this monthly giveaway. On the first day of every month, I'll ask for your nominations. You can nominate yourself or someone else.

 

cross stitcher of the month

 

Simply email us at support@caterpillarcrossstitch.com (with Stitcher of the Month in the subject line) with your full name, location and include:

1. 3 x high res photos of some recent stitching (any design or brand)

2. 1 x clear, well lit, high resolution photo of yourself or the nominee

3. Let us hear about your personality, background and experience with stitching including a tip for beginners (300 words minimum please)

4. Your favourite piece, how you started stitching and why you love it!

The winner will receive a £20 Caterpillar Cross Stitch gift voucher and have their work shared on social media, our website and in the next email! At the end of each month, the Caterpillar Cross Stitch team will pick one winner based on the set criteria: creativity, interesting story, enjoyment and passion for cross stitch and overall impression. The winner will be contacted by email and will be interviewed for our blog and social media channels.

And now on to our WINNER for December 2021... Congratulations Cathy!

 

cross stitcher competition

 

Cathy says:

My motto is ‘I’d rather be stitching!’ and it really applies to me! I stitch as much as I possibly can. I find it relaxing and enjoyable to see a project grow into something fantastic - it’s very satisfying!

I’m a mum and I also have a fairly stressful job so cross stitch helps me to relax. I like cross stitching because I like to give the finished pieces as gifts - I love to see the pleasure on people’s faces when they receive them. When I was younger, I developed a serious underlying condition called lupus which meant I was frequently in hospital. During these times, I was able to keep stitching which kept my spirits up. The nurses used to ask me about it too and I made them stitched gifts for Christmas, such as decorations. 

 cross stitch noahs ark

 

I learned to stitch when I was about nine years old. In my parents' newspaper that was delivered every morning, there was an interesting leaflet full of cross stitch designs - I was intrigued! No one in my immediate family cross stitched but somehow, I was drawn to it. I begged and begged my dad to buy me one. I was delighted when I got it and taught myself how to stitch - I have never looked back! It’s taken me through a lot of good and challenging times. I love stitching something for an event such as a wedding, new baby or milestone birthday. I’m now a mum to a small daughter and I’m stitching a lot for her room. She’s already asking to stitch and I hope she learns too, I can’t wait to show her! 

 

 

I’ve also made friends stitching. It’s great to stitch with others; it’s a very sociable craft. You can also encourage each other to keep going and stay patient to get to the end. I’m terrible at having numerous projects on the go at once - I really want to stitch everything! I have a stitching stash full of things I find or see. Sometimes I like to embellish my pieces with ribbons or buttons so I collect things I think might work on a later piece. I always make sure my finished works are framed because I think this really helps to show them off. I always try and choose a frame that matches the stitching so it enhances the colours. 

 cross stitch dinosaurs

 

I share my finished cross stitch pieces on social media and my friends love to see them. Often, they want to learn too and I’m happy to help. My piece of advice to beginners is choose a design you love, and then keep going! It will get finished quicker than you think and you’ll be so pleased with it. Be warned though, you’ll then want another one… and you’ll be hooked! 

If you would like to join over 13,000 stitchers in the Facebook group, please click HERE. Well done Cathy, your £20 Caterpillar Cross Stitch gift voucher is on its way to you!

Thank you for all of your wonderful entries - it was tough to pick a winner as they were all so lovely to read with some amazing stitching shown! Nominations are now open for our January 2022 Stitcher of the Month - I can't wait to see them!

cross stitch kits uk




Also in BLOG & NEWS

north american adventure
North American Adventure Stitch-a-Long 2024 - the Details!

April 08, 2024

Brand NEW 'North American Adventure' SAL opens for pre-order on Friday 12th April at 5pm UK time and we're so excited to share the details with you. 

Calling all cross stitchers! Come with us on a stitchy road trip around North America, where creativity meets adventure. Join a supportive community of crafters, celebrate milestones, and share the joy of creating a fun, travel-inspired masterpiece.

Continue Reading

caterpillar club box
Caterpillar Club Box 19 - One More Chapter

April 04, 2024

Maybe you're a crafting fanatic, or maybe you're a complete beginner looking for a new, creative hobby? Either way, you will adore the fuss-free Caterpillar Club subscription boxes

The quirky design features decorative bookshelves where colourful novels, a plant, and a globe, are wearing adorable happy faces. The project is complete with easy-to-follow instructions, an A4 colour printed pattern, DMC stranded cotton, 1 DMC branded needle, white Zweigart 14 count aida fabric (recommended for beginners), and a pre-sorted Carlos the Caterpillar thread holder. 

Continue Reading

Craft for Cats - Caterpillar Cross Stitch x Cats Protection!
Craft for Cats - Caterpillar Cross Stitch x Cats Protection!

March 18, 2024

Caterpillar Cross Stitch are honoured to be the next crafty small business chosen to help raise money for Cats Protection! We have designed 3 unique, wooden, cat-shaped decorations for you to personalise with little cross stitches. 

You'll have heaps of fun, learn a new, crafty skill, and have a beautiful, finished craft project to show off to your family and friends, all while raising vital funds for the UK's leading cat charity. 

Continue Reading

/*! lazysizes - v5.3.2 */ !function(e){var t=function(u,D,f){"use strict";var k,H;if(function(){var e;var t={lazyClass:"lazyload",loadedClass:"lazyloaded",loadingClass:"lazyloading",preloadClass:"lazypreload",errorClass:"lazyerror",autosizesClass:"lazyautosizes",fastLoadedClass:"ls-is-cached",iframeLoadMode:0,srcAttr:"data-src",srcsetAttr:"data-srcset",sizesAttr:"data-sizes",minSize:40,customMedia:{},init:true,expFactor:1.5,hFac:.8,loadMode:2,loadHidden:true,ricTimeout:0,throttleDelay:125};H=u.lazySizesConfig||u.lazysizesConfig||{};for(e in t){if(!(e in H)){H[e]=t[e]}}}(),!D||!D.getElementsByClassName){return{init:function(){},cfg:H,noSupport:true}}var O=D.documentElement,i=u.HTMLPictureElement,P="addEventListener",$="getAttribute",q=u[P].bind(u),I=u.setTimeout,U=u.requestAnimationFrame||I,o=u.requestIdleCallback,j=/^picture$/i,r=["load","error","lazyincluded","_lazyloaded"],a={},G=Array.prototype.forEach,J=function(e,t){if(!a[t]){a[t]=new RegExp("(\\s|^)"+t+"(\\s|$)")}return a[t].test(e[$]("class")||"")&&a[t]},K=function(e,t){if(!J(e,t)){e.setAttribute("class",(e[$]("class")||"").trim()+" "+t)}},Q=function(e,t){var a;if(a=J(e,t)){e.setAttribute("class",(e[$]("class")||"").replace(a," "))}},V=function(t,a,e){var i=e?P:"removeEventListener";if(e){V(t,a)}r.forEach(function(e){t[i](e,a)})},X=function(e,t,a,i,r){var n=D.createEvent("Event");if(!a){a={}}a.instance=k;n.initEvent(t,!i,!r);n.detail=a;e.dispatchEvent(n);return n},Y=function(e,t){var a;if(!i&&(a=u.picturefill||H.pf)){if(t&&t.src&&!e[$]("srcset")){e.setAttribute("srcset",t.src)}a({reevaluate:true,elements:[e]})}else if(t&&t.src){e.src=t.src}},Z=function(e,t){return(getComputedStyle(e,null)||{})[t]},s=function(e,t,a){a=a||e.offsetWidth;while(a49?function(){o(t,{timeout:n});if(n!==H.ricTimeout){n=H.ricTimeout}}:te(function(){I(t)},true);return function(e){var t;if(e=e===true){n=33}if(a){return}a=true;t=r-(f.now()-i);if(t<0){t=0}if(e||t<9){s()}else{I(s,t)}}},ie=function(e){var t,a;var i=99;var r=function(){t=null;e()};var n=function(){var e=f.now()-a;if(e0;if(r&&Z(i,"overflow")!="visible"){a=i.getBoundingClientRect();r=C>a.left&&pa.top-1&&g500&&O.clientWidth>500?500:370:H.expand;k._defEx=u;f=u*H.expFactor;c=H.hFac;A=null;if(w2&&h>2&&!D.hidden){w=f;N=0}else if(h>1&&N>1&&M<6){w=u}else{w=_}}if(l!==n){y=innerWidth+n*c;z=innerHeight+n;s=n*-1;l=n}a=d[t].getBoundingClientRect();if((b=a.bottom)>=s&&(g=a.top)<=z&&(C=a.right)>=s*c&&(p=a.left)<=y&&(b||C||p||g)&&(H.loadHidden||x(d[t]))&&(m&&M<3&&!o&&(h<3||N<4)||W(d[t],n))){R(d[t]);r=true;if(M>9){break}}else if(!r&&m&&!i&&M<4&&N<4&&h>2&&(v[0]||H.preloadAfterLoad)&&(v[0]||!o&&(b||C||p||g||d[t][$](H.sizesAttr)!="auto"))){i=v[0]||d[t]}}if(i&&!r){R(i)}}};var a=ae(t);var S=function(e){var t=e.target;if(t._lazyCache){delete t._lazyCache;return}L(e);K(t,H.loadedClass);Q(t,H.loadingClass);V(t,B);X(t,"lazyloaded")};var i=te(S);var B=function(e){i({target:e.target})};var T=function(e,t){var a=e.getAttribute("data-load-mode")||H.iframeLoadMode;if(a==0){e.contentWindow.location.replace(t)}else if(a==1){e.src=t}};var F=function(e){var t;var a=e[$](H.srcsetAttr);if(t=H.customMedia[e[$]("data-media")||e[$]("media")]){e.setAttribute("media",t)}if(a){e.setAttribute("srcset",a)}};var s=te(function(t,e,a,i,r){var n,s,o,l,u,f;if(!(u=X(t,"lazybeforeunveil",e)).defaultPrevented){if(i){if(a){K(t,H.autosizesClass)}else{t.setAttribute("sizes",i)}}s=t[$](H.srcsetAttr);n=t[$](H.srcAttr);if(r){o=t.parentNode;l=o&&j.test(o.nodeName||"")}f=e.firesLoad||"src"in t&&(s||n||l);u={target:t};K(t,H.loadingClass);if(f){clearTimeout(c);c=I(L,2500);V(t,B,true)}if(l){G.call(o.getElementsByTagName("source"),F)}if(s){t.setAttribute("srcset",s)}else if(n&&!l){if(d.test(t.nodeName)){T(t,n)}else{t.src=n}}if(r&&(s||l)){Y(t,{src:n})}}if(t._lazyRace){delete t._lazyRace}Q(t,H.lazyClass);ee(function(){var e=t.complete&&t.naturalWidth>1;if(!f||e){if(e){K(t,H.fastLoadedClass)}S(u);t._lazyCache=true;I(function(){if("_lazyCache"in t){delete t._lazyCache}},9)}if(t.loading=="lazy"){M--}},true)});var R=function(e){if(e._lazyRace){return}var t;var a=n.test(e.nodeName);var i=a&&(e[$](H.sizesAttr)||e[$]("sizes"));var r=i=="auto";if((r||!m)&&a&&(e[$]("src")||e.srcset)&&!e.complete&&!J(e,H.errorClass)&&J(e,H.lazyClass)){return}t=X(e,"lazyunveilread").detail;if(r){re.updateElem(e,true,e.offsetWidth)}e._lazyRace=true;M++;s(e,t,r,i,a)};var r=ie(function(){H.loadMode=3;a()});var o=function(){if(H.loadMode==3){H.loadMode=2}r()};var l=function(){if(m){return}if(f.now()-e<999){I(l,999);return}m=true;H.loadMode=3;a();q("scroll",o,true)};return{_:function(){e=f.now();k.elements=D.getElementsByClassName(H.lazyClass);v=D.getElementsByClassName(H.lazyClass+" "+H.preloadClass);q("scroll",a,true);q("resize",a,true);q("pageshow",function(e){if(e.persisted){var t=D.querySelectorAll("."+H.loadingClass);if(t.length&&t.forEach){U(function(){t.forEach(function(e){if(e.complete){R(e)}})})}}});if(u.MutationObserver){new MutationObserver(a).observe(O,{childList:true,subtree:true,attributes:true})}else{O[P]("DOMNodeInserted",a,true);O[P]("DOMAttrModified",a,true);setInterval(a,999)}q("hashchange",a,true);["focus","mouseover","click","load","transitionend","animationend"].forEach(function(e){D[P](e,a,true)});if(/d$|^c/.test(D.readyState)){l()}else{q("load",l);D[P]("DOMContentLoaded",a);I(l,2e4)}if(k.elements.length){t();ee._lsFlush()}else{a()}},checkElems:a,unveil:R,_aLSL:o}}(),re=function(){var a;var n=te(function(e,t,a,i){var r,n,s;e._lazysizesWidth=i;i+="px";e.setAttribute("sizes",i);if(j.test(t.nodeName||"")){r=t.getElementsByTagName("source");for(n=0,s=r.length;n