Does it matter how your backside looks?? (Share your opinion by taking the poll to the right)
No I'm not talking about your derriere. I am talking about the back side of your cross stitch work. Is there a more controversial subject in all of cross stitch? (probably.. but this subject is pretty controversial).
Recently I read a forum post from a lady that was stitching in public and showed her work to an interested bystander. The stranger proceeded to criticize the back side, saying it was messy and would not qualify as "good" in stitching circles. 57 forum replies later, a clear picture emerged of strong opinions about this issue. Almost everyone agreed that the critic was extremely rude and that criticizing the work of others was not cool. After all no one likes it when their backside is criticized. Most people don't even want someone looking at their backside (stay with me folks)... Most responders said something like, "Don't worry about what the back side looks like, as long as you like the front". Almost no one weighed in saying something like "Of course it matters, clean up your act, take some pride in your backside!"
But are we being completely honest when we say that? Come on.... wouldn't you take a peek at the back when no one was looking? Why are we secretly critical sometimes? Maybe sometimes we just want to know how our work compares to other's... maybe we want proof that the spaghetti mess on the backside of our prize work is not the worst of all time. Sure some are wanting confirmation that the back of their projects are almost as nice as the front and could probably be put into a museum backwards and people would still flock to them in admiration.
Ok... now for the part you have all been waiting for... my opinion. After all isn't that what this blog is for? To showcase my grand thoughts....
I take pride in the neatness of the back of my projects. I strive for no knots, no big jumps, no loose threads. I like the start and stop ends tucked neatly under other stitches. Basically I want the back to look beautiful! Do my works have neat backsides? Kinda....sometimes...but I'm working on it...Would I peek at someone elses work and analyze the quality of the stitching? Of Course Not!!!.......
Ok maybe a little peek ;-)
Happy Stitching!!!
Chris
11 comments:
Hi Chris :)
I'm going to answer here because for me it depends on the purpose of the stitching :)
If I'm stitching something that I know it's going to be framed and the back will be hidden I honestly don't care about the back, and I do have some of the messiest backs of the world xD... Now if it's for something like a table cloth or similar where the backstitch is going to be visible constatntly then it matters a lot to me and I do the best back posible :)
I'm with Sara, it depends on the final purpose. If no one is going to see it you can take more liberties. If everything is neat then its easier to work with too. But I think the front is more important and that is where the focus should be. Would I look at the back? Of course. :-)
Nah I don't think it matters so long as there are no trailing threads which would be visable from the front. It seems some peices just end up that way depands on the amount of colours if there are loads of changes then its gonna be more messy. But I would probably say my backs have got neater over the years.
yup..i am agree with sara too..and i try my best to make it perfect at the back too specially if it is like a table cloth or napkins.
I think that a backside has to be exactly how YOU want it to be. If you want it to be beautiful, let it be beautiful and if you don't care, don't care! I don't think it reflects on you as a stitcher at all one way or another. I try to keep my backside relatively nice, but I can't help it if there's a knot I didn't notice while stitching or if I sometimes make a jump. Perfectly imperfect :)
lol Ive never even though about the backside of my stitches, even bookmarks I double side in someway and something I frame well it doesnt matter anyway and I definatly wouldnt bother especially looking at the bakside of someones work, its the front Im interested in!
I don't overly care what the backside of my work looks like. I want it to have very few, if possible no, knots. Other than that I don't really care. It's not on show.
I usually try to keep my backs as neat as I can. I am finding out that as I get older, I am more picky about my own work. Some designs don't allow the backs to be neat and tidy, but that's fine. But, if I can help it, I try to keep neat. But, personally, I don't judge others. As long as they are happy with their piece, who am I to judge anyway. No one really ever sees the back anyway. :)
I like my backs neat, but that's cos I can't stand floss hanging out randomly. I'm ok with pulling floss though, cos I hate starting and stopping. LOL!!
As for other stitcher's backs, it matters not to me. I'm only really interested in the front. :)
Thanks everyone for your great comments. The almost universal reply is...
I try my best to keep mine neat but I don't worry about the backs of other people's work.
Interesting.
Backsides? It really doesn't matter unless your messy backs are resulting in loose stitches. I believe clean & neat backsides grow from experience. But I understand those that have stitched for years and years and just don't care. Really, who's going to see?
And NO ONE should EVER criticize someones creative effort unless asked for their honest opinion!
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