Thank you!

Alllll the time.

Thank you!

Gorgeous! That's a ton of work and it turned out beautifully!

Aww, the ghost kitty is so cute!

There's a certain amount of "tyranny of the grid" when you're working on Aida (you may notice a lot of my designs are abstract and geometric), but more organic shapes are also fun to work out. Good luck, and I'd love to see what you come up with!

Biggest tip is probably common to most digital art - save everything. The rejected drafts, the motifs you decided not to use for this project, the versions that were almost-but-not-quite right. Save it in a coherent filing system, b/c sooner or later you *will* want some of it.

I mostly use Macstitch (Winstitch if you're not a Mac user). Paid software, but it's a one-time fee, not a subscription. Not sure I have a coherent process beyond "I'd like to stitch this thing if working out a design for it doesn't drive me insane."

I'm sure either patterns or a finished piece would be great, but a finished piece might have broader appeal for people who like your work, but don't stitch themselves?

Thanks!

Very cute - happy birthday!