56 The World of Cross Stitching http://www.cross-stitching.com
Time to Chat
In the spotlight
We chat to Amanda about how she became a designer and what inspires her
Amanda Gregory
H
ow did you begin
cross stitching?
While at primary school inLuton, I remember stitching a sampler
of the names of the six wives of Henry
VIII for a school project so this would
have been my very first stitching.
How did you begin designing?
When I was at Art College in Taunton
in the late 1970s, I studied Fashion
Design and Pattern Cutting. One of
my tutors taught using watercolours.
This led to my interest in watercolours
and I went on to develop a style
of painting flowers which I then
sold to greetings card companies. I
also painted floral watercolours for
commissions and galleries.
My mother enjoys cross stitch and
suggested that my floral watercolours
would make good cross stitch
subjects. I contacted some companies
and sold a few of my designs to them
for use as kits. This encouraged me to
contact magazines with my designs.
Now I’ve had designs published in The
World of Cross Stitching, Cross Stitch
Crazy, Cross Stitch Gold and mags
in America and the Netherlands. I’ve
also recently contributed a design to
the Lakeside Needlecraft Winter Cross
Stitch Book 2019.
Your most memorable design?
Definitely my ‘Delightful
Dreamcatcher’ design in issue 224 of
WOXS (Jan 2015). This commission
was given to me because of my
watercolour style – they wanted a soft
feminine design with washy colours
for the feathers. It’s also my most
popular design on my Etsy shop and
has been bought – and hopefully
stitched – by people around the world.What’s your favourite subject
to design?
My designs tend to be very naturalistic
and I like to add plenty of detail to
make them as accurate as possible. I
sometimes like to combine elements
from fabrics, too. With my series of
bird cushions, I used paisley details
in the background. These appeared
in WOXS issues 245 (Peacock, Sept
2016), 246 (Pheasant, Oct 2016), 248
(Winter Owl, Christmas 2016) and 252
(Kingfisher, March 2017).What inspires you?
Inspiration comes when I’m out and
about – whether it’s walking in Dorset
or around my local area, I often see
things in gardens or growing wild
that gives me an idea for a design.
I’ll take photos, save them and go
back to them later. I also write a list
of ideas that I keep pinned onto my
noticeboard. This seems to get longer
every year so there’s no danger of
running out of ideas!What do you love most about
being a cross stitch designer?
The lovely feedback from stitchers! It
makes my day when someone takes
the time to get in contact and share
their stitched project with me. Giving
pleasure to stitchers is what makes
designing so worthwhile. I also get a
thrill from seeing the design published
in the magazines. There is something
magical in seeing my rough drawing
and computer image turned into a
stitched and finished project.Are there any downsides?
I find dark winter days awkward for
designing as it is almost impossible
to select thread shades in poor light.One with nature
Amanda is very inspired by the world
around her – she’s drawn to creating
more naturalist and detailed designs