Han Solo Pattern No Longer Available

Some of you may have landed on my blog looking for my Han Solo Cross Stitch pattern. I'm sorry to say that as of today, I am no longer offering it for free on the internet.

This honestly makes me quite sad. However, I discovered yesterday that there are people who have been stitching up this pattern and selling the finished design online.

When I put up the pattern four years ago, I did it in the spirit of crafty sharing. My husband and I had a great time designing and laying out the pattern, and I had fun stitching it up. I wanted to share that fun with other crafty Star Wars fans. It was meant to be a free thing--I even put a polite disclaimer right on the pattern asking folks to please not sell the pattern or the finished product.

Perhaps this is a case of "if you don't want your work stolen, then don't put it on the internet" (which I hate the sentiment behind), or perhaps these stitchers simply didn't understand that "free to use" doesn't mean "free to sell." But, I'll never forget that sick, heartbroken feeling I got seeing my work for sale under someone else's name. Perhaps this is a sign that it's time to take my crafting in a more serious direction, or simply a lesson about sharing online. I have a lot of thinking to do about how I want to proceed, but the clear course of action for now is to simply remove the pattern.

I'm sorry to anyone who came here hoping to stitch one for yourself. Perhaps there'll be a time the pattern is available again, but for now, I feel the need to protect my design and myself from further infringement. I hope you understand.

Star Wars Easter Eggs on eHow

Look, Ma! My hand-painted Star Wars Easter eggs were selected to be part of an awesome slideshow on eHow.com!

Give it a looksee. There's some really great ideas for unique Easter eggs, and there's still enough time to plan ahead to be creative.

Unfortunately, I won't have time this year to sit down and do some involved painting, or get more crafty than PAAS. 'Cause, y'know...baby. But someday, perhaps, I'll be able to expand the collection. There's some Star Wars characters that would look pretty boss in egg form.

Also, welcome to those of you here from eHow! I hope you enjoy my other crafty creations if you stick around to take a peek.

Star Wars Easter Eggs

To those who celebrate it, I hope you have a happy Easter!

Today, I'm extra happy. I've had my Easter miracle (thank you, computer, for not dying after I spilled water on you), my brother's coming over for a fancy holiday dinner, and I actually finished crafting in time! Hell yeah.

Not just regular crafting, but some super-geek crafting. I couldn't help it. I had two extra paper mache Easter eggs in the pack after I painted them for my mantle. Of course they had to be Star Wars!

The details aren't perfect, as I had a hard time wrapping my mind (heh, I'm punny) around the three-dimensional helmet designs, but they're close.





They look so cute, sitting amongst my colorful Easter decorations. They were a lot of fun to make, too. It's been too long since I've played with my paints!





Maybe next year I'll add to the collection, make some Rebel eggs to duke it out with the Imperial eggs.

Han Solo Cross Stitch pattern available (finally!)

UPDATE 1/19/2015: I'm sorry, but this pattern is no longer available. You can read why here.

It's been two years in the coming, but finally, FINALLY, I have charted my Han Solo cross stitch! Here! Stitch! Enjoy!

Click on the image to download a JPEG version of it off Flickr.

I also have a fancy PDF version for folks who want the color table.

I have to give a big thank you to amigurl55 at Craftster for sharing the link to the free KG-Chart software I used. I've been looking for cross stitch pattern software that didn't cost an arm and a leg, and now I can finally chart up my old patterns as well as create new ones. I have some ideas for some other Star Wars cross stitch patterns, among others.

Thanks also to the folks who have been so patient for this pattern. I'm sure there's like, three of you left in the world who are interested in stitching this up, but for you three, here you go!

Giving credit where credit is due

EDIT 4/5/11: I wrote this post before I made my decision to make this pattern available for free online. Now that I read it again, I cringe a little inside. I'm leaving it up because I feel its important to be honest with what I was feeling at the moment.

I’m having a bit of a weird morning.

Last night, when I was working on my portfolio, I came across a few people who had made their own versions of my Han Solo cross stitch.

They’d re-created it, stitch by stitch. I didn’t see it for sale anywhere, but it still made me feel really strange to see it out there…especially without my name on it. I emailed the one I had contact info for, asking her to please credit me with pattern design. I tried to explain that it was a labor of love, and that I had received no payment. That I was fine with her stitching it up.

Now I’m starting to wonder if I did the right thing. I was polite, friendly even. But I’m wondering if I’m not blowing a tiny thing out of proportion. I’ll admit, there’s a part of me that feels weird seeing other people stitch up my work. I didn’t share a pattern, mostly because I couldn’t find a software program that worked on my Mac, and now I’m too poor to buy one for my new PC. So, in my mind, it was more “art” than “craft,” a one-of-a-kind creation. Now I see that other people have gone and re-interpreted my work, as crafty folks are wont to do. I’m both flattered and…and well, jealous.

I don’t know if I have the right to feel that way. The crafty community is all about sharing. I myself have enjoyed stitching up free patterns that have been made available. But, the difference is, the designers made those patterns available. I wouldn’t dream of re-interpreting someone else’s design. But that’s just me. I’m also really careful to always attribute the patterns I stitch up, even if I’ve paid for them. I don’t know.

Is this something I’m just going to have to let go of? The spouse reminded me that “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” I guess I should feel honored that they chose to stitch up one my designs. If nothing else, this is lighting a fire under my butt to get that pattern out there for free.

I’d love to hear what other folks out there think of this, if they’ve ever dealt with something like this. Is this something I’m going to have to learn to live with, or am I right in asking people to credit me for the pattern until it’s available?

[Note: The image was one I found on benisawesome.net. If I knew who had stitched it, I would have credited the photo.]

The Adventures of Rocketgirl, Vol. 1

It's been a while since I've dug my needle into some real embroidery. I've been getting my crafty ya-yas mostly through knitting, and even that I've kind of slowed down with lately. There's something about a warm summer day that discourages one from curling up with a skein of fuzzy yarn...or doing much of anything beyond lying in front of the fan serial-reading trashy vampire novels.

But then my pals at Sublime Stitching announced their Combo Contest, challenging stitchers to mash up three or more SS patterns. If there's one thing you'll learn about me from reading this blog, is that there's nothing like a contest to get me off my duff and get me creating! It's not the thought of winning that drives me, it's the participation, and mostly, the deadline. This was perfect.

I dug around in my hoard of patterns, and after a day or two came up with a concept that made my fingers itch to stitch. Inspired by my recent obsession with Futurama (what took me so long, anyway?) and my old love of Reading Rainbow, "The Adventures of Rocketgirl, Vol. 1" made it's way into the world stitch by stitch.



And I do mean stitches: backstitch, satin stitch, stem stitch, split stitch, French knot, as well as some funky, random fill stitch I used for the egg-shaped planet.



I have to say, my favorite bit out of the whole piece is the librarian. I'm super-proud of how her hair turned out. She reminds me of Amber Von Tussle from the OG Hairspray...but in a nice way.



I also love the colorful stack of books in her arm:



And her dainty little shoes:



I ended up using six different patterns in all: "Sexy Librarians", "Spaced Out", "Tara McPherson" (stars), "Craft Pad" (planet), "Lucha Libre" (lightning bolts), and "Chinatown" (cloud puff). I also played a lot with variegated floss, which added some nice effects to the more "natural" elements (stars, planet, lightning bolt).

Although I didn't win the contest, I feel like I got something really important out of it: a reminder of just how much fun embroidery can be (cue inspirational music). I've already begun working on a little non-SS stitching project to keep stoking this crafty fire, and I feel like I'm finding my groove again. It's a really good feeling to have.

In Unrelated News
Thanks to Jeff over at Craziest Gadgets for featuring my cookies as part of his review on the Star Wars cookie cutters. Not to mention, for the rallying call for a bona-fide Death Star cookie cutter. If there's one thing we know for sure about the Star Wars franchise, is that they'll make it if enough people ask for it. Just look at the phenomenon that is the Tauntaun sleeping bag.

Come to the Dark Side...we have cookies!

May slips into June, June sneaks into July, July bowls into August. Now September looms around the corner, and almost an entire season has gone by since I last shared on this blog. That's what summer vacation is about, though.

This was my first genuine summer break since high school (which was back in the dark ages of the mid-1990s). As soon as I turned 16, I worked every summer and holiday. I always had a job (or two) throughout college and my summer breaks, and then right after graduation I jumped straight into the nonprofit work force. I've been very lucky that way.

But I have to admit, being laid off was a sort of a blessing in disguise. This was the first year the Professor wasn't teaching summer school, so we were able to spend two months just relaxing together. It was bliss. We took care of home projects, spent time with friends and family, and generally enjoyed the taste of sweet freedom...

...which tastes kinda like sugar cookies.



I actually made these cookies back in May, as part of my brother's college graduation festivities. These Star Wars cookie cutters were an early birthday gift from my folks, who had come up to the Bay Area for the commencement. On the last day of their visit my brother helped me roll, stamp, and sugar, which brought back a ton of happy childhood memories. Though, I have to admit, there was an extra bit of geeky glee in decorating Star Wars characters.





I think my favorite, though, is our DIY Death Star. Since there wasn't a Death Star cutter, I made my own with a round cutter and a toothpick. As you can see, it's ready to fire on a unsuspecting cookie planet...

Writing Update

So, last I wrote, I was awaiting the results for the NYC Midnight Screenwriter's Challenge. The good news is that I won third place in my heat, which held 18 writers. The bad news is that only first and second place advanced to the next round. So, that was it for me. I made a good showing, though, and I'm genuinely please with what I entered. I received some good, solid feedback from one of the judges, so overall it was a good learning experience.

Right now, I'm actually working on a secret project with a friend of mine, which I'm really excited about. It's not ready to be unveiled, but soon I'll be able to share more details...

Mind: More Fun with Han Solo

Blargh. Crappy, crappy work day. xkcd.com makes it all better:



I do love me some good Han Solo jokes...maybe I should cross stitch xkcd's version of the "hokey religions" line...

In other happy -- really happy -- news, my Kirby Cross Stitch Towel has been featured on Sprite Stitch today!



Thanks, Johloh!

Sprite Stitch is one of my "happy place" blogs, never failing to make me smile even after the hardest day. Not to mention, Johloh creates some seriously awesome patterns that make my fingers itch to cross stitch. Maybe someday I'll be brave enough to try the big Super Smash Bros. pattern, but I know for sure a Mario Frog towel is in my near future...

Mind: My Interview on the Official Star Wars Blog!

So, I swear I'll soon be getting back to posting my creations and ceasing with the self-promos, but I just had to share...

I've been interviewed for the official Star Wars blog!

Bonniegrrl saw my Han Solo cross stitch sampler, and asked if she could share it with the Star Wars craft community at large. I have to say, I'm practically giddy seeing my pictures under than "official" Star Wars banner...I've been a fan since I was a little girl.

Thank you to Bonnie for posing such thoughtful -- and thought-provoking -- questions! It was a lot of fun to talk about my project!

Heh. I always said I wanted to be involved with Lucasfilm. I just never figured it'd be with my crafting!

Edit 8/18/08: Looks like this has also been picked up by Technabob, TheForce.net, and re-posted on Craftzine.com! This is too friggin' surreal! Thank you, all!

Hand: Han Solo sampler...on Craftzine.com!!

Holy mother of Jeff.

I just was doing my daily scan of blogs in my reader, and came across this:

My Han Solo sampler is on Craft: magazine's blog!!!

Never, in a bazillion light years did I imagine my little contest entry to make such a prestigious crafting blog. I'm alternating between stunned and elated.

This has totally made my day!

Hand: Han Solo Quote Cross Stitch

EDIT (1/17/11): I've finally charted the pattern, and it's available for free!


Yay! So, after posting my entry for the Craftster.org Summer Needlework Challenge at 11:30 p.m. last night, I've had over 500 views! This is my first time entering any sort of crafty challenge on Craftster...and only my second posting a craft there in general. It's seriously made my day to see how many folks are digging on my hard-worked, geek design!

And here I was nervous that people would think it was silly. In a bad way.

I actually made this before the Buffy cross stitch I posted previously. This is the first counted cross stitch I've done (I've done a couple stamped ones), and the first one I've designed. My husband actually drew out the blasters, and the font was generated from yourpersonalizedpat tern.com.

This was also my first foray into metallic threads, which I have to say, can be a major pain in the butt! They were worth it, though, I think, for the nice shine on the lightsaber handles and blaster barrels.

In it's pretty frame:



Han Solo stands by his words (bun-dun-dun-cha!):




It even made Craftster's homepage!



This is so friggin' cool. For the first time, I really feel like I'm really taking part in this whole, awesome crafter community, beyond being an admirer or consumer. It feels pretty damn good.