What does the backside of your cross stitch look like?

cute.panda.sue

So, I'm in the middle of my first project, and after reading all the stuff on forums, a lot of people say that the backside of the project should look as neat as the front, except all the threads  should be going vertical rather than diagonal and should not travel more than 4 or 5 stitches for the same colour... My friend, who got me into this, tells me she just doesn't care, it's the backside, nobody is going to see it especially after she frames it... She has threads jump 10, 20, even 40 stitches... So I'm just wondering, what does everyone's project backside look like? Are there any tips or suggestions to make it neater?

This one is the backside of mine...



For reference, this one is the front :

Megy

Hi Yenilaia ..
Congrats for your first project you are very courageous its a big pattern and dark canvas!! Amazing!!
Well I believe the reverse should looks like this...   
NMS

front

I have a book about it (in Brazilian portuguese but with good pictures to see and follow) call Cross Stitch Manual - Perfect Reverse. I search here and looks doesn't post yet then I'll post now.
The big secrect is allways do the same moviment or directions with the needle (first stitch ///// and after [url=]\\\\\[/url])

Jikke

I'm an inbetweener. I want to keep it as neat as possible, but it's not a priority. In general I skip max two crosses, and if I have to move a larger distance I do so 'hiding' it in the stitches already present. But I don't go out of my way to keep it neat, in the end, as long as it doesn't mess with the framing, the back is pretty much pointless to fuss about. Not like anyone is going to see it.

Sarge

I don’t worry too much about the backside as long as I don’t have any hanging threads or knits.  Farmers have told me my work is very neat compared to other folks so I guess it’s ok.  I think the front is what you see so as long as the front is affected by a knot or loose thread then it’s ok.

jessandkesha

i don't really stress about my back to be honest, as long as the front is fine and its not too lumpy. i find that the parking method i use means that there are a lot more longer threads as i don't start and stop when i have confetti stitches and most of my work gets framed or canvased so the backs don't get seen ;P

Rachael4187

Mine looks a little messier than yours. It really depends on how much confetti is in the pattern. But I dont really care about what my back looks like. I dont see how it matters unless you're entering a competition or you have a large knot in the back that would make it an issue when framing it.

seditas

Un inverso fabuloso aunque si es un cuadro no creo necesario que este tan bien hecho, aunque a mi tampoco me gusta saltar cuatro o mas puntos a la vez aunque no se vea el hilo, al terminar la labor parece una almohadilla en lugar de un cuadro con tantos hilos por detras.

hardesja

Megy 2013-6-28 16:55
Hi Yenilaia ..
Congrats for your first project you are very courageous its a big pattern and dark c ...

Oh my gosh!  This is amazing.  I can barely finished with the front in tact, nevermind the back.

jessandkesha

Megy 2013-6-28 16:55
Hi Yenilaia ..
Congrats for your first project you are very courageous its a big pattern and dark c ...

oh my stars!! there is hardly any difference!! thank goodness i frame most of mine, the back never sees the light of day ;P

patti6919

I try to be as neat as I can but do not get crazy with it. As long as there are no jumping threads noticeable from the front and there are not knots or bumps that will show when framed.

orionjes12

I like your stitches on the back side. much cleaner than mine. anyways,  i dont mind my stitches on the back side since it will not seen once it is framed.

Jazzi

This actually looks very nice, you have done a wonderful job. I have looked at this pattern myself several times, however it seems so large and the dark fabric has always made me put it off for the possible future. You have me re-thinking it after seeing what a beautiful job you have done.

My understanding is that part of the reason carrying thread over a lot of stitches is that if it is a darker color floss on a light material it may show through. Also it really depends on what your plans are for finishing it. If it is lumpy in spots, it may feel bumpy if used as a pillow or bumps may show through on a smaller size like what is used for a scissor fob. I have found when I have had larger projects professionally framed they often are able to clean and "block" it before framing and they always look great.

Again, because your material is dark, you wouldn't necessarily run into the problems of floss showing through. It is always up to the person whose project it is. I am working on some smaller Halloween projects on white AIDA and some of my colors will show through so I am being much more careful and I even re-started because I was off a bit.

Bravo!

cute.panda.sue

Jazzi replied at 2013-6-28 16:15
This actually looks very nice, you have done a wonderful job. I have looked at this pattern myself s ...

:O I never thought of the dark thread showing through under lighter fabric/materials... I've always just thought it was going to be bumpy...Also, I don't like huge messes on anything I do... I feel, if I am going to put dozens if not hundreds of hours into something, I'm going to do it right. I like everything neat and ordered, at least on things I make...not so much the house >.> but that's another issue... Also, I like to save thread? jumping dozens of stitches across to the next one just seems wasteful to me.

Just curious, why has dark fabric put you off of the project?

fei2x

I agree with your friend. As long as the front part is neat, not bumpy and the darker threads don't show through the lighter fabric, I'm content. Before, I tried so hard to make the back side of my project super neat too, but I ended up spending valuable time on something that no one's going to see. So I stop doing it. I'd rather focus on the front part. But that's just me. ;P

cute.panda.sue

fei2x replied at 2013-6-28 16:41
I agree with your friend. As long as the front part is neat, not bumpy and the darker threads don't  ...

Well, after a few weeks of trying this out, it's not actually taking too much longer to plan out my "path"... I just have to be more diligent with snipping threads and hiding it better... Also, when framing, I would be annoyed if it's not even =/

cute.panda.sue

Megy replied at 2013-6-28 16:55
Hi Yenilaia ..
Congrats for your first project you are very courageous its a big pattern and dark c ...

Oh wow, is that yours? That is GORGEOUS! For my cross stitches I always have them facing the same way...it's more the jumping between areas with the same colour, and finding places to end the stitches that I have to work with.... Also, how to not have to go horizontally in the back, is difficult! I'll try to find the book you're taking about. Thanks :D

Megy

hummm I couldn't post the link here but if you go in youtube and search
Ponto Cruz avesso perfeito you will find many videos. I like the Ponto Cruz avesso perfeito com Josi Pereira its a video very clear and nice.

cute.panda.sue

Thanks! i'll look into it :D

energizerbuny

Megy replied at 2013-6-28 02:55
Hi Yenilaia ..
Congrats for your first project you are very courageous its a big pattern and dark c ...

What a perfect back. You cannot even see where threads were started and ended.