Cross Stitch Programs. Useful or not?

I havent x stitched in the last 15 years always been busy crocheting, knitting, sewing and baking for my family plus we emigrated to a new country and I brought all my x stitch stuff with me.  When I did stitch, way back when, I bought the books and patterns and did quite a few works of art - least I think they were wonderful!

Ok so back to present day - and I am hankering to get back into it.  I have always wanted to do a large HAED, something I have never tackled before because my head hurts just thinking about it..lol but the urge just will not go away.  Been browsing the patterns (seesh they are pricey) but what I would like to know is repaint or pdf?

I know what opens .xsd files and basically how the program works because I have looked on line at how/what the programs do and I dont think I want to do any of that!  So i am leaning towards scanned pdfs.  I just want to stitch, not change colors or make my own pictures into x stitch, change floss colors.  

Have you lovely stitches got any words of wisdom for me?  Could you tell me what the programs really do and why they are beneficial?  Are there hidden gems in the program/s
that I dont know about that would help create master pieces? Or is my thinking correct in sticking with scanned?  

Елена6906

Если Вы хотите вышивать по готовым схемам, без корректировки, то можно обойтись и без программы. Только лучше сначала поискать в интернете фотографии готовых работ по конкретной, понравившейся Вам схеме. Но многие любят вышивать не по бумажной схеме, а с экрана монитора. В программе есть возможность поменять символы на более удобные для Вас; выделить один конкретный символ, если отшивать по цветам; можно настроить представление схемы в черно-белом или цветном виде.

Larissa1974

Hello. In your post header I see the question : "Useful or not?". For example I like stitch with the character-color schemes and without a difference in stitching method (Parking or by colors). So I was very glad when I opened for me this stitching programs like Pattern Maker or CrossStitch Saga . They useful to watch the Result of your embroidery - you see "Do you like it or no?" . Thats why
I refused to stitch some of HAED designs (for example) when I got patterns repaint in PM - I saw spots on the face, sharp color transitions. So in this case stitching programs usefull  I believe.:)

Silverlea

Я использую Google translate, поэтому, пожалуйста, простите, ответ не имеет смысла!

Очень полезная информация, спасибо :-) Как вы предлагаете, я не думаю, что программы будут мне полезны :-). Я счастлив сшить от сканированного графика.

Возможно, наступит время (возможно), когда я найду программы полезными, но, будучи новичком, я не думаю, что я готов корректировать шаблоны или цветовые схемы.
YA ispolzuyu Google translate, poetomu, pozhaluysta, prostite, otvet ne imeyet smysla!

Ochen poleznaya informatsiya, spasibo :-) Kak vy predlagayete, ya ne dumayu, chto programmy budut mne polezny :-). YA schastliv sshit ot skanirovannogo grafika.

Vozmozhno, nastupit vremya (vozmozhno), kogda ya naydu programmy poleznymi, no, buduchi novichkom, ya ne dumayu, chto ya gotov korrektirovat shablony ili tsvetovyye skhemy.

Cris18

:loveliness:

Silverlea

@Larissa1974

Ah ha! I totally get what you are saying.  I am a Bill Gates girl so will see what works with my operating systems.  But what you said about isolating colors and making them lighter so they dont glare makes total sense. I am assuming that you can cross out symbols once you have done them?  Sorry this is a really dumb question.  When you close your Ipad do you loose where you are when you boot again?  Or does it have a button thingy, like on a my Kindle where I tell it to open to the last page I was reading?  Might just invest in an Ipad purely for stitching :-)

Your info would definitely make a huge amount of difference on big pieces using 10x10 and Parking,
dont think I could face all those symbols on paper :funk:

jazzo

Silverlea, there are some big designs like HAED etc, which use less number of floss, have you looked at those? not all use 80 +, i am stitching one which has only 15, and my next one has 18 or so, try looking on those patterns.

Silverlea

@Larissa1974
Dear Silverlea thats for you to decide whats better. If you used to stitch with pdf and trust Absolutely to patterns Author in really Good Result - so maybe you dont need this programs. Thanks so much for helping me out Larissa and answering my really dumb questions.  I have no idea whether I trust the author or not :-(.  Before I went on a download spree I needed to figure out if I was was leaning towards Repaint or Scanned.  I am going to do a few small ones first before I jump in a do a big HAED.  I have spied out the Bothy Threads and love the quirkiness of them so I am thinking I will download the .xsd and pdf and see the differences and figure it out from there.  I will play with Pattern Maker later when I have some quiet time from the husband;P

@jazzo
Thanks for jumping in and giving me valuable advice before I start.  As a novice I dont want to make a mess of things on my first x stitch - it would be heart breaking:funk:
Not sure of the HAED I want to tackle first but what you say makes sense.  Start small (or easier) before I tackle 80/90 colors!  I have no problem printing out the pattern chart and enlarging it so I mark my progress.

I cant wait to start my first Bothy project and know exactly what I would like to do.  After figuring everything out and playing with program/s and watching videos I will haul out my stash of cross stitch items.  Fabric, threads, hoops, needles etc and then I am off to the local xstitch shop to see what I am missing out on (can we ever have enough stuff??)

Its going to take some time because of work, husband, family commitments and desperately trying to finish 3 crochet afghans (Queen size) that just wont come to an end :@, but I will keep you updated so ladies please feel free to add more thoughts if they arise.  Really appreciate your input and your invaluable advice.  xx

Gioiesfizi

@Silverlea
Oh, no problems for busy life... dont sleep! :lol