BEWITCHED BY BESTITCHME DO YOU TOSS YOUR FLOSS?

Bewitched by

any of us have dreamed of taking the leap from our day jobs into something that allows us to stretch our creative legs. M

Brandy Prather is living that dream.

As the owner and creative force behind BeStitchMe, a hand-dyed fabric company in Moline, IL (USA), Brandy officially launched the company last summer, after dying her own fabrics for a few years.

“I thought ‘Why not?,’” Brandy recalled. “’I want to see what happens if I take my passion for cross stitch and fabrics to the next level.’ BeStitchMe was born.”

She believes that her focus on hand-dyed fabrics chose her. Brandy explained, “and this was my outlet for fun and allowed me to be creative.”

And her creativity shows in the selection of fabrics she offers to her eager customers and followers.

With the names almost as creative as the fabric itself, Brandy has a collection of colors and patterns that would make any cross-stitch enthusiast dip into their piggy banks and add to their stash. Plus, you can pick your fabric type and stitch count once you find the colors you love – so you don’t have to settle on what just happens to be in stock at the time, like with other fabric websites. With BeStitchMe, you can choose from Aida, Lugana, Linen, and Jobelan – in standard and opalescent – in various counts and sizes.

written by Dana Costa photos courtesy of Brandy Prather Bewitched by BeStitchMe

Her Facebook followers look forward to her Friday Night Fight Nights on her Facebook group (www. facebook.com/groups/bestitchme). Held most Friday nights at 9pm (CT), these Fight Nights pits different BeStitchMe fabric creations against each other for followers to claim. The group also offers exclusive discounts and Saturday giveaways.

Brandy uses the giveaways to give back to the group with fabric and patterns. “I love my supporters. They have no idea how much they mean to me and my drive to continue to create new, fun fabrics,” Brandy said. The newest offering from BeStitchMe is their Fabric of the Month Club, which allows those of us who have a hard time picking just one color to be surprised each month with a special fabric each month. Just like her regular fabric selections, you choose the type and count of the fabric, so you’re guaranteed to always get a fabric type that you are comfortable working with.

Given Brandy’s love of creating fabrics, it’s not surprising that she can deliver the goods. She thinks about color non-stop, she said. “It brings me peace to sit in my dye room and play with col

or on fabric. There are these ‘wow!’ moments when dying or when color ideas start clicking together, and it drives me to see what else I can make.”

Each batch takes three to four days to produce, starting with cutting, serging, and washing all the fabric she plans to dye that week. Day two is for dying; she mixes the colors and then lets the “magic happen.” Day three is for the task that she admits that she doesn’t like: washing the fabrics (she said she’d rather take that time playing with color!). And the grand finale is the long process of pressing fabrics as she “binges a series on Netflix or watches movies.”

“Color has its own mind, and sometimes I don’t know the end result ‘til I wash the fabric. It’s like a Christmas or birthday present.”

Brandy is as unique as each piece of the fabric she dyes. The mother of 6 lives in Moline, IL with a menagerie of pets and a huge collection of cross stitch supplies and patterns, plus World of Warcraft and How to Train Your Dragon collectibles.

But she admits that her cross-stitch stash is by far the largest. “I am the quirky, smartass friend everyone needs. I am the video gaming, punk rock/ metal loving chick who is into superheroes, sci-fi, and is way obsessed with cross stitch,” Brandy explains.

Like many of us, Brandy discovered a “whole new world” of cross-stitch options on the internet, expanding her pattern collection. “I have no self-control, I have to have it!”

She’s been stitching since middle school and fondly remembers her aunt lending her a crossstitch book, Endangered Species 2. “I never did finish my first project because I had to return the book,” she remembered. And even though she recently found a copy of that book on eBay she decided that her first project had more meaning to her staying unfinished.

Although Brandy has dabbled in projects across the crafting spectrum, cross stitch has always been her main focus. “I have enough cross-stitch haul to last me a few lifetimes.”

Find BeStitchMe on Facebook and Instagram @bestitchme and on the web at www.bestitchme.com. If you have a question for Brandy or want to place a custom order, email her at brandy@bestitchme.com.

Do You Toss Your Floss? written by Dana Costa photo by Dana Costa I asked Brandy a question that I’m sure she is asked multiple times per day: How do I choose the right hand-dyed fabric for my pattern? Not surprisingly, she had great advice. “Hand-dyed fabric can be used for any piece,” she said, “[they] give your project character, and the pattern stands out more than on white.” The most important takeaway from Brandy: Always do a floss toss! What? I’ll admit that I wasn’t familiar with a floss toss but quickly figured it out. Pull all the suggested flosses for your project and put it against the fabric you’ve picked to make sure the colors don’t get lost in your fabric. And, if your heart is set on a particular fabric, consider swapping out the floss colors that just don’t work with that fabric. “If you love the fabric and want to use it, change the floss color,” Brandy explained. Some great tips from Brandy:

• Making a piece for someone special? Consider using a fabric in their favorite color! • Follow the weather or your mood. On a bright spring day, pick a bright yellow to match the sunshine. • Hand-dyed doesn’t necessarily mean vibrant colors. There are some great neutrals that give additional texture – so try out Vanilla Latte or

Mummy to start. • Start small. Brandy said that she has grab bags of smaller pieces that aren’t on her website that are perfect for dipping your toe in.

Still not sure? Brandy said that she helps her customers pick the right color fabric all the time – and responds to messages quickly. “Plus,” she said, “I think all the members of my Facebook group share their thoughts and give great advice.”