I am not naming names but . . I’ve been in a cross stitching club for several years where several times a year, maybe four, we get a kit – a chart, floss and linen. It’s an “exclusive” for one year and the charts are not sold outside the club for that year.
Late last week I got out a club piece from earlier in the year and wanted to start stitching it. I got the linen loaded onto the frame, made the PDF of the chart, got it loaded into MarkUp and was ready to start stitching. Debbie reminded me that there were some issues with the chart and there is a partial chart online to download with the corrections. I did that.
The reason for the corrected portions of the chart is because the spacing is off and it wasn’t working out at all for those who started stitching as soon as they received the chart. A good reason to procrastinate, right?
But, there are other issues!
Issue #1: There are no “grid” numbers on the chart. Most will have 10, 20, 30, etc. across the top and down the left. The corrections have the grid numbers so if you stitch from the corrections page to square #27, there’s no way to find where you pick up on the original chart – just have to count over 27 squares. I can do that, even though about 1/3 of the chart needs to be stitched using the corrected pages.
Issue #2: There are half lines at the top of almost every page – like you cut it off and didn’t cut straight. Not impossible to overcome but more manipulating to get it into MarkUp correctly. Also, I have to check everywhere there are half lines to be sure that isn’t something that’s supposed to be stitched and accidentally portions of it were cut off or if it’s something that was supposed to be cut off and only parts of it were cut off.
Issue #3: On charts, the first couple of rows across the top or along the sides will be slightly gray. That indicates that those lines are there just to help us line up the last rows on the previous page. On this chart, there are some that have gray lines and some that don’t, even though there are lines that are duplicates from the previous page. At first, you may not notice that and you may stitch that line a second time, at least partially across the page until you realize you’re duplicating every stitch in the previous row.
So, not only am I having to flip back and forth between two charts or one on Markup and one not on Markup, I’m having to double check to be sure I’m not stitching rows along the top and sides of each sheet twice.
There’s more but at this point, I was done with this chart. I sent the designer a nice email explaining my issues and asking if she had a corrected pdf of the full chart she could send me. No! As to the areas that had partial rows and rows not highlighted to indicate repeat rows, she responded that her charts are professionally charted and printed. Hmmm .. professional might not be the word I would use on this one.
So, getting no help from her, I called the cross stitching shop where these were purchased. She was very nice but, nope, nothing she could do. She offered to go through each page with me on the phone and tell me the corrections/errors so I could market up my chart. What I really wanted was a corrected printed chart! Nope. I paid for a chart that is correct or, can at least be corrected to the point where it can easily be used. Who wants to flip between two charts trying to figure out where you are and where you’re supposed to be?
Then she told me that they realized early on that there were issues so the chart was completely reprinted. She said “other” changes were made so you couldn’t really start with the original and then start using the revised version. At some point, people got charts that are correct. Those of us with the first chart – not so much.
Yes, I could buy a new chart. No, thank you. I don’t think I’ll be buying any more charts from this designer.
What really got my goose – I asked them just to remove me from the club. They can but . . the next kit is going to be sent out soon and they’ve already ordered all the parts for the kit based on the number of us in the club so I’ll have to take that one, THEN I can be removed.
A bit ironic that I get one kit that the chart is pretty difficult to use – not impossible but not fun; and I have to accept the next club piece to make things work out for them!
I had pretty much committed to not getting any more “exclusives” from anyone so this did it for me.
If I never buy another chart as long as I live, I won’t get half of the ones I have stitched so it doesn’t bother me to not get exclusives. Most of them are released and available to everyone one year after the exclusive. Have I ever stitched an exclusive within the first year? Probably not.
Will I try to cobble together a workable chart and make this piece that is so messed up? Maybe. Will I toss the chart, keep the floss and linen and use it for something else? Maybe.
justquiltin says
That’s not a fun experience! Nor acceptable answers on the designers part. At that point, if it were me I’d toss the chart while saying many bad words (and not participate again) because if it isn’t fun, then there’s no point in doing it. And if it’s a mistake on the designer’s part, then all the club people should have at least gotten a free pdf of the corrected chart. I’m irate on your behalf! 🙂
judy.blog@gmail.com says
That’s exactly how I felt about it. For the designer to tell me her designs are charted and printed by a professional made her look pretty unprofessional since there are so many different issues with it and since it’s had to be reprinted because of those issues. I guess it’s because so much of the cross stitch community is so nice and accommodating, I was surprised by the actions on the part of these two.
Dottie Newkirk says
That’s SO disappointing. It’s hard to believe that the designer isn’t taking responsibility for incorrect information and not admitting that there is anything wrong. I would be very angry if I had purchased a pattern (any pattern – cross stitch, embroidery, knit, quilt, etc.) that was incorrect. When I find errors in a “free” pattern, I’m disappointed, but, at least I didn’t lose any money in the deal. Hopefully the designer “might” reconsider if enough people contact her.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I suppose she thinks she’s done enough. They did post a PDF of the corrections that can be downloaded but it’s on 6 pages with just a little on each sheet except the entire first page is corrected. Since you have to use parts of three or four of the pages (new parts and old parts), I don’t know how to make a PDF short of cutting and taping paper and making a copy and then copying that and saving it as a PDF.
Aside from that, the chart is just plain messy. The top row on several pages only shows the bottom half of a row. Am I supposed to stitch that row or not? The shading is missing or so light it absolutely cannot be seen.
The designer apparently redid the entire chart, making other changes (I wonder what the reason was for those) that was sent out later but I still think she should have sent us all new charts. A PDF would not have cost her much of anything – instead hundreds of us who have the first chart are spending time trying to figure out what is right/what is wrong, ripping back to fix mistakes we missed.
All I can is it’s poor business on the part of the designer and on the part of the shop not making it right.
But in the end, I had been thinking I would 100% give up on exclusives and that was enough to push me over the edge.
What really
Dottie Newkirk says
I 100% agree! It seems like it would super easy to have a link to the CORRECT pdf instead of a “mis-match” mess.
Beth H- I Have a Notion says
I’d name NAMES. It’s not as if what you say is untrue, and also not as if you didn’t give them a chance to make good on their errors. Those that don’t care, don’t care, but I hate doing business with companies that don’t care (even once).
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I will not name the names. I do not think the shop is bad but I will not shop there again. I think the designer has a very lofty view of herself and her products. To tell me that her designs are charted and printed by a PROFESSIONAL, which to me it was like she was saying “I KNOW what I’m doing and you do not!, when this chart had to be redone right off the bat and, at least the one I have, doesn’t look very professional with partial rows visible, missing gray highlights to indicate repeat rows, etc. I think they both have shown very poor customer service in this deal. The kit was well over $100, probably over $150 for the linen (which if I’m recalling correctly, was the wrong count. The shop offered to send me the correct count if I would send that one back and I didn’t want to mess with it so that part is on me but it was another error on their part. I will not do business with the shop again nor will I ever buy a chart from this designer. And neither of them will ever notice I’m gone! 🙂
Kathy Rockey says
I think I would stop payment on the next kit and return to sender if it arrives. Customer service is part or running a business. Put that thread and linen away, use it for something that’s well designed and work on something that makes you happy.
Donna in KS says
Definitely egotistical designer! I have contacted quilt designers for assistance or with questions and have always gotten the help I needed. While I appreciate your resistance to name anyone, I think they deserve it! Think of all the new/unaware stitchers you might save from problems. However, I’m sure from Vince you get the same ‘let it go’ I would hear!