Bethanie learned to cross-stitch basic patterns when she was in high school. “My best friend Mary taught me,” she said. “I still have that first pattern.” Her hobby took off from there. She has completed so many patterns that she’s lost count of how many, although she admits there are many not completed too.
Her most accomplished pattern is called Anne Hathaway’s Garden. It’s very large and requires intricate cross-stitching. It took Bethanie over two years to complete. “It was very therapeutic, for a variety of reasons,” she said.
Cross-stitching is a healthy hobby for Bethanie. “It’s calming to me, and as someone who needs to keep my hands busy, it helps keep my focus and also hints to my creativity.” She loves to see how the picture will turn out.
“Sometimes I’ll find a pattern that fills a memory or simply is a beautiful setting,” she explained. For a Marvel Studios picture, which she made for her son, Jonah, and the portrait of her grandmother, she used a program called PC Stitch to create a cross-stitch pattern. “If you stand up close, it isn’t as easy to see the full picture, but if you step back several feet, you can see it looks more like a photograph, and the character stands out” she said. “The possibilities are endless as long as my hands and fingers stay flexible, and I can always use a magnifying glass if my eyes can’t quite see the pattern detail.”