Get to know Stitch People Ambassador Giselle Navarro

You probably know Giselle from her exquisitely perfect stitching, her real hair techniques or her gorgeous instagram feed. But we wanted to dive deeper and find out what makes her tic! We asked Stitch People Ambassador Giselle Navarro of Alice n’ the Bear eleven random questions. Read her fun answers below!!

What’s your star sign?

I am a Taurus.

What’s the best date you’ve ever been on?

Best date I’ve ever been on would have to be when my husband took the day off work to take me to the batting cages. I hadn’t been to one in years! It felt great having the whole place to ourselves and feeling like a kid again.

What’s your favorite cross-stitch or embroidery technique and why?

My favorite stitch is the whip stitch. One, because it easily hides all the flaws making all the line work so smooth. Two, because I can’t help but have DEVO’s Whip It song playing in my head as I stitch it.

What’s your best childhood memory?

My best childhood memory (ies) were made when I was 11 and 12yrs old. I’d spend my summers at my grandparents house in Mexico. I would fly by myself to spend two months with them and the rest of my mothers side of the family. They lived out in the farming lands where their small town was surrounded by miles of fields- cotton and chilies.

I helped out in the family market that sold dried goods like flour, sugar, beans, and rice by the kilo. I was taught to do things like hand wash my own laundry on a cement stone. I fed the pigs the scrap food and understood how violent geese can be. I would take a 20 min bus ride into town to buy groceries. We would have to refill the bins with water to use for showers and washing dishes because their whole town would have the water shut off at 8pm. I learned to appreciate indoor plumbing because no matter what, you can never get used to using an out-house… especially at night.

At night it was peaceful and the perfect time to sit around on the porch to tell funny stories and jokes with the cousins. I would get up early to help my grandmother clean and prep food. It’s where I learned to speak, read, and write Spanish since I had no one around who spoke English. It’s where I learned how amazing my culture is and I will forever be grateful for the life lessons my family taught me. I have such an appreciation for the roots of where I come from and where my parents have strived to get us to. Those summers are my most prized memories.

Tell us about your first ever commission and is there anything you’d change now you’re more experienced?

My first ever commission was a wedding portrait. It was for a friend of mine. I have learned so much but the biggest takeaway from it was how I approach different body types with clients. It is something that I was shy to ask about and stitched them equally sized. When I heard how disappointed one of them was because the one character wasn’t quite represented as it could have, I felt so bad. I never intended to make someone feel different about them selves and I had failed them. I have since never repeated that mistake and take the subject very seriously. It is important to me that everyone who sees their portrait feels amazing about themselves.

Why do you think Stitch People is such a popular art form?

I believe the reason Stitch People is such a popular art form is because of how repetitive and consistent the people are. The basic structure of them is essentially the same and then you get to have fun with the details, adding as much or as little as you want! Getting to personalize each one is the best part!

What is your dream for the future of your art/business?

My dream for my art/shop is that it not only continue to be something that brings joy, but that it brings joy globally. I am thrilled each time I send a piece of art out to its home. I can only imagine what it would be like to know a piece of my art work is bringing happiness in a home across the world.

What’s one thing you want to master before you die (cross-stitch related or not)?

I have soooo many things I’d love to master some day but for the sake of the readers precious time I’ll go with the one that is most relatable – mastering the long and short stitch!!!!!! That is one tricky stitch that I just can’t seem to do as easily as the other stitches. It takes all my brain power to place the random long short stitches, ha! One day I’ll have it mastered!

If you had to choose one book or pattern set from the Stitch People collection, that would be the only pattern book you use for the rest of your life, which would you choose and why?

The Stitch People Occupations and Hobbies book! There’s sooooo much good stuff in there. All the things that people do that make them who they are are in those books!

Check out Stitch People Occupations Volume 2 for an expanded range of Occupations and Hobbies!

What’s the one food or meal someone could win your heart with?

Pizza!! It has my heart for sure. Lol. We will make a 2 hr drive from our home just to have pizza from this one place!

What’s one thing you think Stitch People beginners should know?

Be proud of what your two hands made. It’s the only pice of art of its kind in the whole world and that is something to celebrate.

Giselle will be teaching you how to create the realistic hairstyles she does so well at the Stitch People Spring Fling! Get your ticket here.

See more of Giselle and her work on Instagram @alice.n.thebear