Let's get this out of the way; here is my boring-ass origin story.
In the fourth grade, I moved to Charleston, South Carolina with my family. I tested for the gifted and talented program at school, but didn't quite make it - let's be honest, it's like being called the tallest midget in the circus regarding the SC public school system. So, I was placed in a program where kids still got to leave class and do special things, but not special enough to labeled "gifted" or "talented".
What does this have to do with cross stitch? Welp. They took me and another little boy out of class to sit in a tiny ass supply closet and make a cross stitch pattern of a tiger. We started to stitch it, but never finished because that shit takes time.
Many years later, a friend of mine collected framed embroideries from thrift stores. Our song is, naturally, "California Love" by Tupac. What other pale girl anthem is there? I made her my very first rap-lyric-cross-stitch as a Christmas gift and the rest has been my inappropriate hand embroidery history.
Here are some others from my days before the hustle:
