Meet Kari Warning | Cross-Stitch Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kari Warning and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kari, every day, we about how much execution matters, but we think ideas matter as well. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
I have cross-stitched since I was 8 years old. I had fallen out of the hobby in college, but several years later when I was getting married, I decided to cross-stitch thank you presents for all our bridal party. My husband was streaming on Twitch at the time and I would go into his stream room and show him and his viewers what I was working on. His viewers encouraged me that I should start a shop and even stream stitching on Twitch, which I did for 5 years.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I think what sets me apart as a cross-stitch artist is my desire to help others jump into cross-stitch themselves. I love creating kits and tutorials for beginning stitchers. I always let those buying my kits know that I am super responsive online if they have any questions throughout the process.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I am a major foodie, so anyone planning to visit me should expect to be going on a food tour. I am fortunate to have moved from Chicago, which has amazing food, and Durham is equally amazing with different food genres. My number one spot to take them is my favorite lunch place in Durham- Sushioki. Outside of food, I love taking my visiting friends to the Lemur Institute. It’s such a fun and unique experience. Then to wind down in the evening with great food, drinks, and atmosphere, I love taking friends to Ponysaurus.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband has been my number-one fan from the beginning. He encouraged me to share my work. He offered advice when I asked for it. He loves to share ideas of pieces and patterns he thinks I should create. He even came up with the idea of my shop’s most popular pattern (Home is Where the Bonfire is)! Now that I have started selling at local markets, he has been by my side, helping me to get what I needed to start and working as my “hype man”- helping set up the booth and selling my product to customers.

Website: www.8bitstitch.com

Instagram: 8.bit.stitch

Facebook: 8 Bit Stitch

Youtube: www.youtube.com/c/8bitstitch

Other: Tik Tok- 8bitstitch