Seminole Heights woman turns 'meditative' hobby into business

Karina Plemmons feels most at home with a needle and thread in her hands. 

"Doing it for me is very meditative because you’re doing the same repetitive motion 5,000 times," she said. "If that doesn’t calm you down, nothing will."

Plemmons is talking about custom embroidery and cross-stitch work, the foundation of her business, In Stitches. She spends hours creating a picture from a textile. 

"Basically, I’m drawing with thread. If it’s embroidery, it’s more fine lines. If it’s cross-stitch, you’re making a million little tiny X’s until it makes a pattern," she explained.

The company started in 2016, simply because Plemmons was creating so many items. Her love for the art first began in third grade, when her sister bought her a cross-stitch kit as a present. Plemmons would embroider and cross-stitch on and off, sometimes making gifts for friends and family. 

The process begins with an idea, whether from Plemmons’ mind or a customer’s request. She draws a temporary outline with a heat-sensitive marker, then embroiders and/or cross-stiches over it. She then takes a hair dryer to erase the marker. The projects can take anywhere from two to 20 hours. 

"If you can dream it, it can be made," Plemmons said. 

Some of those dreams can be wacky ideas, from art to quotes. Movie quotes and song lyrics are among her most requested items. She’s also known for detailed and colorful floral designs. 

Plemmons thinks one of the reasons for her business’s success is that everyone has an idea of what embroidery or cross-stitching is. 

"We’ve all grown up with it. Everyone’s grandma either embroidered, or they had the little cross-stitch samples are their wall," she said. "I think it’s one of those things that’s kind of ubiquitous that everyone has in their back of their mind, and it brings you back to something."

LINK: For more information, visit: www.instagram.com/in_stitches813/