Getting idea from head to pattern

[askew37]

Hi there, new poster in need of creative help. All of the great patterns on this website have inspired my long-dormant ideas for a Mario-centric cross stitch. However, what I have in mind is not a screen shot straight from any one game. I want to combine characters and backgrounds from several different Mario games. I am definitely not artistic enough to draw it on my own. Does anyone have any software recommendations that would allow me to manipulate images? Or is there a website or online community where I can commission work like that?

[Servotron]

If you want to do it yourself, you will want an editing program capable of working in layers, that way you can move elements around without messing with the entire picture. Something like Photoshop would be best. Good free alternatives would be GIMP and Paint.net. For the actual sprites, the best place to get them is the Spriter's Resource, which should have the sprites you want and also sometimes has the backgrounds from the games.

[askew37]

that is an awesome website, thanks so much!