Explore Tim Othy's Cross-Stitched Erotica

Former attorney and current crafty man Tim Othy is redefining your Grandma's favorite pastime by cross-stritching some steamy images.

In a Gayety first, we are proud to introduce you to Tim Othy, a cross-stitch artist transforming hardcore gay erotica into intricately woven works celebrating the male form.

Since its inception, our spotlights have showcased artists creating works on the fringes of what mainstream media and social media deem acceptable. Thus far, those artists have been photographers capturing beautiful, erotic, and sometimes explicit images of men — but nude art can be created in many modalities, including cross-stitch.

As we expand Gayety's catalog and source art existing on the periphery, we will introduce you to creators pushing boundaries in their respective fields. Tim is one of those creators.

Stitching An Identity Together

Growing up in small-town Wilmot, Wisconsin, Tim's journey was shaped by his modest surroundings, conservative social norms, and the nineties culture of repression that shaped many queer people's early identity.

Like many gay youth growing up in rural America, Tim spent his formative years grappling with his sexuality in an environment where the figure of a man as an object of desire was unthinkable, so he would spend his adolescence silently navigating an identity that would be defined by academics and extracurriculars.

It wasn't until his late twenties that Tim fully embraced an authentic life experience. His journey to self-acceptance informed much of his artistic evolution, as he found ways to explore themes of sexual freedom, intimacy, and humor — elements of his existence that had been suppressed for many years.

Now 45 and splitting his time between San Francisco and international travel, Tim has repurposed a traditional and timeless craft often associated with prim and proper decor to challenge societal norms while staying true to his belief in the beauty and complexity of human sexuality.

Cross-Stitch as Subversion

Tim discovered cross-stitching in 2015 through humorous and irreverent word art posted online, reminiscent of the popularized art form of the 70s.

What began as a hobby evolved into a creative outlet that allowed him to blend traditional craftsmanship with provocative content. His first pieces were playful phrases, such as "Homo Sweet Homo," but quickly evolved to photorealistic works.

Tim says, "I thought the juxtaposition of old-fashioned and modern was hilarious." This humor and outlook became the foundation of his craft, with each project offering a provocative commentary on the interplay between history, sexuality, and art. He continued, "My first piece took around six months to finish, and although the colors didn't really turn out how I wanted them, and there were some mistakes, I loved how it turned out. And with that, my obsession with cross-stitching gay porn began."

But this new hobby embodied unresolved issues in his personal life, serving as a tangible piece of his marriage's breakdown. "When I started this whole process, I was married (to a man). We were not right for each other, but at least I was still in it because I thought that was what I was supposed to be doing. There were a lot of issues for us, and a symptom of all this was a lack of a healthy sex life. So I kind of used this hobby as an escape from an unhappy marriage; instead of having sex with my husband, I was content sitting on the couch cross-stitching other people having sex."

Precision and Patience in Every Stitch

During our conversation, Tim explained the technical process, from selecting the right image and converting it into a pattern to meticulously stitching tens of thousands of tiny Xs — detailing why each project can take months or even years to complete.

He summarizes, "A piece with fewer stitches per inch will appear a little blurrier than a piece with more stitches per inch, which is going to be more focused and higher-definition. For example, a low-definition, smaller image may have 3,000 stitches, while a high-definition, larger piece may have 20,000 stitches."

Additional time is added to each stitch. " It can take anywhere from one month to six or more months to complete a project. I do this in my spare time, so it depends on my schedule. But the pieces I do are photorealistic and use every "pixel" of the canvas, so they are extremely detailed. And changing colors takes time, especially when a piece may have 250 different colors."

When asked how much one of these works of art costs, Tim was transparent about pricing his one-of-a-kind creations. "I saw someone online who creates funny sayings or little pieces that charge around 4 cents per stitch, but each piece's intricacy, complexity, and rarity make it a bit harder to assign a price tag to these pieces. Four cents is too little, but 10 cents is too high. Since I'm new to this, I am still gauging how best to price these pieces, especially because I want to ensure they receive an appropriate value."

Tim's cross-stitch portfolio is as varied as it is bold. From photorealistic depictions of male nudity to absurd images of male appendages, each piece pushes boundaries while celebrating the humanity of sexuality created to challenge taboos and spark conversations about art, sex, and identity.

"I want people to find it funny and absurd," Tim says, "but also to appreciate the beauty of the male body and these images of male sexuality."

Below is our Q&A with Tim, where he expands on the work behind his art.

Gayety: Can you tell us a little about these images? How are the photos selected?  

Tim: Almost all of these works are based on images I have found online. I always say that my process's research and development portion is the most fun because that's when I am searching for new images to cross-stitch, haha. At first, I would find pictures I liked and thought would look good in this medium, based primarily on the subject matter. As I improved my craft, I realized that certain images and their makeup (colors, shading, contrast, dimensions, size, etc.) work much better than others.  Some of the pieces I have made are self-portraits or pictures I have taken, so in that way, I guess you could say I get a little more involved in the creative process lol.  

What work goes into their creation (time, materials, planning, etc.)?

Once I've found the image I want to use (I have a folder of potential candidates on my computer), I will enter it into my MacStitch program. I have to decide the piece's dimensions and the density of the stitches. Cross-stitching fabric comes in a variety of sizes and densities. Once I have decided on the size and density, I save the project as a pattern on my computer. The MacStitch software tells me exactly what color threads I need and how many threads will be in the piece. Over the years, I have collected four tackle boxes full of DMC embroidery threads (each color has its own unique number), so I will go through my inventory and see whether I have the required threads or need to purchase more. Then I get to work.  

People often underestimate the time and care required to create art like this. Has that been your experience?

Oh, absolutely. Depending on how many stitches are in the piece, it can take anywhere from one to six or more months to complete a project. Cross-stitching is a type of needlepoint, like knitting and crochet, so those needle pointers may have some idea of how long a project takes.

What do you hope people feel or take away from your work? 

I want people to appreciate the beauty of the images' subject matter (the male body and images of male sexuality) and the beauty of these pieces in this beautiful (and historical) medium. I want people to be turned on by them, find them funny and absurd, and enjoy the unexpectedness of it all.  

Tim's work is a testament to the power of art to provoke, delight, and inspire. By combining humor, technical precision, and an unapologetic embrace of sexuality, Tim occupies his own unique artistic space. You can see more of Tim’s work here or purchase your Tim Othy original here! If you’re in the LA area, check out Circus of Books to see Tim’s work on display and available for purchase.