Stitch School: Cross Stitch
The twelfth in a series of posts about common (and not so common) embroidery stitches—what they are and how to do them.
Cross Stitch is probably the oldest and best known of the embroidery stitches. It's essentially two straight stitches worked on the diagonal with one placed crosswise over the top of the other. You use an even weave fabric like linen, coarse cotton, or Aida cloth and you count the threads to keep your stitches the same size and evenly spaced. You'll sometimes hear this referred to as counted cross stitch and that's why. I'm using linen for my examples but will also show you an example of Aida below. Personally, I don't like the stiffness or look of Aida, but you may find it easier to work with at first—at least the holes are easier to see.
Cross stitch is done in a row, with the first half of the stitches worked in one direction and then completed on the way back across the row. Most people probably won't be able to tell if you haven't kept your stitches all in the same direction, but it makes for a neater and more professional look.
To start, bring your thread up in the space between threads in your fabric. Count up a certain number of threads (I used four) then to the right the same number. Take your needle to the back and pull the thread through.
Come up again directly below where the last stitch ended. And down again diagonally at the same spacing as before.
Continue until you reach the end of the row.
Now, working backwards and using the holes from the first stitches as a guide for your needle, complete each cross and finish the row.
And this is how it looks when finished.
Here’s what it looks like on Aida cloth. For the top row I used every other hole to make a larger stitch; on the bottom row I used every hole and made a smaller and more densely-packed stitch. You can see how pronounced the threads are on this fabric (that's what I don't like), but the holes are also more visible. It's really just a matter of personal preference.
Now for some examples. Black crosses used for a border on a towel with cherries (the cherries are done with straight and outline stitches)—
Crosses worked in a grid to fill the inside of a plum with color—
A cross stitch flower with three shades of pink and red—
A row of cross stitch chicks and flowers decorating a baby pillow—
A morning glory motif from a vintage towel—
And I have a little surprise for you this week—your very own pattern for this beautiful morning glory. Just click here to download a pdf that you can print out (you'll need to have Adobe Acrobat to open the file).
We'll do couching next week and no, that doesn’t involve lying about on your sofa :)
And if you've missed any of the lessons in this series, there's a handy list of previous Stitch School posts in the menu to the right.
Cross Stitch is probably the oldest and best known of the embroidery stitches. It's essentially two straight stitches worked on the diagonal with one placed crosswise over the top of the other. You use an even weave fabric like linen, coarse cotton, or Aida cloth and you count the threads to keep your stitches the same size and evenly spaced. You'll sometimes hear this referred to as counted cross stitch and that's why. I'm using linen for my examples but will also show you an example of Aida below. Personally, I don't like the stiffness or look of Aida, but you may find it easier to work with at first—at least the holes are easier to see.
Cross stitch is done in a row, with the first half of the stitches worked in one direction and then completed on the way back across the row. Most people probably won't be able to tell if you haven't kept your stitches all in the same direction, but it makes for a neater and more professional look.
To start, bring your thread up in the space between threads in your fabric. Count up a certain number of threads (I used four) then to the right the same number. Take your needle to the back and pull the thread through.
Come up again directly below where the last stitch ended. And down again diagonally at the same spacing as before.
Continue until you reach the end of the row.
Now, working backwards and using the holes from the first stitches as a guide for your needle, complete each cross and finish the row.
And this is how it looks when finished.
Here’s what it looks like on Aida cloth. For the top row I used every other hole to make a larger stitch; on the bottom row I used every hole and made a smaller and more densely-packed stitch. You can see how pronounced the threads are on this fabric (that's what I don't like), but the holes are also more visible. It's really just a matter of personal preference.
Now for some examples. Black crosses used for a border on a towel with cherries (the cherries are done with straight and outline stitches)—
Crosses worked in a grid to fill the inside of a plum with color—
A cross stitch flower with three shades of pink and red—
A row of cross stitch chicks and flowers decorating a baby pillow—
A morning glory motif from a vintage towel—
And I have a little surprise for you this week—your very own pattern for this beautiful morning glory. Just click here to download a pdf that you can print out (you'll need to have Adobe Acrobat to open the file).
We'll do couching next week and no, that doesn’t involve lying about on your sofa :)
And if you've missed any of the lessons in this series, there's a handy list of previous Stitch School posts in the menu to the right.
Labels: embroidery, Stitch School
posted by janet at 5:53 PM
13 Comments:
Thanks for the pattern, it looks beautiful! I used to do a lot of cross stitch in college, when I had a bit more free time. Ha! This pattern looks like it would make a nice tea towel. Thinking of more Christmas ideas! I love the last post about your kitties too!
Thank you so much! I really enjoyed this post of stitching school. I do have a question about using linen vs. aida ~ How do you know how big to make the stitch if you do not have the aida holes? I am afraid to have uneven stitches without my aida. I have some beautiful patterns from an older cross stitch magazine and they show it on linen and I am afraid to try. Thanks again.
I am so very grateful for your stitch school. Your instructions are wonderful. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your knowledge.
Good question 'Tart. Linen and heavy cotton both have holes—or, more accurately, space between the threads. After you decide how big you want your cross to be (and that's purely personal preference), you'll have to count across the threads for each stitch. As long as you stay in the same "row" when starting and ending each stitch you should be fine. And it gets easier after the first row because you have a starting place for the next one.
Aida is definitely easier to work with because the holes are more visible. My eyes may be a bit older than yours so I usually use a magnifying glass—one of those that you wear around your neck. It helps a lot when working with linen.
I've not been online for a few weeks and am just now catching up. Thanks so much for the two new stitch school tutorials as well as the cross-stitch pattern.
Welcome back, June. I wondered about you when you didn't comment because you always do :)
it quite hard but following the instructions you eventuelly get there. thank you for putting a demonstration for how doing it.
hello thank you very much i cant descibe it how much leanring this means to me.
yours sk
I'm trying to make a stuffed animal mascot for my friend but the directions say to overlock stitch it together and i don't know what that is. Could you help me out? And does it make any difference if the material is felt?
Overlock stitch isn't really an embroidery stitch - it's a sewing machine one. But, if you want to join two pieces together you can always try blanket stitch. If you check my post about that stitch, I showed a picture of a felt ornament that had the edges blanket-stitched together.
Felt is a nice heavy fabric that's often used for toys since it's soft and durable, but you could probably substitute another fabric and stuff it with more of whatever you're putting inside. Stuffed toys shouldn't be too soft so you'll need to compensate inside if you're using something softer outside.
I am a long time quilter, first time sross stitcher :)
I am still in practice mode and this question may be very basic.
When I have completed my row of corss stitches, I can still see glimpses of the aida cloth.
Am I doing something wrong?
I have tried doing the stitches with a much looser tension, but I still see the aida cloth through them.
I am using 2 strands of DMC cotton.
Thank you for your help (goodness knows I need it).
Kind regards
Donna
No Donna, you're not doing anything wrong. The problem I have with Aida cloth is that you usually can still see it peeking through underneath - and it's not that attractive. Try increasing the number of strands you're using from two to three (or even four) or try not skipping holes for a denser look. I have examples in the photos of it done both ways and you can really see the difference.
Very useful!
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