Choose your fabric. Although cross stitch refers to the way in which you create a stitched pattern and not to a particular fabric, it is most often done on a type of material known as Aida cloth.
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This material is loosely woven in a grid pattern that makes lining up all your stitches easy. Aida fabric comes in different sizes which refer to the number of stitches that can be created in 1 square inch. The options are typically 11, 14, 18, and 28. It is easiest to start on an Aida cloth that uses an 11 or 14 stitch count, as this provides larger spaces for your cross stitch.
The higher the number of stitches, the smaller your crosses will be. If you don't want to use Aida cloth for your cross stitch, other popular options are linen or fiddlers cloth. Both these lack the same wide spaces Aida cloth provides for beginners though. Select your thread.
Cross stitch is great because it offers so much freedom on the part of the maker, particularly in the color options of the thread. Embroidery floss is typically used and can be found in hundreds of colors. Each skein of embroidery floss comes in six threads, but only 1-3 will be used for cross stitch at a time.
Embroidery floss comes in both matte colors as well as iridescent and metallic. The latter two are a bit more difficult to work with and cost several times more than the former. If you have a difficult time doing cross stitch with your thread, you can get waxed thread or use a bit of beeswax to prep your thread before starting your stitching. It will help the floss to the thread and tie off easier. Choose a pattern. Cross stitching is as simple as matching the grid on a pattern of choice to the grid in your cross-stitch fabric.
Choose a pattern from a booklet or online, and gather embroidery floss in colors to match. As a beginner, it may be best to start with a simple cross stitch. Find a pattern that is small and doesn’t involve too many details and uses a total of 3-7 colors only. You can create your own pattern using your own images and a computer program or a bit of graph paper if you don't like the patterns that are available. Cut your fabric and floss. The size of your fabric will depend on the size of the pattern you are using.
Each small square on the cross stitch fabric is representational of a single stitch (or ‘x’ shaped cross), and can be counted across to get your exact size. Your embroidery floss should be cut to a length of about 36” to begin. Embroidery floss comes in strands of six threads, but typically only one is necessary for cross stitching. Gently pull apart the groupings of threads from the center and use a single thread for each section on your pattern. Some patterns may call for multiple threads to be used at once, so make sure to check yours before assuming the use of a single thread. If you run out of thread for your pattern, don’t fear!
One of the great things about cross stitching is that you can’t tell where you start/stop from the front. Simply cut additional thread and start again from where you left off. Begin your cross stitch. Count on your pattern the number of grid spaces to the first stitch (typically the centermost stitch), and insert your needle from the bottom. Pull the thread all the way through, leaving a bit of the loop at the bottom. Then, cross the thread down or up diagonally and pull the needle through the loop underneath to create a stable anchor for your stitching. It doesn’t matter if you start your cross stitch going ‘////’ or ‘’ as long as you are consistent with this pattern over the entirety of your project.
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With every stitch you make, thread your strings over the loose tail in the back to secure it to your cross stitch fabric. This will also make it less likely for your cross stitch to unravel from being tugged or pulled. To cross stitch, cut your fabric to the appropriate size, and your floss colors to length of about 36 inches. Take a single thread of embroidery floss, and thread it through the needle. Begin the cross stitch in the centermost block, pushing the needle through the back of the fabric. Continue cross stitching with 1 “x” per grid block on the pattern. To finish the cross stitch, tie off and cut the thread, and wash the cloth to remove oils from your hands.
For more tips, including how to do more advance stitches, scroll down!.