How To Cross Stitch

Start Here:

A cross stitch is made of two stitches, one is like a forward slash / on a computer keyboard andd the other is like a backslash \, when they are placed one on top of the other, they make a cross X. Cross stitches are created over gour holes in your canvas:

To create a cross stitch, thread your needle with thread, (one strand for wool in our chunky kits or three strands for floss in our regular cross stitch kits) and bring it up through the bottom left hand hole (1) and then put it down through the top right hole (2). You've made the first half of the stitch - the forward slash. Then bring your needle up through the bottom right hand hole (3) and put it down through the top left hole (4). That's it! You've created your first cross stitch!

To cover a larger area fast, you can stitch a line of forward slashes and then come back across and complete the back slashes, like this:

Starting and finishing your cross stitch:

There are lots of ways to start and finish your thread, this is the way I like to do it.

Start with approx 18" (45cm) of thread on your needle, then tie a large-ish knot at the other end.

Find where you would like to start your canvas and then put your needle down from top to bottom a few cm/an inch to the right of where you plan to stitch, on the same line in the canvas so the knot stays on the top of the canvas (x):

Bring your needle up in the bottom left hole of your first stitch (Y) and start stitching. As you make your first line of stitches, capture the loose line of thread between the stitches and the back of the canvas.

When you have stitched until you only have a couple of inches of thread left, finish the stitch you are on by taking the needle to the back of the canvas and then run the needle behind the a few stitches to secure it. Snip any excess thread off as close as you can to the back taking care not to snip any stitches.

 

How to cross stitch on a Stitchperation Stitch-a-bauble.