Counted Cross Stitch
From LoveToKnow Crafts
“Counted cross stitch” is just a fancy name for cross stitch, the process of making little x’s of thread into a picture. It’s known as counted cross stitch because you have to count the number of squares of each color to form the pattern. Don’t get scared and think math is involved. It’s really an easy, versatile craft that a person of any age can pick up.
Counted cross stitch basics
All counted cross stitch starts with a pattern, also known as a chart, that shows you which color to use where on the fabric to make the picture shown. See Cross Stitching Instructions for more details about basic stitches and where to find patterns.
Once you have selected your pattern, from a book, magazine, website or other source, you will need to purchase fabric and thread (and maybe a needle and a hoop if you don’t have them already—a hoop is useful to hold the fabric tight, which makes it a little easier to work with).
The main types of fabric are Aida and linen. Aida tends to be firmer and is a lot easier to work with. Most stitches start out on Aida (it’s easier for some people to see the “squares” where you are supposed to stitch on Aida) and graduate to linen later. It’s easier to make half stitches on linen because linen is often stitched across two squares for each stitch. To make a half stitch on Aida you have to put the needle through the center of a square.
Aida is almost universally cheaper than linen. You can find it in a fair number of colors, and it is widely available at craft stores and even in the craft department of larger discount stores. The background of your piece will look different, too, depending on what kind of fabric you use. But the decision is really yours.
You also have some choices when it comes to thread. Most patterns will give you a number that corresponds to the color of thread that was used in the original design. This is a DMC number, which refers to a popular brand of embroidery floss that is widely available.
Another popular brand is Anchor. If you have DMC numbers and want to use Anchor instead, use this conversion chart, from the Sophisticated Stitcher. The full list of DMC numbers by color family is available here.
Don’t be afraid to use colors that aren’t on the chart. A pattern is really just a guideline. Change blue to purple or green to red. Experiment with colors that you like. Don’t feel like your piece has to turn out exactly like the pattern; that’s part of the fun.
For more information use this link A to Z of Cross Stitch.
Stitching your counted cross stitch
Once you have all your materials, it’s time to start stitching. The easiest way to pick a place to start is to find the center of the pattern and the center of your fabric. To do this, fold the piece of fabric in half both ways. Mark the center square with a pin or a light mark with a washable marker.
You can find the center of the pattern in the same manner. Start from the center and work your way to the edges, changing colors as indicated in the pattern. Sometimes beginners get into trouble because they try to stitch all of one color at once, even if that means leaving big blank spaces. If you don’t count right, you’ll end up with a pattern that’s off kilter or with too much or too little space for the rest of your pattern to fill in.
I know it seems kind of wasteful to change thread a lot, but if there are big spaces between the areas of a particular color, filling in the space before finishing up stitching that color can save you a lot of grief later. I’m not saying you have to always stitch in perfect rows and change colors when there’s only one or two stitches between stitches of the same color. use your judgment and try to be as precise as possible.
To help you keep track of where you are in a pattern, highlight rows as you finish them. That way when you have to stop stitching you will know where you were when you pick it up again and won’t repeat or skip a row and mess up your pattern. It’s a good idea to make a photocopy of your pattern before you start so you can mark it up and will still have a clean one in case you want to stitch the same pattern again.
Finishing your counted cross stitch
There are many possibilities for finishing counted cross stitch projects, but the most popular are framing and making pillows. These are probably the most popular because no one will see the back of the work if it is hidden in a picture frame or inside a pillow. Other options include stitching linens and bookmarks, but these projects will make you very conscious of how messy the back of your project looks and are probably not good for beginners because it will drive you crazy.
To frame a counted cross stitch design, measure the finished piece, leaving a few inches of white space around the pattern on all sides. Pick a frame that suits you. It can have matting or not, or simply be a mat. For some projects you may want a frame without a piece of glass or plastic, because then you can touch the stitches (and the piece may be too thick to slide into the frame with the glass included).
If using a mat, you may want to tape the piece to a piece of cardboard or heavy paper to make sure it doesn’t move around. If the piece is the right size for your frame, it should stay in place nicely, but you could also put some double stick tape on the back and stick it to the back piece of the frame.
If you want to make your finished piece into a pillow, you may want to stitch a border piece of fabric around the edges to make it look framed. Get a pillow form of a size that looks right with your piece. Measure a piece of fabric large enough to cover the back with half an inch on each side for seams. For the front, you can measure strips to add to the piece as a border (with straight or mitered corners) or just use the piece as the whole front of the pillow, if it is big enough.
Place your two layers right sides together (outside in) and stitch completely around three sides and about halfway across the fourth side. Turn the piece outside out and make sure the cross stitched piece is straight and looks good. Then insert the pillow form and stitch the rest of the pillow closed by hand. You can make matched pillows or have a theme, such as flowers, for a set of several pillows. let your imagination run wild.
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