Cross stitch. You might have heard the term before, but what is it exactly?
Well it’s quite simple. Its a type of embroidery where you make little crosses out of thread, to form a picture. I like to think of it like embroidery meets pixel art.
What is Cross Stitch?
Cross stitch’s history goes back to the middle ages.
Its a well established method of sewing patterns and designs onto anything, clothes, curtains, cushions. It’s seen a boom from around 2009 onwards in the UK in particular.
With the rise of cottagecore, cross stitch is being seen as its own artform more and more, with feminist groups at the heart of pushing for recognition for something that has long been a household pastime.
How did I find Cross Stitch?
I have been aware of cross stitching since childhood. My very middle class grandma is an avid embroiderer.
It’s barely possible to move in her house without brushing past, looking at, or sitting on something that she has cross stitched.
Cushions, chairs, curtains, framed works of art, key rings. Anything that can be cross stitched, will be cross stitched. Put a pin in this bit, we’re going to circle back to grandma Margaret in a little while.
Fast forward many years. I took part in a training day for teaching DT, and that involved sewing.
I kept on thinking back how nice it was to sit, using the needle and thread, to slowly make something. So I decided to give it a go myself.
Just as before with Crochet, I bought myself a little starter kit. I got some embroidery floss, different size needles, threaders, a stitch ripper, a thimble, some aida cloth, and some different sized embroidery hoops.
The total came to around £30.
Then it was time to get cracking with some cross stitch!
How did I get started with cross stitch?
As I had spent a day doing needlecraft already, my introduction to cross stitch was a bit easier, although not without its ups and downs!
The first mistake I made was not knowing how to use the embroidery floss.
When you buy thread for cross stitch it comes in a little bundle and is called floss. It’s usually six strands loosely twisted together. You are meant to cross stitch with just two or three of these at a time.
I did not know this.
This meant that my first project came out very thick. It was also difficult to thread the needles and generally more hard work than it needed to be.
You always have the choice of working with all six threads, but bear in mind it affects the texture and also means your precious floss doesn’t last as long. (If you use two threads at a time then it will last three times as long!)
Once you’ve got your needle threaded and knot secured at the end, you’re pretty much set! Cross stitch is less about the techniques and more about the creativity of what you are making.
I’d seen several as inspiration in my now customary trip to reddit in search of community spaces about new hobbies.
I’m a long time lover of the video game Stardew valley and thought that making a little picture from that might be a good place to start. The plan I picked was a little blue chicken with little flowers at the bottom.
It took me about three hours of work to do this, which I didn’t think was too bad. I followed some pictures to make sure I got the outline right, and I’m pleased with how it turned out.
At this point I realised that pixel art pretty much doubles as patterns for cross stitch.
This was an incredible moment. I tried my hand at making a little pixel ghost with a cute little witch hat that might just be the cutest thing I’ve ever made ever, I love it so much.
I also tried to make some Pokemon pieces, but honestly I got overwhelmed trying to copy an outline of Eevee so I gave up. The Pikachu I made was adorable though. And that marked the end of my month of cross stitch.
Since this, I also made a small picture of a cat sitting on the wall, using backstitch to outline the bricks as well which was fun.
I’m currently working on a large abstract chequerboard with different colours and patterns in each square.
Tips, Tricks, and Links
Floss
As I mentioned earlier, think about how many threads you are using, the fewer you use, the thinner your stitches will be.
I’ve generally found working with 2 threads is my preferred, but I do sometimes use 4 threads if I want something to stand out a little more.
If you want to use as many as possible, that’s no problem, you do you babe.
Making your Cross Stitches.
So there are two different ways that people cross stitch. Either they make both stitches to make a cross on one square and then move on, or they do a group of lines going one way and then a group of lines going the other way over the top.
I prefer to group them together, but its important to always make sure you have the same stitch at the top each time. It keeps your work looking neater.
Neatness.
Speaking of neatness. Try and keep the back of your project as clean as you can. That means not having bits where you are crossing over the back, no long loose threads, try and work in just one area or one direction of a time.
This might seem unnecessary, but it prevents you from catching loose threads with your needle and accidentally pulling loose bits of thread through onto the front of your project.
Keep your threads organised.
Once you’ve started to use your floss, keep it neat by wrapping it around a small piece of card or plastic, so that it doesn’t get loose and knotted. This part I do find really really tricky, and often have to dedicate time to cleaning up, but I promise it’s worth it!
Don’t be afraid.
In my opinion, there isn’t really a “wrong” way to cross stitch and its easy to get anxious or worried, but try not to be afraid. Keep an open mind and those creative juices flowing, and you’ll make some wonderful projects.
I loved going to reddit for inspiration as well.
Summary and Score for Cross Stitch
Cross stitch is a fun hobby that can produce some amazing works of art (or a very average picture of pikachu if you’re me).
Don’t forget to check out the gallery for a collection of my completed works.
You can work as small or as big as you like, there are pre built packs with colours and fabric already chosen, or you can just thread or needle and see where it takes you.
I loved being able to combine the worlds of wholesome and nerdy with pixel art, it was a lot of fun and I’m nowhere near finished with cross stitch.
So, here’s my overall score and final thoughts.
Budget: 4/5
Its not the cheapest hobby out there, as you do need to purchase the basic supplies of needles, a hoop, cloth and thread. These can last a very long time if you are careful with them, keep your threads as organised as you can.
You can go to lovecrafts for a huge selection of supplies.
Accessibility: 3/5
I’ve found this very easy to actually do and try. The least accessible part is that as it is very small, it requires a high level of dexterity as well as good lighting.
That means that its a good afternoon hobby, but you can’t do it in the dark while watching a movie so I can’t use it as a fidget tool without ruining the atmosphere.
Satisfaction: 5/5
The sense of finishing a project is incredible! Plus they make great gifts as well.
Growth and Development: 2/5
While there is lots of room to create incredible projects. They are quite daunting and I have tried and given up on several so far.
While I would love to try some more of these, that won’t be happening any time soon. The main way to grow is to expand to embroidery.
Overall score for Cross Stitch: 14 out of 20
Cross stitch is something that I love to do, but it does require the right environment and time for me. A lovely way to pass an afternoon or an evening, but not an all the time hobby.
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