Cross-Stitch

Charts, patterns and everything needlepoint

A Great Cross Stitch Holiday Gift Guide

by

I am not the most experienced at cross stitch so I’m not always aware of the best tools and supplies that a cross stitch enthusiast might want. So now that we’re in the season of gift lists, you probably don’t want to take it from me when it comes to the best products to get for a cross stitcher in your life or to add to your wish list.

(The entirety of my cross stitch supplies other than a roll of fabric fits in a zippered bag that a set of king-sized sheets came in, so I am definitely the wrong person to ask.)

But A Stitch of Blissfulness is a good person to ask, and they’ve compiled a list of their favorite cross stitching supplies that would be a great place to start if you want to get a good gift for a cross-stitcher or you want to get some good gifts for yourself.

The stuff on their list makes a lot of sense, but also there are some things I would never think to ask for like a good light or a cookbook stand to hold your pattern.

One thing on this list I definitely want to try is the first thing on the list: a Q Snap embroidery frame system. These PVC pipes snap together to form a frame that holds your project firmly in place while you stitch. This isn’t a solution if you want to frame your project in a hoop, but assuming you might want to finish your project in a different way this frame is a great option.

There’s lots more listed in the blog post, so head over to A Stitch of Blissfulness to see all the recommendations. If you’ve asked for or received or bought for someone else a great cross-stitch inspired gift, I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: A Stitch of Blissfulness]

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Fancy Pumpkin Cross Stitch Patterns

If you’re ready to move beyond basic, solid orange pumpkins, check out these pumpkin cross stitch patterns that are just a little bit fancier with some kind of pattern on the pumpkin. 

Keep it simple and rustic with this plaid pumpkin form Cross Stitch with Art. You can make the plaid whatever colors you want to match your decor, or keep with the Halloween color palette. It uses three colors and comes out to about 6 inches/15.24 cm square when you stitch it on 14 count fabric. 

Mamaida Pattern has this cute pumpkin with a vine in the negative space. Since that portion isn’t actually stitched (though you could make it green if you like) that makes this pattern pretty easy. It uses just two colors and measures 108 by 110 stitches. That’s about 7.7 by 7.9 inches or 19.6 by 20 cm on 14 count fabric. 

Speaking of negative space, this design by Tinsel Cross Stitch blows out the pumpkin a bit so the ridges are negative space and the colors here too have kind of a vineing effect. This design is 98 by 113 stitches and uses three colors. It measures 7 by a little more than 8 inches, or 17.78 by 20.5 cm on 14 count fabric.

Get even more detailed with the carving effect on this pumpkin cross stitch pattern from Anemone Patterns. This one is 85 by 83 stitches, which comes out to 6.1 by 5.9 inches (15.4 by 15.1 cm).

In a similar vein but a different color, there’s this pretty green pumpkin from Crystal Feather Crafts. Of course you could make it any color you like, but I always like to remind people that even in nature not all pumpkins are orange. This design measures 101 by 93 stitches, which is 7.2 by 6.6 inches/18.3 by 16.9 cm. 

And speaking of color, if you want to stitch a pumpkin with boho vibes, this one from Stitch Craft Creatives is probably the one for you. At 200 stitches square, it comes out to 14.4 inches or 36.3 cm square on 14 count fabric. It uses 14 colors for a very vibrant pumpkin!