Cross-Stitch

Charts, patterns and everything needlepoint

All about Cross-Stitch Needles

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I do cross stitch from time to time, but I haven’t ever given much thought to the supplies I use to do it. I have always used whatever I happened to have access to, including whatever needle was nearby.

That means I’ve done cross stitch with sewing needles, and with blunt needles meant for yarn, too.

But did you know there are different kinds of needles that are just for cross stitch and embroidery?

Tapestry needles are the needles that are made for working cross stitch and embroidery, and just like my yarn needle, they aren’t sharp, though tapestry needles meant for cross stitch are smaller than the ones used to seam knitting or crochet projects.

In fact there’s a range of sizes, and it’s best to use different needles depending on the size of fabric you’re using. Which makes sense, because different sized fabric has slightly different sized holes for the needle to go through.

Gathered has a great guide to tapestry needle sizes, but in general as the count of the fabric goes up, the number size of the needle also goes up, but that means that the needle itself is getting smaller. So for example for working on 14 count fabric you’d want to use a size 24 needle, whereas for 16 count fabric you’d use a 26, which is actually a little smaller.

Larger holes in your cross stitch fabric can accommodate larger needles, and if you’re stitching on something like burlap you can use a large needle like my yarn needle. When stitching on fabric instead of cross-stitch cloth, you’ll want to use a smaller needle or go to a sharper sewing needle if you’re having trouble piercing the fabric (which may happen if you’re stitching on a thick fabric).

Do you pay attention to the type of needle you use when you cross stitch? Have you found there’s a difference when working with different fabrics? I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Stitched Modern.]

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D&D Cross Stitch Patterns

My husband is a D&D player from way back and still does role playing with his friends most weekends. There are lots of great D&D cross stitch patterns, but somehow the ones that caught my eye this time have a theme of being about the D&D classes or involving dice (or both). 

I love this collection of the D&D classes done as tarot cards. These would be so fun to stitch up for all the people in your party, or make the full set as one big wall hanging for the game room. There are 16 patterns total (just a few are shown here) and each one just uses three colors. The designs are from GlitchStitchAU.

This set kind of reminds me of astrological signs, though I can’t really say why. This set of 16 designs from White Raven Patterns is color coordinated so it sort of makes a rainbow if you stitch all of them. The dungeon master one is more colorful. Each one uses five or six colors and fits in a 10-inch hoop. 

Combining character classes and dice we get this set of 14 designs from Stitch it Picasso. Each one includes the class name and a die with a number on it, as well as some images that make sense for that class (the bard has a lute and music notes, for example). Each design is around 90 by 90 stitches and they use 13 to 19 colors each, depending on the design. 

Or you can make patches that look like dice with this D20 dice bundle from Non Player Creation. The patches are inspired by the four seasons, but you could change up the colors to suit your campaign setting if you like. They are 31 by 35 stitches and use between nine and 12 colors depending on the season. 

And speaking of D20s, this little dragon might be protecting your dice or cursing them, it’s hard to tell. It’s kind of cute, though! The design is from Cross Stitch Wow and measures 80 by 95 stitches. It fits in an 8-inch hoop and uses 16 colors.