All You Need to Know to Learn to Cross Stitch

May 8, 2024 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

Over on my blog, Our Daily Craft, I’ve been working on some pages that bring together a lot of information I’ve shared about different crafts over the course of the 15 (!) or so years I’ve been writing over there to make it easier for people to find what they need to get started.

I recently published a post all about how to cross stitch, and while it might not be totally “done,” I think it’s a good start for anyone wanting to learn or who might need a refresher on the basics.

The post covers everything from the basic supplies you need to get started to questions like, does cross stitch fabric have a front side? or do you need to use a hoop?

It covers how big to make your fabric, how to find the center of the fabric and the pattern, how to use a hoop and get your embroidery floss ready, where and how to start stitching, full and partial stitches and more.

I feel like a lot of the stuff I share over here assumes basic knowledge of cross stitch, but I know that’s not always the case and we want to be welcoming to stitchers of all skill levels. If we’re being honest I’m not all that advanced myself, but I am (very slowly) working on a big and super colorful cross stitch pattern for the first time in a long time, which will probably boost my skills pretty quickly.

If you are a beginner and you have a question I haven’t answered, drop a comment here. Or if you’re a more seasoned stitcher and you have a tip or notice something that I didn’t cover, let me know that, too! We’re all learning here together and sharing the joy of stitching.

You can check out my learn to cross stitch post here. Happy stitching!

Learn to Cross Stitch in Minutes

How to Cross Stitch on Linen

Next Pattern:

Book Review: Customize Your Cross Stitch

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Colorful Christmas Tree Cross Stitch Patterns

There’s no rule that says Christmas trees in real life have to be green, and there’s no rule in cross stitch that Christmas trees have to be green, either. While I love a good traditional looking tree (in reality or in cross stitch) there are lots of fun other choices, which we’ll explore here.

Looking for more Christmas tree cross stitch patterns? Check out this post from last year.

I am going to start with a traditional tree, but this one has a lot of color thanks to the lights and other decorations on it. This one is form xCountingtheStarsx, and it uses 20 colors. Worked on 16 count fabric it comes out to about 5.6 by 9.25 inches, or 14.2 by 23.5 cm, with a stitch count of 90 by 148.

These fun designs from Catholic Sprouts have traditional tree shapes but are filled with fun patterns and colors. These would be fun to stitch as a set or you can make each of them and give them as gifts to different people or use as holiday cards.

The Christmas tree shape is a little less literal in this swooping design from Well Stitches. I like this one because it only uses one color so it’s great for beginners, but it still looks dramatic. It is 109 by 155 stitches, which comes out to 7.99 by 11.07 inches, or 19.78 by 28.12 cm on 14 count fabric (dimensions for other counts are also included if you want to make it smaller).

And if you want to go for all color, check out the Merry and Bright Christmas tree cross stitch pattern from Tapestry Barn. This pretty skinny tree is surrounded by multicolored snowflakes. The designs on the tree remind me of knitting patterns. And even though it’s lots of colors, it’s only worked with whole stitches and no back stitching. It looks lovely on dark fabric! The piece measures about 7 by 7 inches, or 18 by 18 cm, on 14 count fabric.

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