Biscornu Cross Stitch Patterns

I’m always looking for different kinds of patterns to share with you all so I thought today it would be fun to dive into the world of biscornu cross stitch patterns.

If you’ve never heard of biscornu, or you’ve heard the word but don’t know what it means, it’s a pincushion that is stuffed and shaped out of two pieces of fabric (you could make them with sewing fabric, too, but they are popular as a cross stitch project). The finished design has five points and has a dent in the middle that might be embellished with a bead or button.

To me they kind of look like bagels.

If you want to try your hand at some biscornu, check out these patterns.

I love this selection of Nordic design biscornu cross stitch patterns from itaseCabinet. The pattern includes 12 different Scandinavian designs like classic stars and snowflakes. I love the white on red but you can use whatever colors you like. These all measure 40 by 40 stitches.

Atelier Pin and Needle has another cute Nordic designs with stars and geometric patterns. This one is 63 by 63 stitches and uses five colors.

The floral design on this one from Embroidery by Olga is really pretty and I love the sort of fall-like colors, though of course you can use whatever you like. It measures 65 by 65 stitches and I think it uses five colors.

The interlocking rainbow design on this one from Fireplace Hobby isn’t traditional but it is really pretty. It uses six colors (choose pastels or more saturated colors as you like) and measures 63 by 63 stitches.

The strawberry garden design from Pansies Stitch is 58 by 58 stitches and uses five colors. There are different designs for the top and bottom, and the listing also shows it worked on different colors (I love the pink background!). This shop has a lot of different biscornu cross stitch patterns if you want to browse.

Or you can make a biscornu for every month of the year with this set of patterns from Stitching Elf Store (just a few are shown here). These are 55 by 55 stitches and call for between 5 and 8 colors, depending on the design.

Several of these patterns note they don’t include assembly instructions, so if you need help with that, check out this video from Tiny Modernist.

Everything you want to know about biscornu [Needle Work]

Free Biscornu Embroidery Patterns and Charts to Stitch [Needle Work]

I was recently approached by Alyssa, the cross stitcher behind the Etsy shop Stitchonomy, to take a look at her cross stitch pattern subscription club, known as The Pattern Club.

I took a look around and there’s a lot of cute stuff and fun options you’ll want to check out, especially if you love themed patterns that are small, easy to stitch and fun to combine.

The Pattern Club combines cross stitching with a social network. When you open the site you’ll see a news feed and have the ability to share updates much like you would on Facebook. You can see who is online, have buddies and post your own updates and photos. The community aspect is a little sparse right now but that should only grow.

The stitch along hub is the place to find the most recent patterns and information on the current stitchalong. As of this writing the Book Lover’s stitchalong was happening, with little designs like Peter Rabbit, a skull for Hamlet and keys for Jane Eyre as well as authors including Arthur Conan Doyle, Charles Dickens and Jane Austen.

Other pattern collections include European designs, Halloween, ocean life, an allotment garden and more. Alyssa tells me there’s a new theme every month that either she picks or members in the community suggest. You can stitch just the patterns you want or put them together to make a larger collage.

The Stitchanomini vault gives you access to all of the previous patterns, and new patterns are released daily through the stitchalong. You can download individual patterns (most of them are 19 by 19 stitches) as PDFs or Pattern Keeper files. The PDFs include a color and black and white chart as well as a floss list.

Another cool thing you can do is build your own pattern collages from all of the squares that have been released. The collage configurator allows you to add patterns of your choosing to a grid ranging from 2×2 patterns up to 4×4. You can scroll through all the current patterns or search by theme and size to make a project that suits your needs. (Above is an example I made kind of at random but you get the idea.)

If you want to check it out, you can grab a three-day free trial and see all the pattern options. Membership is $7.99 a month, or if you pay for a year at a time you’ll get two months free. In addition to the patterns in the club, members receive discounts on patterns and supplies purchased through the shop within the club. Annual members get access to three paid/retired stitchalongs and lifetime members receive all retired patterns.

If you check it out I’d love to hear what you think!

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