Designer Spotlight: Natalka Studio

Natalka Studio is an Etsy shop based in Ukraine with a wide variety of cross stitch designs, including realistic, detailed designs with women doing various things, holiday patterns, geometrics and more.

One of the biggest categories in the shop is called girl cross stitch, which features detailed designs of women with flowing hair doing things like drinking coffee, dancing and carrying flowers. There are seasonal projects in this category as well as a couple having to do with hobbies.

I like the knitting one, of course, and almost shared the sewing one as the featured pattern above until I realized the thread is coming off a cone on the floor and there’s no pedal for running the machine.

The one I am sharing here isn’t actually in that category but it is really cute. Little Girl with Watermelon uses 21 colors and measures 73 by 73 stitches. That’s 5.21 inches or 13.3 cm square if you work it on 14 count fabric. I love her messy hair and the little dress and matching bows. You could also change the colors if you have a little girl who isn’t as into pink (or doesn’t have brown hair).

The largest category on the page is animals, and there you will find wild animals like monkeys, pandas and sloths; ocean creatures such as rays, an octopus and a blue tang fish; frogs, dogs and geese, among others.

There are also a lot of Christmas cross stitch patterns, which include a lot of traditional motifs and some more whimsical themes. I like this one of Santa resting by the fire with his boots off.

In addition to all these you’ll find pretty flowers, a bunch of mostly floral bookmarks, a whole big set of patterns with lemons, and a lot more. The fruits and berries section (if you like fruits other than lemons) would be perfect for decorating your kitchen or breakfast area.

Check out all the great patterns they have to offer at Natalka Studio on Etsy.

[Photo: Natalka Studio]

I don’t know why a vintage red truck with a Christmas tree in the back became an iconic Christmas cross stitch pattern, but you might be surprised by how many of them I found. Let’s take a look at a few Christmas truck cross stitch patterns.

I started with this free cross stitch pattern from Ugly Duckling House, which also has a wreath on the front of the truck for extra holiday cuteness. The design uses 16 colors and is 46 by 49 stitches. On 14 count fabric it comes out to about 3.3 by 3.5 inches, or 8.3 by 8.9 cm. You can grab that pattern when you enter your email address on the website.

DMC takes it to another level with the tree being tied to the top of the truck, which is driving past a mountain stitched in the background. This one is also a free pattern, and the listing doesn’t give a ton of information, but it is pretty.

Another one in a similar vein is this design from Actually Makeable, which has the tree tied in the back of the truck, which has a bit of snow on it, and there are snowy trees and a shape in the background that could be a cloud or a mountain. It measures 126 by 51 stitches and uses 17 colors. On 14 count fabric it will be 9 by 3.6 inches, or 23 by 9 cm. The back stitching is optional but does help to define the design.

The watercolor look of this one from Ethno Ua Stitch is so pretty, but it uses 37 colors to get that painterly effect. The design is 138 by 165 stitches, and it includes full cross stitches and back stitching.

If you’re looking for an easier option, this one from Etamine Patterns looks pretty straightforward. I love how the tree almost looks like an applique. It uses six colors and is 109 by 120 stitches.

Laser Art Designs has another version with a giant tree in the back of the truck and the words Merry Christmas at the bottom (which you could of course leave off if you want). This design uses four colors and comes out to 8.3 by 5.7 inches, or 20.9 by 14.4 cm, when stitched on 14 count fabric.

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