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How to Cross Stitch on Clothing

August 15, 2024 by Sarah White

Many, many years ago when I was in 4-H, I remember making a quilt for our leader who was having a baby that included different green and white fabric and we cross stitched the 4-H clover onto some of the squares.

That may have been the last time I used waste canvas to cross stitch onto regular fabric, but it’s such a fun and easy thing to do to add a bit of cross stitch to clothing or other fabric.

I have always loved the idea, for example, of stitching little motifs onto cloth napkins, which would be super easy to do with waste canvas. Maybe writing this post will inspire me to finally do it.

There is a little technique involved in using waste canvas to cross stitch on clothing (as well as removing any evidence of it once the stitching is done), but Thread Bare has a great tutorial with all the details you need to get started stitching on clothing.

Their tutorial shows adding a cross stitch design where you might have a pocket on a T-shirt, but there are lots of other options. I like the idea of using cross stitch as a way to cover a stain if it’s in a place where that would make sense. Or again just adding to fabric for cuteness. You can stitch a border along the edge of a skirt, put a design on an apron, or use it to personalize fabric for a quilt, pillow or other project.

This works on store-bought clothing or things you make yourself, thought it’s a little easier to stitch on lighter weight fabrics. If you’re working with something that stretches, like a T-shirt, you need to be careful you aren’t stretching or puckering the fabric as you go, but otherwise it’s a pretty simple project.

Check out all the details on how to use waste canvas to cross stitch onto fabric at Thread Bare.

[Photo: Thread Bare]

How to Cross Stitch on Linen

How to Cross Stitch on Paper

How to Cross Stitch on Crochet

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Have you read?

Designer Spotlight: Curious Carrie Designs

If you like seasonal samplers and cross stitch patterns with a primitive twist, you’ll enjoy the collection from Curious Carrie Designs.

You’ll find alphabet designs, biscornu, patriotic projects and more. The summer category is the largest on the storefront, with Americana and floral designs. There are also categories for the other seasons and more general designs.

One of my favorites is this pretty sunflower cross stitch pattern, which is shown styled as a biscornu but it wouldn’t have to be. The pattern features sunflowers and bees and a little beehive. It uses 12 colors of floss and each side of the pattern is 51 by 51 stitches, which comes out to 3.64 inches or 9.2 cm square.

I love the fabric she used for the sample, which she actually dyed purple herself, but it would also be pretty on a purchased light blue or other color if you don’t want to dye your own.

There’s also a whole set of themed biscornu with a four letter word on one side (crow, home, love and snow, to name a few) along with a seasonal pattern on the other side.

The shop has a rather small selection at around 90 patterns as of this writing, but it’s a nice collection of traditional looking designs heavy on samplers and biscornu designs, so if those are things you like you’ll want to be sure to check it out. Visit Curious Carrie Designs on Etsy to see all her pretty designs.

Are you a designer or do you have a favorite cross stitch designer who hasn’t made it into the spotlight yet? (You can see all the featured designers in the craft businesses category on the page.) Let me know in the comments, or you can submit more detailed information by clicking on “suggest a craft” at the center top of the page.

[Photo: Curious Carrie Designs]

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