How to Grid Cross Stitch Fabric

I’ve started (just barely, as you can see) a relatively big/complicated cross stitch project (the Baba Yaga house from Happy Little Mouse I told you about a while ago) and I knew that for this project I was going to need a little help keeping track of where I was and what I needed to do next.

Adding grids to your cross stitch fabric is a quick and easy way to help yourself when you’re working on a big project. Your chart will have grids marking off every 10 stitches and every 10 rows, so having those same markings on your fabric can only make it easier for you to follow along.

There are a few main ways to do this, which include marking the grid with thread (either embroidery floss, sewing thread, thread marketed for this purpose, or even fishing line!) or using fabric marking tools to draw the grid. Using a ruler when you do this helps a lot. Mine are still not that straight.

You can also buy cross stitch fabric that’s already marked, which of course makes it a lot easier, but it’s kind of expensive.

When marking your fabric it helps to know where the center of your fabric is, as well as where the center of the chart is relative to the grid marks so you can line them up.

This makes it a lot easier to orient yourself in the chart, and if you have a lot of one color all together it can make it easier to count stitches. Say you had 23 stitches in a row of the same color; stitching across two squares plus three stitches is a lot easier to keep track of than having to manually count them as you go.

Want to learn more about gridding cross stitch fabric and why you would want to? Check out my post all about ways to grid cross stitch fabric over at Our Daily Craft.

[Photo: Our Daily Craft]

The two largest categories in And Wabi Sabi’s online shop are funny and relatable quotes and whimsical animals, which I think tells you about all you need to know as to whether this cross stitch designer is for you. But if those things sound like things you want to stitch, let’s take a closer look.

The quotes section includes a lot of things we see presented in cross stitch regularly (like “but did you die” or “have a nice poop”) with some twists like “live laugh leave by nine” and “this home is built on love and profanity.” If you like your stitching with a classic look but a snarky tone, this is a section you’ll want to scroll through.

Likewise whimsical animals gives us silly geese, funny dogs, adorable jungle animals and an otter in a teacup. Because why not? (There’s also a frog, bunny and a dog in teacups if you’d rather.)

This design uses 12 colors and is 47 by 53 stitches. On 14 count fabric it measures 3.07 by 3.5 inches, or 7.8 by 8.89 cm. It’s rated for beginners but it does use back stitch in addition to whole cross stitches.

There are also holiday patterns, for Christmas and Halloween, which tend to the cute side, such as a ghost in a pastel pumpkin patch of a smiling Christmas pudding.

Another big category is nature and cottagecore, where you’ll find a monstera, some puffy whit clouds, a rainbow and a bunch of floral designs, to name a few. The food and drinks section includes cute fruits and other foods, as well as kawaii food and drink labeled as for emotional support, such as the emotional support pickle.

You’ll also find a miscellany of some cute Korean designs, household items, whimsical cityscapes and more. Pattern bundles cover strawberries, animals in bathtubs or teacups, emotional support foods and snarky office humor. There’s also a handful of customizable patterns for wedding announcements.

Check out all the cuteness at And Wabi Sabi on Etsy.

[Photo: And Wabi Sabi]

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