Make Tiny Cross Stitch Magnets

I’ve been trying to come up with some different ways to use cross stitch this year, and one of the things I wanted to try was making cross stitch magnets.

I had the idea to use bottle caps as the base for the magnets because I’ve made a few magnets of that size before. Also we happen to have a lot of those little button magnets, which are the perfect size to go on the back of a bottle cap so you can’t see it on the other side.

I figure out that you get a space of about 10 by 10 stitches using 14 count fabric, which is plenty of space for a tiny bit of cross stitch. If you have any minis that little you can use whatever design you like, or grab some graph paper and design your own.

In the blog post linked below I also have a few simple designs I used on mine, including a heart, star, smiley face and square. You could stitch out an initial (or do the whole alphabet to make your own alphabet magnets amazingly adorable), make emojis, tiny flowers, whatever you like.

Check out this post on mini Christmas cross stitch patterns or this one on Easter minis for more ideas of things that might fit in a tiny space.

Each one of these takes just a few minutes to make and they’re a great handmade addition to your magnet board or fridge.

You can get the full photo tutorial over at Our Daily Craft. There’s also a video that walks you through the entire process if you need or want more details.

Would you make mini cross stitch magnets? What sort of tiny design would you like to stitch on one of these little projects? Or how else would you make a magnet that incorporates cross stitch? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

I came across a post recently from Lord Libidan wondering about where all the good cross stitch alphabets have gone. While you can find lots of fonts on Etsy (and I even shared a few good cross stitch fonts recently) it can be difficult to know exactly what you’re getting when you buy a pattern for an alphabet online. You might find just what you want but it’s the wrong size, or maybe everything is plain and you want something fancier.

One option is to hit up your local library for cross stitch books. If you’re looking for large, fancy lettering to use as a stand alone for projects, I found Felicity Hall’s Stitch Alphabets & Numbers on the shelves at my local library.

This book includes lots of guidance in terms of materials, how to stitch and ways to use lettered projects, from simple framing to making alphabet blocks, pillows and a stretched canvas.

There are three sets of letters and three sets of numbers in this book. The circus letters are colorful and include circles and other details inside the letters that make some of them look like faces. They come in a variety of widths but are all 80 stitches high (making them 5.7 inches, or 14.5 cm tall on 14 count fabric.

Woodblock letters vary from a straightforward, blocky H to a G that looks like a fish tail, and they’re designed to have details in the background. There are all 80 by 80 stitches. Shadow letters are blocky with a drop shadow in a color; they vary in width but are 55 stitches tall. All the letter fonts also include an ampersand.

The number fonts include screen print numbers, which are worked in two colors that look sort of like printing; vintage numbers, which have flowers inside the numbers that also have a striped shadow; and floral numbers, where the number is a solid color surrounded by flowers and vines. These are all 79 by 80 stitches, while the vintage ones are 55 by 55 and the screen print ones vary in both width and height.

These aren’t the sorts of letters you’d add to another project, but if you want to stitch a single letter, a monogram, a short word or the table numbers for a wedding, this book offers some fun options and nice project ideas for how to use them.

About the book: 128 pages, paperback. Published 2014 by David & Charles. Suggested retail price $24.99.

Have you read?