Poppy Cross Stitch Patterns for Anzac Day

Anzac Day is marked each year on April 25 as a reminder of the battle of Gallipoli, a conflict against the Ottoman Turks in 1915 that resulted in the deaths of more than 8,000 Australian soldiers. Anzac is a nickname for the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps, and the day serves as a memorial for all Australians killed in military operations (similar to Memorial Day or Remembrance Day in other parts of the world).

As is traditional in some other countries, poppies are used as a symbol of remembrance, and there are many lovely poppy cross stitch patterns, whether specific to Anzac Day or otherwise, that would be meaningful to stitch for this day.

This Anzac Day cross stitch pattern from String Theory by McG features poppies, a kangaroo and a kiwi.

Stitch the Anzac Ode with a bugle player in a field of poppies with this design from Paddock Lane Designs. It measures 251 by 350 stitches, which comes out to 15.7 by 21.4 inches/39.8 by 54.4 cm on 16 count fabric.

More generally, PDFSTGStitchUK has a Lest we Forget design with a soldier in front of a cross with poppies. It measures 140 by 138 stitches so it’s almost 10 inches/25.5 cm square when stitched on 14 count fabric.

There’s also a Lest we Forget bookmark with a similar design from Purple Pansy XS. It comes out to 1.7 by 7 inches/4.3 by 17.8 cm on 16 count fabric. It uses full and three-quarter stitches as well as backstitching details.

This pretty poppy would be another good one to stitch for Anzac Day or Remembrance Day. It’s from Honeyeater Crafts and measures 119 by 220 stitches and uses 18 colors. Using 14 count fabric it comes out to 8.5 by 15.7 inches, or 21.6 by 39.9 cm.

If you’re looking for more poppies, I’ve collected some poppy cross stitch patterns before, and this one was shared by itself but it’s still really pretty, with a bit of a watercolor feel, and worth sharing again.

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Scandinavian Heart Cross Stitch Pattern

If you like repeating cross stitch designs, borders you can use on other projects or as bookmarks, florals and Japanese-inspired designs, you’ll want to check out 200 Japanese Cross Stitch Designs by Saeko Endo. This collection of 200 cross stitch charts is low on instruction but big on inspiration for those who are comfortable taking a chart and running with it.

The book includes a brief introduction to the needed supplies and basics of stitching, but mostly is just photographs of finished designs and the charts that go with them. The charts vary widely in size and there can be anywhere from one to six charts printed on a single page.

Many of the designs are repeating patterns, but the chart shows a larger version so you can see how the repeats go together. Each chart has marked what portion is repeating and how many stitches and rows it includes. Other than that the charts are not numbered, but there are darker lines every five rows to help you count.

The patterns all range from one to three colors, and some include half cross stitches or back stitching, but most are full stitches.

The book is arranged into categories of motifs: geometric patterns, retro patterns, traditional Japanese patterns, floral and fauna and borders and pictorial motifs.

My favorites are the Japanese designs, many of which are recognizable from woodcuts, kimono designs and traditional shashiko embroidery. You’ll find cherry blossoms, suns, knots, and simple line designs that would be lots of fun to stitch.

There are a few pages devoted to different ways to modify charts such as changing colors, changing the way to design is repeated, flipping and rotating designs.

Other than that you’re on your own for how you actually want to use these designs. Of course they can just be stitched and framed but it might have been nice to see some of the projects stitched and staged in a way you might use them in everyday life (repeating motifs as coasters, or a bigger design turned into a pillow, for example).

Sometimes it helps to see designs used in different ways to get you thinking about how you might use them yourself. If you don’t need that creative push, this is a fine book full of patterns you’ll have fun playing with in different ways.

About the book: 112 pages, paperback, 200 patterns. Published 2025 by David & Charles. Suggested retail price $24.99.

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