Ultimate Cross Stitch Christmas - UK (2019-10)

(Antfer) #1

Beginner’s guide


How to...


All the guidance you need for cross stitch success!


With technical editor,


Fiona Baker


Fabrics


You’ll need either aida or evenweave for your design:


Aida


Great for: Beginners, as it has regular woven blocks and


obvious holes. Aida is stiffer than evenweave so keeps


its shape better. 14-count is the most common.


Bad for: Fractional stitches. If you stitch a design with


fractional stitches on aida, you’ll have to make an extra


hole in the fabric, using a sharp needle.


Evenweave


Great for: Fractional stitches and a neat finish. This fabric


is softer than aida, with a finer weave and more threads


per inch – 28-count is the most common. On evenweave,


you work a cross stitch over two threads of the fabric, so


you have a central hole spare for your fractional stitches.


Bad for: Beginners. It’s best to start on aida and work up


to evenweave when you’re confident.


Quick-start


cross stitch


Choose your project...


Make sure you choose the right level for you – you’ll find this


information in the Factbox on each of our projects. Absolute


beginners should choose a design without fractional stitches.


Buy your materials...


The You Will Need list on each project will tell you what size


and type of fabric you need, and also which needle to use


(see the table below for more information on needle sizes).


You’ll find details of the threads you need in the key.


Get ready...


We recommend always starting from the middle of the


design. Follow the two heavy ’P’ gridlines on the chart and


find a symbol near the centre. Look for this symbol on the key


for the colour of thread you need, plus the number of strands.


Thread your needle with this colour.


Get set...


Fold your fabric in half horizontally and vertically to find


the centre of that as well. The folds will make a cross, which


corresponds to the cross at the centre of your chart.


Get stitching!


Make your first stitch. Leave a thread tail of 4cm (2in) on the


back of the fabric, and catch it under your stitches to secure


it. We recommend finishing all the cross stitch in your design


before you work the backstitch or add any French knots. Have


a look at the diagrams opposite to see how to tackle all of


these stitches.


Needles


Tapestry needles are blunt-ended


so that they can pass easily


between the threads of the aida


and evenweave. They come in


various thicknesses, which are


suitable for certain fabrics. Refer


to the chart on the right to work


out which needle to choose.


When stitching fractionals on


aida (see far right), a sharp-ended


embroidery needle can be used


to split the fabric blocks.


With just a few essentials, you’ll be


all set to stitch straightaway...


Yo u r m a t e r i a l s


6-count


8-count


11-count


14-count


16-count


18-count


22, 25 & 27-count


28-count


32-count*


36 & 55-count


Tapestry needle Aida Evenweave


22 26 *Also includes 22-count Hardanger


Threads


Stranded cotton


This coloured thread comes in 8m skeins


and can be divided into six strands.


Usually, you use two strands together for


cross stitch, and one strand on its own for


backstitch. There are three main brands


of stranded cotton – DMC, Anchor and


Madeira – all of which are smooth and easy


to stitch with, and also colourfast to 95°C.


Cheaper brands are available, but these will


be less durable and may not be colourfast.


Aida (left) is stiffer than


evenweave (below), and


has more obvious holes

Free download pdf