"The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery" — Mark Van Dorena

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Tips

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Tip: Find the Center

To make it easier to place your stitches, mark the vertical and horizontal center of your pattern and cross stitch fabric. Start and stop the running stitch lines beyond the area that will be covered by the finished pattern.

Draw a dark line on the center vertical and horizontal lines of pattern	Using a contrasting color of sewing thread, sew a running stitch through the rows of holes that will be the vertical and horizontal center of your stitched pattern

• When placing stitches, count along each line from the center to find the exact placement on the fabric.
• The top left corner stitch of the D is 5 up and 5 left from the center cross.
• Start at the center, where the vertical and horizontal lines cross
• Count up the vertical line 5 squares
• Then count left from the vertical line 5 squares

After the piece is completed, you can cut the vertical and horizontal running stitch lines and pull them out of the piece. If you've accidentally split any of the running stitches, carefully cut them out of the piece or pull them to the back where they won't show.

Tip: Find the Stitch Direction

The direction of the top stitch of your cross stitches makes a difference in the look of your finished piece. For a consistent look, the bottom stitch of each X should all be the sewn in the same direction (bottom left to upper right or bottom right to upper left, your choice!)

But as you move the fabric during the sewing, directions change, top becomes bottom, left becomes right.

To keep track of which direction your bottom stitches should go, stitch the direction in one of the corners of the fabric (outside the design area).

This way, no matter how you're holding your fabric, your direction is clear.

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Classes

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• Paula's Cross Stitch Reliquary Bags Materials and Construction -- class handout
• Class prep for my online Beginning Cross Stitch class

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Patterns

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Pattern: Acorn Trim I stitched this trim in a duel for Dreiburgen Arts & Sciences. We agreed to use a pattern 16th Century pattern from Charted Folk Designs for Cross-Stitch Embroidery (#257 on page 67). I've made some modifications to the original pattern, which I've included on the webpage.

Pattern: Celtic Knotwork When I was creating my biscornu class and kit, I tried my hand at creating a Celtic knotwork pattern and was surprised at how well it turned out. After I put it together and started playing with it I realized that it was set up in a way that made it possible to work the pattern in 1, 2, 3, or 4 colors of thread. The Celtic Knotwork Pattern (PDF) is one page, and it includes my take on how to work it in multiple thread colors. The pattern is 3 inches square on 14 count Aida fabric. It can be used as a needlebook cover, biscornu top (with a button in the center of the pattern), decoration for a pouch, or repeated multiple times to make a larger pattern. You can place a letter or other decoration (charm, bead(s), button, motif, etc.) in the center of the pattern. It can also be stitched as part of a larger cross stitch project, or repeated multiple times to make a larger pattern. Enjoy!

Pattern: Caid Cross My local SCA Kingdom group, the Kingdom of Caid (Southern California), uses 4 conjoined crescents as a decorative element. It is called the Caid Cross. This pattern is my version of the Caid Cross. It's simple and easy to stitch. In the picture, only part of the white crescents are stitched. I've done that to show how it looks both with and without stitching the crescents. Both are an option. The Small Caid Cross in a circle Pattern (25 stitches per side) (PDF) has two pages, one with the blue stitches marked, the other one with the white stitches marked. Use whichever one you want, and then fill in the blank sections with the other color. The Medium Caid Cross Pattern (28 stitches per side) (PDF) has two pages, one with the blue stitches marked, the other one with the white stitches marked. Use whichever one you want, and then fill in the blank sections with the other color. The Large Caid Cross Pattern (48 stitches per side) (PDF) has five pages, one with overall pattern, the other four with each of the four quarters of the pattern. The small pattern is 1.75 inches square on 14 count Aida fabric. The medium pattern is 2 inches square on 14 count Aida fabric. The large pattern is 3.4 inches square on 14 count Aida fabric. They can be finished as a patch by folding the unsewn edges underneath and appliqueing it to your coat, bag, cloak, blanket, or whatever. It can be used without applique as a needlebook cover, decoration for a small pouch, or other small work. It can also be stitched as part of a larger cross stitch project, or repeated multiple times to make a larger pattern. Enjoy!

Pattern: Altavia Populace Badge: Fretty My local SCA baronial group, the Barony of Altavia (San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County), has several badges that can be used by member of the populace. The fretty badge: Argent fretty sable, a chief vert was registered on February 2003. The Fretty Badge Pattern (PDF) is stitched with green and black on white fabric, the white sections can be left unstitched or can be stitched in white. The PDF includes 3 different sizes of the pattern as well as size info for working on 11 count, 14 count, and 18 count Aida fabric. It can be finished as a patch by adding stitches to make it a square or leaving as a circle, then folding the unsewn edges underneath and appliqueing or inserting it on to your coat, bag, cloak, tunic, blanket, or whatever. It can be used without applique as a needlebook cover, decoration for a pouch, or other small work. Enjoy!

Pattern: Altavia Populace Badge: Fret My local SCA baronial group, the Barony of Altavia (San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County), has several badges that can be used by member of the populace. The fret badge: Argent, a fret sable and a chief vert, was registered an January 2011. The Fret Badge Pattern (PDF) is stitched with green and black on white fabric, the white sections can be left unstitched or can be stitched in white. The PDF includes 3 different sizes of the pattern as well as size info for working on 11 count, 14 count, and 18 count Aida fabric. It can be finished as a patch by adding stitches to make it a square or leaving as a circle, then folding the unsewn edges underneath and appliqueing or inserting it on to your coat, bag, cloak, tunic, blanket, or whatever. It can be used without applique as a needlebook cover, decoration for a pouch, or other small work. Enjoy!

Pattern: Altavia Sable Fret & Champion Devices My local SCA baronial group, the Barony of Altavia (San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County), has a sable fret as it's main heraldric device. We used to use the sable fret as part of the favors we used to cross stitched for each year's champions. Fret Favor Patterns (PDF) is stitched with green, gray, black, and white. I've included the champion emblems so that they can be used as motifs for other projects. I've also included the whole pattern so that it is available should Altavia choose to you it again, it is available. Enjoy!

Pattern: Dreiburgen Populace Badge The Dreiburgen (San Bernardino and Riverside counties in Southern California) baronial group of the SCA has a white tower in a blue triangle as a badge that can be used by members of the populace. The Tower Badge Pattern can be found at: StitchFiddle.com or as a PDF. The instructions for the project can be found as a PDF. The project was created by Kungund Benehonig for her baronial Arts & Scences class in January of 2021. The pattern is stitched with blue and white, the white sections can be left unstitched (if you used a white fabric) or can be stitched in white. The pattern is about 3 inches across on 18 count Aida fabric. It can be finished as a patch by folding the unsewn edges underneath and appliqueing it to your coat, bag, cloak, tunic, blanket, or whatever. It can be used without applique as a needlebook cover, decoration for a pouch, or other small work. Enjoy!

Patterns: Caidian Barony & Shire Populace Badges Patterns for the populace badges of each of Caid's Baronies and Shires created by Bernadette de Costa Tempestad. She has released them as "free for everyone to use and adjust as they wish". The patterns are 25x25 squares: The finished size is 1.4" on 18 count fabric, 1.8" on 14 count fabric, and 2.3" on 11 count fabric. She has created a color copy of the patterns, a color copy with symbols, and a black and white copy with symbols. All of which are also available in the this PDF. She notes: "The Starkhafn badge is the Registered Levi device, not Populace. The Carreg Wen badge is inspired by the Baronial device, no populace badge is registered yet."

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Links: How To Cross Stitch

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• Craft Designs for You: Learn How to Cross-Stitch
• DMC: What Is Cross Stitch
• DMC: Cross Stitch Quick Start
• DMC: Cross Stitch - Stitch Guide
• Project Sewn: Cross Stitch for Beginners: All You Need to Know!

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Other Links

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• Craft - Needlework (Embroidery, Blackwork, Cross Stitch, etc.) — How-tos, patterns, inspirations, and more!
• Craft - Needlebooks, Pincushions, Sewing Kits, and Such — Cool things to use your cross stitch skills on.

My Cross Stitch Needlebook Kit (for sale)

Buy the Needlebook Kit at Unicorn Fiber Arts

Cross Stitch Needlebook Kit Carry your needles and pins in a convenient and handy needlebook. It includes a loop to keep it handy by hanging it from your chatelaine or other sewing accessory. The soft fabric pages are perfect for holding needles of all sizes. For the organized ones among us, you can write the needle type / size info on each page. Decorate the cover with your initials (chart included) or favorite design! Skill Level: Intermediate Beginner, needs to know how to cross stitch and hand (or machine) sew a running stitch. Kit includes everything you need to create the needlebook: Cross stitch charts: 2 alphabets, 3 borders, and embellishments Fabric and tools: Cross-stitch fabric for needlebook covers Ribbon for needlebook ties Flannel for needlebook pages Embroidery thread and needle for cross stitch Sewing thread and needle for needlebook assembly Instructions for needlebook assembly