Craft Blog

Cross stitching is a popular hobby today for people of all ages and involves creating intricate pictures, initials, or designs on special fabrics, pillows, blankets, linens, and many other things.

Cross stitching also requires patterns. Many of these patterns you can purchase in kits from fabric or craft stores, but you can also find free cross stitch patterns if you know where to look.

The following are just a few places you can get free cross stitch patterns:

The internet

The internet is perhaps the greatest resource for free cross stitch patterns. Simply type in “cross stitch patterns” into a search engine and a number of links for free patterns will come up. The patterns online include a pattern to print off, as well as instructions that tell you what type of fabric and thread colors to use. Some sites that have free cross stitch patterns include:
• www.crosstitch.about.com This website has several free cross stitch patterns, most of which are simple sayings and phrases. These are good patterns for beginners who are just learning to cross stitch.
• www.alitadesigns.com This site has over 50 free cross stitch patterns in a number of different categories, including Birds and Animals, Kids, Floral, and Religious, among others. These patterns are better for more advanced or intermediate levels of cross stitch, as they are larger and more detailed than other free patterns, such as those on about.com.
• www.crosstitch.com This website also has several patterns for you to download and try for free, of varying degrees of difficulty. If you like the patterns, you can subscribe to the site and download more patterns for a nominal fee.
• www.freepatternsonline.com The website’s name is pretty self explanatory, but this site offers free patterns in a variety of different subjects. Free patterns include alphabets, baby patterns, borders, a wide variety of phrases and sayings, college logos, holiday motifs including Halloween, the 4th of July, and Christmas, and a number of other easy patterns that are good for beginners.

Form a sewing club

If you know of other people who enjoy cross stitching, consider forming a club in which you share and swap patterns with each other. You can do this by asking around if your friends would be interested in starting a group. Or, you can see if you can join a local sewing club. Contact your local library, which often has groups such as these, civic center, or continuing education center in your area. If there are no cross stitch or embroidery groups available, advertise your own.

Go to the library

Your local library will have dozens of cross stitch books you can check out and use patterns from. These books have a wide variety of patterns in a number of different skill levels, from samplers to pillows to baby blankets to wall hangings. Check the copyright laws first to make sure it’s alright to copy them before, though.

Cross stitching is a fun hobby that can provide hours of enjoyment, as well as functional and beautiful items you can pass down for generations. You can create your own patterns once you get the hang of cross-stitching. In the beginning, however, it’s not a bad idea to find cross stitch patterns for free, which you can do from a number of websites, from books, or from sewing clubs.

Cross stitching is a hobby people all across the world enjoy. Most people begin cross stitching by learning simple designs on counted cross stitch sheets. While these can be obtained fairly inexpensively, more elaborate cross stitch designs can be costly.

However, you can find free cross stitch designs from a number of places. The following are a few ways to get free cross stitch designs:

Cross stitching groups and clubs

If you don’t belong to a cross stitch group, it may be a good idea to consider joining one for free designs. Many times, members of the clubs will swap their cross stitch designs, so instead of spending $50 or more on one design, you can freely trade with the other members of your group. In many cases, you can even learn how to design your own. 

There are a number of places you can go to find free cross stitch designs. Contact your local library, which often has groups such as these, civic center, or continuing education center in your area and ask about classes and costs if any.

If there are no cross stitch or embroidery groups available, advertise your own or tell your friends who also cross stitch that you’d like to start one.

Online

The internet is actually a very good resource for free cross stitch designs. Often, you can download these for free by simply putting your email address on a list or by opening up a free account with the site. The following are a few internet sites where you can find free patterns:

• www.alitadesigns.com This site has over 50 free cross stitch patterns in a number of different categories, including Birds and Animals, Kids, Floral, and Religious, among others. These patterns are better for more advanced or intermediate levels of cross stitch, as they are larger and more detailed than other free patterns, such as those on about.com.
• www.crosstitch.com This website also has several patterns for you to download and try for free, of varying degrees of difficulty. If you like the patterns, you can subscribe to the site and download more patterns for a nominal fee.
• www.freepatternsonline.com The website’s name is pretty self explanatory, but this site offers free patterns in a variety of different subjects. Free patterns include alphabets, baby patterns, borders, a wide variety of phrases and sayings, college logos, holiday motifs including Halloween, the 4th of July, and Christmas, and a number of other easy patterns that are good for beginners.
• www.crossstitchconnection.com Another good site for free designs, this website has a number of helpful hints and tips for cross stitch enthusiasts as well as a number of free designs, such as animals, floral designs, holiday patterns, and others. If you decide you like them, you can also subscribe to the site for a nominal fee and have access to more.

Make your own

One way to get free cross stitch designs is to design your own. As you become more and more familiar with cross stitching techniques and patterns, you can begin to design your own favorite patterns and designs. This technique is original and free.

If you love to cross stitch, there’s no need to break the bank on designs. There are plenty of resources available that offer cross stitch designs for free.

Machine embroidery is a rewarding and popular pastime that allows enthusiasts to create beautiful designs and heirlooms. Machine embroidery relies on software and other computerized controls to do the work.

Because machine embroidery is different than regular embroidery, there are a few things you will want to keep in mind before you begin machine embroidery.

Pick the right machine.

The right machine will be crucial to the success of your machine embroidery projects. Before purchasing machines, do your research. Get recommendations from friends and talk to dealers about the type of embroidery you will be doing and have them help you pick a quality machine that will serve your purposes. Consider the following tips when deciding on a machine:

• Hoop size. Because embroidery designs come in different sizes, it’s important to understand that your designs will be limited if you choose a smaller hope size. Also, be sure to check the sewing field, which is the area inside the machine’s hoop where the design is sewn.

• Format of the machine. The format of your machine is important because it will determine the type of embroidery design you will be able to sew, as different formats are available for different types of designs. Software is available for converting some formats, so do your research first before purchasing an expensive machine and then finding out you have to buy software as well.

• Hardware requirements. If you want to connect your computer and embroidery machine together, make sure your computer is compatible with the machine and has the necessary amount of RAM.

• Warranty and service. Don’t purchase a machine until you have read the warranty and are familiar with the store’s return policy. Sometimes, the parts have a shorter warranty than the machine itself, so be sure you’re familiar with the entire thing. In addition, make sure your dealer has the capabilities to service your machine should it need it.

Make sure you try your embroidery machine out before you purchase it. You should be comfortable with the placement of the screen and controls. If it looks confusing to you, consider purchasing a more simplified machine, or see if the store offers any type of classes or tutorials.

How to do machine embroidery

Machine embroidery is a complicated process, and once you have your machine you can begin. The basics of a machine embroidery design are as follows:

• Choose the embroidery design you want to sew, and then transfer the design to the embroidery machine.

• Set up the machine for embroidery, making sure that you have the right amount of thread on your bobbin for the design you have chosen.

• Check your needle and insert a new one if necessary

• Select your thread colors for the design. The better the quality of the thread, the longer your design will hold up and resist fading.

• Choose your stabilizers and fabric to embroider on.

• Next, prepare your hoop with the stabilizer and fabric. Make sure the hoop is tight.

• Lock the thread by making a few stitches in place.

• Next, stitch out the design on your pattern.

• After each color, you should stop the design and trim the jump threads. This is easier to do than waiting until the end to trim them all.
Finally, remove excess stabilizer and you are finished.

Counted cross stitch is a popular hobby for needlework enthusiasts all over the world. Using special cloth and embroidery floss, you can create a number of beautiful designs.

If you’re interested in counted cross stitch, the following are a few tips for counting your cross stitch:

Pick your fabric.
Before you can begin to cross stitch, you first need to have the fabric picked out. There are many fabrics to choose from, but the best to work with, especially if you’re just learning how to cross stitch, is called Aida 14, which allows for the stitched per inch. Aida cloth comes in a variety of other sizes, including 11, 16, 18, and 22. For beginners and most patterns, 14 works best. Your pattern will tell you how much fabric you should use. You will also need an embroidery hoop to hold the fabric taut.

Find the center of the fabric.

Counted cross stitch, as shown on your pattern, begins from the middle and works its way out. To find the middle of your pattern, fold it into fourths, and then open the fabric and find the two creases that indicate the center of the fabric.

Begin to stitch. You won’t need to use a knot when you begin or end, since they will show up on the back (the sign of “good” cross stitch is stitching that looks the same on the front and the back, but if you find it is easier to work with a knot in the beginning, go ahead.). Instead, leave about an inch of floss on the bottom of the fabric. Once you have stitched for awhile, you can clip off the excess thread and the pattern will still hold.
There are two main ways to stitch with counted cross stitch when stitching the X’s that make up the design. You can sew a row of half stitches (////), then work back (\\\\) to make the X design. This is the best way for most stitching. The second method is to complete each X as you go. If you are making vertical rows of stitches, this is the way to go.

Counting cross stitch
Counting your cross stitch is simply a matter of counting from the center of your fabric and matching it to the pattern you’re using.  The following tips will help you to count your cross stitch:

• Use a highlighter or pencil to mark off the symbols on the chart as you finish the stitches on the charts. You can do this in a number of ways, either in sections or each stitch or two if you’re just beginning.
• Laminate the chart and use a dry erase pen to cross off the pattern as you complete it. You can wipe the chart clean with a paper towel when you are through, but be careful not to get the ink against your project.
• Use Post-It notes to mark your spots. They are easy to move and will not leave marks on your fabric.
• Count twice. You can keep better track of your count by counting from two different locations and meeting in the center.

Doing counted cross stitch may seem a little daunting at first, but it’s actually quite easy once you learn to count your cross stitch. There are a wide variety of tips and tricks you can use to keep track of your stitches.

Embroidery is a popular pastime for many people. Dating back to the ancient Egyptians and even further, it involves decorating fabrics and other types of material with thread. Designs can be as simple as initials, or as intricate and complicated as wall hangings.

When it comes to embroidery, there’s virtually no limit to the items you can embroider. But if you have recently taken up embroidery, the following 5 items are things you should try your hand at embroidering. When you’re finished, you will have useful items that are beautiful to look at as well as functional.

1. Baby items. Some of the most commonly embroidered items are baby things. Blankets, bibs, and socks are perfect for embroidery and make lasting and appreciated gifts. Most people will embroider the baby’s name on the item, and many times the date of birth and other identifying information, such as weight and length. You can embroider on most types of fabric.

2. Handkerchiefs. Handkerchiefs are other commonly embroidered items. Many people who begin embroidery will actually begin on handkerchiefs to practice. Typically, you would embroider a person’s initials on a handkerchief, but you could also do a full name or intricate border.      

3. Linens. Pillowcases, pillows, and tablecloths are also good items to embroider. These items you can get really creative with. Simple flowers, initials, or sayings are good things to embroider onto pillows and linens. Embroidering linens is also a good gift idea. Embroidered tablecloths and napkins with the bride and groom’s initials are also increasingly popular in weddings.

4. Towels. Towels are a great thing to embroider. They are easy and typically involve initials, so they can easily be kept tracked of. More intricate embroidery can be reserved for decorative towels. Kids will also enjoy seeing their names on their towels as well.

5. Clothing. Clothing can be a little more difficult to embroider, but personalizing clothing is something you will probably want embroider eventually. You can embroider a name, initials, or even a design across shirts, sweatshirts, socks, and other item of clothing.

If you want to embroider some of these items but don’t know how, consider taking some classes to learn. You can learn to embroider by classes offered at local civic centers, continuing education centers of your local college, or from craft stores. These classes will cover the basics and fundamentals of embroidery, and you will most likely try your newly acquired skill on a few of the above-mentioned items.

You can also teach yourself to embroider through books and tutorials. You can find these in any craft store or in the library. If you want to embroider more than initials, you can find a number of patterns of varying degrees of difficulty online or in books at craft and fabric stores.

Machine embroidery is another way to embroider and personalize your items. It is a much different way to embroider and relies on software and other computerized controls to do the work. Many embroidery enthusiasts eventually turn to machine embroidery.

Embroidery is a great hobby that will provide lasting heirlooms for family members and loved ones, whether it’s a baby blanket, handkerchief, or pillows, as well as enjoyment for you. Anyone who wants to learn embroidery can do so through classes provided in your community or through step-by-step books and patterns that can teach the basics.