How to read a cross-stitch pattern

The four things on every chart

• The grid. One square, one stitch. Empty squares are fabric left bare.
• The symbols. Each distinct symbol is one thread colour. They exist so the chart still works photocopied, printed in black and white, or read by someone who sees colour differently.
• The heavy lines. Every tenth line is drawn darker, so you can count in tens instead of one square at a time. The numbers down the side and along the top are the same idea.
• The centre marks. Small arrows or ticks halfway along each edge. Where they cross is the middle of the design.

Start in the middle

Fold your fabric in half one way and then the other, and pinch or tack the fold lines. Where they cross is the centre of your fabric. Match that to the centre of the chart and start there.

It feels strange to begin in the middle of a picture rather than at a corner, but it is the only way to guarantee the design ends up centred with even margins. Starting from a corner and counting across is how people discover, forty hours in, that the top of the design runs off the fabric.

Keeping your place

• Work one colour across a small area rather than chasing a single colour all over the chart. Long jumps on the back show through pale fabric and waste thread.
• Cross every stitch the same way — all bottom-left to top-right first, then all the other way. It is what makes finished work look even.
• Mark off what you have done. A printed chart and a pencil work fine. So does a highlighter, as long as you can still read the symbol underneath.
• Count from the heavy lines, not from your last stitch. Errors compound if you count from a stitch that was already one square out.

Charts that span several sheets

Any design too big to print at a readable size gets split across sheets. Each sheet says which columns and rows it covers — the row and column numbers are continuous across the whole design, so sheet 2 might start at column 45 rather than at 1.

You do not have to tape them together. Most people work one sheet at a time and use the row and column numbers to pick up where they left off. If you do want the whole thing in front of you, the cover of every pattern from The X Stitch Room has a small map showing how the sheets tile.

The legend and the thread list

The legend is the lookup: symbol, DMC number, colour name. The thread list is the shopping list: the same colours with how many stitches each one does and how many skeins to buy.

Take the thread list to the shop and leave the chart at home. It is the page with the numbers on it, and shop staff can find any DMC colour from its number in seconds.

Common questions

What do the symbols on a cross-stitch pattern mean?

Each symbol stands for one thread colour. The legend maps every symbol to its DMC number. Symbols are used rather than colour alone so the chart still works in black and white.

Where do I start a cross-stitch pattern?

At the centre. Fold the fabric in half twice to find its middle, match it to the centre marks on the chart, and work outwards.

What do the darker lines every ten squares mean?

They are counting guides. Every tenth grid line is drawn heavier so you can count in tens rather than square by square, which is both faster and much less error-prone.

How do I join pattern pages together?

You usually do not need to. Each sheet states the columns and rows it covers, and the numbering runs continuously across the whole design, so you can work sheet by sheet.

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