Table of contents for February 2021 in CrossStitcher

Kids-piration! If one of your New Year resolutions was to introduce your little ones to stitching then you’ll love Caterpillar Cross Stitch’s new Junior Stitch Kits range. Featuring Princess Wish, Sparkle Unicorn, Whippy Ice Cream, Ahoy Pirate and Splash Mermaid, the kits are easy to stitch on 8 count aida fabric. Each kit includes aida, needle, DMC stranded cotton (pre-sorted and pre-cut), a Carlos the Caterpillar card thread holder, a large colour chart and easy-to-understand instructions. You can also add to your kit a cotton canvas drawstring storage bag (perfect if giving as a gift) and a 6in Elbesee embroidery hoop. www.caterpillarcrossstitch.com/collections/childrens-cross-stitch-kits BUTTON UP DECORATE YOUR stitched cards and cushions with a fresh look for spring with these sweet buttons from Tilda Fabrics’ new Woodland range – their first collection…

THE GEEKY STITCHING CO'S LITTLE BOOK OF CROSS STITCH JESS PAYNE [Clink Street Publishing] The Geeky Stitching Company’s very own collection of over 30 bestselling designs are in this book as well as seven new patterns. It's available as an ebook or as a paperback. You’ll find cute, modern, designs from rainbows to fluffy animals and fun puns too. If you’d like to learn more of the type of project you’ll get to stitch, then turn straight to page 72 for our exclusive interview with author Jess Payne! SEWING FOR THE ABSOLUTE BEGINNER CAROLINE SMITH [Search Press] A new edition of a classic book, if you’ve ever wished you had the sewing skills to complete your projects as homestyle makes or gifts, this is for you. With 25 exciting projects,…

Cross Stitcher PROJECT PACK If you would like to stitch Hazy Shades of Winter, we have a materials pack with everything you need to get you stitching right away, and have it delivered straight to your door! Your materials pack contains: • Sampedro 14 count aida in White • Skeins of DMC stranded cotton • Two gold-plated tapestry needles; size 24 and size 26 How to order: Fill in the form on page 15 or go to www.willowfabrics.com to order your project pack at the CrossStitcher reader price of £30.75, plus P&P. Stitch count: 180 high x 118 wide Design size: 33x21.5cm (13x8.in) Stitch time: 55 hours This design was stitched on 14 count aida fabric. Materials • Sampedro White 14 count aida; 60x50cm (23½x19½in) • Stranded cotton as listed…

Stitch time: 50 hours; 12. hours Stitch count: 118 high x 89 wide (all 4 seasons); 57 high x 43 wide (individual seasons) Design size: 22x16cm (8.x6.in); 10.5x8cm (4.x3.in) These designswere stitched on 14 count aida fabric. CrossCtitcher PROJECT PACK If you would like to stitch Four Seasons, we have a materials pack with everything you need to get you stitching right away, and have it delivered straight to your door! Your materials pack contains: • Sampedro 14 count aida in White • Skeins of DMC stranded cotton • Two gold-plated tapestry needles; size 24 and size 26 How to order: Fill in the form on page 15 or go to www.willowfabrics.com to order your project pack at the CrossStitcher reader price of £34.50, plus P&P. Stitching your… seasonal houses…

Max. stitch count: 53 high x 40 wide Max. design size: 9.5x7.5cm (3¾x3in) Stitch time: 7 hours each These designs were stitched on 14 count aida fabric. Make an… aperture card Step 1 WORK using two strands of stranded cotton for the cross stitch, and one for the backstitch. Step 2 TRIM the stitched fabric to fit your card, with the design centrally placed behind the card’s aperture. Step 3 ATTACH double-sided tape to the inside of the card around the edge of the aperture. Step 4 PLACE the stitching on the table right-side up, and then place the card on top, pressing down firmly on the tape. Step 5 CHECK which flap will fold onto the back of the stitching, then add strips of double-sided tape and press firmly…

The Geeky Stitching Company is one of a growing band of small UK cross stitch companies that came into being because of a single stitcher’s passion for their hobby. Jess Payne chatted to us about how her favourite pastime became a thriving business… Hi Jess! How long have you been into cross stitching – and what led you to start designing? My mum taught me to stitch when I was around 7 years old but I didn’t pick it up again until my early twenties. The best thing about stitching for me is that its super easy to start and as I’m a bit of a perfectionist it’s also easy to make your design look neat at the end. I couldn’t really find anything online that suited my style (I…

Stitch count: 208 high x 128 wide Design size: 38x24cm (15x9¼in) Stitch time: 110 hours This design was stitched on 14 count aida fabric. THE CHART (PAGE 78) EACH square on the chart represents a single cross stitch. Start from the centre of the design and your fabric. The centre of our charts are indicated by arrows at the designs’ edges. To find your fabric’s centre, fold it in half and into quarters. THE KEY ALL THE symbols that appear on the chart are listed in the key with their corresponding thread codes beside them. The key also tells you the different stitches used in the design. The closest column of thread codes listed next to the chart symbols is the thread brand that’s used in the design. Similar colour…

WHAT IS THE THING we notice most when we look around us? (Please don’t say things that need tidying up!) We reckon it is colour that makes the biggest impression. After all, think how long it takes to decide on the colours to decorate your house. Colour is often so important in our lives. With this in mind, we are very pleased to present another colour swatch design by Emma Congdon (page 18). This time she has brought together the best of winter in colour and patterns. Some will make you want to rush to the kitchen for a mug of hot chocolate, reach for your favourite winter jumper, or just smile because the swatch brings back a favourite memory of the season. What would you add to your set…

“I have two workspaces – one at home and one in my mum’s as I alternate between them. I do the framing and photography at home where the lighting is better and the stitching and packing at my mum’s. It’s easy on the eyes when the space is tidy but once a project is underway, it usually looks like a hurricane has struck! My favourite parts are my collection of flosses and the wall of framed stitching!” Portrait commissions: Facebook/Instagram @lilpinkfactory Malaysian cross-stitch designs: Facebook/Instagram @mirumakes Drop us a line to crosssstitcher@warnersgroup.co.uk with images of your craft space and a few words about it and our favourites could be featured in a future issue!…

Imagine… …having hundreds of quality patterns and over five years of top tips from Cross Stitcher Magazine at your fingertips! All of this for less than 11p a day!! SEE FOR YOURSELF! Go to craftmag.co/EXACTEDITIONSCS to watch our video guide PLUS • Fully searchable library• Never miss a new issue #FOMO• Exclusive access to the cross stitch collection• No risk, no commitment - cancel at anytime Sign up today for only £9.99 a quarter at craftmag.co/EXACTEDITIONSCS…

Better late than never… That is how Mary Jane Watson titled the email she sent to us, as she told us about how lockdown spurred her on to finish a Golden Jubilee sampler she began back in 2002. A prolific stitcher, Mary Jane knew how to update her unfinished sampler to move with the times for a 2020 completion… Mary Jane, from Norwich, was one of many of our readers who took advantage of having to stay at home during lockdown to finish off some stitching projects. She had started our Golden Jubilee sampler 18 years ago and decided now was the time to get it done. “The sampler was about half complete when I got it out,” explains Mary Jane, “with seven motifs completed and about halfway through the…

Cross Stitcher PROJECT PACK If you would like to stitch You’re The Best, we have a materials pack with everything you need to get you stitching right away, and have it delivered straight to your door! Your materials pack contains: • Zweigart 14 count aida in Navy Blue • Skeins of DMC stranded cotton • Two gold-plated tapestry needles; size 24 and size 26 How to order: Fill in the form on page 15 or go to www.willowfabrics.com to order your project pack at the CrossStitcher reader price of £22.50, plus P&P. Materials • Zweigart Navy Blue 14 count aida, ref: 3706/589; 50x46cm (19½x18in) • Stranded cotton as listed in the key • Size 24 tapestry needle • Frame with a 34x24cm (13½x 9½in) aperture • Mount board to fit…

HEATHER HOPKINS I have tried, and enjoyed, doing some blackwork. It surprised me how much I enjoyed it given how I put off the backstitching on most projects. HÉLÈNE BOISGARD Thanks to you, I learned French knots. That’s not easy at beginning, but I tried again and again. Now, it’s better. Thank you so much for your tips! J.M. SNYDER Not really a skill, but I learned to rotate projects – now I have a lot of them going at once instead of just doing them one at a time! JULIE ADAMS I have rediscovered my love of cross stitch during the pandemic, and have quadrupled my normal yearly completion tally! Not only did I tackle fluorescent thread, but I am loving all the coloured and patterned aidas now available.…

Avisit to Denmark and the Odense city museum in my teens, left me fascinated by the the wonderful paper-cuts created by author Hans Christian Anderson. He had cut the paper as he told tales, creating magic with his scissors as well as with his stories. My heart uses the unstitched paper in the same way as the spaces cut in a traditional paper-cut, but I wanted my heart to be 3D and so backed it and suspended it in a card aperture. Working with… perforated paper Step 1 START your thread in this way: Thread your needle with a double-length of stranded cotton, knotting its ends at the back. Hold the knot and make a stitch but when the needle comes back through the paper, slip it through the loop,…

Hullo! I am a huge fan of the Victorian penchant for hidden meanings in, well, almost everything! Like a romantic spymaster, you can say whatever you want and hide it in plain sight – if only you know how to say it (and the recipient knows how to read it!). In this series, we’re going to explore this with a collection of floriography patterns. Flowers have had meaning attributed to them for thousands of years, but the Victorians especially loved the 'Language of Flowers'. Our first pattern is of one of my favourite flowers – the ranunculus. It’s beautiful, boldly coloured and delicate, with numerous petals crowded together kind of like layers of pastry in a croissant… perhaps that why I like it so much. It’s also the name of…

How to… display your stitching WE used a house shaped wooden box frame, which we painted with a grey emulsion match pot and then made a cardboard triangle to fill in the front. The roof and front were then covered in tile paper, normally used for train modelling – both the box and paper are available from online craft and modelling shops. Stitch count: 59 high x 63 wide Design size: 11x11.5cm (4¼x4½in) Stitch time: 6 hours This design was stitched on 28 count linen over two threads of fabric. Materials • Zweigart Antique White 28 count Cashel, ref: 3281/0101; 20x20cm (8x8in) • Stranded cotton as listed in the key • Size 26 tapestry needle • Frame with an 11.5x11.5cm (4½x4½in) aperture Materials available from www.willowfabrics.com ZOË SAYS… “Everyone knows…

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK For a personal touch, stitch the recipient’s name instead of Needles’ – just plan it out on graph paper first Stitch count: 62 high x 62 wide Design size: 10.5x10.5cm (4¼x4¼in) Stitch time: 25 hours (both sides) This design was stitched on 14 count aida fabric. If you have no ribbon, you could plait a cord from spare stranded cotton instead for your scissor keeper Materials For the biscornu • Sampedro Cream 14 count aida; 15x15cm (6x6in) x 2 pieces • Stranded cotton as listed in the key • Size 24 tapestry needle • Toy stuffing • Pink buttons x 2 Materials available from www.willowfabrics.com Make a… biscornu Step 1 STITCH the top and bottom of the biscornu by stitching the design twice. Follow the chart…

Each month we publish a new letter and number set based on a theme, designed for you to cut out and keep for when you need it Take a leaf out of our book and keep our handy house plants alphabet on hand throughout the year. Suitable for just about any occasion, these motifs are ideal for when you want to send a personal card, or when you want to customise your own homestyle projects. What’s more you get to try your hand at simple blackwork too! Our Blackwork and House Plant alphabet letters were mounted in a card, flexi-hoop and embroidery hoop. Each was stitched on 14 count white aida, and each letter is 3 0 high x 30 wide app rox. The design size for each letter is…

As we keep warm inside during the wilder weather of winter, it’s neverthless breathtaking to see a storm in full flow. With this month’s design you can capture all the stunning sights of a seaside storm – complete with lightning crossing the sky – while staying safe at your hoop. For a nighttime look the design is worked on royal blue aida and includes plenty of realistic detail. Stitch count: 163 high x 120 wide Design size: 28x22cm (11x8¾in) Stitch time: 72 hours This design was stitched on 14 count aida fabric. Materials • Zweigart Royal Blue 14 count aida, ref: 3706/567; 50x46cm (19½x18in) • Stranded cotton as listed in the key • DMC Etoile as listed in the key • Size 24 tapestry needle • Frame with a 33x27cm…

THE CHALLENGE • 14 count white aida• Seven shades of stranded cotton (shown above)• Scissor charm THE RULES • Create a design for a card• The design area for the box is 50 x 40 stitches• Only the materials above can be used• Becreative as possible! Welcome to this month’s designer challenge! This time we have asked our designers to come up with an original idea for a card. Our only stipulation was that each designer had to incorporate a scissor charm into their design and they only had seven thread shades to get creating with. If you’d like to stitch their clever creations we have the charts over the page. We hope their results will inspire you to join the fun – turn the page to see what our…

THE BROTHERS GRIMM “Many of the beloved fairy tales we know today were compiled or adapted for a modern audience by the Brothers Grimm. The brothers, Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm and Wilhelm Carl Grimm, were two German scholars, born in the late 18th century. Their book, Grimms’ Fairy Tales, originally known as Children’s and Household Tales, was published in December 1812 featuring 86 folk stories from Germany and Europe – by the seventh edition in 1857 there were 210 tales in the collection. The book included such enduring classics as Snow White, Hansel & Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood. A sign of these stories’ incredible impact on 20th century culture can be been by the huge amount of film adaptions of them, including many Disney productions – however many…