Embroidery Designs Guide

Dear All,

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Check out some unique free downloads for Chinese Cross Stitch patterns at Chinese Learner!

Rabbit and mouse are two of the zodiac signs of the Chinese calender.

 Chinese words are also symbols of various aspects of life - for example we have the below symbol which signifies blessness.  It is often used as decoration for important holiday such as Spring Festival.   People hope it will bring a lot of blessness to their homes.

Cross stitch is one of the oldest embroidery stitches. It can be worked on canvas or even-weave fabrics so that the stitches are of the same size. If you cross a row of diagonal stitches in one direction with a second row of diagonal stitches in the opposite slanting direction, you get a cross stitch. All cross stitch patterns are by nature counted thread in nature. This is because if you need to get the correct embroidery design, the stitches should be correctly spread across the fabric. This is possible only by giving a count to each colour and direction. To take a simple example, if one wants to embroider the letter “A”, the number of cross stitches in the left leg of the letter should definitely match the right leg number.

Check out the Mona Lisa all done in cross stitch. Craft Conn has used 63 DMC colors for an accurate rendering of the famous Leonardi Da Vinci painting. Isn’t it a beauty?

Then you have various versions of the cross stitch like the alternating cross stitch where a row is skipped to give the cross an elongated look, the back stitch which ensures that the pattern can be used from both sides of the fabric, the rugged Brazilian cross stitch where two rows intersect to make the embroidery design more stable. The knitting stitch bears an unique resemblance to the regular knitting. Here the stitches are crossed in such a manner that the whole design looks well knit. This type of stitch is also called tapestry stitch. The Mexican cross stitch (also called the plaited stitch) consists of multiple diagonal rows that move parallelly to each other. These are complemented with multiple rows in the opposite direction. They meet at their respective centers to form diamond designs which also ensures the stability of the pattern.

If you want to learn cross stitch, check out Big Book of Cross-Stitch Design: Over 900 Simple-to-Sew Decorative Motifs by Readers Digest authors. If you need an encyclopedia on cross stitch that would adorn your library like a jewel, you must go in for 2001 Cross Stitch Designs: The Essential Reference Book (”Better Homes & Gardens”). This book has 2001 cross stitch designs for every occasion and category of stitching—holidays, alphabets, florals, nature, sports, children, babies, Christmas, animals, and numerous others. Each motif collection is accompanied by a clear and accurate color chart and color key and includes 50 specialty stitch diagrams with instructions.

Cross stitch is an innovative form of embroidery which is basically a double stitch forming a X in sewing and embroidery. It could also be needlework made of X stitches.

One of the stunning cross stitch projects I came across was : Capture The Mystery Of Egypt project - Ancient Egyptian Cross Stitch. This features 25 glittering and historically accurate projects from the pyramids, the Great Sphinx to the hieroglyphics. It covers the scarabs to the river Nile. Few of the larger projects include King Tutankhamen, Sphinx and a goddess. It also has quite a large amount of smaller motifs ideal for bookmarks including Osiris, the eye of Horus, Isis, Anubis. At the end of the book you can find a few border designs. This book uses quite a lot of color mostly green, red, yellow, and blue. It provides colored charts containing symbols for easy identification. A definite must have for any cross stitcher!

The inner powers really reveal themselves in this creative guide. You could use these as attractive wall hangings or bag adornments.

All cross stich enthusiasts should definitely not miss this one! Among the best books on this particular form of hand embroidery is undoubtedly Cross Stitch Myth & Magic.

Cross Stitch Myth and Magic combines the talents of nine respected artists and designers to produce a unique collection of designs from the fascinating world of folklore and legend. All the 70 embroidery designs captures a special romance and enchantment which togethers creates a collection to delight both the mind and the eye. Imaginative designs for cushions, boxes, curtains, sachets, wall hangings are waiting for you.

This is a fantastic book for cross-stitch addicts! The book is full of charts for everything from wizards and unicorns to oriental dragons and zodiac motifs. There are 6 main categories for the charts: Myth & Magic, Winter Enchantment, Oriental Fantasy, Angelic Messengers, The Mystic Deep and Celestial Heaven. Within these categories there are also charts for complex, intricate, time-consuming masterpieces, as well as for smaller motifs. The complex charts are more suited to an experienced stitcher and most of the motifs are very easily done by the beginner stitcher.

The directions for working the charts are very clear and concise. The designs give the name of the designers of the charts, which is an added bonus in case you find yourself wishing to do more charts by that designer.

Need I say any more!

Murphy has carved a niche in the world of embroidery with her very own speciality - “Endless Hoop” category of patterns. Check out her collection at Murphy’s Designs. These are basically redwork and machine embroidery cross stitch designs and can be used in the Endless Hoop or any hoop that is 5×7 inch (130 x 180 mm) or larger. All the designs are available in the zip file which would contain the following formats - ART, DST, EXP, HUS, JEF, PES, PHC, VIP, XXX. The information on machine embroidery would come in handy here.

Her collections are categorised under various folders numerically ordered. Endless hoop embroidery designs are perfect for any running pattern - bedsheets, table napkins, frocks, curtains and other homely items. The sunflower and strawberry endless designs are pretty. The part that is circled in the image next to this post - is the portion that will be repeated again and again till you reach the end of the cloth - and hence the name ‘endless’. So once you master this part, the design becomes repetitive and simple to do.