An attractive, fun and colourful mini cross stitch kit to complete in a day. It is possible! This kit embodies the fun nature of winter activities and easily transforms into a Christmas decoration when you display it inside a flexi hoop.
- 14ct Aida.
- Assorted threads.
- Needle.
- detailed cross stitch pattern.
What’s in the box?
The completed kit will fit a 3″ x 3″ aperture card although the kit does not include one.
Where to start?
Usually I would always start in the centre of the aida (using the “How to find the centre point” paragraph of “How to make a mini-cross stitch kit in a day” page). However, for this project, that meant starting with the white of the snowman’s body. So, I marked the centre with a spare green off cut of yarn. Marking the centre point in this way meant I could carefully count outwards with less worry about miscounting. I did this purely because I wanted to start with the red of the snowman’s scarf.
Wherever you choose to start, make sure you keep counting the stitches carefully so you don’t need to go back and unpick. This waste precious time and can become very, very frustrating.
Where to go next with the Mini Cross Stitch Kit?
Because I started with the scarf, I completed the stitching on the face and hat next. I did this mainly because I dread stitching white on white aida! However, the scarf and head brought me joy. When I approached the body work, the colourful buttons, gloves and ski pole grip (handle) beautifully broke up the white space.
After this it can be tempting to start the backstitch – DON’T! The stitching of the skies will overlap backstitching around the body. This will spoil the overall look of the piece.
I added the ski pole basket (end) next and finished cross stitching by completing the skis.
The Final Stages of the Mini Cross Stitch Kit
Backstitching! In a moment of complete madness I started the backstitch using 2 strands of yarn. I have never done this before and only noticed when I had completed about half of the cross stitching. To complete in a day, I needed to make a decision: carry on using 2 strands of yarn or unpick and restart with 1 strand of yarn ( which is usual for backstitch). What would you do?
Decision made – I continued with 2 strands of yarns. It really made the white of the head and body stand out against the aida. Whether you choose 1 strand (as normal) or try the back stitch with 2 strands be careful with the angled lines. They tend to cross three or four stitches which means you have to create your own stitching holes between the cross stitching.
For similar cross stitch mini kits click here