A Summer Place Cross-Stitch.

A Summer Place cross-stitch chart by The Cross-eyed Cricket; number 264 in the collection and designed by Vicki Hastings.

Summer Place Cross-Stitch is one of our latest customer commissions that we have had the pleasure to work on. The design conjures up a dream home by the sea and as stated on the well thought out design, “Here is the promise of Summers to be”.

For this particular project the client supplied a chart for which we needed to source all materials required to complete the design. The design can be completed using the options below.

Chart design area 128W x 189H

• 10 count with a design width of 12.8″ x “18.9
• 14 count (28 linen,) with a design width of “9.1 x “13.5
• 15 count (30 linen,) with a design width of 8.5″ x “12.6
• 16 count (32 linen,) with a design width of 8″ x “11.8

For this particular project we agreed with the client to use a 14ct Zweigart Aida no 503 colour Sky Blue.

Stranded cotton yarns/threads for completing A Summer Place cross-stitch No:264

The yarns required for completing A summer Place by The Cross-eyed Cricket no 264 totalled 26 as listed below.

1. Blue: DMC 158 or Anchor 941
2. Periwinkle: DMC 341 or Anchor 117
3. Light Clay: DMC 407 or Anchor 914
4. Sky Blue: DMC 598 or Anchor 1062
5. Dark Clay: DMC 632 or Anchor 936
6. Tan: DMC 640 or Anchor 393
7. Dark Grey: DMC 645 or Anchor 273
8. Pale Blue: DMC 747 or Anchor 158
9. Blue: DMC 807 or Anchor 168
10. Sand: DMC 822 or Anchor 390
11. Navy: DMC 823 or Anchor 152
12. Dark Teal: DMC 924 or Anchor 851
13. Light Grey Teal: DMC 926 or Anchor 850
14. Sea Green: DMC 958 or Anchor 187
15. Pale Sea Green: DMC 964 or Anchor 185
16. Grey: DMC 3023 or Anchor 899
17. Yellow Green: DMC 3348 or Anchor 264
18. Pale Sky Blue: DMC 3756 or Anchor 1037
19. Marine Blue: DMC 3765 or Anchor 170
20. Grey Teal: DMC 3768 or Anchor 779
21. Aqua Blue: DMC 3810 or Anchor 1066
22. Dark Rose: DMC 3831 or Anchor 29
23. Dark Plum: DMC 3834 or Anchor 100
24. Orange: DMC 3853 or Anchor 1003
25. Sunset Yellow: DMC 3855 or Anchor 311
26. Soft White: DMC 3865 or Anchor 2

The yarns we chose for this project where from DMC as they are our preferred yarns to use however, Anchor yarns are also very good quality yarns.

Starting A Summer Place by The Cross-eyed Cricket.

A Summer Place Stage: 1

To start this project I first chose an easy starting point which was the long rectangular dark roof of the veranda/porch as can be seen in the first image.

Once this was complete I worked my way up the design adding the first floor including the windows and railings up to the roof line. There’s quite a bit of detail both in the window design and the decorative fascia below the main roof line. There are also a few little details that need to be noticed at the top of the main window as the second row from the top of soft white (DMC 3865) frame is a stitch longer each side so be careful to take this into account when completing the main block of the lighter sand colour. Also as already mentioned there’s detailing in the main window and the smaller window to the left as can be seen below.

Stage: 2. A Beach House by the Sea.

After that, I moved onto the main roof. But pay attention to the stitch chart as the roof line varies on each side. Also there is a bit of detail in the dormer window. Likewise, he brick chimney has a chequered design making it stand out more and an interesting detail on the house. To the left of the big main window the wall is also of a double stitch chequered design consisting of blocks of Tan (DMC 640) and Grey (DMC 3023)

Cross-Eyed Cricket cross stitch kit. Stage: 3.

(The Cross-eyed Cricket; number 264)

The next thing to do is to add the four pillars, make sure you count the rows and continually check the pattern. I found the easiest way to do these is to stitch from top right to bottom left down the pillars and then cross them back up to the top. By doing it this way it enables you to add the Fascia detail beneath the veranda roof as you go. There’s also an extra row of soft white stitches (DMC 3865) one row down from the blocks of four on the Fascia line but so as not to have to jump too far in a cross country fashion I made sure I left these un-stitched ready to be added in after I finished the Sand (DMC 822) coloured stitches in stage 4.

Next I completed the decorative railing and towels, then the steps and fence panels either side of the steps.

Stage: 4

With the above completed it’s now time to fill in the details between the pillars. Start by first filling in between the two pillars on the left of the pattern.

As mentioned previously and shown on the pattern there is a row of white squares just above the window frame so when filling the block colour of, Sand (DMC 822) make sure you leave the relevant squares free to allow for them. I say this as I have found from my own experience that when filling in a block colour it is so very easy to get carried away and forget to leave individual squares for details such as these.

With the block colour of Sand done, now add the window frame in soft white (DMC 3865). Pay attention to the pattern as the window has rails as can be seen in the picture above. Once that is complete fill in the window again paying particular attention to the design at the top as shown in the picture.

With the first panel complete repeat the process again for the second panel between the second and third pillar paying attention to the detail on the front door. Next move on to the third panel between the third and fourth pillar where there is again a row of soft white squares just below the Fascia line so be careful not to leave them out.

Stage: 5 Cross stitching waves.

With the main house complete its now time to add the sea and other details to complete the main image. Start first with the top row of waves in Pale Blue (DMC 747).

A Little Cross Stitch Improvisation.

However, when stitching the first set of waves the Pale blue thread did not show up very well against the Sky Blue Aida. To overcome this I switched out one strand of Pale Blue for one strand of DMC Blanc, just to make the colour pop.

After completing the first block of waves work your way down, first doing the Blue waves (DMC 807) and then the Marine Blue waves (DMC 3765). With the last block of waves I found it best to add the small boats as I went so as to avoid making the back of the Aida untidy. Once that is complete add the fencing but make sure you pay attention to the pattern as the fence rails are staggered in places.

With all of the above complete it is now time to add the five luxury deck chairs. These where fun and quite easy to do and finished of the main image perfectly. However, there’s some half stitching on the first Orange chair (DMC 3853) that forms the heart in Dark Rose (DMC3831).

After that, all that’s left to do of the main stitching is to add the letters that form the phrase, “Here is the promise of Summers to be” The letters are sewn in Pale Sky Blue (DMC 3756). Each one’s pretty straight forward but pay particular attention to the placement and design of each letter and don’t miss out the dot above the I on the word Promise.

Stage 6: Completing the Back Stitch for a Summer Place from The Cross-Eyed Cricket Collection.

Finally, with all the main cross stitch work completed it is now time to add the back stitch details.

Be very careful when adding the Curtain detail that’s done in Soft White (DMC 3865). Similarly, the lattice work in front of the house, is Soft White, (DMC 3865).

The ‘blown up’ examples shown on the back of the main pattern show both the main window and front door. However, they’re not that clear because some lines are still voided by the grid making it best to reference the main pattern. Please also see the images below for back stitch examples for a Summer Place by The Cross-Eyed Cricket Collection.

A Summer Place Cross-Stitch kit back stitch detail examples.

The three lines on the red flag that are completed in Navy Blue, (DMC823) which can be seen in the image below because they too are hard to see on the pattern. When doing the weather vane and flag poles Dark Teal, (DMC 924) pay attention to the flag ties – they are the same colours as the flags. In addition to this, the wire on the broken fence, which is Dark Grey, (DMC 645) is pretty straight forward.

In conclusion, A Summer Place Cross-Stitch kit by Vicky Hastings and in The Cross-Eyed Cricket collection was a pleasure to complete but as I have mentioned several times you will need to follow the pattern carefully. I would not recommend this kit for a beginners cross stitch kit, but any intermediate or more advanced cross stitcher’s should be able to complete it.