Cross Stitch Design Process

As a designer of paintings to cross stitch charts, a good balance between colors and finished cross stitch chart has be achieved. You can go to either extremes to get a very good result. For instance there are cross stitch charts available that go into hundreds of DMC floss usage or have a finished size that is huge. That is very good if you are a computer! But if you are an average cross stitcher, you usually do not have a stash of hundreds of floss to use nor do you want to spend a lifetime finishing your project!

For me, a great cross stitch painting project would be one that uses an average of about 50-60 DMC floss with a finished size that is about 14" in length maximum. This is usually my goal whenever I convert the painting to cross stitch chart. However in some cases, I have to break away from this norm and go towards either a huge chart or using more DMC floss.

One case is this painting by Byam Shaw entitled Rising Spring. Byam Shaw was an Indian born British painter. This particular painting has beautiful colors and a mystical theme. The original painting can be seen here:




















To start with, I tried using 45 colors without dithering. This is a detail of the result. Watch how the body colors change from the number of DMC floss used:

This is Rising Spring at 45 colors:




















This is okay but not great. I then went through adding more colors, 10 or 20 at a time. The colors of the surrounding flowers changed and became more detailed however the body color remained rather flat. That is until I hit 84 colors.. (what??? that many colors??) Yes unfortunately I couldn't get away from using that many colors on this one. As soon as I hit that mark, look at how the body detail changed:

This is Rising Spring at 84 colors:




















Suddenly you see the contours of the body with much more detail! The chart uses low dithering in order to make the stitching process a lot easier. Also the finished sizes for a 14 count aida is just 11" x 14" (not a lifetime to finish!). So sacrifice a little more thread, retain a good finish size and you get a very good result in the end.

This is how the chart looks like now:




















Now that is a very good representation of the actual painting don't you think? Mission accomplished! Chart is now available to download at www.PinoyStitch.org.

Fun Cross Stitch Pattern

Back in the 80's, I remember watching a musical called Little Shop of Horrors. It was one of those funny, quirky films that sticks to your mind for sometime. Well recently, I saw the original black and white film released in 1960. Did you know that Jack Nicholson had a small role on it as the masochistic patient in the dentist office? I hardly recognized the young Nicholson until I looked closely at those unmistakable piercing eyes! Watching the old film renewed my interest in this cult film. I found the original theatrical poster and thought it would make a nice fun cross stitch project. This is how the original poster looks like:




















The first step on creating a cross stitch pattern for this poster is to edit it in Photoshop. I had to take out the text on the top and bottom. The white of the poster had to be brightened (it would become the white aida cloth).

This is how the picture looks like after all the editing on Photoshop:




















Now the real work begins. This is how it looks like after the image to cross stitch pattern is done. I initially put this against a black aida cloth background to see how much trimming and defining needed to be done.




















As you can see, the title has to be defined and the colors combined into one solid green shade, the other white outlines around the plant and man needed to be taken out. The pattern also started with 30 colors which probably would do with some consolidation. I'm often able to do without back stitching but in this case, I probably would need to do it around the man's face to define the smile and eyes.

When working with an image like this, designing the cross stitch pattern can be a bit tricky. You need to find the balance between getting just enough definition to make it look like the image but at the same time not making the finished cross stitch pattern too huge and complicated than it needs to be. After working on it for hours, this is how the final cross stitch pattern came out.













The finished cross stitch size for a 14 count aida cloth is 10" x 12". Just the right size to hang in your living room or play room! The DMC threads used on this is only 18 colors. Using full stitches and some back stitches on the face only.

This cross stitch pattern will be a delightful project for beginners!

Why Download Cross Stitch Patterns?

There are many reasons why downloading cross stitch patterns are so much better than purchasing printed ones. Here are some of the main reasons why:

1. More Reasonably Priced - Since owners or designers do not have to print patterns or handle shipping, cross stitch down loadable files are so much more reasonably priced than those that are printed out. The owners/designers are aware of the savings and usually pass on the savings to their customers thereby reducing the price considerably.

2. Never Lose a File - Once you download the cross stitch pattern (usually in pdf format) you can save it to your hard disk, or to CD and store it. You can make back up copies of the file in case your hard disk has a problem. You never need to look for the paper patterns or lose pages on it, you always have the file to go back to and print the page you need.

3. Earth Friendly - Down loadable cross stitch pattern are earth friendly. Save some trees! You can print out the patterns using recycled paper or the back part of a paper that has already been printed! You can also opt to just print the page that you are currently working on and print as you are progressing. You get to do your part to save the trees!

4. Instant Gratification - You get your files instantly! No more waiting on the mail to come, or worry whether it may have been rerouted or damaged by the storm or other weather elements. With a down loadable cross stitch pattern, you get your pattern right after you purchase them and that is one of the greatest appeal to purchasing cross stitch pdf files.

So next time you want to purchase a printed pattern, think for a moment. There are now lots of cross stitch websites that offer instant cross stitch pattern downloads. The design you are looking for may be offered there so shop around a bit and get a chance to save some trees!

www.PinoyStitch.org

Knight and Lady Cross Stitch Pattern

Whenever I am enthralled by a painting for a cross stitch project, I always try and research the story behind it. In this case, a painting of a Knight and Lady entitled Aucassin and Nicolette led to discovering that this was based on a medieval French "chante-fable" or a sung story. The story goes that Garin, Count of Beaucaire, prevented his son Aucassin, and Nicolette, a Saracen slave girl from getting married. Aucassin and Nicolette desperately want to marry, but Garin forbids it and imprisons the lovers, though they both eventually escape. After many romantic adventures, the young lovers are wed. Nicolette is revealed to be a Saracen princess of the noblest ancestry. Now isn't that an absolutely romantic story?

The 19th century painting by Marianne Stokes is on at the top and the cross stitch pattern interpretation on the bottom.




















In order to retain the details of the faces, clothes and background, maximum dithering was used. That and using 53 DMC embroidery colors got it close to the painting. The finished cross stitch project on a 14 count aida will be 11" x 15". This will look great with dark wood framing and some gold staining. A great cross stitch project to grace the living room, drawing room, library or guest room.

Imagine having this cross stitch project hanging in your home and having to tell your guests about the story of Aucassin and Nicolette!

Mystical Figures of Luis Falero Cross Stitch Patterns

Luis Ricardo Falero (1851-1896) was one of the most original and distinguished artist of that period. His paintings featured mythological or fairy figures. One of his interests was in the supernatural which is clearly manifested in his paintings. For those who love fairy illustrations, you may already be familiar with the Lilly Fairy and Butterfly Fairy paintings, these were relatively easy to interpret into cross stitch patterns.













The more challenging interpretations into cross stitch patterns were the mythological paintings of Luis Falero. These paintings had a large portion of black background with some light color accent on the sides or around the figures. Rather than having the stitcher use black DMC floss to cover the background, the challenge was to use black AIDA cloth instead and interprete the rest of the colors in DMC floss. The finished cross stitch pattern stayed true to the paintings using DMC floss efficiently and effectively.













The more creative cross stitcher can choose to highlight the stars by using Kreinik silver or even beads to dot the areas. These cross stitch projects can truly be an enjoyable experience for the cross stitcher once a bit of creative freedom is presented!

Look for the cross stitch patterns of Luis Ricardo Falero at www.PinoyStitch.org

The BookWorm by Carl Spitzweg

Whenever I research for paintings to turn into cross stitch pattern, I inevitably stumble upon paintings that become a personal favorite. On the latest batch of cross stitch charts, my favorite is Carl Spitzweg's The Bookworm. Painted in 1850, it depicts a lone eccentric man lost in his library with a light softly shining on him. I can almost imagine that he was probably there all day looking through his collection of books!

It is no surprise that I am drawn to this painting. I am a bookworm myself! :)

To all the bookworms out there who are also cross stitch addicts, this cross stitch project will be perfect for your reading room or mini libraries. The whole project just uses 25 DMC floss and the finished size for a 14 count is 11" x 15". I created this with minimal dithering which would mean less scattering of colors so it would be easier to stitch. It would be a great project for beginners as well as advance cross stitchers!

Get it here at www.PinoyStitch.org

Harrison Fisher Beauties Cross Stitch Charts

New cross stitch charts have been uploaded! The beauties of Harrison Fisher. Get these romantic victorian theme for your home now.