Editing Cross-stitch

{{short description|Form of counted-thread embroidery}}
{{for|specific crossed stitches used in needlework|Cross stitches}}
[[Image:Stickmuster 1735.jpg|thumb|Cross-stitch [[Sampler (needlework)|sampler]], [[Germany]]]]
[[File:Modern cross stitching by Caterpillar Cross Stitch.jpg|alt=|thumb|Cross stitching using a hoop and showing use of enamel needle minder]]
'''Cross-stitch''' is a form of sewing and a popular form of [[counted-thread embroidery]] in which X-shaped stitches (called [[cross stitches]]) in a tiled, [[raster graphics|raster-like]] pattern are used to form a picture. The stitcher counts the threads on a piece of [[even-weave|evenweave]] fabric (such as [[linen]]) in each direction so that the stitches are of uniform size and appearance. This form of cross-stitch is also called '''counted cross-stitch''' in order to distinguish it from other forms of cross-stitch.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Amazing Stitching Handbook for Kids|last=Nicholas|first=Kristin|publisher=C&T Publishing|year=2015|isbn=978-1-60705-973-8|location=Concord, CA|pages=[https://archive.org/details/amazingstitching0000nich/page/33 33]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/amazingstitching0000nich/page/33}}</ref> Sometimes cross-stitch is done on designs printed on the fabric ('''stamped cross-stitch'''); the stitcher simply stitches over the printed pattern.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Fabric Paper Thread|last=Sutcliffe|first=Kristen|publisher=C&T Publishing|year=2013|isbn=978-1-60705-715-4|location=Concord, CA|pages=138}}</ref> Cross-stitch is often executed on easily countable fabric called [[aida cloth]],<ref>{{Cite book|title=Judith Baker Montano's Essential Stitch Guide|last=Baker Montano|first=Judith|publisher=C&T Publishing|year=2016|isbn=978-1-61745-077-8|location=Concord, CA|pages=9}}</ref> whose weave creates a plainly visible grid of squares with holes for the needle at each corner.

Fabrics used in cross-stitch include [[linen]], [[aida cloth]], and mixed-content fabrics called 'evenweave' such as jobelan. All cross-stitch fabrics are technically "evenweave" as the term refers to the fact that the fabric is woven to make sure that there are the same number of threads per inch in both the warp and the weft (i.e. vertically and horizontally). Fabrics are categorized by threads per inch (referred to as 'count'), which can range from 11 to 40 count.

Counted cross-stitch projects are worked from a gridded pattern called a chart and can be used on any count fabric; the count of the fabric and the number of threads per stitch determine the size of the finished stitching. For example, if a given design is stitched on a 28 count cross-stitch fabric with each cross worked over two threads, the finished stitching size is the same as it would be on a 14 count [[aida cloth]] fabric with each cross worked over one square. These methods are referred to as "2 over 2" (2 embroidery threads used to stitch over 2 fabric threads<ref>{{cite web |author=Studio Koekoek cross stitch blog |url=https://studio-koekoek.com/cross-stitch-over-2-threads/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230716140707/https://studio-koekoek.com/cross-stitch-over-2-threads/ |archive-date=2023-07-16 |title=How to Cross Stitch over 2 threads or more |publisher=www.studio-koekoek.com |date=2018 |access-date=2018-11-09 |url-status=live }}</ref>) and "1 over 1" (1 embroidery thread used to stitch over 1 fabric thread or square), respectively. There are different methods of stitching a pattern, including the cross-country method where one colour is stitched at a time, or the parking method where one block of fabric is stitched at a time and the end of the thread is "parked" at the next point the same colour occurs in the pattern.

==History==
[[File:Sarah Littleton sampler - DPLA - 0d33db0ad08813edd99631d7ff873ca3 (page 1).jpg|alt=Cross-stitch sampler by Sarah Littleton, 1868|thumb|Cross-stitch sampler by Sarah Littleton, 1868]]
Cross-stitch can be found all over the world since the Middle Ages.<ref>Gillow, John, and Bryan Sentance: ''World Textiles'', Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown, 1999, {{ISBN|0-8212-2621-5}}, p. 181</ref> Many folk museums show examples of clothing decorated with cross-stitch, especially from continental [[Europe]] and [[Asia]].<ref>''Threads'' (magazine), Issue 11, June/July 1987</ref>

The cross-stitch [[sampler (needlework)|sampler]] is called that because it was generally stitched by a young girl to learn how to stitch and to record alphabet and other patterns to be used in her household sewing. These samples of her stitching could be referred back to over the years. Often, motifs and initials were stitched on household items to identify their owner, or simply to decorate the otherwise-plain cloth. The earliest known cross stitch sampler made in the United States is currently housed at [[Pilgrim Hall]] in [[Plymouth, Massachusetts]].<ref name="pilgrimhall">{{cite web|url=http://www.pilgrimhall.org/s_sampler.htm|publisher=pilgrimhall.org|title=Loara Standish Sampler|access-date=2017-04-30|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071218104915/http://www.pilgrimhall.org/s_sampler.htm|archive-date=2007-12-18}}</ref> The sampler was created by Loara Standish, daughter of Captain [[Myles Standish]] and pioneer of the Leviathan stitch, circa 1653.[[Image:Cross stitch detail.jpg|thumb|200px|Detail of floral border pattern in cotton. Tea cloth (small tablecloth), [[Hungary]], mid-twentieth century.]]

Traditionally, cross-stitch was used to embellish items like household linens, tablecloths, dishcloths, and [[doilies]] (only a small portion of which would actually be embroidered, such as a border). Although there are many cross-stitchers who still employ it in this fashion, it is now increasingly popular to work the pattern on pieces of fabric and hang them on the wall for decoration. Cross-stitch is also often used to make greeting cards, pillow tops, or as inserts for box tops, coasters and trivets.

[[File:Surif cross-stitch.jpg|thumb|Cross stitch from [[Surif]]. Top half of picture is the reverse side.]]

Multicoloured, shaded, painting-like patterns as we know them today are a fairly modern development, deriving from similar shaded patterns of [[Berlin wool work]] of the mid-nineteenth century. Besides designs created expressly for cross-stitch, there are software programs that convert a photograph or a fine art image into a chart suitable for stitching. One example of this is in the cross-stitched reproduction of the [[Sistine Chapel]] charted and stitched by Joanna Lopianowski-Roberts.<ref>{{cite web |author=Gwen Magee (Gwendolyn) |author-link=Gwendolyn Ann Magee |url=http://creativityjourney.blogspot.com/2010/08/sistine-chapel-in-cross-stitch.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230716140747/https://creativityjourney.blogspot.com/2010/08/sistine-chapel-in-cross-stitch.html |archive-date=2023-07-16 |title=Textile Arts Resource Guide: The Sistine Chapel in Cross-Stitch |publisher=Creativityjourney.blogspot.com |date=2010-08-27 |access-date=2013-12-29 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5634216/Cross-stitch-recreation-of-Sistine-Chapel-ceiling.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230716140730/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5634216/Cross-stitch-recreation-of-Sistine-Chapel-ceiling.html |archive-date=2023-07-16 |title=Cross-stitch recreation of Sistine Chapel ceiling |newspaper=Telegraph |date=2009-06-25 |access-date=2013-12-29 |location=London |url-status=live }}</ref>

There are many cross-stitching "[[guilds]]" and groups across the United States and Europe which offer classes, collaborate on large projects, stitch for charity, and provide other ways for local cross-stitchers to get to know one another. Individually owned local needlework shops (LNS) often have stitching nights at their shops, or host weekend stitching retreats.

Today, cotton floss is the most common embroidery thread. It is a thread made of [[mercerized cotton]], composed of six strands that are only loosely twisted together and easily separable. While there are other manufacturers, the two most-commonly used (and oldest) brands are [[DMC (Company)|DMC]] and Anchor,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dmc.com/uk/p-uk-about-us.html/ |title=About Us |access-date=2020-08-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200621151905/https://www.dmc.com/uk/p-uk-about-us.html/ |archive-date=2020-06-21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.coatsandclark.com/Products/Hand+Embroidery/Threads/ |title=Coats & Clark Hand Embroidery Threads |access-date=2012-08-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120728205458/http://www.coatsandclark.com/Products/Hand+Embroidery/Threads/ |archive-date=2012-07-28 |url-status=dead }}</ref> both of which have been manufacturing embroidery floss since the 1800s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dmc-usa.com/DMC-History.aspx |title=DMC History |publisher=Dmc-usa.com |url-status=dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170209024634/http://www.dmc-usa.com/DMC-History.aspx|archive-date = 9 February 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.coatsandclark.com/About+Coats/History/Coats+History.htm |title=Coats History |publisher=Coatsandclark.com |access-date=2013-12-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105212614/http://www.coatsandclark.com/About+Coats/History/Coats+History.htm |archive-date=2013-11-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Other materials used are pearl (or perle) cotton, Danish flower thread, [[silk]] and [[Rayon]]. Different wool threads, metallic threads or other novelty threads are also used, sometimes for the whole work, but often for accents and embellishments. Hand-dyed cross-stitch floss is created just as the name implies—it is dyed by hand. Because of this, there are variations in the amount of color throughout the thread. Some variations can be subtle, while some can be a huge contrast. Some also have more than one color per thread.

Cross-stitch is widely used in traditional Palestinian dressmaking.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Traditional Palestinian Costume: Origins and Evolution|last=Munayyer|first=Hanan|publisher=Olive Branch Press|year=2020|isbn=978-1-62371-924-1|pages=423}}</ref> Palestinian cross stitch is called [[tatreez]]. In 2021, tatreez was added to the UNESCO List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UNESCO - The art of embroidery in Palestine, practices, skills, knowledge and rituals |url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/the-art-of-embroidery-in-palestine-practices-skills-knowledge-and-rituals-01722 |access-date=2024-01-07 |website=ich.unesco.org |language=en}}</ref>

==Related stitches and forms of embroidery==
{{main|cross stitches}}
[[Image:Ukrainian girls.jpg|thumb|right|Ukrainian girls in traditional-style embroidered costumes]]
[[File:Cross stitching.jpg|thumb|A cross-stitching created with the use of different color fabrics]]

The cross-stitch can be executed partially such as in quarter-, half-, and three-quarter-stitches. A single straight stitch, done in the form of backstitching, is often used as an outline, to add detail or definition.

There are many stitches which are related structurally to cross-stitch. The best known are Italian cross-stitch (as seen in [[Assisi embroidery]]), long-armed cross-stitch, and [[Montenegro|Montenegrin]] stitch. Italian cross-stitch and Montenegrin stitch are reversible, meaning the work looks the same on both sides. These styles have a slightly different look than ordinary cross-stitch. These more difficult stitches are rarely used in mainstream embroidery, but they are still used to recreate historical pieces of embroidery or by the creative and adventurous stitcher. The double cross-stitch, also known as a Leviathan stitch or Smyrna cross-stitch, combines a cross-stitch with an upright cross-stitch.

[[Berlin wool work]] and similar [[petit point]] stitchery resembles the heavily shaded, opulent styles of cross-stitch, and sometimes also used charted patterns on paper.

Cross-stitch is often combined with other popular forms of embroidery, such as [[Hardanger embroidery]] or [[blackwork embroidery]]. Cross-stitch may also be combined with other work, such as [[canvaswork]] or [[drawn thread work]]. [[Beadwork]] and other embellishments such as paillettes, charms, small buttons and specialty threads of various kinds may also be used. Cross stitch can often be used in [[needlepoint]].

==Twenty first century cross stitch trends==
[[File:Ballrina cross-stitching.jpg|thumbnail|upright|Cross-stitching sample]]

Cross-stitch has become increasingly popular with the younger generation of Europe in recent years.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Threads of Life: A History of the World Through the eye of a Needle|last=Hunter|first=Clare|publisher=Sceptre|year=2020|isbn=978-1-47368-793-6|location=Hachette, UK|pages=24}}</ref> Retailers such as [[John Lewis (department store)|John Lewis]] experienced a 17% rise in sales of haberdashery products between 2009 and 2010.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8224494.stm | work=[[BBC News]] | first=Bill | last=Wilson | title=The modern 'make do and mend' | date=2009-08-28}}</ref> [[Hobbycraft]], a chain of stores selling craft supplies, also enjoyed an 11% increase in sales over the year to February 22, 2009, primarily attributed to the needlework sector.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/7020201/Hobbycraft-sews-up-strong-sales.html | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230716140705/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8224494.stm | archive-date=2023-07-16 | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph | first=James | last=Hall | title=Hobbycraft sews up strong sales | date=2010-01-18 | access-date=2018-04-04 | url-status=live }}</ref> The cross stitch market has continued to grow and market research firm Mintel reported a 12% rise in women doing some sort of needlecraft as a hobby between 2015 and 2017.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://store.mintel.com/report/uk-hobbies-and-interests-market-report-2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241007162321/https://store.mintel.com/report/uk-hobbies-and-interests-market-report-2021 | archive-date=2024-10-07 | work=Mintel | title=UK Hobbies and Interests Market Report 2021 | date=2021-09-23 | access-date=2024-10-07 }}</ref> London department store [[Liberty (department store)|Liberty's]], reported double-digit growth in the fabric and haberdashery departments in 2017 and the store increased its range by 25%.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/apr/29/stitch-in-time-saves-stress-sewing-knittingneedlecraft-patterns-market | work=The Guardian | title=A stitch in time saves stress down the line | date=2017-04-29 | access-date=2024-10-07 }}</ref>

[[Knitting]] and cross-stitching have become more popular hobbies for a younger market, in contrast to its traditional reputation as a hobby for retirees.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/may/29/gender | location=London | work=The Guardian | first=Eithne | last=Farry | title=¡Viva las craftivistas! | date=2006-05-29}}</ref> Sewing and craft groups such as Stitch and Bitch London have resurrected the idea of the traditional craft club.<ref name="iknit">{{cite web|url=http://www.iknit.org.uk/stitchnbitchday.html|publisher=iknit.org.uk|title=I Knit London, the UK's First Official Stitch 'n Bitch Day |access-date=2017-04-30 |url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407220057/http://www.iknit.org.uk/stitchnbitchday.html|archive-date=2008-04-07}}</ref> At [[Clothes Show Live]] 2010 there was a new area called "Sknitch" promoting modern sewing, knitting and embroidery.<ref name="clothesshowlive">{{cite web|url=http://www.clothesshowlive.com/sknitch|work=ClothesShowLive.com|title=Sknitch — what's it all about?|access-date=2011-03-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110228110158/http://www.clothesshowlive.com/sknitch|archive-date=2011-02-28}}</ref>

In a departure from the traditional designs associated with cross-stitch, there is a current trend for more [[postmodern]] or tongue-in-cheek designs featuring retro images or contemporary sayings. It is linked to a concept known as 'subversive cross-stitch', which involves more risque designs, often fusing the traditional sampler style with sayings designed to shock or be incongruous with the old-fashioned image of cross-stitch.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://lordlibidan.com/subversive-cross-stitch-is-older-than-you-think/|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230716140752/https://lordlibidan.com/subversive-cross-stitch-is-older-than-you-think/|archive-date=2023-07-16|work=LordLibidan.com|title=Subversive Cross Stitch Is Older Than You Think|date=11 August 2020|access-date=2020-08-12|url-status=live}}</ref>

Stitching designs on other materials can be accomplished by using waste canvas. This is a temporary gridded canvas similar to regular canvas used for embroidery that is held together by a water-soluble glue, which is removed after completion of stitch design. Soluble canvas serves a similar purpose and is entirely dissolved in water after finishing a design.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Siri |date=2020-05-29 |title=Waste Canvas vs Soluble Canvas : Cross Stitch Your Clothes! ⋆ Sirithre.com |url=https://sirithre.com/waste-canvas-vs-soluble-canvas-cross-stitch-your-clothes/ |access-date=2024-10-13 |website=Sirithre.com |language=en}}</ref> Other crafters have taken to cross-stitching on all manner of gridded objects as well including old kitchen strainers or chain-link fences.

While cross stitch is traditionally a women's craft, it is growing in popularity among men.<ref>{{Citation|title=Men That Cross Stitch - The Manbroiderers|url=https://lordlibidan.com/the-rise-of-the-manbroiderer/| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/CyEWz |archive-date=2023-07-16|work=LordLibidan.com|date=August 2017 |url-status=live|language=en|access-date=2023-07-16}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

== Cross-stitch and feminism ==
In the 21st century, an emphasis on feminist design has emerged within cross-stitch communities.<ref>{{cite news |last1=BARON CADLOFF |first1=Emily |title=Not your grandma's needle work: Combining feminism and cross-stitch |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/art-and-architecture/article-not-your-grandmas-needle-work-combining-feminism-and-cross-stitch/ |website=The Globe and Mail |date=9 July 2018 |publisher=The Globe and Mail |access-date=5 November 2021}}</ref> Some cross-stitchers have commented on the way that the practice of embroidery makes them feel connected to the women who practised it before them.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/29/opinion/sunday/feminist-embroidery-korea.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/29/opinion/sunday/feminist-embroidery-korea.html |archive-date=2022-01-01 |url-access=limited|title=The Feminist Power of Embroidery|first=E. Tammy|last=Kim|date=December 29, 2018|work=[[The New York Times]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> There is a push for all embroidery, including cross-stitch, to be respected as a significant art form.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.queensjournal.ca/story/2018-09-17/visual/commentary-stitching-into-feminism/|title=Stitching into Feminism|date=September 18, 2018|first1=Brittany|last1=Giliforte|first2=Brigid|last2=Goulem|work=[[The Queen's Journal]]}}</ref>

== Cross-stitch and computers==
The development of computer technology has also affected such a seemingly conservative craft as cross-stitch. With the help of computer visualization algorithms,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Karen R. Atkinson|first=and Jonathan C. Roberts|title=Graphics and Visualization within Cross-Stitch|url=https://www.cross-stitch-pattern.net/Graphics_and_Visualization_within_Cross-Stitch|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809084921/https://www.cross-stitch-pattern.net/Graphics_and_Visualization_within_Cross-Stitch |archive-date=2021-08-09 }}</ref> it is now possible to create embroidery designs using a photograph or any other picture. Visualisation uses a drawing on a graphical grid, representing colors and / or symbols, which gives the user an indication of the possible use of colors, the position of those colors, and the type of stitch used, such as full cross or quarter stitch.

== Flosstube ==
An increasingly popular activity for cross-stitchers is to watch and make [[YouTube]] videos detailing their hobby. Flosstubers, as they are known, typically cover WIPs (Works in Progress), FOs (Finished Objects), and Haul (new patterns, thread, and fabric, as well as cross-stitching accessories, such as needle minders). Other accessories include but are not limited to: Floss organizers, thread conditioner, pin cushions, [[aida cloth]] or plastic canvas, and embroidery needles.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-08-13 |title=The Best FlossTube Channels {{!}} Lord Libidan |url=https://lordlibidan.com/the-best-flosstube-channels/ |access-date=2024-12-08 |website=lordlibidan.com |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Textile arts}}
* [[Mosaic]]
* [[Pixel art]]
* [[Embroidery]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* Caulfield, S. F. A., and B. C. Saward, ''The Dictionary of Needlework'', 1885.
* Enthoven, Jacqueline: ''The Creative Stitches of Embroidery'', Van Norstrand Rheinhold, 1964, {{ISBN|0-442-22318-8}}.
* Gillow, John, and Bryan Sentance: ''World Textiles'', Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown, 1999, {{ISBN|0-8212-2621-5}}.
* Reader's Digest, ''Complete Guide to Needlework''. The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. (March 1992) {{ISBN|0-89577-059-8}}.

==External links==
{{Commons category|Cross-stitching}}
* Articles related to the recent comeback in popularity of cross stitch. [https://lordlibidan.com/is-cross-stitch-dead/ "Is Cross Stitch Dead?"]
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[[Category:Embroidery stitches]]
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