Your first cross-stitch: a beginner's pet portrait

A pet portrait is a wonderful first project — you'll want to finish it. The secret is choosing an easy version: small, with few colors.

Both patterns above come from the same photo. The beginner version is 56 stitches wide with about 10 colors; the standard one is 100 stitches with 17 colors and around three times the stitching.

What you need

• Fabric: 14-count Aida, about 10 × 10 inches for a small pattern.
• Needle: a size 24 tapestry needle (blunt tip, big eye).
• Floss: the DMC colors on your pattern's shopping list — usually one skein each at this size.
• A hoop: 6 inches is comfortable. Not essential, but it keeps the fabric taut.
• Small scissors, and a printed chart or a tablet.

Choosing an easy pattern

• Size: 50 to 60 stitches wide.
• Colors: 8 to 12. In our pattern maker, lower Colors in the Advanced settings.
• Clean-up: set "Clean up stray stitches" to strong, so colors come in blocks.
• Background: leave it unstitched.

Your first stitch

1. Find the center of the fabric (fold it in half both ways) and the center of the chart (the arrows on the edges).
2. Cut 18 inches of floss and separate two strands.
3. Loop start: use one strand doubled, so the two ends go through the needle. Come up through the fabric, go down diagonally, and catch the loop on the back. No knot.
4. Work a row of half stitches (/ / /), then come back along the row crossing them (\ \ \). Every top stitch should slant the same way.
5. To finish a thread, slide the needle under three or four stitches on the back and trim.

Finishing

When it's done, wash it gently in lukewarm water, roll it in a towel, and press it face-down on a soft towel so the stitches stay plump. Then frame it or finish it in a hoop — see finishing and framing.

Ready? Our easy patterns page has the best settings for a first project.