2025 Holiday Ornament Updates

This year really got away from me so unfortunately I don't have a new ornament design for 2025, I promise there will be one next year. I did manage to update all of the old designs so if you haven't stitched one of the past year's designs, now is your chance. Here is the complete collection in a printable and downloadable document.  As usual, all of these can be stitched on 14-count Aida and will fit in a 3" embroidery hoop, perfect for hanging on your tree.

Each ornament takes between 1-4 hours depending on your skill level and the design you choose. My favorite finishing technique for these is to create a fabric back, you can check out my tutorial on finishing with that method here.

Year of the Chicken

It's that time, time for my annual cross stitch ornament pattern!! Okay, I am running super late this year, despite completing the pattern design and stitching a month early, so I am going to pretend I intended it as a Christmas release.

For the past few years, I have created an ornament design that represents something in the year that I want to remember. This year's design is a chicken which represents the Emotional Support Chicken knitting and crochet pattern by Annette Corsino. If you are in the knitting or crochet community, you are quite familiar with these patterns, they were absolutely everywhere this year. ReBelle hosted an Emotional Support Animal KAL for Mental Health May where most participant chose to knit or crochet the chickens and it was probably my favorite knit along I have ever hosted. We saw dozens of these little guys made by customers and while it is not uncommon for a project to go viral, this one hit a little different. I heard a lot of stories about why people where making the chickens and how soothing these little guys have been for their various recipients. 

Supplies:

6" square of 14ct Aida

9 colors of floss

     310, 900, 972, 3891, 601, 3345, 3890, 415, & 552

3" embroidery hoop

#24 tapestry needle

scissors

The project takes about 2-4 hours depending on your skill level. My favorite finishing technique for this type of ornament is to create a fabric back. You can check out my tutorial on that method here. 

And as usual, I updated all of the older patterns with the current date so if you missed any of them or just want to update an old favorite, here is the complete collection in a printable and downloadable form. I hope you enjoy making these. 

Holiday Celebrations with this Fungi

If you have been following along for any length of time you probably know that one of my holiday traditions is to create a cross stitch ornament pattern which I teach as a class at ReBelle every December. The day after the class (or in this case, the week after the class,) I release the pattern here along with the updates for my previous ornament patterns. For the past few years, the theme of the ornament design has been a reflection of something from my year. This year's design is a toadstool which represents my deep dive into learning about, drawing, and painting mushrooms this year. I also added a new technique to the design this year- blending threads. To do the shading on the base of the toadstool, you will want to hold one strand of 3046 (rye beige) with one strand of 801 (dark beige brown.) Blending thread colors creates a more subtle change between sections giving your finished piece a little more depth. 

Printable patterns can be found here.

Supplies:

6" square of 14ct Aida

5 colors of floss

     white, 320, 321, 3046, 801, & 3046 blend (held together with 801)

3" embroidery hoop

#24 tapestry needle

scissors

The project takes about 2-3 hours depending on your skill level. My favorite finishing technique for this type of ornament is to create a fabric back. You can check out my tutorial on that method here. 

And as usual, I updated all of the older patterns with the current date so if you missed any of them or just want to update and old favorite, here is the complete collection in a printable and downloadable form. I hope you enjoy making these. 

The First Gnoël

It's that time of year again, time for my annual holiday ornament design. This year's theme is gnomes because they are absolutely everywhere and we are doing a big gnome promotion at the shop so instead of trying to escape the gnome madness, I decided to lean in and enjoy the festive little creatures. This year you get a two-for-one pattern since I can't stop with the gnome puns (I created dozens of little gnome color packs at the shop for making the Imagined Landscapes mystery gnomes and came up with gnome puns for each and every pack.) As in previous years, I updated all of the older ornament designs with the current year so if you want to use one of those, they are included in the pdf. I hope a little stitching break provides you with some much needed quiet in a hectic season. Enjoy!!!

Click here for a printable pattern.

Supplies:

6" square of 14ct Aida

5 colors of floss

     310, 666, 353, 453 or Ecru, 701 or 798

3" embroidery hoop

#24 tapestry needle

scissors

The project takes about 2-3 hours depending on your skill level. My favorite finishing technique for this type of ornament is to create a fabric back. You can check out my tutorial on that method here. 

Click here for the complete pattern collection.

2020 - The year I set Santa ablaze

For a printable version of the pattern, click here. 

Every year in December I teach an intro to cross stitch workshop at ReBelle where we make holiday ornaments, this workshop is my excuse for creating a new ornament design every year. Despite all of my classes and workshops being cancelled for the year, I find myself wanting to keep this tradition alive. 2020 has been a year of literal and figurative fires so it seemed appropriate that this year's ornament reflect that so I set Santa on fire, as you do. This is an intermediate pattern, there are 24 quarter stitches, two french knots, and a fair amount of back stitching. If that feels a bit spicy for you or you would rather stitch something more traditional, I also included updates for the previous years' designs that range in difficulty from absolute beginner to intermediate. Whichever you choose, I hope the meditative practice of stitching brings you some peace in a time of chaos. Happy Holidays!!

Click here for a printable version.

Supplies:

6" square of 14ct Aida

7 colors of floss

     310, 666, 700, 444, 225, 741, white

3" embroidery hoop

#24 tapestry needle

scissors

The project takes 2-3 hours depending on your skill level. My favorite finishing technique for this type of ornament is to create a fabric back. You can check out my tutorial on that method here. 

The complete pattern collection can be found here. 

2019 Ornament Pattern

For a printable version of the pattern, click here.

Another year, another ornament. Here is the 2019 holiday ornament design for you to stitch and enjoy.

Unlike past years, this one relies heavily on back stitching, half stitches, and the braided stitches I used for the trees (which are worked from top to bottom with the center stitches weaving through each other as you go.) It is the most difficult of the four patterns I've created so if you are feeling unsure or want a little more variety, I also updated the patterns from the three previous years. Merry Christmas!!

For a printable version of the pattern, click here.

Supplies:

6" square of 14ct Aida

4 colors of floss

     I used 321,905,444, & 420

3" embroidery hoop

#24 tapestry needle

scissors

The project takes 1-2 hours depending on your skill level. My favorite finishing technique for this type of ornament is to create a fabric back. You can check out my tutorial on that method here. Alternately, you can finish the ornaments by cutting the fabric close to the hoop and attaching a piece of card stock to cover the back. 

The complete pattern collection can be found here.

New Ornament Patterns

Every year right before the holidays I teach a cross stitch ornament class at ReBelle. Basically it is a simple little project that can be done in an afternoon and teaches the basics of cross stitch and creates a nice little ornament that can be gifted or hung on your tree. I have been using the same design for a few years, simply updating the numbers for the year. This year as I was preparing for the class I decided to add a new design to the mix for 2017. I ended up creating two new designs, but I am saving the second one for the 2018 holiday season. Anyway, here are the two patterns if you want to stitch your own.

A printable pdf of both patterns can be found here. 

You will need:
6" square of 14ct Aida
2 colors of floss (I used DMC 336 and 996)
3" embroidery hoop
#24 tapestry needle
scissors

The project takes 1-2 hours depending on your skill level. My favorite finishing technique for this type of ornament is to create a fabric back. You can check out my tutorial on that method here. Alternately, you can finish the ornaments by cutting the fabric really close to the hoop and attaching a piece of card stock to cover the back. Enjoy!!

Everyone has the right to pee

Printable version here.

I thought I was done blogging for the day, but then I received my daily email from the Daily Cross Stitch. For those not familiar with the site, it is a cute little cross stitch site that offers small, inexpressive cross stitch patterns. They also offer one free pattern per day in a daily email. They are usually cutsie little things like animals and baked goods, but today's patterns of restroom signs for men and women were obviously politically motivated. As an alternative to their design, I offer you this free pattern for an inclusive restroom sign. It's part of a much bigger piece that I am working on for the shop and will post in its entirety when completed, but this felt like it needed to be posted as a smaller pattern now. Stitched on 14ct Aida, the finished piece will fit into a standard 5x7" frame and will make any restroom better.

Technology is Magic

This week has been a little too busy for blogging and I haven't been working on anything that I am allowed to share just yet so instead you get a free cross stitch pattern.

Yesterday I spoke to the Creative Disruption class at Transylvania University and I brought along a couple of the QR code cross stitches I've done. Mostly I use the QR technology with cross stitch for leaving little affirmations in unexpected places, mostly public bathrooms. Anyway, while this one was being passed around the class I remembered that I created a chart to share, but never did it, so here you go.

Worked on 14ct Aida, this design will fit into a 2x2" frame that can be placed anywhere your heart desires. Downloadable pattern here.

Hello Mona Pattern

Finished Mona still on the frame.

A some of you may know, I have been working on a project to cover the bathroom walls at the shop with a giant collection of cross stitched pieces in gold frames. For about 3 years now, Ihave kept a master list of the patterns I want to use as well as a list of patterns I want to create. One of the things on my list is to do a series of cross stitch interpretations of street art, mostly local to Lexington. As one of my favorites, Hello Mona was at the top of this list. There are several versions of Mona around town, but I wanted to keep the chart kinda small so I decided to go with plain Mona in a red bow. The finished work fits in a 4"x6" frame and the downloadable chart can be found here. Big thanks to Hello Mona for letting me share the chart.

Now for the details. This piece was stitched on 14ct Aida cloth using two strands of embroidery floss, I used less than one skein each of black (DMC 310) and red (DMC 666.) If you want the black sections really solid you can switch to 3 strands of embroidery floss and add an extra skein to compensate.

A printable chart can be found here.

DIY Cross Stitch Ornaments

Finished ornament hung with a simple ribbon.

I made this simple cross stitch ornament for a last minute gift class at the shop. The pattern is easy enough for a beginner and should take less than two hours to complete regardless of skill level so let's get started.

You will need the following:

14ct Aida cloth
1 yard embroidery floss
cross stitch needle
3" embroidery hoop
a small scrap of coordinating fabric
sewing needle
sewing thread
scraps of paperboard (a cereal box will do)
piece of ribbon (or hook for hanging)
iron (optional)

Once you have all of your supplies you can begin by cross stitching the chart below. You can either do this in the 3" hoop you are going to hang it in or you can use a larger hoop and move it into the 3" one when you are finished. If you are new to cross stitch I suggest you start with this tutorial by Becky Stern, she does a terrific job of explaining everything, far better than I could.

A printable pdf of this chart can be found here.

Once your project is stitched and in the frame you will want to sew a running stitch around the outside perimeter of the Aida cloth and pull tight to gather the excess material in the center of the hoop. If you have a large amount of excess Aida cloth you will want to trim it so that no more than an inch hangs over the edge before doing your running stitch.

Next you want to cut a 3 1/4" circle out of paperboard and a 5" circle out of your scrap fabric. Repeat the perimeter running stitch from above to encase the paperboard in the fabric.

Backsides of both the paperboard backing and the hoop.

At this point you can choose to iron the backs of both objects to make the fabric lay flat, this is totally personal preference. Once your two backs are ready to go, apply your favorite fabric glue to the outside perimeter, put the two wrong sides together, and weight with a flat heavy object, I used a heavy book, until dry. Once dry, add a ribbon or hook and it is ready to hang on your tree.

Since I am posting less than a week before Christmas and you might not get to this in 2015, I went ahead and made a 2016 version of this ornament, that chart can be found here.

Vagicon

Here's the second pattern in the crossstitch series that I am working on- the vagicon. Mostly a joke in my knitting group, but with real-life applications. Uses less than a skein of a single color, I used three strands of a hot pink on black 14ct aida cloth, but if you use a white background you can get away with two strands. Finished piece measures 3"x4" and can easily fit in a standard 3.5"x5" frame. The printable pattern can be found here.

Pattern PDF available here.

Also, if anyone is interested, for crossstitch and embroidery I really love using the Q-Snap frames. I first heard about these pvc frames on Jenny Hart's site a few years ago and since I have never been very comfortable using embroidery hoops I decided to try them out. I started with a 6" set and immediately added an 8" and 11" set to my collection. I like that the pieces can be mixed and matched to create the frame size you need (I do almost everything on a 6"x8" frame,) but I mostly love these frames because of how comfortable they are to use.

A Little Kentucky Love

I am working on a huge crossstitch project for the shop bathroom, ultimately I want to completely cover the walls with crossstitched images in gilded frames. I am using mostly designs I find online, but a few of the things I want are going to require me to create my own patterns so I thought I would share those charts as they happen.

First up is my Kentucky love piece. In my mind this one seemed simple enough that a pattern should have been available online, but the few Kentucky charts I found were the wrong size for the frame I wanted to use so I created my own. I placed my heart in Central Kentucky, but you non-Lexingtonians can easily move it to your favorite part of the state. The sample is stitched with 2 strands on 14-count aida cloth to make a version that fits in an 5"x7" frame, but you can use 3 strands on an 11-count cloth if you want a larger version that fits an 8"x10" frame. The outline version in both sizes will use less than a skein of floss in both colors and the filled versions use 2-4 in the main color depending on the size you choose. The PDF can be downloaded here. Enjoy!!

Pattern PDF available here.