Christmas Cross-Stitch Crafts

Place Mat

For each place mat

Use Aida backgrounds for the
body of the place mat or choose
your own colors at a fabric
store.

• 9-inch x 14-inch piece of 32-count stoney point linen

1. Download the free pattern for this project. (Downloading requires Adobe Acrobat software.) With a 9-inch edge of the linen at the top, find the vertical center of the fabric and measure 6-1/4 inches from the top edge; begin stitching the top of the tree there. Stitch three branches and a trunk.

• 7-inch x 14-inch piece of stoney point Aida cloth or other fabric
• 13-3/4-inch x 14-inch piece of teal green Aida cloth or other fabric
• Matching sewing threads
• 8 inch square scrap of rust decorator fabric
• Pinking shears

1. Sew together the stoney point and teal green Aida cloth pieces along a 14-inch edge, using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Zigzag-stitch the seam allowances together and press toward the darker fabric. Zigzag-stitch around the outer edges of the place mat and press under 1/2 inch. Topstitch 1/4 inch from the outer edges.

2. Trim the stitched piece into a 6-inch x 11-inch rectangle with the bottom of the tree 1-1/2 inches from the bottom of the rectangle. Press under 1/4 inch on the side and bottom edges. Fold and press a 1-1/4-inch-wide cuff at the top edge of the linen, creating a pocket that measures 4-1/2 inches x 6 inches.

3. Cut a 1-1/2-inch x 4-1/2-inch rust decorator fabric strip and trim one long edge with pinking shears. Slip the strip between the cuff and the pocket with 1/4 inch of the pinked edge extending beyond the cuff. Sew through all layers about 1/8 inch from the bottom edge of the cuff.

4. Cut a rectangle of rust fabric 2 inches larger than the linen pocket. Center and pin the pocket on the rectangle. Baste through all layers about 1/8 inch from the side and bottom edges of the pocket. Use the pinking shears to trim the rust fabric 1/4 inch beyond the side and bottom edges of the pocket. Working from the wrong side of the pocket, trim away the rust fabric 1/2 inch inside the basting line and even with the top edge of the pocket. Be careful not to cut the linen pocket.

5. Pin the pocket on the place mat 5/8 inch from the left and bottom edges. Sew the pocket to the place mat along the basting lines.

Napkin

For each napkin

Holiday dining goes elegant when
you start with tree-trimmed
place mats and napkins.

• 19-inch square of 32-count stoney point linen
• Sewing thread to match linen

1. Before stitching, zigzag-stitch around the outer edges of the napkin and press under 1/2 inch. Topstitch 1/4 inch from the outer edges. Along one edge, measure 3-1/2-inches from the corner. Then measure 2-1/2 inches from the edge; begin stitching the top of the tree there. Stitch two branches and a trunk. Measure 3-1/2 inches along the adjoining edge and stitch a second tree.

Chair Backs

For each chair back

Hang this easy-to-assemble
triangle banner on the back of
a chair or sew one to each end
of a length of fabric for a
table runner.

• 11-inch x 12-inch piece of 16-county stoney point Aida cloth

1. Stitch the entire tree.

• 1/4 yard of rust decorator fabric
• 18-inch x 20-inch piece of rust cotton broadcloth
• 18-inch x 20-inch piece of fleece
• Matching sewing thread

1. Centering the design, trim the stitched piece into a 9-3/8-inch-tall triangle with an 8-1/4-inch base. Use the stitched piece as a pattern to cut three triangles from the rust decorator fabric. Also cut four 1-1/2-inch x 18-inch strips for ties. All measurements include a 1/4-inch seam allowance.

2. With the right sides together, sew a rust triangle to each long edge of the stitched triangle. Press seam allowances away from the stitched piece. Sew the remaining rust triangle to the bottom edge.

3. Use the joined triangles as a pattern to cut a matching back from the cotton broadcloth and to cut one matching piece from fleece. Baste the fleece to the wrong side of the joined triangles.

4. For the ties, fold and press the long edges of the 1-1/2-inch x 18-inch strips to meet at the center of the strip. Fold in half lengthwise, aligning the pressed edges. Edge-stitch the pressed edges together. On the right side of the joined triangles, pin two ties at each top corner; sew. With right sides together, sew the back to the joined triangles, leaving a 3-inch opening in the top edge for turning. Clip the corners and turn right side out. Press carefully. Slip-stitch the opening closed.

Topiary

Quick to stitch and easy to
finish, this pine-forest
centerpiece can be arranged in
many ways.

• Two 10-inch x 11-inch pieces of 16-count stoney point Aida cloth
• Two 8-inch squares of 16-count stoney point Aida cloth
• Six 6-inch squares of 16-count stoney point Aida cloth

1. Stitch the entire chart on each 10-inch x 11-inch piece of Aida cloth. Stitch a four-branch tree from the chart on each 8-inch square of Aida cloth and a two-branch tree on each 6-inch square of Aida cloth.

• Pinking shears
• 1/4 yard of rust decorator fabric
• Polyester fleece
• Matching sewing thread
• 5 3/16-inch-diameter wooden dowels
• Brown acrylic paint
• Paintbrush

1. Pair the stitched pieces, wrong sides together. Use the pinking shears to trim each pair into a triangle. With straight scissors, use each paired triangle as a pattern to cut four matching shapes from fleece. Trim away 3/8 inch from each edge of the fleece triangles.

2. Fold the rust decorator fabric into a double layer, wrong sides together. Use each stitched triangle pair as a pattern to cut a matching shape 1/4 inch larger on all sides, with pinking shears, from the doubled rust fabric.

3. To assemble each tree, separate each set of two rust triangles and two stitched triangles. Lay each rust triangle, wrong side down, on a flat surface. Center two batting triangles and one stitched triangle on each rust triangle. Place the rust triangles together again, wrong sides facing, and pin the layers together, matching the corners of the stitched pieces. Sew through all layers 1/4-inch inside the stitched triangle, leaving a generous 1/2-inch opening at the center bottom of the tree for the dowel.

4. Paint the wooden dowels brown. When the paint is dry, cut the dowels into the desired lengths. Insert one end of a dowel length into the opening at the bottom of each fabric tree.

Package Tie

For each package tie

Stitched on perforated paper,
this abbreviated version of the
feather tree motif requires
only scissors to finish.

• 2 3-inch squares of 14-count cream perforated paper

1. Stitch one two-branch tree on each paper square.

• Decorated-edge scissors or pinking shears
• 3-inch square of off-white parchment paper
• 2 3-1/2-inch squares of burgundy suede paper
• 3-1/2-inch square of red suede paper
• Glue stick
• Black marker
• Paper punch
• Narrow ribbon or string

1. Use the decorative-edge scissors to trim each stitched pieces of parchment paper to measure 2-3/4 inch square. Trim the suede cloth squares to measure 3-1/4 inch square. Center and glue the stitched pieces on the burgundy squares and the parchment on the red square. Write the desired message on the parchment square. Punch a hole in the upper left corner of each square. Thread the ribbon through the holes and attach to a package.