How to Finish a Counted Cross Stitch Bookmark

Finishing a counted cross stitch bookmark is relatively easy and you will not need many materials. There are a variety of ways to complete your project, including a no-sew option. Fusible works well when making a cross stitched bookmark. It is a thin adhesive that holds your needlepoint in place and adheres to another fabric, as well as gives your cross stitch some body and stiffness.

Things You'll Need

• Iron
• Fabric or ribbon
• Fusible webbing
• Sewing machine
• Needle and thread

Instructions

No Sew Finishing Option

1. Trim any long threads from the back of your cross-stitched piece, so that it will lay flat. Trim your cross-stitched piece into the desired size of your bookmark.

2. 

   Wide grosgrain ribbon

   Trim a piece of fusible webbing slightly smaller than your cross-stitched artwork. Trim a piece of coordinating fabric or ribbon the same size as your cross-stitched artwork. This will be used as the back of the bookmark to hide the underside of your work.

3. Fold raw edges of both the cross stitched piece and fabric toward the back and iron down.

4. Iron the fusible webbing to the cross-stitched bookmark, following the packaging instructions. Iron the fabric or ribbon to the cross-stitched bookmark, sandwiching the fusible webbing.

Sewing Option

1. Trim any long threads from the back of your cross-stitched piece so that it will lay flat. Trim your cross-stitched piece into the desired size of your bookmark, leaving a 1/4-inch edge around the bookmark. Trim the coordinating fabric into the same size as the cross-stitched piece, leaving a 1/4-inch edge around the piece. This will be used as the back of the bookmark to hide the underside of your work.

2. Place the right sides together with the wrong sides facing out. Stitch by using a sewing machine or by hand with needle and thread around three sides of your book mark. Leave one end open.

3. Trim any loose ends and extra fabric along the seams and turn the sewn bookmark inside out through the open end. Iron flat the bookmark, turning under the open end.

4. Hand stitch shut the open end of the cross-stitched bookmark.

Tips & Warnings

• If you finish your bookmark by sewing, use a coordinating fabric rather than a ribbon. Ribbon works well as a back when you iron it on to your cross stitch with fusible webbing, but does not work well sewing it on as a back for your piece.

• Follow the fusible webbing instructions. Some cross-stitched pieces with larger holes for the needle point might work best with a piece of parchment paper under the cross stitch when you iron on the fusible webbing so that your work does not adhere to your ironing board.

References

• Stich 'em Up: About Fusible Webbing