How to Make Christmas Stocking Using Counted Cross Stitch

Make your very own cross-stitched Christmas stocking.

Make your own counted cross-stitch Christmas stocking with yarn and plastic canvas mesh. Use a template for the size of stocking your would like to make, and plan out the cross stitching on a sheet of graph paper. Plastic canvas mesh is easy to cross stitch because it has large holes, and the stitching can be done with a large-eyed plastic needle. This craft is appropriate for people of all ages, but this project is something children will enjoy making for friends and family.

Things You'll Need

• Red yarn
• White yarn
• Plastic canvas mesh
• Large-eyed needle
• Graph paper
• Card stock
• Crafting books with stocking templates
• Scissors

Instructions

Make the Plastic Canvas Mesh Cut-Outs for the Stocking

1. Use a card stock template of a stocking to trace on the plastic canvas mesh. Find a template for a stocking in a craft book, or draw it by hand on the card stock itself. Drawing the stocking template on card stock is ideal because this is a handmade gift that does not need to look mass produced; asymmetry will add to the character of this project.

2. Place the template in the center of a sheet of plastic canvas mesh and trace around it with a permanent marker.

3. Cut the stocking form out of the plastic canvas mesh, and save the scraps for other projects.

4. Repeat the process of tracing around the stocking template on another sheet of plastic canvas mesh to make the other side of the stocking.

Create a Counted Cross-Stitched Diagram

1. Find a sheet of graph paper with same number of boxes as there are holes on a sheet of plastic canvas mesh.

2. Trace around the stocking template on a sheet of graph paper. Each box on the graph paper will represent a box on the plastic canvas mesh. Count to make sure the number of boxes across the width of the stocking traced on the graph paper are the same as the number of holes across the width of the plastic canvas mesh.

3. Leave the first ten rows empty on the graph paper stocking to represent the white yarn that will be cross stitched on the top of the stocking.

4. Fill in the rest of the boxes on the graph paper stocking with a red marker to represent that this color. It will be cross stitched on the majority of the stocking.

Cross Stitching the Stocking

1. Thread the large-eye needle with white yarn and begin cross stitching the first ten rows from left to right. Double cross stitch over each row if you do not want the plastic canvas mesh to show through.

2. Cross stitch over the ends of the yarn so the back of your cross-stitched piece is smooth.

3. Thread the large-eye need with red yarn and cross stitch the rest of the rows on the stocking.

4. Repeat the process of the cross stitching the white yarn and red yarn on the other canvas plastic mesh stocking form.

5. Take red yarn and cross stitch both sides of the stocking together. Cross stitch around the edges of both stocking forms, but make sure not to sew the top so you put objects in the stocking.

6. Use a needle to attach a decorative bow at the top of the stocking, which will allow you to hang it from the chimney or another location in your home.

Tips & Warnings

• If you do not have time to make a cross stitched stocking, you can always make a brown paper stocking that is sewn together with red yarn.

• Make a large template if you want a larger stocking, and small template if you want to make a smaller stocking.

References

• Oregon State University: Needlepoint
• Enchanted Learning: Brown Paper Christmas Stocking

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish