How to Make Cross Stitch Patterns from a Photo or Drawing

1. Choose a JPG, PNG or WebP image with one clear subject. On an iPhone, HEIC photos won’t open: set Camera › Formats to Most Compatible.
2. Set the size in stitches and the fabric count.
3. Choose how many thread colours to use.
4. Tidy the chart so it is pleasant to stitch.
5. Print a test page and check the thread list.

Cross stitch turns a picture into coloured squares, so fine detail disappears. The best images are:

• One subject, filling most of the frame.
• A plain background, which you can leave unstitched.
• Strong light with clear differences between light and dark.
• A pet or a face taken close up, not a group far away.

Crop first. A busy background costs thread and hours and adds nothing.

Size is the biggest choice. More stitches keep more detail but take longer. Finished width is stitches ÷ fabric count; the cross stitch calculator works out the fabric to buy.

Source: Wikipedia: Aida cloth.

Every colour is another skein to buy and another thread change. The tool shows versions with 12, 20 and 30 colours and highlights the fewest that stay close to your image. Start there, then compare.

Use more colours for faces and soft shading, and fewer for logos, cartoons and flat artwork. You can type any number from 2 to 100.

A chart made straight from a photo is full of lone stitches, which are slow to work. The tool cleans these up by default. After that, look for:

• Lone stitches left in the face or the main subject.
• Too many close shades: pick a version with fewer colours, or type a lower number.
• Background you would rather leave as bare fabric: use the “Don’t stitch colour” tool.

Download the PDF and print at 100%. Check that the symbols are easy to tell apart at the size you will read them, then buy thread from the list, which gives each colour’s DMC number, stitch count and skeins.

On Android, press “Get Pattern Keeper PDF” for the Pattern Keeper app; the pattern maker page explains the steps.

Yes. Trace or draw your design on graph paper, with one square for each stitch. Colour each square, then give each colour a symbol and a thread number. It works well for small designs and lettering, but it is slow for anything with shading.

For a name or a phrase, the cross stitch letters tool does the charting for you.