How to Make Your Own Needlepoint Designs

Although I love to cross stitch, it's tough to do it in a car. As we'll soon be leaving for a two-day road trip to Texas, I'm now digging out some my old needlework projects to keep me busy while we're traveling.

Anyone who does needlework knows it's much easier to work a needlepoint canvas in a car than a cross-stitch design. All you do is fill the holes in with the continental stitch, choosing colors that match your design. No counting or juggling charts. You just need your reference picture, canvas and thread. It's a great way to relax as your enjoy the scenery.

You say you love to do needlepoint, but can't afford the pricey designs?

Then why not make your own? That's what I starting doing a couple of years ago. However, my method is unusual because I don't paint my canvases, but instead just outline my designs in a quilters' pen and stitch according to my reference photos.

It had been at least three decades since I'd picked up a needlepoint canvas or shopped for supplies, so I was in for a surprise when I first visited my local needlework shop. There I finally found some woolen yarn after not finding it for most almost twelve years in major craft stores. However, the wool was sold in large balls, rather than small steins as years ago. As I needed a variety of colors, wool was much more than I had allotted for my craft budget.

Then I discovered that most needlepoint kits today are not done in wool yarn, but in cotton embroidery floss. Well, that was good news to me as I had a huge stash from my cross stitch projects. Note that when you use 6-stranded floss doing the continental stitch, you'll be using all 6 strands for coverage.

If you decide to try your hand at needle pointing or if you're returning to it, after a long sabbatical, your biggest investment will be your needlepoint canvas. I'd recommend 14 count canvas if you'll be using 6-stranded cotton embroidery floss. Buy about a yard's worth, and later divided into smaller pieces for your projects. I prefer to work on an 8" x 10" canvas as larger ones take forever to complete.