Fine 2.5mm grid with heavier 10×10 block lines: the standard format for charting cross-stitch and needlepoint patterns.

Free printable cross-stitch pattern paper PDF. Fine 2.5mm grid with heavy 10×10 block dividers — the standard format for charting cross-stitch and needlepoint.

Cross-Stitch Pattern Paper | Free Printable PDF

Cross-Stitch Pattern Paper

When you mark out a motif, work in units of ten. 'Start at column 30, row 50' is three blocks across, five blocks down — fast to locate. 'Start at column 27, row 53' takes longer and is easier to miscount.

Count by blocks, not by cells

Print a pattern in colour and the symbols are obvious. Print in black-and-white (which costs nothing and reproduces cleanly) and the colours disappear. Symbols (X, /, dot, square, etc.) survive both colour and grayscale and are the standard convention.

Use symbols, not colours, for charting

Cross-stitchers traditionally start from the centre of the fabric and work outward, which keeps the pattern centred on the cloth regardless of how the edges are framed. Mark the chart's centre with a clear cross or symbol so you can find your starting point quickly.

Mark the centre before you start stitching

Once you've drafted a chart, photocopy it before stitching. Mark off completed stitches on the copy as you go; preserve the original as a clean reference. Mistakes during marking are easier to recover from than mistakes on the original.