Cross Stitch Half Stitch Tutorial
In this tutorial, you’ll learn everything you need to know about making a cross stitch half stitches.
We’ll dive deep into the different kinds of half stitches, how to stitch them on both linen and Aida, as well as what they look like in a chart. I recommend that you stitch along with each step. You’ll become proficient in no time!
Diagonal Half Stitch
Most of the time, a half stitch is represented by a short diagonal line across one square in a chart. This kind of half stitch is what it sounds like: half of a full cross stitch.
Diagonal half stitches can face forward or backward across a thread block, and the chart you are following should make it clear which way they should face.
Diagonal Half Stitch On Aida
On Aida, half stitches usually span one thread block.
Diagonal Half Stitch On Linen
On linen, they usually span two threads.
Vertical and Horizontal Half Stitches
You may occasionally see a rectangular shape that fills half of a square in a cross stitch chart. This is another kind of half stitch that is made vertically or horizontally instead of diagonally. For this stitch, you’ll be making what is essentially a 2-legged cross stitch, but across half of the thread block.
Vertical half stitches span the right or left half of a square, while horizontal half stitches span the top or bottom half of a square.
Vertical Half Stitch On Aida
It is easiest to start the stitch through one of the holes in the Aida, then go back down through the thread block to end the first diagonal stitch.
Then, go back up through the next hole in the fabric and place the needle down through the thread block to make the stitch running at the opposite diagonal.
When the half stitch is made on Aida, the legs of the stitch that end in the middle of the square will go down through the thread block, while the other two legs should go through the 2 holes along the edge.
Vertical Half Stitch On Linen
If you are making stitches across 2 threads at a time on linen, you’ll make a vertical half stitch running across one of the vertical threads and across two of the horizontal threads. This will make the stitch half of the width, but the same height as a full cross stitch.
Linen makes it much easier to achieve a pretty, balanced-looking stitch, as you aren’t having to split the threads.
Now that you’re finished reading this article, I recommend learning about the other fractional cross stitches.
Amanda is a hand embroidery teacher and artist. With over 15 years of experience in the craft industry and embroidery, she owns and runs Crewel Ghoul, sharing accessible tutorials and patterns to help inspire fellow crafters to get creative. In addition to running this website, she teaches on Skillshare and Youtube.
