How to use cross-stitch in scrapbooking? Well, there are quite a lot of ways in which some added stitching can embellish your scrapbook pages. In this blog post, I’m going to show you some gorgeous examples of very intricate cross-stitch needlework, but also very easy and quick ways in which you can add some yarn-art to your memory keeping!
Personally, I love combining different mediums, in this case: paper and yarn. I’ve already written about using crochet items as scrapbook embellishments (check out the blog post about Crochet Hearts HERE, and the one about Crochet Flowers HERE) and now I’m adding cross-stitch to the blog post list!
Scroll down with me to get inspired. Then whip out some of that embroidery floss and get cracking with your own cross-stitch creations! Enjoy!
This gorgeous and colorful page has a big cross-stitched title and a small floral cross-stitch embellishment. The color scheme is pastel and bright and the chosen yarn colors for both the title and the flower fit this palette perfectly. The cross-stitched page elements really bring a
The stitching that was used to embellish this layout is for more subtle. The cross-stitching fills up the heart behind the title in a very unobtrusive way. This is mainly due to the choice of yarn color. I love how the cross-stitching on the heart adds texture to the page and also gives it a softness that tones down the somewhat harsh angular setup of the rest of the layout. Again, the pattern for the cross-stitching is not very difficult, but it might require some investment of time. The great thing about adding cross-stitching to an embellishment rather than to the page directly is that you can make some of these beforehand. When you then actually get to sit down to scrap you can just grab your favorite cross-stitched piece and not lose any valuable scrapping time!
I wanted to include this work of cross-stitch art just to show what is possible when it comes to memory keeping and stitching. The whole background is cross-stitched! Now, this is not a traditional scrapbook layout. In fact, it is a shadowbox to remember Bojangles the cat. What a great idea! Surely not for the beginner or the faint of heart, but putting this much effort into your memory keeping can elevate an average result into a true work of art! Another reason why I wanted to include this piece is that I have never seen the combination of cross-stitching and photos before. It is a remarkable piece of work by any standard! Not necessarily meant to be copied, but certainly meant to inspire!
We’re definitely moving into cross-stitching professional with this gorgeous layout. The stitched roses are stunning, but what a lot of work! Not everybody will have the time (and, let’s face it, the patience…) to create such an elaborate cross-stitched background. You could always “cheat” a little bit and go digital: print out a stunning work of cross-stitched art like this one on a piece of cardstock and use that as your background. Or, alternatively, you can draw the cross-stitches rather than actually stitching them. It would still be a lot of work, but go a lot faster all the same. But if you have the skill, the will, the time and the patience, by all means stitch away and immortalize those precious memories!
I love the monochrome look of this page. It gives off a very distinguished and muted feeling. I love the simplicity and texture of the few well-chosen page elements.
The cross-stitched element on this page looks very
Don’t worry, the patterns and intricacies of the cross-stitching will only get easier after this one. How gorgeous is this layout? From what I understand, there is a very talented lady who creates these backgrounds on commission. The creator of this scrapbook page had her make one in her favorite colors, so it’s no wonder that the other page elements fit the color scheme perfectly!
Apart from requesting this cross-stitching lady to make one for you (or, indeed, spending most of your weekends making it yourself…), you could go the digital route again and printing out the background rather than stitching it. Or, if you like the handmade look, create those cross-stitches with marker instead of yarn (i.e. drawing them!).
This layout shows that repetition of a simpler design can be very effective too. I love the sea of white space on this layout! The cross-stitched reindeer, together with the wood-style background add a lot of texture to the page. The layout has a distinctive minimalist Scandinavian feeling to it. I love how the cross-stitched elements fit the photo and title perfectly. It is such a great idea for sprucing up a minimalist layout.
You can find free cross-stitch patterns like this one online. Or you can try to create your own by sketching it out with little crosses first. These little Christmas-themed cross-stitch elements can also be used on handmade Christmas cards, placesettings for your Christmas dinner table or even as a little Christmas tree decoration. The possibilities of these little gems are endless, but remember to put them also on your Christmas scrapbook layouts!
This layout shows that cross-stitch can even have its place on a more urban and grungy looking page. I love the bit colorful title words. These have been stitched to the page as well! The color of the cross-stitch hearts fits with their respective titles. This is a great way to achieve unity across very different types of media. The photos are kept in black and white and each of the three has a little something extra added to them: awesome paperclips and even a wood veneer photo frame (you could totally use those drilled holes for cross-stitching too!). The little white cross-stitched heart on the red background is the perfect finishing touch. This grungy layout is the perfect mix of different media and elements. So, there is no excuse not to use any cross-stitching on your own pages!
Of course, there absolutely should be cross-stitching on a page that documents, well, cross-stitching! In this hobby-inspired layout the big letter “C” of the title is elaborately cross-stitched using different colors of yarn. Making such a big cross-stitched capital letter is a great idea for monogram pages, birthday cards, (bridal) invitation etc. And, obviously, as an awesome page element for your scrapbook layouts!
I love how the page is kept very minimal. This way all the work that went into creating that big cross-stitched letter really gets to shine. Notice that you really don’t have to go overboard when choosing the difficulty or intricacy of the cross-stitch pattern you want to use to achieve an impressive result. Sometimes, or rather: often, simple is the best way to go. This way, the cross-stitched element doesn’t have to take too much time to make and the impact and effect is still gorgeous!
This cute layout shows that even a couple of well-placed stitches are enough to add some cross-stitch flair to your page. In this case, little squares have been cross-stitched in soft pink embroidery floss. Also, some embroidery floss was added behind the title and date card. I love the combination of a minimalistic look with a little touch of grunge (achieved with the random black paint splatters). One of the stitches in the squares is a knot with some extra embroidery floss sticking out. This little “imperfection” adds to the loose and grungy feeling of the page. I love the color scheme with the pale browns and pinks. Now you know that even a few cross-stitches can add a lot to your page. Why not try to see where you can add some stitches yourself?
The cross-stitched element on this layout is quite dominant. It is build up out of different kinds of cross-stitched borders, each of which is fairly simple to stitch. I love the color combination of the different borders and how those colors match with both the photos and the title letters. The cross-stitched border piece is made separately from the rest of the page. If making a piece like this is a bit too overwhelming, or if you simply don’t have the time, consider picking your favorite border strip and making just that one. There are enough patterns to choose from! You can frame your photo with them on your scrapbook page, or frame the whole background of your layout. The possibilities are endless!
This layout shows how to use cross-stitch on your page in a completely different way. The floral pattern is printed or drawn on and only a couple of the green leaf stitches are actually cross-stitched with embroidery floss. This way, you can get some quick results! What a great idea! The green of the embroidery floss provides an extra color pop as it is much greener than the printed example. I absolutely love this idea. It is good to see how “only” printed cross-stitches look on a page. It is a look I really like. You could consider using brigher colors, but there is something to be said for this paler, less obtrusive or dominant color scheme. The cross-stitch pattern is further “dressed up” with colorful little hearts, buttons and paint splatters. These not only fill up some of the gaps in the pattern, but also give a more whimsical look to this scrapbook layout.
This is another layout that uses cross-stitch more sparingly. Half of the heart is cross-stitched in a lovely pink color that matches the rest of the flower-filled heart beautifully. Notice that the stitches are not all the same size. This way a more fluid line is achieved. It actually looks like the left part of the heart is “drawn on” with stitched embroidery floss. It is a beautiful effect. It just goes to show that you really don’t need to stitch up a whole elaborate embroidered page element to get awesome results. Just a little bit on the right spot and executed in the right way will get you far!
Now, let’s talk a bit about that awesome flower cluster. What a bright and happy bunch! This is truly a lesson in how clustering should be done. There is unity in the cluster, despite the great mix of colors, because most of the paper flowers are the same style. Bigger flowers (of mostly the same size) are mixed with smaller flowers. On top of this cluster, a few distinctive accents have been added: some different types of paper flowers, the little heart and, of course, the cute butterflies. Adding paint spatters around the page (notice they form a design triangle!) as whimsy and playfulness. They are the perfect finishing touches to a very happy and bright layout.
Adding cross-stitching to your scrapbook page doesn’t get any easier than this. Three very subtle rows of eight cross-stitches each have been added to the vertical background column. They add just a hint of extra coziness, picking up the colors from the color scheme and give some body to the word art and date respectively. This is a great idea for cross-stitching beginners who want to try out how stitching on paper works and who want to see results quickly.
The layout itself is a lovely spring time adventure page. I love those gorgeous floral cut-outs that peek out left and right from under the photo mat. Their colors are matched in the colorful title ánd in those subtle cross-stitch additions.
Love, love, lóve those little cross-stitch letters on this page! What a cute and easy way to add both coziness and show off your cross-stitching skills at once! Notice how the cross-stitched element is the same size as the word quote on the right side of the photo. This brings balance to the photo area. The colors of the embroidery floss pick up several colors that are used on the page. I love how every added embellishment still make the photo the star of the show. Wouldn’t we all like to have such a great snapshot of us with our dads?
The cross-stitching on this page adds to the serene and classical look of the layout. The lovely floral pattern has been cross-stitched not only once, but twice, like a mirror image. I love the subtle color scheme used for the cross-stitching. It lends such an elegant feeling to the page. The photos are kept in black and white and are stacked on top of very similar looking paper mats, embellished with some small enamel dots. The whole page breathes elegance and minimalism. I love it! The wood veneer title (not sure what it says exactly, so much fun to see those traditional scrapbooking elements in a language other than English!) is the perfect finishing touch to a stunning page.
Now, let’s take a look at how you can use cross-stitching in a Christmas layout! On this page, the Christmas tree has been cross-stitched in a very subtle way. Not the whole tree shape has been filled with green cross-stitches, but only some, just enough to see the shape and add to the minimalist atmosphere of the page. I love the addition of the little bird and the heart tree topper. They give the tree more “credibility” somehow. This page has so much white space making that cross-stitched Christmas tree really pop! Did you also notice all those gorgeous vintage Christmas images in the banner on top of the page? Such a simple and cute idea to give a rather “un-Christmassy” looking Christmas layout a little bit more Yuletide atmosphere. Also notice how the little wood veneer birds form a design triangle, pulling this page together nicely.
What a sweet layout! It celebrates that staple of all bath times everywhere: the yellow rubber (or plastic) duck! There are duckies everywhere on this page: on the photo (obviously), stamped on the vertically running white paper border, a big cut-out ducky that draws most of the attention, ánd a whole cross-stitched row of eight little duckies ready for your bath!
This is a different type of cross-stitch than what we have seen so far: the stitches are really small, and are therefore able to build up really detailed small images, just like these little ducks. I love this kind of cross-stitching, because it is almost like “drawing” with embroidery floss. There are só many possibilities for using this technique on your scrapbook pages (and cards, invitations, t-shirts etc). And there are endless patterns available for this kind of little critters online!
On this page, the floral cross-stitched element has been cut out and pasted on top of all the other page elements. This in itself is an unusual way of using scrapbook embellishments, since it also partially covers the three added photos (notice that design triangle?). Adding those florals in this way works perfectly and the photos seem to become part of the floral arrangement. What a great idea! I love the combination of the cross-stitched flowers and leaves with the other kinds of twigs and flowers into a grand bouquet. Using a white background for the cross-stitched flowers really make those flowers, and especially that big flower in the middle,
In this layout, a little cross-stitched heart has been added to a kraft paper tag. What a great idea and what a great addition to the page! You can make those separate cross-stitched tags quite easily and use them for a lot of projects, including, of course, to document your most precious of memories.
This page celebrates that small, but very significant, moment in building the mother-child bond. And what a cute idea to add that pink cross-stitched heart to it!
And another layout celebrating Christmas using lovely cross-stitched patterns. This time, almost half the background is cross-stitched with a snowflake-like pattern in gorgeous pale pink and green colors. This color scheme fits the photo and the rest of the page perfectly. What a beautiful addition to your holiday pages!
Notice how the green cross-stitched elements contain two different shades of green, adding depth to the pattern. And I love that combination of the upper cross-stitched half of the layout with the background paper of the lower half. They fit together beautifully!
