Needlepoint for Beginners: Canvas Mesh Chart, Tent Stitches and How to Start

How to start a needlepoint canvas, step by step

1. Choose a canvas and yarn. For a first piece, pick a kit on 10, 12 or 13 mesh with the yarn included, such as the Design Works Butterflies Galore or the Dimensions Santa Needlepoint. Larger mesh means bigger stitches and faster progress.
2. Tape the raw edges. Cover the cut edges of the canvas with masking or artist tape so yarn does not catch and the canvas does not unravel. Leave at least 2 in of unstitched margin around the design for blocking and finishing.
3. Mount the canvas on stretcher bars. Assemble a pair of bars for each side, such as the matching lengths in the Edmunds Stretcher Bars. Tack the center of the top, bottom and both sides first, then work outward toward the corners, placing tacks about 1 in apart so a mesh line runs straight.
4. Cut and thread the yarn. Cut an 18 in length. To thread thick wool, fold the end over the needle, pinch the fold tightly, slide the needle out and push the folded loop through the eye of a blunt tapestry needle.
5. Start with a waste knot. Knot the yarn end and push the needle down from the front about 1 in away from where you will begin, in the path of your first row. Stitch toward the knot so the tail on the back is covered, then clip the knot off the front.
6. Stitch the design in continental. Work each tent stitch diagonally over one canvas intersection, from lower left to upper right on the front. Use continental stitch for small shapes, outlines and single lines, working in horizontal rows.
7. Fill the background in basketweave. Start at the top right corner of the background and work in diagonal rows, stitching down one diagonal and up the next. Basketweave distorts the canvas least and creates a woven pattern on the back that wears well.
8. End each thread. Weave the yarn under about 1 in of stitches on the back and trim it close. Vary where you start and end threads so the tails do not stack into ridges that show on the front.
9. Block the finished piece. Dampen the stitching, pin or staple it face down or face up on a board along a square grid, gently pull it back into shape, and let it dry completely before finishing it into a pillow or frame.

What is the difference between needlepoint and cross stitch?

Both are counted-thread crafts, and both can be worked from a chart, but they use different grounds, threads and stitches.

• Ground: needlepoint uses stiff canvas with open holes; cross stitch uses soft Aida or evenweave fabric.
• Coverage: needlepoint usually covers the whole canvas, including background; cross stitch often leaves fabric showing.
• Basic stitch: needlepoint's tent stitch is a single diagonal over one canvas intersection; a cross stitch is two diagonals forming an X.
• Thread: needlepoint traditionally uses wool, such as the DMC tapestry wool, though cotton and silk are common on finer canvas; cross stitch uses separated strands of cotton floss.
• Results: needlepoint is thick and durable, suited to things that get handled. Cross stitch suits framed pictures and linens.

In the UK, needlepoint kits are often sold as "tapestry" kits, even though true tapestry is woven on a loom. If you would like the gentler fabric craft first, read cross stitch for beginners.

What size needlepoint canvas is best for beginners?

For most beginners, 10, 12 or 13 mesh is the best place to start. The holes are large enough to see easily, the stitches cover quickly, and yarn choices are simple. Thirteen mesh is the most common size for hand-painted canvases, so it opens up the widest choice of designs. Fourteen and 18 mesh give finer detail and suit a second or third project, and 5 and 7 mesh are for rugs, quickpoint and plastic canvas.

Mono canvas has single threads that cross over and under each other. Interlock canvas has threads locked where they cross, so it holds its shape and suits beginners and half cross stitch. Penelope is a double-thread canvas that can be split for finer stitches in detail areas. Cutting your own canvas? A piece like the Zweigart 13 Mesh Canvas, 20 x 18 in for about $24, is standard 13 mesh mono. The needlepoint canvas calculator turns a design size into a cut size, and the needlepoint mesh chart covers 24 mesh and congress cloth.

What is the difference between basketweave and continental stitch?

Both are tent stitches: on the front, each looks like the same small slanting stitch over one canvas intersection. The difference is the path the needle takes on the back, which changes yarn use, durability and how much the canvas pulls out of square.

A practical routine used by many teachers: stitch the design motifs in continental, then fill the background in basketweave. If a basketweave row starts to look ridged on the front, you have probably worked two diagonal rows in the same direction; check the back, where the pattern should alternate like woven cane. There is no consistent published percentage difference in yarn between basketweave and continental, so plan 10 to 20 percent extra yarn for either.

How much yarn do I need for needlepoint?

Yarn use scales with the number of stitches, so finer mesh uses more yarn per square inch even though each stitch is smaller. Published estimates for tent stitch in tapestry yarn run from about 33 in per square inch on 10 mesh to about 58 in per square inch on 14 mesh. Multiply by the stitched area, then add 10 to 20 percent for tails and waste.

Worked example: a 14 x 14 in pillow front on 13 mesh is 196 sq in. At 54 in per square inch that is 10,584 in, or about 294 yd, before waste. Add 10 to 20 percent and plan on roughly 325 to 355 yd across all colors. Tapestry wool skeins of 8 m hold about 8.7 yd each, so budget generously for a solid background color and buy it in one dye lot. Kits solve this by including presorted yarn, which is one more reason they make the best first projects.

Do you need a frame for needlepoint?

You can stitch small pieces in your hands, and many people do for ornaments and key fobs. For anything larger, a frame keeps the canvas square, keeps tension even and stops the canvas from creasing as you roll it in your hands. Round embroidery hoops are usually avoided because the rings crush stiff canvas and flatten finished stitches.

• Stretcher bars are the classic choice. The Edmunds Stretcher Bars (about $35) includes pairs from 6 to 18 in that combine to fit most canvases, and Edmunds 12 in Adjustable Bars (about $22) adjust with the canvas attached for pieces 12 x 12 in or smaller.
• Snap frames such as the Q-Snap 17x17 clamp on in about a minute with no tacks, handy for travel.
• Scroll frames such as the Edmunds Split Rail Scroll Frame roll up extra canvas, which suits belts, stockings and long pieces.
• Stands such as the Lowery Workstand hold any of these beside your chair so both hands are free.

Buy stretcher bars that match the outside size of the canvas, including the margin, not the painted design. Our best needlepoint frames roundup compares every type, and Q-Snap vs scroll frame goes deeper on the quick-mount options.

Is needlepoint easy to learn?

Yes. Tent stitch is a single diagonal stitch, and a painted canvas tells you which color goes in each hole, so there is less counting than in cross stitch. Most beginners are comfortable within an hour. The skills that take longer are keeping tension even, so stitches look plump rather than thin, and choosing when to use continental versus basketweave.

A few habits help from the first session:

1. Keep yarn short, around 18 in. Wool frays and thins as it passes through canvas.
2. Let the needle dangle every few stitches to untwist the yarn, so stitches lie flat and cover the canvas.
3. Stitch light colors after dark ones where possible, so dark fibers do not drag into pale areas.
4. Use good light. Painted canvases often have subtle color shifts that are hard to read under warm evening bulbs. A 95+ CRI daylight lamp such as the Daylight Slimline 4 Floor shows the paint and yarn colors truthfully.

When you are ready for a bigger design, browse the best needlepoint kits, from the 14 mesh Dimensions Tuscan View to the Bothy Threads Strawberry Thief on 12 count interlock canvas.