Give a Gift
If you’ve always wanted to try cross-stitch but have never been sure where to start, don’t miss this sweet choker from Sophie Tarrant. A delightful project for beginner cross-stitchers and jewelry makers, this sewn necklace pattern features a dainty pink cross-stitched flower set in an antique-inspired pendant. Finish your choker sewing pattern with a soft velvet ribbon and matching hardware and pair your project with a lace top or dress for a dreamy Victorian look.
Skill Level: Beginner
Designer Notes:
- Keep your fabric taut. Even-weave fabric can easily loosen or distort in a small hoop, so check the tension regularly as you stitch and tighten the hoop if necessary. This will help keep your cross stitches even and uniform.
- Check the placement before gluing. Once the cross-stitch has been gathered around the pendant blank, check that the design is perfectly centered and the fabric is smooth before applying any glue. Once it’s glued in place, it will be difficult to reposition.
Materials:
- Fabric: White linen, 8″ square
- Embroidery thread: Yellow, white, pale pink, mid-pink, dark pink, purple, green
- Cross-stitch necklace kit
- Velvet ribbon: To fit your neck circumference
- Ribbon clamps: Two
- Jump rings
- Lobster clasp
- Accessory chain
- Hot glue
- Printable Pattern – This is located at the bottom of this page. See printing instructions below.
Tools:
- Scissors
- Hand sewing needle
- Iron
- Soft pressing cloth
- Hot glue gun
- Jewelry pliers: Two pairs
PRINTING INSTRUCTIONS:
Note: To download the pattern, click on the pattern download button at the bottom of the page.
Sewing Instructions:
- Begin by mounting your fabric in the mini embroidery hoop that comes in your necklace kit, making sure it is pulled taut and that the weave is straight. Secure the fabric firmly in place, ready for stitching.
- Start at the center of the design with the central yellow stitch. To work a cross stitch, bring your threaded needle up through the fabric at the bottom-right corner of a square, then take it down through the top-left corner to make the first diagonal. Bring the needle back up through the bottom-left corner, then down through the top-right corner to complete the cross. Continue in the same way, keeping the top diagonal of every stitch consistent for a neat finish. Use the weave of the fabric as your guide, just as you would with Aida, counting the woven threads to position each stitch correctly. Keep your tension even, pulling the thread firmly enough to sit neatly on the fabric without puckering it. Continue with the white stitches, following the pattern and working outwards from the center, then add the darker pink stitches radiating out from the white.
- Continue adding the remaining colors, working through the design section-by-section and keeping your cross stitches neat and consistent. Make sure the fabric remains taut in the hoop as you work. Finally, use one strand of purple thread to work single stitches around the edges of each petal, defining the shape of the flower.
- Finish the cross-stitch design by adding the green leaves and stem. Once complete, remove the fabric from the hoop and press gently from the wrong side, placing a soft cloth underneath the embroidery to protect the stitches.
- Lay the cross-stitch flat with the wrong side facing up and place the pendant blank centrally over the design. Draw around the outside of the blank, then cut out the fabric, leaving approximately 1/2” extra around the edge. Work a running stitch around the raw edge, then place the pendant blank over the wrong side of the embroidery and gently pull the thread to gather the fabric around the back of the blank. Secure the thread firmly, making sure the fabric is pulled smooth and evenly around the edges.
- Assemble the choker using the velvet ribbon, ribbon clamps, chain, jump rings, and lobster clasp. Secure a ribbon clamp to each end of the ribbon, then attach a length of chain to each clamp using jump rings. Add the lobster clasp to one end of the chain and a jump ring to the other. Before closing the ribbon or securing the final connection, attach the pendant blank frame to the center of the ribbon using a jump ring, making sure it hangs centrally.
- Finally, glue the mounted design into the frame of the pendant blank, making sure it is centered and sits neatly. Leave the glue to dry completely according to the manufacturer’s instructions before wearing.
