A 5 mm grid that measures 5 mm
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Notes & writing
Data & plotting
Planning
— mm
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Prints a measured strip. If a ruler disagrees with it, your printer is scaling the page.
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1:1 detail · 62 × 40 mm
Drawn in real millimeters. Hold a ruler to the screen — if it disagrees, your display's reported DPI is wrong, not the PDF.
Printable cross stitch paper, to exact spec
Counted cross stitch on evenweave gives you square stitches, so the chart is a square grid: one square, one stitch.
What makes cross stitch graph paper usable rather than merely gridded is the heavier line every ten squares. Counted work is counted in tens, on the chart and on the fabric both, and without those blocks you'll lose your place, carry on stitching, and find out about it a long time later.
Square size on the paper has nothing to do with fabric count. Pick something you can mark symbols into — 2.5mm to fit a large design on one sheet, 5mm if you annotate heavily. Finished size is stitch count divided by fabric count, and that calculation is separate from anything you choose here.
Fabric count and chart size are different numbers
Fabric count is stitches per inch of cloth. 14-count Aida gives 14 stitches to the inch. Chart square size is how big the squares are on the paper.
The two are unrelated. A chart is a map, and its scale does not have to match the finished piece. Charting a 14-count design on 5mm squares works; the chart is just larger than the stitching.
Finished size is stitch count divided by fabric count. 140 stitches on 14-count is 10 inches; the same 140 stitches on 18-count is 7.8 inches.
Symbols rather than colors
Colored pencils do not match floss, and near-shades stop being distinguishable in poor light. Photocopying removes the distinction entirely, and an empty square looks much like one filled with a pale color.
Published charts use black symbols with a key for those reasons. Symbols need room to write, so 4 or 5mm squares. 2.5mm only really works if you are coloring.
Counting
Mark the center of the chart before starting, and fold the fabric in quarters to find its center.
Working outward from the center limits the damage from a miscount. An error near the middle costs a few stitches; one near an edge puts the whole design off-center on the fabric.
The heavier line every ten squares is what makes that work. You count in tens on the chart and in tens on the fabric, and the two checks catch a lost stitch early.
Aida, evenweave and linen
Aida is woven in visible blocks with holes at the corners, so one chart square is one block. It is the easiest to count on.
Evenweave and linen have no visible blocks and are normally worked over two threads. 28-count evenweave over two gives 14 stitches per inch, the same finished scale as 14-count Aida.
Frequently asked questions
Should the square size match my fabric count?
No, they're unrelated. The squares are for reading the chart; the count determines finished size.
How do I work out finished size?
Stitch count ÷ fabric count. 140 stitches on 14-count Aida is 10 inches.
Why heavier lines every ten?
Because you count in tens. Without them you'll lose your place and find out forty stitches later.
Can I set the squares in inches?
Yes — switch the units above the slider. 1/8 inch is about as small as stays readable in pencil.