Belgian Cross Stitch is an interesting variety of Cross stitch that you work on a grid. You can use it in borders and fillings. In this stitch, long diagonal stitches cross each other. At first glance, it looks like Long Armed Cross stitch, but Belgian Cross differs as it has horizontal straight stitches that form a baseline. This stitch can be worked on even-weave fabric and canvas.
How to work Belgian Cross Stitch
Work from left to right over a grid of 2 or 4 threads. In this demonstration, I have worked Belgian Cross Stitch over 4 threads
Imagine a square on your fabric and create a large diagonal back stitch with the needle tip emerging at the bottom of the diagonal.
Make a horizontal straight stitch along the baseline. Position the needle to emerge in the top left-hand corner of the imaginary square.
Pull the thread through. Imagine a second square next to the first.
Make a long diagonal stitch that emerges on the top left of the second imaginary square and enters the fabric at the bottom right-hand corner, as illustrated.
Create a shorter diagonal cross stitch as illustrated.
Work a second straight stitch that sits on the baseline
Make a second long diagonal stitch as illustrated
Continue in this pattern along the line.
Happy stitching!
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Thank you Sharon for giving me another elegant stitch for the Cross Stitch collection!
Thanks Queenie it is an interesting version and works up quickly
Looking at the sample at the beginning of this article, there is a cross from the upper left to lower right to make that first stitch look like a regular cross stitch. It makes the first stitch in the row look slanted to the left, while all the others in the row are slanted to the right. How can this be corrected to make the first stitch slant to the right? Just omit that leg?
Sharon yes you can omit that first leg – I demonstrated it that way as all documentaion about this stitch starts that way and I did not want to go against the traditional and written sources