| Size | 22 × 17 stitches |
|---|---|
| Colours | 6 · DMC |
| Total stitches | 250 |
| Difficulty | Beginner (1/5) |
| Finished on 14-count | 1.6 × 1.2 in (4 × 3.1 cm) |
| Finished on 16-count | 1.4 × 1.1 in (3.5 × 2.7 cm) |
| Finished on 18-count | 1.2 × 0.9 in (3.1 × 2.4 cm) |
| Licence | CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for personal use with credit |
Materials
About this design
The shell is a spiral of Autumn Gold (3854) and Brown Light (434), outlined in Coffee Brown (898), and the body stretches out underneath in Tan Light (437) with a Tan (436) edge. The head on the right has two feelers and a black eye. The spiral is the fun part: follow it round from the centre and it builds itself.
Stitch counts: 72 in 3854 (Autumn Gold Med), 55 in 898 (Coffee Brown Vy Dk), 51 in 437 (Tan Light), 36 in 434 (Brown Light), 33 in 436 (Tan) and 3 in 310 (Black), 250 full cross stitches in all. One skein of each colour is plenty.
How to work it
Stitch the dark spiral line first, from the centre outwards, then fill the gold and brown bands. Two strands of floss on 14-count Aida give good coverage, and working each colour in rows of half stitches, then coming back to cross them, keeps the stitches neat and even.
Finishing ideas
On 14-count Aida the 22 × 17 stitch design comes out at about 1.6 × 1.2 inches, and on 18-count about 1.2 × 0.9 inches. Mount it in a 4-inch hoop, or use it for a garden-themed card.
Colour plan
DMC 3854 Autumn Gold Med does the most work, 29% of the 250 stitches, followed by DMC 898 Coffee Brown Vy Dk at 22%. DMC 310 Black (3) is used only a little: small details worth marking on the chart so you don't miss them. 33% of the grid is left empty.
Working notes
22 squares stand alone in their colour, with no same-coloured neighbour along a side; stitch those as you pass rather than starting a new thread for each. The busiest row changes colour 18 times.
Anchor equivalents
The nearest Anchor colour for each DMC colour in this pattern, measured as ΔE 2000: up to 3 is very close, up to 6 close, up to 10 approximate.
This is an original CraftPatterns design, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0: stitch it, share it and gift what you make — please credit craftpatterns.app and don't sell the pattern itself. Want to change it? Open it in the cross stitch editor.
Last updated · About us