Tabby cat in a window cross stitch pattern

About this design

Every cat owner knows this view: a tabby planted on the windowsill, back to the room, tail hanging over the edge. Here it is turned round so the cat faces you, with green eyes, a pink nose and a white muzzle and bib. Tabby stripes in 976 run across the forehead, cheeks and haunches over a warm 3854 coat. The window behind is a mocha frame with four panes of pale blue (775), each shaded with a darker strip of 3325 under the frame to suggest depth.

How to work it

This is the busiest chart in the set, mostly because of the background. Stitch the frame and the cross bars first, as they give you a grid to count from. Then outline the cat in 898 before filling anything else, so you know exactly where the panes stop. Fill the cat next, adding the stripes as you go rather than afterwards. The panes come last; working them after the cat keeps the pale blue clean and lets you see the silhouette take shape. The tail hangs below the sill, so check the bottom rows twice.

Finishing ideas

At 32 × 38 stitches the design measures about 2.3 × 2.7 inches on 14-count and 1.8 × 2.1 inches on 18-count. It suits a 4-inch hoop or a small rectangular frame. To match it to your own cat, swap the coat colours: 415 and 414 for a grey tabby, or 3864 and 3863 for a brown one.

Colour plan

DMC 3854 Autumn Gold Med does the most work, 26% of the 989 stitches, followed by DMC 775 Baby Blue Very Light at 23%. DMC 3347 Yellow Green Med (8), DMC 3826 Golden Brown (6), DMC 310 Black (4) and DMC 3326 Rose Light (2) are used only a little: small details worth marking on the chart so you don't miss them. 19% of the grid is left empty.

Working notes

27 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.