How Fabric Count Works
Cross stitch fabric is measured by count — the number of squares (or thread intersections) per inch. Aida 14 has 14 squares per inch, so a pattern that's 140 stitches wide will be exactly 10 inches wide on Aida 14.
The higher the count, the smaller each stitch, and the smaller the finished piece. The same 140×140 stitch pattern would be 10×10 inches on Aida 14, but only 7.8×7.8 inches on Aida 18, and 12.7×12.7 inches on Aida 11.
Choosing your fabric count is a trade-off between detail (higher counts show finer detail), speed (lower counts are faster because each stitch is bigger), and finished size.
Evenweave and Linen
Aida is the most common cross stitch fabric, but evenweave and linen are popular for advanced stitchers. These fabrics don't have the obvious grid that Aida has — instead, you count individual threads.
The key difference is stitching over two. On evenweave and linen, each cross stitch typically covers 2 threads in each direction. This means 28-count evenweave stitched over two produces the same size as 14-count Aida.
Why bother? Evenweave and linen drape better, look more refined, and allow for fractional stitches and specialty stitches that don't work well on Aida's rigid grid.
How Much Fabric to Buy
Take your finished design dimensions and add margin on all four sides. The standard margin is 3 inches per side for framing in a standard frame. For scroll frames or Q-snaps, you may need more.
So a design that finishes at 10×14 inches needs at least 16×20 inches of fabric (10+3+3 by 14+3+3).
Always round up to the next available fabric cut size. Aida is commonly sold in 12×18, 15×18, and 18×25 inch precuts, or by the yard from a bolt.
Our Cross Stitch Calculator adds your chosen margin automatically and shows the total fabric dimensions needed.
How Much Floss Do You Need?
A single full cross stitch uses approximately 1.1 inches of 6-strand embroidery floss (when stitching with the standard 2 strands). A DMC skein contains 8 meters (about 472 inches) of floss.
So one skein covers roughly 430 full cross stitches when using 2 strands. If your pattern has 500 stitches of DMC 310 (black), you need 2 skeins.
Using more strands (3 or 4, common on lower-count fabric for better coverage) increases the floss needed proportionally. Half stitches and backstitching use less floss per stitch than full crosses.
Our thread estimator calculates this per color based on your stitch count and strand count.