Birth announcement cross stitch pattern maker

Tips for birth announcement patterns

A birth announcement (or birth sampler) is one of the most treasured cross stitch gifts: the baby's name in large letters, the date of birth underneath and often the weight, length or time of birth. This page builds a starting chart from your own text — a border, a moon-and-star motif, the name, up to two lines of details and a row of hearts — which you can print as it is or download and decorate further.

Lettering is the part that matters most, so the name is drawn in a clean 5 × 7 stitch alphabet at double size (10 × 14 stitches per letter) when it fits, and at normal size for long names. Dates and weights use the normal size. Punctuation such as commas, slashes, hyphens and the ampersand is supported; other characters are dropped.

Everything outside the motifs is transparent, so the chart leaves the background unstitched and the floss list only contains the three colours you chose. Upload your own artwork at any time to replace the layout — the tool works exactly like the regular pattern maker.

Recommended settings

• Name: up to 18 letters, details: up to 28
• Pastel border + dark gray text reads best
• 14-count Aida, 2 strands
• Start stitching at the centre of the name

Size

The example chart above is 104 × 68 stitches. On 14-count Aida that is 7.4 × 4.9 in (18.9 × 12.3 cm) — it fits an 8 × 10 in (20 × 25 cm) frame with a comfortable mat. On 11-count it grows to 9.5 × 6.2 in, which suits a nursery wall; on 18-count it shrinks to 5.8 × 3.8 in, a small keepsake for a hoop. Longer names make the chart wider, so check the size line under the buttons after typing.

Colours

Soft colours for the border and motifs with a dark neutral for the text keep the name legible from across a room. The three palettes here use DMC 3326 (soft pink), 3325 (baby blue) or 3364 (sage) for the border, a lighter accent for the moon and hearts, and 3799 or 3022 for the lettering. Avoid pale yellow for text: it disappears on white or cream Aida.

The example chart uses 3 colours and 974 full stitches: 427 in DMC 3799, 384 in DMC 3326, 163 in DMC 3747. Every colour needs one skein or less except large filled areas — the floss list under the tool gives the exact skein count for your fabric.

Layout

Stitch the name first, from its centre outwards — miscounts are most visible in lettering. Leave at least five empty rows between text lines so descenders and dates don't crowd each other. If you add a motif of your own (a stork, a teddy, a rattle), keep it the same width as the date line so the design stays balanced, and repeat its colour somewhere else in the border.

Once the chart is ready, see how to transfer a cross stitch pattern onto fabric for centring and gridding, and the metric size calculator to plan frames in centimetres.

How to make a cross stitch pattern from a photo

1. Add your photo. Click Upload photo, drag a file onto the preview, or paste with Ctrl/⌘+V. JPG, PNG, WebP and HEIC (where supported) work.
2. Set size and colors. Choose the width in stitches and the maximum number of DMC colors. The finished size updates for the fabric you pick.
3. Clean up. Keep Remove confetti on Light or Strong, adjust brightness or contrast, and click colors in the floss list to leave them unstitched.
4. Print or save. Click Print / Save PDF for a cover page with floss list plus numbered symbol chart pages, or download a PNG chart.

FAQ