Don Ed Hardy Designs. - Love kills slowly: 30 cross-stitch patterns from Ed Hardy

T his aint your grandmas cross-stitch book.

No cutesy babies, gingerbread houses, and jack-o-lanterns here. Cross-stitch gets a modern twist as 30 bold graphic designs from wildly popular tattoo artist Ed Hardy are turned into cross-stitch patterns. From skulls and snakes to daggers, roses, and much more, these designs are a modern take on cross-stitch.

Its hard to exactly replicate the depth and richness of an Ed Hardy design. To achieve that level of exactness, youd need hundreds of colors of embroidery floss, often for just a stitch or two before switching to another color. Each pattern here has been created to preserve as much of the beautiful detail of the original artwork as possible while keeping it accessible for even beginning stitchers. Love may kill slowly, but you dont want to feel like cross-stitching is having the same effect.

If you want to personalize your pieces with your own words, the Ed Hardy alphabet has been included here so that you can add your favorite sayings, expressions, or names to each stitched piece. So go ahead and personalize that new cross-stitch piece with your boyfriends name, and if you change boyfriends, you can always rip it out and redo it. (At least changing your cross-stitch is cheaper, easier, and less painful than trying to change that tattoo.)

With your finished designs, you can make your best friend a snake wall hanging, your mom a personalized dagger pillow, or your grandma a skull tea towel. To add a personal touch, you can use crossstitch to embellish everything from baby clothes and bibs to tablecloths and dishtowelsplus, no sewing required! Love may kill slowly, but time will fly by as you create these 30 cool designs from one of the worlds hottest artists.

Cross-stitching only requires a few basic supplies. You will need the following items to create the crossstitch designs in this book:

• Cross-stitch fabric in the appropriate size (leave 4 inches of extra fabric on each sideor more, depending on your project) as well as count (typically 14-count). Each pattern in this book specifies the count of the fabric.

• A tapestry needle, size 24 or 26 (A regular embroidery needle would be fine but a tapestry needle has a blunt tip, which is more convenient for cross-stitching.)

• Scissors

• Embroidery floss (the most commons brands are DMC or Anchor) in the colors called for in your pattern. Each pattern here lists suggested color numbers from DMC, the most commonly available embroidery floss. The titles of the colors are for convenience only and may vary. When in doubt, follow the numbers and use your best judgment when selecting colors for your project.

• Wooden or plastic hoop, if desired, to help hold your fabric taut while you stitch

Each project in this book features a picture of an original Ed Hardy artwork in cross-stitch, a pattern grid with symbols to follow, and a symbol key.

The instructions for each project tell you what type of fabric you will need (14-count), the number of stitches across and up and down, the finished size of the project (in inches and centimeters), the recommended number of embroidery floss strands to use for each stitch, and a chart of symbols and their corresponding thread colors. Some patterns are more complicated than others, with more symbols to follow, and sometimes the symbols are similarsuch as an open triangle and a solid triangle. Read the pattern carefully to make sure youre using the right color.

First, find the center of your pattern (marked here with a red cross + symbol) and the center of your fabric. To find the center of your fabric, fold it in half lengthwise and gently press the seam with your finger. Unfold and repeat the previous step widthwise. The point where the two folds meet is the approximate center of your fabric.

Next determine what color of embroidery floss is needed at the center of your pattern. Most embroidery floss is made up of six strands. Separate the strands and thread the required number (listed in the symbol key) of the correct color through your tapestry needle. Start cross-stitching at the center of your fabric and count from the corresponding red cross at the center of the pattern to determine the correct number of stitches.

Cross-stitch fabric is specially created for cross-stitching. Look closely at how the fibers are arranged to create a square grid with tiny holes separating each square. In cross-stitching, the basic cross-stitch is created by forming an X pattern over one of the squares. To stitch a cross-stitch, bring your needle from the back of the fabric through to the front in the lower left corner of the square youre cross-stitching. Next, bring the needle across the square to the upper right corner forming a half stitch (/). Then, from the back of the fabric push your needle through the lower right corner and pull the embroidery floss through. And, finally, bring the needle across the square to the upper left corner and pull the needle through. You should have a single X now on the center of your fabric in the correct color.

If you have a horizontal sequence of stitches that are all the same color, you can stitch a half stitch (/) for each stitch in the row and then return to your starting point by placing the opposite half stitch (\) in sequence. This process can allow you to stitch horizontal rows quickly and efficiently as you get used to cross-stitching. If you prefer to not use this technique, you can always stitch each X one by one.