Woven Cross Stitch - Tutorial

Woven Cross Stitch is a very pretty stitch and well worth the effort it takes to learn it - not as complicated as it looks either.  The photos below also show you a good example of the way I use Tiger Tape to space my stitches and keep them neater than I can by just eyeing it up.  By laying two parallel lines of Tiger Tape on either side of my seamline, I am able to use the preprinted marks on the tape as a quide to keep the stitches even.

 Begin by making a regular cross stitch.  For the first leg of the stitch, bring your needle up at the bottom right and going down in the top left. 

The second leg of the cross stitch will come up at the bottom left and go down at the right top.

Now add a third leg, this time from bottom right to left top again.  You note the first bottom right to top left legs you made is under the second leg of the original cross stitch- this this one will go above it. This starts the woven effect.

Now make a second bottom left to top right leg weaving it between the two legs in the other direction.

Continue on in this manner adding legs in one direction and then the other, weaving your needle under and over the legs of the other direction so that it is woven alternately to the last one.  I think the photo is clearer than my words, as usual.  The effect soon becomes clear.

You can make three or more legs in either direction on your finished stitch.  In this case I have made four in each direction.  You can see the pretty woven section in the center in this photo. 

This stitch is suggested in one of Judith Baker Montano's books and referred to as Cross Stitch - Flower.

You can find another tutorial for this stitch, referred to as Diagonally Woven Cross Stitch on Hand Embroidery from Sadalas - she has lettered her stitches which may be more helpful for you.