Hedgehog in a Knit Sweater Cross Stitch Pattern

About this hedgehog cross stitch pattern

The hedgehog stands bundled in a slouchy teal-and-orange knit hat, a chunky cable sweater and brown trousers, a mug of something hot in one paw and a maple leaf in the other. Its quills are shaded individually, which gives the back real depth instead of a flat silhouette.

It’s a “sweater weather” piece for a kitchen, a reading nook or a gift for anyone who counts down to fall. With the Red Fox Curled in Autumn Leaves and the Baby Fox in a Winter Beanie it makes a set of cozy woodland animals; our fall animal round-up has more. For colder months, see our winter patterns round-up.

What you need

• Fabric: 14-count Aida in white, cut to at least 17“ x 20“ (3“ around the design for hooping and framing).
• Thread: 17 DMC colors, about 20 skeins in total, stitched with two strands. The main colors are 939 Navy Blue – Very Dark (5,095 stitches), 433 Brown – Medium (2,591), 779 Cocoa – Dark (1,806) and 951 Tawny – Light (1,797).
• Needle: a size 24 tapestry needle.
• Stitches: full cross stitches only, with no backstitch.

Difficulty and stitching time

It’s rated Intermediate. Navy Blue – Very Dark and Brown – Medium cover 7,686 of the 17,925 stitches, mostly outline, shadow and the sweater, which go quickly. The quills take the most care: 951 Tawny – Light and 3864 Mocha Beige – Light alternate in short, closely packed strokes.

Expect roughly 180 to 300 hours at a steady 60 to 100 stitches an hour.

Tips for stitching this pattern

• Stitch the quills along their direction. Work them in short diagonal passes that follow the way the quills point, not in straight rows. The alternating tawny and beige then looks like directional fur rather than speckle.
• Do the hat’s pattern in one go. The knit hat’s teal, 3808 Turquoise – Ultra Very Dark (1,036 stitches), and its orange pattern repeat across the brim; finish the hat in one sitting while you’re following that pattern.
• Leave the leaf for last. The bright orange maple leaf is the focal point; stitched last, it stays clean against the finished sweater.

Size, fabric and framing

On 14-count Aida the finished design measures 10.6“ x 13.1“ (26.9 x 33.3 cm). On 16-count it comes out at 9.2“ x 11.4“, and on 18-count at 8.2“ x 10.2“. For the 14-count version, a 14“ x 18“ frame leaves room for a mat.

A warm wood frame and a cream mat suit the autumn palette.

What’s in the free PDF

• A cover page and a one-page overview with a preview of the design
• The chart, split across as many printable pages as you choose, in color or black and white, with a symbol for every DMC color, center lines, a mini-map showing which part of the design each page covers and a color key on every page
• The thread list: DMC number, color name, number of stitches and skeins to buy for each color
• The finished size on 11-, 14-, 16-, 18- and 28-count Aida