Wedding Mice in a Ring Box Cross Stitch Pattern

About this wedding mice cross stitch pattern

Two plump brown mice sit cheek to cheek inside an open ring box. The bride wears a white veil and a small crown of lace flowers; the groom has a black bow tie and holds a sprig of wheat. The box is deep raspberry velvet with a cream satin lining and a little gold clasp on the front and the lid.

It’s a gift that works for a wedding, an engagement or an anniversary, and the square shape suits a frame on a shelf or a dresser. Stitch it alongside the Bride and Groom Swans for a matching pair, or see all our free wedding cross stitch patterns. It is also in our Valentine and love patterns round-up.

What you need

• Fabric: 14-count Aida in white, cut to at least 17“ x 16“ (3“ around the design for hooping and framing).
• Thread: 11 DMC colors, about 12 skeins in total, stitched with two strands. The main colors are 310 Black (2,417 stitches), B5200 Snow White (1,611), 315 Antique Mauve – Medium Dark (1,536) and 223 Shell Pink – Light (1,494).
• Needle: a size 24 tapestry needle.
• Stitches: full cross stitches only, with no backstitch.

Difficulty and stitching time

It’s rated Intermediate. With only 11 colors the thread list is short, but the velvet box is shaded in three mauve and pink tones and the mice’s fur in four browns and creams. At 13,317 stitches it takes roughly 133 to 222 hours at a steady 60 to 100 stitches an hour.

Tips for stitching this pattern

• Buy two skeins of black. DMC 310 is the most-used color here (2,417 stitches), because it outlines the box, both mice, the veil and the wheat. One skein will not cover it.
• Keep the two Antique Mauves apart. 315 Antique Mauve – Medium Dark (1,536) and 3802 Antique Mauve – Very Dark (1,164) shade the velvet box. They look close in evening light, so label them and stitch the box in daylight.
• Think about the fabric color. The veil and the box lining are B5200 Snow White, which disappears against white Aida apart from the black outline. On cream or very pale gray Aida the white areas stand out more.

Size, fabric and framing

On 14-count Aida the finished design measures 10.1“ x 10.0“ (25.7 x 25.4 cm). On 16-count it comes out at 8.8“ x 8.8“, and on 18-count at 7.8“ x 7.8“. A 12“ x 16“ frame leaves room for a mat.

A gold or blush frame picks up the clasp and the velvet. Leave a few extra inches of fabric under the box if you want to add the couple’s initials and wedding date. Our framing guide shows how to mount it.

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