Take your crochet to another level with this easy and gorgeous finishing touch

Sometimes a project just needs a little pizzazz to make it complete. Cross-stitching can add embellishment to a finished crochet project, enhancing texture and pattern on a piece.
Cross-stitching adds definition and creates stunning motifs that take crocheted pieces to the next level. This embellishing technique will make projects really stand out.
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Materials
- Finished crochet project that has a uniform surface, such as a scarf, hat or blanket made in single crochet or another simple stitch.
- Yarn in contrasting colors
- Scissors
- Tapestry needle or one with a blunt end
Tips
- The simpler and plainer the background, the more the cross-stitch pattern will stand out.
- Make sure plenty of contrast exists between the background crochet and the yarn you use to cross-stitch. Think black on white, pastels on darks or vice versa.
- Don't use yarn that's too chunky; the stitches will run into each other and lose definition.
- Once you've got the hang of the technique, try drawing out a pattern first on graph paper. Re-create your idea on the crocheted surface.
Ashleigh Kiser / DIY Everywhere
Instructions
1. Thread the tapestry or blunt-ended needle with the contrast yarn.
2. Create a loop toward the end of the yarn, and insert the threaded needle through the loop. Wrap yarn around it a few times, and put the needle and thread all the way through.
3. With the needle diagonally upward and left from your starting point, insert it into the crochet background, and bring the needle back out at a point parallel to the place where you started. If the background crochet has a distinct right and wrong side, push the needle through the "wrong" side onto the "right" side.
4. Cross the first diagonal stitch and push the needle through and across, bringing it out again to the right of the stitch at regular intervals.
5. Repeat the first cross to the left and to the right again.
6. Continue placing stitches in the pattern you created until finished.
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7. Run the yarn under several stitches before trimming the end.
Resources B. Hooked Crochet