River and Twelve In Love - PDF Cross Stitch Pattern

River and Twelve In Love – Cross Stitch Pattern by HugSandwich

River and Twelve In Love is a charming downloadable PDF cross stitch pattern designed by HugSandwich, the independent designer behind the brand at www.hugsandwich.shop. Rated as a beginner level project, this pattern offers an accessible and rewarding embroidery experience for those just starting out with counted cross stitch, while still delivering a detailed and visually rich finished piece.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a single cohesive design titled River and Twelve In Love, originally created by B Pratt in 2017. The finished design measures 1.79 inches wide by 3.50 inches tall, spanning a stitch count of 25 x 49 stitches. The compact dimensions make it ideal for framing as a small decorative piece, incorporating into a hoop display, or using as an embellishment on handmade cards, bookmarks, or fabric accessories.

Fabric and Materials

The pattern is designed to be stitched on 14 Count Aida fabric (also referenced as 14 Count Gri in the pattern notes), which is the most widely recommended fabric for beginners due to its clearly defined grid of holes that guide each stitch placement. The even-weave structure of Aida cloth makes counting and executing stitches straightforward and consistent. Standard DMC stranded cotton embroidery floss is used throughout, with a wide palette of colors specified in the legend.

Thread Colors Used

The pattern calls for a rich and varied selection of DMC embroidery floss colors, giving the finished piece depth, warmth, and contrast. The full color palette includes:

• DLE-E677 – a light metallic or specialty thread accent
• DMC-310 – black, used for cross stitches, backstitches, and French knots
• DMC-321 – bright red
• DMC-336 – navy blue
• DMC-498 – deep red
• DMC-646 – medium beaver grey
• DMC-729 – medium old gold
• DMC-754 – light peach
• DMC-816 – garnet red
• DMC-823 – dark navy blue, used for cross stitches, backstitches, and French knots
• DMC-939 – very dark navy blue, used for backstitches
• DMC-3328 – dark salmon
• DMC-3778 – light terra cotta
• DMC-3866 – ultra very light mocha brown
• DMC-712 – cream, used for backstitches
• DMC-White – bright white

Stitches and Techniques Used

This pattern incorporates three distinct embroidery techniques, making it a well-rounded introduction to counted cross stitch even at the beginner level:

• Cross Stitch – the primary stitch used throughout the design, forming the main body of the image by placing X-shaped stitches over the Aida grid squares according to the color-coded chart
• Backstitch – used as an outlining and detail technique in DMC-310, DMC-712, DMC-823, and DMC-939, backstitching adds crisp definition to edges and fine linear details that cross stitches alone cannot achieve
• French Knots – decorative knotted stitches worked in DMC-310 (black) and DMC-823 (dark navy), French knots add textural dimension and are commonly used to represent small focal details such as eyes or decorative dots

Pattern Format and Usage

The pattern is delivered as a downloadable PDF, spanning two pages with a clearly laid out symbol chart and