Welcome Friends - PDF

Welcome Friends Counted Cross Stitch Pattern – KDS #1927 by Kooler Design Studio

Welcome Friends (KDS #1927) is a decorative counted cross stitch design created by Nancy Rossi and published by Kooler Design Studio, Inc. as part of their Kooler Classic Charts collection. Released in 2016, this intermediate-level embroidery pattern is available as a downloadable PDF, making it instantly accessible for stitchers who want to begin their project right away. The finished piece is intended as home décor, offering a warm, welcoming sentiment well suited to entryways, living rooms, or as a thoughtful handmade gift.

What Is Being Made

The design produces a decorative Welcome Friends sampler — a classic style of needlework piece that combines lettering with ornamental motifs. With a stitch count of 364 stitches wide by 84 stitches high, it is a horizontally oriented banner-style composition. When stitched on the recommended fabric, the finished dimensions vary by fabric count:

• 14 Count: approximately 26 inches wide by 6 inches high
• 16 Count: approximately 22¾ inches wide by 5¼ inches high
• 18 Count: approximately 20⅛ inches wide by 4⅝ inches high

This range of size options allows stitchers to customize the finished scale of the piece to suit their framing or display preferences.

Recommended Fabric

The pattern is designed to be stitched on 14 Count Chamois Aida cloth. Aida is the most widely used fabric for counted cross stitch, featuring an even-weave grid of holes that makes it straightforward to count and place stitches accurately. The warm chamois (tan/beige) colorway of the recommended Aida provides a neutral, antique-toned background that complements the earthy and floral DMC floss palette used in this design. Stitchers should add 4 to 6 inches to each measurement when cutting their fabric to allow adequate margins for framing or finishing.

Techniques Used

This is an intermediate embroidery project that employs multiple counted cross stitch techniques, giving the finished piece texture, detail, and dimension:

• Full Cross Stitch: The primary technique, worked with 3 strands of DMC embroidery floss to build solid areas of color throughout the design.
• Quarter Stitch (¼ Stitch): Used to refine curved edges and fine details, also worked with 3 strands, allowing for smoother outlines than full stitches alone can provide.
• Backstitch: Worked with just 1 strand of floss, backstitch is used for outlining, lettering definition, and adding crisp linear detail that brings the design into sharp focus.
• French Knots: Decorative knotted stitches worked with 1 strand of floss, adding small, rounded textural accents — commonly used for flower centers, berries, or dotted embellishments in sampler-style designs.
• Straight Stitch: Also worked with 1 strand, straight stitches provide simple linear marks for fine details such as stems, whiskers, or accent lines.

The combination of these five techniques at varying strand counts gives the design a layered, professional finish and is what places it at an intermediate skill level — ideal for stitchers who have mastered basic cross stitch and are ready to incorporate detail work.

Materials – Floss

The pattern calls for DMC embroidery floss across a rich palette of colors. The full symbol and floss listing includes the following DMC thread numbers:

• DMC 210 – Medium Lavender
• DMC 301 – Medium Mahogany
• DMC 310 – Black (used for both cross stitch and backstitch)
• DMC 402 – Very Light Mahogany
• DMC 433 – Medium Brown
• DMC 453 – Light Shell Gray