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Needlework/Cross Stitch Charts
We've been creating and uploading small (3" x 3") needlework charts of heraldic charges that can be downloaded or printed out and which you can then work yourself for nearly eleven years now. Along with each chart is the pattern
information, the floss color descriptions and numbers (though there is no obligation to follow these color recommendations slavishly. You may prefer to select different tints or colors, as indeed sometimes our own needlework artist
has when working from these charts).
To view or download any of these charts, simply click on the hyperlinked name.
The needlework chart for September is an insect not infrequently found in heraldry, a bee.
For our needlework chart for August, I was seriously tempted to take last month's charge, do two of them, and then change the pips on each die to ermine spots, thus making a "pair of fuzzy dice." You should be grateful; I was able to manfully resist that temptation! So instead, last month's chart is a different gaming item, a game board or chessboard.
The needlework chart for July was an old gaming piece (versions have been found as far back as the Romans), one half of a set of dice, a die.
Our needlework chart for June was relatively rare charge in heraldry, an heraldic whale. It looks a lot like the heraldic dolphin, but the tail is different, and it has two blowholes on the top of its head as well as large tusks in its mouth. Whale heads are found in the canting (punning on the surname) arms of Whalley.
The needlework chart for May was a gimlet, a handtool designed to drill small holes in wood. It is made of a metal shaft with a cross handle at one end and a threaded point on the "business end." A coat of arms with a gimlet can be found in Vigil Raber's Armorial of the Arlberg Brotherhood of St. Christopher (1548), fo.30.
Our needlework chart for April was a ring, or gem ring, sometimes also found blazoned as an annulet stoned.
The needlework chart for March was a common heraldic charge, a crest coronet, sometimes also called a "ducal coronet" (which is not the same thing as the coronet of a duke).
Our needlework chart for February was a medieval pattern of tent sometimes found in heraldry, a pavilion.
The free needlework chart for January was another tool used by sheep farmers and textile workers, a pair of shears.
Our free needlework chart for December was a common weaver's tool, a weaver's shuttle.
The needlework chart for November was a triangular trivet.
Our free needlework chart for October was a gate.
We also sell packages that include each year's charts of these charges we have done (at this point, twelve years in all). Or you can purchase a CD-ROM with 144 charts of these heraldic charges in .pdf format. More information on these sets, including a list of the charges contained in them, can be found here.
Other needlework charts available for sale, and information on contacting us about creating customized needlework charts for you, can also be found on our Needlework page here.
Questions? Comments? Compliments? Complaints? Suggestions for improvement? Or just want to share your successes (or difficulties) with our "free stuff"? Write, call, or e-mail us at the address, telephone number, or e-mail addresses here.