Do I backstitch every outline?

Only the lines the chart draws. Adding your own outline changes the design. If a photo conversion lost an edge you care about, add the line on purpose and keep it consistent.

Why does my backstitch look bumpy?

The stitches are too long, the strand is too thick, or the crosses underneath were very fat. Shorten the stitches and drop to one strand.

Can I backstitch with the same needle as the crosses?

Yes, if it still fits the holes once the crosses are in. A size 26 or 28 is easier for one strand on 14-count.

When do I stitch French knots relative to backstitch?

After the crosses, with the backstitch. Knots that sit on a line usually go in after that line, so you can see where the dot belongs.

How to backstitch

Updated November 1, 2026 · 2 min read

Backstitch is a line of straight stitches that follows the chart, usually after the crosses. It is how lettering, lashes, and outlines stay sharp. It is not a second layer of crosses.

Come up, go down one step back, come up one step ahead, repeat.

1
Finish the crosses first
Backstitch sits on top. If you stitch the line first, the crosses bury it or shove it off the hole. The chart draws the line over the grid. Follow that line, including diagonals that cut a square in half.
2
Use the strand count in the legend
One strand is the usual face and lettering weight on 14-count. Two strands read as a bold outline. Backstitch often uses a different colour from the square it crosses — black (DMC 310) is common and is not a rule.
- Strand counts
3
Make the stitch backwards
Come up at the start of the line. Go down one stitch behind you. Come up one stitch ahead of the start. Go down in the hole you first came up through. You are always putting the needle back into a hole you already opened. That is the whole stitch.
Each new stitch anchors in the previous hole.
4
Keep curves short
One square at a time on a curve. Two squares on a straight run is fine. A single stitch across four squares will sag and will not match the chart. If the chart shows a long straight backstitch, you may stitch it in one go. If it shows steps, stitch the steps.
5
Travel on the back only under stitches
End the thread when the next line is more than a few squares away across empty cloth. A dark carry under white Aida shows. Run the end under stitches on the back. Skip the knot.
6
Check holes, not the picture
Lettering fails when one stitch starts in the wrong hole and every letter after it drifts. Count the line against the chart every few letters. Unpick a wrong letter now. It will not blend in.
- Fix a mistake

Holbein and backstitch are not the same lesson

Blackwork and Holbein stitch make a line that looks the same on the back, by going out and returning. Cross-stitch charts almost always mean ordinary backstitch. Do the simple version unless the legend names something else.

Couched metal and specialty lines

Metallic thread frays if you stitch it as a long backstitch. Couch it (lay it on top and tack it down with ordinary cotton) when the chart asks for a sparkle line. That is a different technique. Do not start there.

Sources

10 essential things to know before starting cross stitch — Embroiderers’ Guild of America
DMC Mouliné Spécial: six strands, 8.7 yards, colourfast — DMC
Parking tutorial (PDF) — Scarlet Quince

Read the line on the chart

Solid lines are backstitch. The legend names their colour.

How to read a chart

Questions

Do I backstitch every outline?: Only the lines the chart draws. Adding your own outline changes the design. If a photo conversion lost an edge you care about, add the line on purpose and keep it consistent.
Why does my backstitch look bumpy?: The stitches are too long, the strand is too thick, or the crosses underneath were very fat. Shorten the stitches and drop to one strand.
Can I backstitch with the same needle as the crosses?: Yes, if it still fits the holes once the crosses are in. A size 26 or 28 is easier for one strand on 14-count.
When do I stitch French knots relative to backstitch?: After the crosses, with the backstitch. Knots that sit on a line usually go in after that line, so you can see where the dot belongs.

How to backstitch

Updated November 1, 2026 · 2 min read

Backstitch is a line of straight stitches that follows the chart, usually after the crosses. It is how lettering, lashes, and outlines stay sharp. It is not a second layer of crosses.

Come up, go down one step back, come up one step ahead, repeat.

Finish the crosses first

Backstitch sits on top. If you stitch the line first, the crosses bury it or shove it off the hole. The chart draws the line over the grid. Follow that line, including diagonals that cut a square in half.

Use the strand count in the legend

One strand is the usual face and lettering weight on 14-count. Two strands read as a bold outline. Backstitch often uses a different colour from the square it crosses — black (DMC 310) is common and is not a rule.

Strand counts

Make the stitch backwards

Come up at the start of the line. Go down one stitch behind you. Come up one stitch ahead of the start. Go down in the hole you first came up through. You are always putting the needle back into a hole you already opened. That is the whole stitch.

Each new stitch anchors in the previous hole.

Keep curves short

One square at a time on a curve. Two squares on a straight run is fine. A single stitch across four squares will sag and will not match the chart. If the chart shows a long straight backstitch, you may stitch it in one go. If it shows steps, stitch the steps.

Travel on the back only under stitches

End the thread when the next line is more than a few squares away across empty cloth. A dark carry under white Aida shows. Run the end under stitches on the back. Skip the knot.

Check holes, not the picture

Lettering fails when one stitch starts in the wrong hole and every letter after it drifts. Count the line against the chart every few letters. Unpick a wrong letter now. It will not blend in.

Fix a mistake