Holly and star Christmas border
- Easy
- 120×19 stitches
- 3 DMC colors
- ≈ 3 skeins
- Aida 14: 21.8×3.4 cm
A narrow band of holly leaves, gold stars and red berries, 120 stitches wide. Repeat it along a towel, a tablecloth or a table runner.
- Size
- 120×19
- Stitches
- 1,234
- DMC colors
- 3
- Skeins
- ≈ 3
- Level
- Easy
- Time
- ≈ 12 hours
No sign-up · colour and b/w · works with Pattern Keeper
Colors
- 319 Pistachio Grn Very Dark×809
- 725 Topaz Medium Light×237
- 347 Salmon Very Dark×188
Holly and star Christmas border pattern: description
This border is 120 stitches wide and 19 tall, so it comes to 21.8 × 3.4 cm on Aida 14. The chart holds four groups of the same design: two holly leaves, a gold eight-pointed star and three red berries. The full strip takes about 12 hours.
How do you repeat the border along a towel or tablecloth?
Treat one group as the unit. The four groups share the 120 stitches evenly, so one group is a quarter of the length, and 21.8 cm divided by four gives its size on Aida 14. Divide the width of your towel by that figure to see how many groups fit. The leaf tips differ by a stitch or two from one group to the next, so choose one group and copy it each time to keep the joins even.
Mark the centre of the towel with a pin and put a star there. Work outwards in both directions and the two ends will match. If the last group doesn't fit, stop at a whole leaf on each side and leave equal space to the edge.
Which colour goes first?
Start with the star in gold 725, since it sits in the middle of each group and the rest can be counted from it. Add the berries below it in red 347. Green 319 comes last. It is 809 of the 1234 stitches, and the leaves are easier to count once the star and berries are there to measure from.
The spiky leaf edges are the slowest part, with single stitches at the tips. Every stitch is a full cross and there is no backstitch around the leaves. The fabric between groups stays bare, so end the green at each gap, because a dark thread carried across will show through light Aida.
Fabric and finishing
White fabric matches the chart and cream looks a little softer. On red the berries sink in, and on dark green the leaves do. For towels, the easiest route is an Aida band with finished edges, sold by the metre: stitch the border, then sew the band across the towel above the hem. A tablecloth or table runner can carry it along one side or all four. Red thread can bleed in the first wash, so rinse the finished piece on its own in cold water before it goes on the Christmas table.
The main colours are DMC 319 Pistachio Grn Very Dark (66%), DMC 725 Topaz Medium Light (19%), and DMC 347 Salmon Very Dark (15%). On 14-count Aida it comes out at 21.8×3.4 cm, on 18-count at 16.9×2.7 cm. You'll need about 3 skeins of DMC floss.
Made in the PatternHoop editor: width 120, 3 colors. Photo and pattern under CC BY 4.0: share and use them, crediting «PatternHoop (patternhoop.com)».
- Where to start
- the centre: stitch 60, row 10
- Stitched area
- 21.8×3.4 cm on Aida 14
- Aida 14 to buy
- 32×13 cm
- Chart pages in the PDF
- 2 colour + 2 b/w
Shopping list
DMC floss for the Holly and star Christmas border pattern
Tick the threads you already have at home.
| I have it | Color | DMC | Name | Stitches | Skeins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| symbol ■ | 319 | Pistachio Grn Very Dark | 80965.6% | 1 | |
| symbol □ | 725 | Topaz Medium Light | 23719.2% | 1 | |
| symbol ▲ | 347 | Salmon Very Dark | 18815.2% | 1 |
- 319 Pistachio Grn Very Dark1 skein
- 725 Topaz Medium Light1 skein
- 347 Salmon Very Dark1 skein
Every DMC thread color with its number — in the palette
The Holly and star Christmas border pattern by zones
It's easier to stitch in parts: here is what each third of the height holds.
Toprows 1–6
143 stitches · 12%
- DMC 725 · 55% Topaz Medium Light
- DMC 319 · 45% Pistachio Grn Very Dark
Middlerows 7–13
699 stitches · 57%
- DMC 319 · 77% Pistachio Grn Very Dark
- DMC 725 · 23% Topaz Medium Light
Bottomrows 14–19
392 stitches · 32%
- DMC 319 · 52% Pistachio Grn Very Dark
- DMC 347 · 48% Salmon Very Dark
The Holly and star Christmas border pattern on different fabric
| Fabric | Embroidery | Inches | Fabric with margin | Strands | Needle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aida 11 | 27.7×4.4 cm | 10.9×1.7″ | 38×14 cm | 3 strands | size 22 |
| Aida 14 | 21.8×3.4 cm | 8.6×1.4″ | 32×13 cm | 2 strands | size 24 |
| Aida 16 | 19.1×3 cm | 7.5×1.2″ | 29×13 cm | 2 strands | size 26 |
| Aida 18 | 16.9×2.7 cm | 6.7×1.1″ | 27×13 cm | 2 strands | size 26 |
How to stitch the Holly and star Christmas border pattern in 4 steps
Prepare the fabric
Cut Aida 14 to 32×13 cm: 5 cm of margin on every side.
Sort the threads
The pattern uses 3 DMC colors: lay the skeins out by the numbers in the table above.
Start in the centre
Find the middle of the fabric and of the chart: the PDF marks the centre with arrows on the page edges.
Mark your progress
Cross off finished areas on the printout, or open the PDF in Pattern Keeper.
Questions about the Holly and star Christmas border pattern
3 DMC colors, about 3 skeins in all, stitched with 2 strands on 14-count Aida.
120×19 stitches: 21.8×3.4 cm on 14-count Aida, 16.9×2.7 cm on 18-count.
For Aida 14, a piece of 32×13 cm: the design plus 5 cm on every side for the hoop and framing.
The pattern has 1,234 stitches — roughly 12 hours at 100 stitches an hour.
Yes. The symbols in the PDF are text, so Pattern Keeper reads the chart and the legend.
Yes, in the PatternHoop editor: upload a photo, pick the size and the number of colours, and the pattern is ready in a second, for free.
