How to Frame Cross Stitch: Washing, Mounting, and Finishing Techniques

My first finished piece sat rolled in a drawer for four months because I had no idea what came next. I could stitch a perfect X, but nobody had told me how to get a piece off the hoop and onto a wall without it looking like a dish towel. I ironed it face up once, out of impatience, and watched every stitch go flat and shiny. This is the guide I wish someone had handed me with that first finished sampler.

Quick answer: finishing means everything after the last stitch: wash, block, then mount. Hand wash in cool water, press from the back while damp, then pick a method, lace it over a board, stretch it on bars, or leave it in the hoop. Ornaments and bookmarks skip the frame and finish as their own small object.

Wash and block before you touch a frame

Wash your finished piece by hand in cool water, then press it face down while still slightly damp. Every framing method below starts from this same clean, flat piece.

A mild soap works, gentle wool wash or even a drop of dish soap. Don’t wring it. Roll it in a clean towel to pull out the excess water, then lay it flat to dry on a dry towel, right side up. Once it’s dry, press it from the back, face down on a towel or padded surface, with the iron on a low-to-medium setting. Pressing face up flattens your stitches; pressing from the back leaves the texture alone.

Hand-dyed fabric is the one exception to all of this. Some colorways aren’t fully colorfast, and a wash that’s fine for white Aida can bleed a mottled brown or red straight into the stitches next to it. Check with the dyer or test a scrap first, and when in doubt, skip the wash and steam it lightly instead. More on hand-dyed fabric quirks in our fabric guide.

Framing methods, from simple to archival

Three real framing methods exist: lacing over a board, stretcher bars, or finishing in the hoop itself. Which one’s right depends on permanence and budget, not skill.

All three below assume you left the extra fabric margin our fabric guide recommends at the cutting stage. If you didn’t, stretcher bars forgive a tight margin best; lacing needs the most to work with.

Lacing over a board (the standard method)

Lacing is what most framers do, and it’s the method that holds up for decades without glue or staples touching your stitching. Center the piece over a rigid board, acid-free foam board or mat board, cut slightly smaller than your frame’s opening. Fold the fabric edges to the back and lace a needle and strong thread back and forth from side to side, then top to bottom, pulling snug as you go. Done right, the fabric pulls drum-tight without a wrinkle, and glue never touches the stitching. Then it’s ready to drop into any standard frame with or without glass.

Stretcher bars (fast, and reversible)

Wooden stretcher bars, the same kind painters use for canvas, are the quickest mounting method and the easiest to undo if you change your mind. Assemble the four bars into a frame, center the fabric over it, and staple or push-pin the edges to the back, working from the center of each side outward and pulling even tension as you go. It won’t look as crisp up close as a laced piece, since the tension is less even, but for a piece going straight onto a wall in its own frame, it’s fast and it works.

Finishing in the hoop

The hoop you stitched in can be the frame. Trim the excess fabric to about an inch past the hoop’s edge, run a line of gathering stitches or a bead of fabric glue around that edge, and pull it snug against the back of the inner hoop before adding a felt or fabric back to hide the raw edge. It’s the fastest finish there is, and it’s become its own aesthetic for smaller pieces rather than a compromise.

Professional framing versus doing it yourself

A framer will lace the piece, pick acid-free mats and UV glass, and hand you something ready to hang, usually for the cost of the materials plus their time. Doing it yourself costs less and gets you the same lacing result with practice. The real reason to pay a framer isn’t skill, it’s patience. Lacing a large piece evenly takes longer than most people expect the first time.

Small pieces finish differently

Bookmarks and ornaments skip framing entirely. Both get backed with fabric, sewn shut, and turned right side out to become a finished object on their own.

For a bookmark, trim to size with a border of unstitched fabric, then either fold and stitch the edges under by hand for a clean fabric border, or back it with a matching piece of fabric, right sides together, stitched around three sides, turned right side out, and hand-stitched closed. For an ornament, the same backed-and-turned method works over a small circle or shape, usually stuffed lightly before the last few stitches close it, then finished with a ribbon hanger.

Backing fabric and supplies worth keeping around

Backing fabric, plain cotton or felt, hides the back of a laced or sewn piece and gives ornaments their stuffing pocket. Keep a color close to your project’s fabric on hand so nothing shows through at the edges.

Beyond backing fabric, the short list of finishing supplies is small: acid-free foam board or mat board for lacing, a large-eye needle and strong thread for the lacing itself, stretcher bars if you want that option, and a fray-stop liquid or a line of zigzag stitching for edges that need to survive handling before they’re mounted.

Common finishing mistakes

Ironing face up is the one that hurts the most, since it’s not reversible. Always press from the back, piece face down.

Gluing fabric straight to a board is the other one that looks fine at first and ages badly. Glue soaks through fabric over months and years, staining and stiffening it in a way lacing never will. If a piece is worth framing, it’s worth lacing.

The last one is skipping the wash because a piece looks clean. Hoop marks and hand oils are often invisible until they’ve had years to set into the fabric, and a wash before mounting is the cheapest insurance a finished piece gets.

Frequently asked questions

How do you frame a cross stitch without a professional framer?
Lace it yourself over acid-free foam board, then set the laced piece into any standard frame, with or without glass. It’s the same method a framer uses, just done at home.

Do you need to wash a cross stitch before framing it?
Yes, in most cases. A gentle hand wash removes hoop marks and hand oils before they set permanently into the fabric. Hand-dyed fabric is the exception, check with the dyer first.

Can you finish a cross stitch without a hoop or frame?
Yes. Small pieces like bookmarks and ornaments are usually backed with fabric and sewn shut rather than framed at all, and some stitchers finish larger pieces in the hoop itself as the final display.

What’s the difference between stretcher bars and lacing?
Stretcher bars are faster and reversible, stapling fabric to a wooden frame. Lacing pulls the fabric drum-tight over a board with thread, no staples or glue, and is the method most professional framers use.

What board should you use to mount a cross stitch?
Acid-free foam board or mat board. Regular cardboard yellows and can stain fabric over time, which defeats the point of finishing a piece meant to last.

This guide is for anyone with a finished piece and no plan for what happens next, whether that’s your first hooped sampler or a stack of them waiting in a drawer. If you’re earlier in the process, our beginner’s guide covers everything before the last stitch, and our fabric guide is the place to check what your fabric can handle before you wash it.

I’m Laura, and I write StitchLand’s guides on getting started, technique, and finishing. Got a piece that’s been sitting in a drawer waiting on a frame? Start with the wash, the rest follows in order.