How to mark a 10 mm sashiko practice grid
For this practice exercise, draw an 80 × 80 mm square divided into 10 mm cells. The grid is a measuring aid: it does not mean every line must be stitched. Leave extra cloth around it so you can hold and finish your sample.
In this article
What you need
- A plain woven-cloth scrap larger than 80 × 80 mm
- A metric ruler and a way to check a right angle
- A tested removable textile marker, or tracing paper and tracing tool
Draw the grid from two measured edges
Prepare the cloth and marking test
Lay suitable plain cloth flat without stretching it. Use a marking method that transfers and removes successfully on a scrap; preserve any maker-printed guides on a different project.
Draw the 80 mm square
Use a ruler and a right angle to establish the first two sides, then complete the square. Measure from the same zero mark each time.
Mark at 10 mm intervals
Along both opposite horizontal edges, mark 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 mm. Join corresponding marks to make parallel lines.
Repeat in the other direction
Mark the two remaining edges at the same intervals and join them. Count eight cells in each direction and check the overall square again.
Print the worksheet if you prefer
Open the SVG below and print on A4 at 100% or actual size, with fit-to-page scaling disabled. Measure its 50 mm check line on the printed sheet before transferring anything. If it is not 50 mm, correct your printer settings or draw the grid with a ruler.
Choose a short stitching exercise
For a first sample, stitch one straight row and leave the other grid lines as guides. The linked first-sample instructions explain the running-stitch path. This blank practice grid is not a completed hitomezashi, kogin or named traditional pattern.
Choose a suitable ruler and paper
A 15 cm ruler can span this 8 cm exercise. For a larger design, use a longer ruler or an accurately registered paper pattern instead of repeatedly guessing the continuation of a short edge.
Sources: Olympus: choosing thread, cloth, needles and marking tools; Clover: Chacopy tracing-paper application and removal