Heirloom Baby Blocks
Project Resources
How It Began
This massive project started when I recruited friends and family to help create a surprise set of blocks for my sister’s baby shower. From sourcing materials and designing pixel art to writing tutorials, assembling kits, and racking up exorbitant postage bills, it was truly a labor of love – and so worth it.
When a project spirals this big, I think it’s only right to document the whole thing. Here’s the full backstory (ahem, block story) if you’re curious how this whole thing came together.
Ready for Play
Blocks for stacking, tossing, tumbling – and doing it all again.
Mix, Match, Make Them Yours
50+ timeless designs and endless customizations.
Stitch Your Own Blocks
Learn to make Heirloom Baby Blocks that are soft, sturdy, and built to last. This beginner-friendly tutorial is a fun introduction to cross stitch and needlepoint – and once you get going, you’ll be hooked!
“I love cross stitching! I’m having such a peaceful time… New hobby alert!”
– HOLLY
Materials
Tapestry Needles have a blunt tip and eye large enough to hold thick tapestry wool. Size 18 works well for this project.
Sharp Scissors for snipping thread cleanly – small embroidery scissors work great.
Plastic Canvas is the plastic mesh foundation for stitching each design. This project uses 3” x 3” squares, spaced at 7 holes per inch. You’ll need 6 squares to make one finished block.
DMC Tapestry Wool is 100% wool yarn designed specifically for needlepoint – thick enough to give full coverage on canvas, colorfast, and will not fray mid-project like knitting yarn might.
Color Palette: White (ECRU) for designs and seams, Coral (7005), Guava (7010), Ecru (7905), Sage (7369), Peacock (7861), Pool (7802), Magpie (7860), and Brown (7489).
How Much Wool Do I Need to Order?
Each block uses about 7 skeins for the designs, plus a little over 1 skein for seaming. The exact amounts will depend on which designs you choose.
Skeins are inexpensive, but shipping can add up quickly if you need to reorder. Use this handy spreadsheet to calculate how much tapestry wool you’ll need for your project. Just click the link, make a copy (File > Make a copy), and enter which designs you plan to make.
Video Tutorials
How to Thread A Needle
How to Cross Stitch
How to Seam Blocks Together
How to Finish Corners
Let’s Get Stitching!
Download the free digital pattern for step-by-step instructions, helpful resources, and over 50 cross stitch charts – including animals, foods, sports, letters, and more.
Make Them Your Own
Helpful tips for customizing your blocks.
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Organize a thoughtful group gift by asking participants to each stitch a square. Later, combine them into a full set of blocks for the baby-to-be.
To make kits for your makers, you can:
Order supplies in bulk
Pre-cut thread into strands (I divided each skein in half four times to get 16 strands per skein)
Use the handy spreadsheet to calculate how many strands are needed for each design (create a copy and “unhide” the columns in the middle). Not to worry – I built in some wiggle room in the strand counts to allow for a few mistakes.
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Want to personalize your blocks even further? You can!
Draw your own pixel art (I used a 19×19 grid in Procreate with these free Pixel Art brushes)
Use graph paper with markers or colored pencils.
Search online for cross stitch inspiration.
It’s a great artistic challenge to convey curves or sharp angles using only squares, and it is quite fun (addicting, even!) once you get the hang of it.
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If choosing your own colors, try this structure:
2–3 color families, each with a light, medium, and dark value
1–2 accent colors
One color for seaming (either from your palette or something that coordinates with all the others)
Tip: Our eyes are drawn to areas of high contrast. A black design on a white background pops, while green-on-turquoise might blur. A range of light, medium, and dark tones gives you the flexibility to keep things readable and dynamic.
Get In Touch
I hope this projects helps you feel more connected to your creative process. I’d love to see what you make – tag me on Instagram @MoseyCreative or drop me a note.