Sashiko patterns / Hitomezashi (One-Stitch)
Hitomezashi (one-stitch) sashiko pattern
Hitomezashi is the "one-stitch" style of sashiko: every stitch is exactly one grid square long, and the pattern appears from where each row of stitches starts. Print the grid template at 100%, stitch every horizontal row first, then every vertical row, and the crosses and squares appear by themselves.
- Beginner
- Panel 18 × 18 cm
- 1 stitch per 6 mm square
Download the free template
Every size fills the same 18 cm square; the number is the grid. Smaller is denser and takes longer.
- 5 mmFine ~1,260 stitches · ~13 m thread · 2–4 h US Letter A4
- 6 mmClassic Recommended · ~870 stitches · ~11 m thread · 1.5–3 h US Letter A4
- 10 mmBold ~306 stitches · ~7 m thread · 0.5–1 h US Letter A4
Print at "Actual size" (100%), never "Fit to page", then check that the scale bar on the sheet measures 5 cm. Stitch and thread counts are estimates for the whole 18 cm panel (thread includes the back of the work and 15% for knots). Hours assume 5 to 10 stitches a minute. Page 2 of each PDF has the stitching order.
What you need
- Fabric: a 25 cm (10 in) square of medium-weight cotton or linen with a soft, even weave. That is the 18 cm panel plus room to hold it.
- Thread: about 11 m of sashiko thread at the recommended size, used as a single strand (check the length on your skein). Perle cotton no. 8 works too.
- Needle: a sashiko needle (long, with a large eye), or a long darning needle.
- Marker: a water-soluble fabric pen or a chalk pencil for tracing. Test it on a scrap first.
- Optional: a thimble. Sashiko is usually stitched in the hand, without a hoop, so the needle can take several stitches at once.
Time: about 1.5 to 3 hours for the whole panel at 6 mm, our estimate at 5 to 10 stitches a minute. A smaller piece takes less.
How to stitch it
New to sashiko? The running stitch guide shows how to load several stitches on the needle, the way sashiko is sewn, and how to start and finish a thread. Leave a little slack where the thread turns at the end of a row, so the fabric does not pucker.
- Trace the template onto your fabric with a light box or a sunny window and a fabric marker. On dark fabric such as indigo the lines won't show through: use white dressmaker's carbon paper instead.
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Stitch every horizontal row, one stitch per square.
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Stitch every vertical row the same way; the pattern forms where the two meet.
- Keep the corners of each square open, so the stitches of the two directions never touch.
Bright: the stitches for this step. Faded: stitches already done. Dashed: lines still to stitch.
About this pattern
Hitomezashi is one of the two main styles of sashiko; the other, moyozashi, uses long lines like asanoha and seigaiha.
A 5 or 6 mm grid is the usual choice for hitomezashi; the 10 mm grid is easier to see and quicker for a first sampler.
Questions
- What grid size is best for hitomezashi?
- A 5 or 6 mm grid is the most common. Use the 10 mm grid with thicker thread or for a first try.
- Why does the pattern look random until the second direction?
- The horizontal rows alone are just dashes. The design appears when the vertical rows fill in the other half of each square.
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Sources
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