How to Make a Cross Stitch Space Rocket Wall Hanging

In this post, I am sharing how to make a cross stitch space rocket which a great idea to finish off a cross stitch design and hang it on the wall of a child’s bedroom (or your own if you’re a space lover!)

The design I used in this tutorial came from my 2020 Galaxy Stitch-a-Long, but you can now download the full pattern over on my Etsy store here. Or you can use any other space-related pattern you have. I also added a personalisation on mine (I have a tutorial on personalising here).

If you want to come back to this post later, there is a pin image at the bottom with the title on so you can easily find it on your profile.

To make a Space Rocket Wall Hanging You Will Need:

1. A finished cross stitch design (grab the one I used here)
2. Felt for the rocket approx 18 x 15 inches but this depends how large your design is. (I used glitter felt. You can get rolls of it on Cloud Craft here)
3. Felt for the back of your design (I used black as my aida was dark)
4. A rocket template. I actually drew the rocket on myself but Pinterest has many rocket templates if you need one.
5. A glue gun
6. Sewing machine (optional)
7. Fabric scissors
8. Normal scissors
9. A pencil

How to Make a Space Rocket Wall Hanging in 7 Steps

Psst… I did some of these steps in the garden because #coronavirus; we have to work where the kids are!

Also, I talk about aida throughout this tutorial because that is what I used but you can stitch on evenweave or linen.

Step 1. Stitch you space design

Stitch your design and iron it! Or snoop around your finished stash; you might already have one you can use.

Once it is done, you need to cut it out so it has about 1.5-inch margin around the edge. I did a little bit extra as you can see but that’s not totally necessary.

Important: Make sure your design will fit inside the rocket template you have chosen.

Step 2. Iron the edges

Fold in the edges around your design. I left around half an inch from where the design ends and then folded it in. I pressed it with my hand first (the good thing about cross stitch is that you can easily fold a straight line by following the lines of the squares).

Then iron the folds down to make them neater and keep them in place.

Step 3. Secure the back

First, snip off any stray threads from your aida.

Next, snip the corners a little bit if they are sticking out at the front. Don’t start from the very edge of the corner, come in a little bit first. There are a few photos below to show you what I mean by that.

Now you can either pop a little bit of glue from a glue gun to keep those edges secure or you can use a sewing machine to stitch all the way around.

If you don’t have either, you can use a backstitch to stitch either all the way around the design or add some stars to the corners to secure them.

Because we are in the middle of the covid19 pandemic as I am typing this and when I made this rocket, I opted for the quick and easy way and just used a glue gun. I have used a glue gun on aida lots before and so far it has not discoloured the fabric in any way.

Step 4. Put the felt on the back

Now cut the felt for the back of your design (the black felt in my case) so it is just a little bit smaller than the size of your design.

To put it on, again you can either use a glue gun or a sewing machine or hand stitch it.

If you are using a glue gun I recommend doing 1 edge at a time for the top and side then do the last 2 edges at the same time. If you go all the way around at once your glue may start to dry.

For the last 2 edges, I put the glue on the aida instead of on the felt, but you can do it either way.

Press down each edge as you glue it on before moving on to the next edge.

This step isn’t totally necessary but for my project, it stops the red felt showing through the holes of the aida and protects it a little.

If your design is stitched on white you could just iron some interfacing on instead.

Step 5. Cut out your rocket

While that is drying, get your felt for the rocket. If you have a template cut it out and you can draw around it with a pencil on the back of the felt (only important if you are using glitter felt). If you don’t have a template, draw your rocket on freehand. I did this and think it turned out OK (OK enough for a 6-year-old anyway!)

Important: Make sure your design will fit inside the rocket template you have chosen. (Yes I’ve already said this but you don’t want to get to this part and find out it doesn’t fit!)

Now cut it out!

Just a note here about the felt. I prefer the glitter as it makes the rocket a little more sturdy and so it had neat edges.

But if you opt for normal felt I highly recommend 100% wool felt if you are OK using that kind (Cloud Craft also sell this) again, just to make sure it’s quite sturdy. And it also frays much less than polyester.

Step 6. Put the design on the rocket

First, put your finished cross stitch design on the rocket so you have an idea of where it is going.

The good thing about felt-on-felt is that it shouldn’t move around much once you have found the place, so you can leave it there and just lift up each edge to glue gun it on.

Or if you’re confident you can get it in the right place you can turn it around first to out the glue on.

Then press it down with your hands.

Once it is on you might need to put a bit of extra glue in the corners.

Or if you would prefer to use a sewing machine you can, but please note using a sewing machine on glitter felt can be difficult for some machines. And there is a lot of layers involved now; my little sewing machine wouldn’t have coped.

Step 7 . Hang it up!

The step I haven’t actually done yet as my 6-year-old has been flying it around our house.

But there are a few ways you can do this. We are just going to get some good old blu tac and putting it on his door.

You could also use command strips to put it on a wall. Or add some twine/ribbon to the back and hang it on a hook.

Let me know what you do with yours over on Instagram – @hannahhandmakes

Extra Cross Stitch Resources

• 5 Finishing Ideas for Your Cross Stitch
• How to Make a Cross Stitch Lampshade
• How to Make a Cross Stitch Bookmark
• Get Your 3 FREE Cross Stitch Patterns

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