The Great Wave Cross Stitch Pattern (Free PDF)
Hokusai's Under the Wave off Kanagawa, from his Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji of about 1830 to 1832. The strong blue and white shapes suit cross stitch very well, and the pale sky gives you a calm stretch after the foam.
Updated
See every thread
What you need
The full chart is 130 stitches wide and 87 high: 11,310 full cross stitches in 23 DMC colors, rated advanced. On 14-count Aida, cut a piece at least 15.5 × 12.5 in (39 × 31 cm), which leaves 3 in spare on every side, and a 14-in hoop holds the whole design. Some colors need more than one skein, so check the table.
| DMC thread | Stitches | Spread over | Thread | Of a skein | If it is out of stock |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 739 Tan Ultra Very Light | 1,927 | 9 areas | 25.7 m | 107 % | 3047 Yellow Beige Light |
| Ecru Ecru | 1,609 | 180 areas | 21.5 m | 89 % | 822 Beige Gray Light |
| 543 Beige Brown Ultra Very Light | 1,288 | 53 areas | 17.2 m | 72 % | 3047 Yellow Beige Light |
| 927 Gray Green Light | 879 | 158 areas | 11.7 m | 49 % | 3752 Antique Blue Very Light |
| 746 Off White | 719 | 46 areas | 9.6 m | 40 % | 712 Cream |
| 803 Baby Blue Ultra Very Dark | 718 | 138 areas | 9.6 m | 40 % | 824 Blue Very Dark |
| 644 Beige Gray Medium | 532 | 175 areas | 7.1 m | 30 % | 822 Beige Gray Light |
| 930 Antique Blue Dark | 480 | 136 areas | 6.4 m | 27 % | 3750 Antique Blue Very Dark |
| 820 Royal Blue Very Dark | 448 | 96 areas | 6.0 m | 25 % | 796 Royal Blue Dark |
| 772 Yellow Green Very Light | 440 | 53 areas | 5.9 m | 24 % | 369 Pistachio Green Very Light |
| 926 Gray Green Medium | 311 | 113 areas | 4.1 m | 17 % | 598 Turquoise Light |
| 3023 Brown Gray Light | 272 | 30 areas | 3.6 m | 15 % | 647 Beaver Gray Medium |
| 931 Antique Blue Medium | 271 | 103 areas | 3.6 m | 15 % | 3839 Lavender Blue Medium |
| 169 Pewter Light | 250 | 24 areas | 3.3 m | 14 % | 646 Beaver Gray Dark |
| 414 Steel Gray Dark | 214 | 47 areas | 2.9 m | 12 % | 646 Beaver Gray Dark |
| 738 Tan Very Light | 204 | 13 areas | 2.7 m | 11 % | 3855 Autumn Gold Light |
| 312 Baby Blue Very Dark | 200 | 59 areas | 2.7 m | 11 % | 824 Blue Very Dark |
| 04 Tin Dark | 161 | 77 areas | 2.1 m | 9 % | 03 Tin Medium |
| 648 Beaver Gray Light | 121 | 42 areas | 1.6 m | 7 % | 452 Shell Gray Medium |
| 318 Steel Gray Light | 115 | 43 areas | 1.5 m | 6 % | 03 Tin Medium |
| 3032 Mocha Brown Medium | 64 | 10 areas | 0.9 m | 4 % | 841 Beige Brown Light |
| 437 Tan Light | 46 | 8 areas | 0.6 m | 3 % | 3046 Yellow Beige Medium |
| 517 Wedgewood Dark | 41 | 16 areas | 0.5 m | 2 % | 824 Blue Very Dark |
Thread for 2 strands on 14-count (how it is worked out).
Reading this chart
The center of the chart is column 65, row 44, a Beige Brown Ultra Very Light stitch.
Tan Ultra Very Light has the largest connected block, 1,905 stitches. Ecru is the most scattered: 1,609 stitches in 180 separate spots, 82 of them single stitches.
A row uses about 44.1 separate runs of thread on average; the busiest is row 77, with 75. Only 0 % of the grid stays bare, so the fabric color barely shows.
Budget roughly 56.5 hours to 113 hours (how we estimate that). New to charts? Read how to read one.
Finished size
| Fabric | Finished size | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| 11-count | 11.8 × 7.9 in | 30.0 × 20.1 cm |
| 14-count | 9.3 × 6.2 in | 23.6 × 15.8 cm |
| 16-count | 8.1 × 5.4 in | 20.6 × 13.8 cm |
| 18-count | 7.2 × 4.8 in | 18.3 × 12.3 cm |
Ideas for using it
- Wide piece above a sofa
- Gift for a Japanese art fan
- A long project with a clear shape
Stitching tips
- Stitch the dark blue of the wave first: it holds the whole composition together.
- Do the white foam later and keep it clean.
- Save the sky for last: it is relaxing, and the piece already looks finished by then.
About the artwork
This chart is based on Under the Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai (about 1830–32), which is in the public domain. Image source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Open Access, CC0). We made the chart with our own pattern maker, which reduces the picture to a grid of stitches and a set of DMC threads, so expect a simplified version of the original rather than an exact copy. It has not been stitched by us, so check the preview and try a small area first.
Free for personal use, and you may sell a few pieces you stitched yourself. Details in the terms.
More flowers, birds and fine art patterns
All free patterns · Turn your own picture into a chart like this