Fabric Definitions — definitions of fabrics, cloths, laces and textile materials from Apparel Search
Aida cloth is cloth traditionally used for cross-stitch. It comes in various even sizes, indicating the number of squares per inch. The weave is grouped into visible blocks, so each cross-stitch sits in its own square of fabric and the counting that cross-stitch depends on can be done at a glance rather than thread by thread.
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Aida solves the central problem of cross-stitch: placing thousands of identical X-shaped stitches in exact rows without losing count. Ordinary plain weave gives the stitcher nothing to count against, but Aida's threads are bundled — groups of threads woven together so the cloth reads as a grid of squares, each with an obvious hole at its corners. The needle enters the holes rather than piercing threads, which keeps every stitch the same size and the design symmetrical. That is why Aida became the standard teaching fabric for cross-stitch and the ground specified by most charted kits: a beginner can follow a chart square-for-square from the first stitch.
Common counts run from 11 to 18 squares per inch, with finer specialty cloths beyond that. The count is a sizing decision as much as a texture decision. A sampler charted at 140 by 200 stitches measures about 12.7 by 18 inches on 11-count, 10 by 14.3 inches on 14-count, and under 8 by 11.2 inches on 18-count — the same work, at three different scales and three different levels of visual fineness. Coarser counts show the grid more openly and suit bold designs, children's first projects and work meant to be seen at a distance; finer counts close the grid up, render shading and fractional stitches more smoothly, and reward smaller needles and fewer strands of floss. Aida is most often cotton, stiffened slightly in manufacture so it can be worked in the hand; the stiffness washes out, and for large pieces most stitchers still use a hoop or frame to keep tension even.
Aida is one member of the even-weave family, and stitchers move between family members as their skill grows. Hardanger cloth groups threads in pairs and supports cutwork as well as cross-stitch; jobelan and other cotton even-weaves offer a smoother, less visibly gridded surface at similar counts; linen even-weave gives the softest drape and the most traditional look at the price of slightly uneven threads that test a stitcher's counting. All of them share the defining even-weave property — warp and weft of the same size, so a stitch covering a set number of threads is the same length horizontally and vertically — but Aida remains the only one whose grid a newcomer can read without instruction, which is precisely the role it was designed to fill.
The count is the number of squares — and therefore stitches — per inch. On 14-count Aida a design 140 stitches wide finishes 10 inches wide; on 18-count the same chart finishes smaller and finer, and on 11-count larger and bolder. Designers state the count a chart assumes, and changing the count changes the finished size, not the design.
Both are even-weaves with warp and weft matched, but Aida is woven in distinct blocks of threads with a clear hole at each corner, which makes counting almost automatic. Linen even-weave has single, sometimes slightly irregular threads, and stitches are usually worked over two threads — finer and softer, but demanding more attention.
Edges fray readily, so stitchers tape or oversew raw edges before starting. Finished work is washed gently to remove handling marks and pressed from the back, often over padding so the stitches are not flattened, before framing or making up.