Hitomezashi
Make a hitomezashi stitch pattern and print it as a template or as a two-colour picture. Every horizontal and vertical line of the grid is stitched as a row of dashes: stitch, gap, stitch, gap. Each line gets one bit, which says whether it starts with a stitch (0) or a gap (1), and those simple offsets build up into steps, crosses and zigzags. Take the bits from a word (vowels are 1), from digits (odd digits are 1), from 0s and 1s you type, or from a seed, separately for the rows and the columns, on a grid of up to 150 × 150. The tool also colours the squares with two colours so that a stitch always separates different colours, and prints the stitch template at the exact spacing you choose. Download a PDF, a 300 DPI PNG or an SVG. Nothing is uploaded.
100% private — everything runs in your browser. Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Print at 100% (Actual size). Real size prints on one sheet when the drawing fits; the check bar in the footer lets you confirm the scale. The SVG holds the drawing at the printed size.
Stitch rule
Look
Page
Runs in your browser with our own code: nothing you type is uploaded or saved. Every stitch and every colour is worked out by our own code from the bits shown. You may use what you make here, including commercially, with no credit needed.
How to make and print a hitomezashi pattern
- Pick a preset, or set the columns and rows.
- Choose where the row bits and the column bits come from, and type the word, digits or 0s and 1s.
- Choose two colours with stitches, stitches only or colours only, and dots at the grid points if you like.
- Set the stitch length and line width; choose Fitted to one page or Real size and the paper.
- Download the PDF and print at 100% (Actual size), or the PNG or SVG.
What you can use it for
- Stitch templates for hand embroidery at the exact spacing
- Maths lessons on binary sequences and two-colouring
- Names and words turned into patterns for gifts
- Quilting, knitting and weaving charts from the two-colour grid
- Plotter, laser and vinyl art from the SVG
- Backgrounds and wrapping paper
The 14 presets
| Preset | Grid | Row bits (first 12) | Column bits (first 12) | Stitches | Regions | Dark | Look | Stitch length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Words: rows “hitomezashi”, columns “stitch pattern” (vowel = 1) | 30 × 40 | word: 010101010010 | word: 001000010010 | 1,235 | 58 | 50% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Stitch template only: rows “sashiko”, columns “running stitch” | 30 × 40 | word: 010010101001 | word: 010010000100 | 1,235 | 72 | 49% | stitches only | 5 mm |
| Digits: rows 31415926535, columns 27182818284 (odd = 1) | 30 × 40 | digits: 110111001111 | digits: 011000100000 | 1,235 | 146 | 50.3% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Binary: rows 0010111, columns 0110100 | 30 × 40 | 0s and 1s: 001011100101 | 0s and 1s: 011010001101 | 1,235 | 93 | 49% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| All lines alternate: 0101 … both ways | 30 × 40 | 0s and 1s: 010101010101 | 0s and 1s: 010101010101 | 1,235 | 35 | 50% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| All lines start with a stitch: 0 … both ways | 30 × 40 | 0s and 1s: 000000000000 | 0s and 1s: 000000000000 | 1,235 | 301 | 75% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Pairs: 0011 … both ways | 30 × 40 | 0s and 1s: 001100110011 | 0s and 1s: 001100110011 | 1,235 | 161 | 63.3% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Rows 0011, columns 01 | 30 × 40 | 0s and 1s: 001100110011 | 0s and 1s: 010101010101 | 1,235 | 35 | 50% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Seeded random bits, half 1s (seeds 1 and 2) | 30 × 40 | seeded: 010001001011 | seeded: 011000110101 | 1,235 | 98 | 50% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Seeded random bits, one in five is 1 | 30 × 40 | seeded: 110000000001 | seeded: 100000000101 | 1,235 | 158 | 45.8% | two colours + stitches | 5 mm |
| Words on 80 × 100: rows “made good”, columns “hitomezashi” | 80 × 100 | word: 010101100101 | word: 010101010010 | 8,090 | 174 | 50.9% | two colours + stitches | 2 mm |
| Stitch template with dots at every grid point | 24 × 30 | word: 011001011001 | word: 000110000110 | 747 | 62 | 47.2% | stitches only | 6 mm |
| Real size: 30 × 40 at 5 mm spacing | 30 × 40 | word: 010101010010 | word: 001000010010 | 1,235 | 58 | 50% | stitches only | 5 mm |
| Real size: 24 × 32 at a quarter inch | 24 × 32 | word: 011000110001 | word: 010001001000 | 796 | 77 | 47.9% | stitches only | 0.25 in |
Every count is worked out by the tool from the stitches it draws.
The rule
| Line | Stitch on the piece … |
|---|---|
| Horizontal line y = j, bit r | from x = i to i + 1 when i + r is even |
| Vertical line x = i, bit c | from y = j to j + 1 when j + c is even |
| Bit 0 | stitch, gap, stitch, gap … |
| Bit 1 | gap, stitch, gap, stitch … |
What prints
| Download | What is in it |
|---|---|
| The grid fitted to one page or at real size, vector, with the bits, the counts and a check bar | |
| PNG 300 DPI | The same sheet as a picture |
| SVG | The pattern at the printed size: each stitch as its own dash in one stroked path, colours as exact rectangles |
For a cutter that needs DXF, use SVG to DXF.
Which tool to use
| You want | Use |
|---|---|
| Stitch lines from bits or words | Hitomezashi (this page) |
| Fixed traditional Japanese repeats | Japanese Pattern Generator |
| A cross-stitch chart from a picture | Cross Stitch Pattern Maker |
| Plain grid paper | Graph Paper |
| Tiles that fit by edge rules | Wave Function Collapse |
Other tools: the Japanese Pattern Generator draws traditional repeats, the Cross Stitch Pattern Maker turns pictures into charts and Graph Paper prints plain grids.
More free tools
Grids, patterns and printables?
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Frequently asked questions
What is hitomezashi?
A style of sashiko stitching. The Wikipedia article on sashiko (read 13 November 2026) names it as one of the two main geometric styles, “where the pattern emerges from the alignment of single stitches made on a grid”. This tool draws the grid version made from rows and columns of evenly spaced dashes.
What is the rule?
Line y = j has a bit for the rows and line x = i a bit for the columns. On a horizontal line, the piece from x = i to i + 1 is a stitch when i plus the line’s bit is even; on a vertical line, the piece from y = j to j + 1 is a stitch when j plus the line’s bit is even. So bit 0 starts with a stitch and bit 1 starts with a gap. Our tests check every row and column of 40 seeded grids against this rule.
How do words become bits?
Every vowel (a, e, i, o, u) is 1 and every other letter is 0; spaces and other characters are skipped. “hitomezashi” gives 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1. Digits work the same way with odd digits as 1. A short list repeats to fill every line.
How are the two colours worked out?
Starting from the top-left square, the tool moves square by square: crossing a stitch changes the colour, crossing a gap keeps it. It then checks every pair of side-by-side squares. In our tests on 60 seeded grids every pair differs exactly when a stitch separates them, so the two colours always work out, and the region counts match a second flood fill of our own.
How is it different from the Japanese pattern tool’s sashiko export?
That tool draws fixed traditional repeat patterns and can export their lines for stitching. This one builds each line from a bit you choose, so a word or a number makes its own pattern, and it adds the two-colour fill.
Can I print a stitch template?
Yes. Choose Stitches only, add dots at the grid points if you like, set the stitch length (the grid spacing) and print at real size. Every printed stitch is exactly one grid space long and starts on a grid point; our tests check it to 0.2 mm on US Letter and A4.
What sizes can it make?
Grids from 2 × 2 up to 150 × 150 squares, with a stitch length from 1 mm to 40 mm; every preset draws in under 2 seconds in our tests.
Can it print at real size?
Yes, when the drawing fits on one sheet: choose Real size and set the cell size. Every printed line and fill is within 0.2 mm of its true place in our tests, on US Letter and A4, as long as you print at 100% (Actual size); the check bar in the footer lets you confirm the scale. Bigger drawings print fitted to the page.
Is it free?
Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit.
Is anything uploaded?
No. Every stitch and colour is worked out by JavaScript in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere or saved when you close the page.