Turn a link, a message or your WiFi details into a chart you can stitch and actually scan.
Spare data lets the code still work when a module is stitched wrong. More of it means a bigger chart.
Each square of the code becomes a block this size. Bigger blocks are easier to count and to scan.
Enter a web address to generate a chart.
Just an example. Fill in the details on the left, then press Generate.
A QR code is already a grid of light and dark squares, which makes it the most natural thing in the world to translate into counted cross stitch. What trips people up is not the stitching, it is the three rules a camera cares about: the quiet zone, a pale unstitched border four modules deep on every side, enough contrast between thread and fabric, and modules coarse enough to read once they are worked in thread. Miss any of them and a beautifully worked piece will not scan.
That last point is why the generator works each square of the code as a block two stitches across by default rather than as a single stitch. A single stitch per module measures under 2mm on 14-count Aida, and fabric texture and thread sheen are a lot of noise at that size. Doubling it costs fabric and buys reliability, and it means the border you leave blank is eight stitches deep, not four.
Size follows from how much you encode, so keep it short. A brief web address at the defaults makes a chart of roughly 74 stitches square, about 5.3 inches on 14-count, while a long link pushes past 90 and turns a weekend project into a month. If your URL is long, shorten it first. The generator reports the finished measurements once you press Generate, and you can plan your cut with the fabric calculator.
One last habit worth keeping: scan the chart on screen before your needle touches the fabric. It takes three seconds, and it tells you the data is right before you invest the hours.
Yes, as long as three things hold. Leave the pale border unstitched on all four sides, because a code with no quiet zone is unreadable. Keep good contrast between a dark thread and light fabric. And work each square of the code as a block at least two stitches across, so the pattern is coarse enough for a camera once it is on fabric. Scan the chart on screen before you start, which confirms the data is right.
It depends on how much you encode. A short web address at the default settings, two stitches per module, comes out around 74 stitches square once the border is added, which is about 5.3 inches on 14-count Aida. A long URL pushes that closer to 90 stitches, or 6.4 inches. The generator prices every option in stitches before you choose.
It sets how much spare data the code carries, which engineers call the error correction level. That redundancy is what lets a code still work when part of it is damaged or, in stitching, miscounted. Some is the sensible default. Choose Generous or Maximum if the piece will be handled a lot or you want insurance against a mistake, and accept a bigger chart in exchange. None to spare gives the most compact pattern and no room at all for error.
A module is one square of the QR code itself, and a stitch is one cross on your fabric. They are not the same thing. Working a module as a single stitch makes a code whose squares measure under 2mm on 14-count, which is where fabric texture and thread sheen start to defeat a camera. The default here works each module two stitches across, so four stitches in all, which doubles the size of every square for good reason.
You can, within limits. A camera reads contrast, not color, so a very dark thread on pale fabric works whatever the hue: deep navy, aubergine, forest green. What fails is a mid-tone pair like rust on beige. Keep the dark parts genuinely dark, and never invert it by stitching the light squares instead.
Wedding pieces that open a photo album or share a WiFi network with guests, a framed message that links to a song, a hoop for a craft fair, or a hidden note inside a gift. The WiFi option builds the network code for you, though a guest network suits it better than your main one, since anyone who scans the finished piece can join.
Work out what to cut with the fabric calculator, estimate your floss with the thread calculator, or read the beginner guides on the blog.