Checkered Alphabet Index of Free Letter Charts
For cross-stitch or filet crochet, adaptable for other needlework.

These charts are free for your own personal use only.

Example of Checkered Alphabet:

Using the charts for cross-stitch on crocheted background: On each chart page, I give the number of stitches wide and rows tall for that chart. For a single letter chart, starting chain is number of stitches wide, plus 1 (for a turning chain), if making a single crochet background. For an afghan stitch background, starting chain is the exact number of stitches wide (there is no turning chain for afghan stitch). When combining letters in a piece, to determine starting chain, add together all the stitches wide for all the charts you are using in that piece, then add 1 for single crochet (do not add 1 for afghan stitch). Work the background for 22 rows. Follow the charts to cross-stitch the letters on your crocheted background.

Initial Pillow: When made with yarn in filet crochet, a single letter will make a nice size for a pillow front with your family initial.

Pretend red is black: When using the charts for filet crochet, the red squares are treated the same as the solid black squares (each is crocheted as a solid mesh). This way the same chart is interchangeable for either cross-stitch or filet.

To determine starting chain for name doily in filet crochet:
Working from the bottom up: On each letter chart page, I've given the starting chain for that letter chart. I always give the turning chain separately, so add together the starting chains for each letter you are using (without the turning chains of chain-3 and chain 2 more), then add one turning chain of chain-3 for first dc and chain 2 more for ch-2 of first open mesh to your total.
Working sideways: Every chart is 22 squares high, so when working sideways, your starting chain (for a 4 dc mesh) is 67, plus 3 (counts as first dc), plus 2 more (counts as the ch-2 of first open mesh) for a total starting chain of 72. Begin with a dc in the 9th chain from the hook (first open mesh made).

Finishing touches for name doily: When you have crocheted the main piece with the letters, crochet in rounds around the outside edge, adding an edging of your choice. There are a variety of free patterns for edgings on this site, as well as links to free edgings around the Web. Type the keyword edgings into the search box at the top of this page for a list of links to these free edging patterns.

To determine finished size of filet crochet piece: Each letter chart page has instructions for filet crochet. The height of each chart is the same throughout. Look up the finished sizes for the weight of yarn or size of thread you are using and add up the width given for each letter you are using in your filet piece. This will give you an approximate finished width for your full piece (your gauge may vary so finished size may not be exactly the same).

Enjoy! Make lots of great things with these letter charts!

I recharted the letters, added the red color and added all of the filet crochet instructions. -- Sandi Marshall The alphabet was originally printed in the vintage book Manual of Crocheting, No. 5 by Mary E. Fitch, in the year 1915 (copyright has expired). Charts in the 1915 book had no instructions and were in black and white only, with no light lines indicating outline of squares where two or more filled squares were grouped together (just solid black areas).

You may print out one copy of each letter chart page for your own personal use. Please do not copy further, post anywhere on the Internet or otherwise redistribute these charts and instructions. If others would like to have these charts and instructions, please give them the URL of this page so that they may come here for themselves. Thank you.

URL for this page is http://crochet.about.com/library/bl1alphabet.htm -- That's bl(one)alphabet.htm (thought I'd explain, in case the letter l (L) and a number 1 (one) look the same in the typeface you're using on your computer).

For more charts, such as animals, flowers and birds, see:
Index of Free Charts: http://crochet.about.com/library/blfreecharts.htm
Crochet Homepage: http://crochet.about.com