A Merry Christmas portrait where the afro is the first thing you see -- its massive, fills most of the upper half, stitched in black with a satin-style density that gives it a smooth rounded look. The Santa hat sits tilted on top with a classic pompom and a sand trim band. Below the portrait the script reads Merry Christmas in a big swooping dark red cursive with an orange underline that curls off at both ends. I first ran it on a black tee last December and genuinely had people asking where the finished shirt was from. Thats the reaction you want.
Nine thread colours and 9 changes makes the run-sequence complex, but its worth it. The face shading uses 3 skin tone threads -- medium brown, warm taupe, and a lighter sand-beige -- layered to build depth in the cheek and forehead areas. Density is around 872 stitches per square inch on the portrait sections which is quite heavy. Use a stable woven fabric like canvas, quilting cotton or firm jersey -- if you put it on a very stretchy knit without proper stabilising you will get puckering around the fill. Pop a firm cutaway on the back before hooping. Slow your machine speed down to around 600-700 stitches per minute on the dense afro sections for the cleanest result. Skip fabric with any surface texture -- loopy fleece or terrycloth will fight the fine face shading lines.
Christmas tees and sweatshirts are the most popular use by a long way. I get messages about tote bags and canvas panels too. The script adds height so at 7.5 inches tall plan your garment placement carefully before hooping, youll need the full chest area on a sweatshirt or the back panel on a jacket.
What people are using this design for
A starting point. The design works for plenty more than just this list, this is what folks have stitched it onto most.
- Christmas tees and sweatshirts celebrating Black cultureBlack cotton tees show the afro outlines and face shading at their best -- the dark background makes the red script pop.
- Holiday tote bags as a festive gift with personalityNatural canvas tote bags take the high-density face fill cleanly and the 9 thread colors read with full saturation.
- Framed canvas panels for seasonal Afrocentric home decorStretch the finished embroidery on a 10-inch canvas frame and you have a statement piece for a mantlepiece or shelf.
- Custom Christmas pouches and zip bags as gift itemsHoliday zip pouches in felt or canvas work great for the 3.5-inch size which still holds all the face detail.
- Denim jacket front or back for a bold Christmas lookA denim jacket back panel at 7.5 inches is a full statement look -- the afro fills the panel width beautifully.
- Holiday cushion covers with a portrait centrepieceCushion covers in deep jewel tones like forest green or navy let the red and teal thread colours really land.
- Black History Month gift items with a festive holiday twistPair with a kente-print gift wrap and ribbon for a culturally cohesive holiday gift presentation.
Dimensions
5 sizes included. Stitch counts shown for the largest colorway.
| Size (in) | Stitches |
|---|---|
| 3.51 × 3.25 in | 17,803 |
| 4.51 × 4.17 in | 23,698 |
| 5.51 × 5.09 in | 30,204 |
| 6.51 × 6.02 in | 37,536 |
| 7.51 × 6.94 in | 45,473 |
Files & Formats
Eight machine formats included in one zip. Whichever your machine reads, its in the pack.
Plus a color chart for thread matching. See full format guide.
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About the artist
Reyazul Masud Riham, hand-drawing every design on this site
Every design on Re Embroidery is hand-digitized by one person. Each file gets sketched, color-matched, and stitch-tested on real fabric before it earns a place in the shop. No team. No auto-conversion from images. Just slow, deliberate work, sometimes three or four days per design.
That's the joy I work for.
The hard part is finding my designs re-uploaded and resold elsewhere. So when you buy from Re Embroidery, you're paying one real person for the file you're about to download. That matters.
