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Switching from Cross Stitch Saga, Markup R-XP, Pattern Maker, PC Stitch or WinStitch: open your files
Crosstela opens the files of the common cross-stitch programs on iPhone, iPad and Mac, among them Cross Stitch Saga .saga, Pattern Maker .xsd, PC Stitch .pat, WinStitch and MacStitch .chart, and OXS. Your marks come across only where the file carries them, as in a Saga export made with progress; Crosstela reads nothing from Markup R-XP, so you start again from the designer's original PDF.
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Changing apps should not mean leaving your patterns behind. Crosstela opens the files most cross-stitch programs save, on iPhone, iPad and Mac. Here is what each one brings, and what to do when a file is refused.
| Program | File | What opens | Your marks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross Stitch Saga | .saga, .css, .sp | The chart | Only from an export made with progress, or a separate .sp |
| Markup R-XP | none of its own | Open the designer’s original PDF | Do not carry over |
| Pattern Maker (HobbyWare) | .xsd | The chart | Start fresh |
| PC Stitch | .pat | Versions 5 to 11 | Start fresh |
| WinStitch, MacStitch | .chart | Files saved since 2018, and older V3 files | Marks saved in the file come in as done |
| Many programs | .oxs | The chart | Marks saved in the file come in as done |
| Cross Stitch Paradise | .dize | The chart | Start fresh |
| Cross Stitch Professional | .xsp, .xsm | The chart | Start fresh |
| FlossCross | .fcjson | The chart | Start fresh |
To open any of them: on the shelf, tap +, then Choose a file…; or tap the file in Mail, Messages or Files, tap Share and choose Crosstela. A zip or RAR archive works too: if it holds several patterns, Crosstela asks which to open. See Bring in a pattern file.
Cross Stitch Saga
Saga saves a chart you export as a .saga file. A .css is Saga’s protected chart file. Crosstela opens both.
Your progress comes across only if it is in the file. When you export from Saga, include your progress: a plain chart export carries none, however much you have stitched. With progress in the file:
- Every mark Crosstela can place exactly lands on the chart. If some cannot be placed, the import says how many of which kind to mark again, rather than guessing.
- The stitching sessions the file records become your days in Crosstela, when its history adds up.
A separate .sp file holds progress only. Open it like any other file, and Crosstela lists the charts on your shelf it fits. Choose the one you exported it from, then confirm Attach progress. The .sp cannot prove which chart it came from, which is why Crosstela asks. It never replaces stitching you have already marked, and a file that does not fit is refused.
If Saga will not export a chart, open the designer’s original PDF or pattern file instead and mark what you have done (see the next section).
How the two apps compare: Cross Stitch Saga or Crosstela?
Markup R-XP
Been tracking by highlighting your PDF in Markup R-XP? Here is exactly what to expect:
- Crosstela reads nothing of Markup R-XP’s own: no file, no progress, no highlights.
- Open the designer’s original PDF, the one the shop sent you, in Crosstela.
- Your highlights do not carry over. To catch up, tap the percentage, open Correct the count and tap I’ve stitched some of this before, mark the squares you stitched earlier, then tap Done. They count in your progress, not in today’s.
- For a colour you have finished, press and hold it on the colour rail and tap Mark all done.
The PDF must be one a program saved, not a scan; see Which PDFs work.
How the two apps compare: Markup R-XP or Crosstela?
Pattern Maker .xsd
An .xsd from a pattern shop is a chart saved by Pattern Maker, HobbyWare’s design program. (The same extension is also used for XML schema files, which have nothing to do with stitching.)
Crosstela opens the .xsd itself, with its threads and stitches, so you need no Windows program: HobbyWare’s free Pattern Maker Viewer is for Windows, but on a Mac with Apple silicon, an iPhone or an iPad, Crosstela reads the file directly. Save it to Files, then tap + and Choose a file….
If a file cannot be read, the card says Crosstela couldn’t read the chart in this Pattern Maker file, and gives the way out: in Pattern Maker, use File ▸ Export and pick PDF or OXS. Both open in Crosstela. No Pattern Maker? Ask the designer for a PDF or an .oxs.
How the two compare: Pattern Maker or Crosstela?
PC Stitch .pat
Crosstela opens PC Stitch .pat files of versions 5 to 11, on iPhone, iPad and Mac.
For another version, the card names the version and the two ways out:
- In PC Stitch, use the Import/Export tool to save the chart as version 7, which opens. This may not work for charts built from PC Stitch’s own bundled motifs.
- Or print the chart to PDF with the free PC Stitch Pattern Viewer, and open that PDF.
Six unrelated programs write files ending in .pat. If yours does not come from PC Stitch, the card says so.
How the two compare: PC Stitch or Crosstela?
WinStitch and MacStitch .chart
WinStitch and MacStitch, by Ursa Software, save .chart files. Crosstela opens the files they have saved since 2018 and older files in the V3 format. The oldest formats are refused with This .chart file comes from a version of WinStitch or MacStitch Crosstela can’t read yet: export it as an OXS file from WinStitch or MacStitch, and open that.
If you marked stitches in WinStitch or MacStitch, the marks saved in the file come in as already stitched. The import tells you how many; they count in your progress but on no day, because the file does not record when they were stitched.
The PDFs WinStitch and MacStitch save as “Pattern Keeper compatible” open too, with a reader of their own. More on that in Pattern Keeper on iPhone or iPad?.
How they compare: MacStitch, WinStitch or Crosstela?
OXS and other programs
.oxsis the exchange format many programs export. It is often the safest file to ask a designer for. Marks saved in the file come in as done..dizecomes from Cross Stitch Paradise,.xspand.xsmfrom Cross Stitch Professional (DP Software), and.fcjsonfrom FlossCross. Each opens as a chart.- How these programs compare with Crosstela: Cross Stitch Professional or Crosstela? and FlossCross or Crosstela?. Every program, with where it runs and what it costs, is in one table.
When a file is refused
The card always says why, and usually what to do. Crosstela never opens a half-read chart, so you never stitch from a wrong one. If the card offers Send it to us, tap it: an email to [email protected] opens with the file attached, nothing is sent until you tap Send, and we work on it and reply to your email. See When a file doesn’t open.
Once your patterns are in, the stitching side is in Track your cross-stitch PDF pattern and Keep your place.
Questions people ask
How do I open an .xsd file on iPhone or iPad?
Save the .xsd to Files, open Crosstela, tap +, then Choose a file…, and pick it. Crosstela reads Pattern Maker’s .xsd directly; if one cannot be read, export PDF or OXS from Pattern Maker.
Can I bring my Cross Stitch Saga progress?
Yes, if Saga put it in the file: export the chart from Saga with your progress, or open a separate .sp progress file and attach it to the chart. A plain chart export carries no progress.
Does my Markup R-XP progress carry over?
No. Crosstela reads nothing from Markup R-XP. Open the designer’s original PDF and mark what you have done with I’ve stitched some of this before.
Which PC Stitch .pat files open?
Versions 5 to 11. For another version, save it as version 7 in PC Stitch, or print it to PDF with the free PC Stitch Pattern Viewer and open the PDF.
Is there a Pattern Maker viewer for Mac?
HobbyWare’s free Pattern Maker Viewer is a Windows program. On a Mac with Apple silicon, Crosstela opens .xsd files itself, as it does on iPhone and iPad.