Storm II Counted Cross Stitch Kit: Rugs of the Southwest Series

The storm pattern is highly symmetrical and displays certain standard features. In the middle is a rectangle with radiating lines to rectangles in the corners. The border is dark often with geometric “teeth.” Spaces contain a variety of stylized elements; among them are clouds, water beetles, arrows, and feathers.

The design is said to be based on a Navajo legend but it is widely believed that a Tuba City trader developed and promoted it.

The center is the hogan (the traditional home of the Navajo) or center of the world and the corner squares are the four sacred mountains of the Navajo (E – Sierra Blanca, CO; W – San Francisco Peaks, AZ; N – Mt. Hersperus, CO; S – Mt. Taylor, NM).

Connecting lines – usually zigzagged – represent lightning bolts that carry blessings between the squares.