A long time ago, in 2013, I took part in TAST (Take A Stitch Tuesday), an excellent educational stitch project by Sharon Boggon of Pintangle. It is still running, and I highly recommend that you take part. Read more about it here.
So, in 2013, I learned a version of Chain Stitch, called Turkman Stitch, also known as Double Chain Stitch.
You can find instructions for Turkman Stitch in Mary Thomas's Dictionary of Embroidery Stitches, in The Embroidery Stitch Bible and on the Royal School of Needlework's Stitch Bank.
When you glance through these publications, you will find, and maybe be confused by, another, very similar stitch, Closed Feather Stitch. You could almost call them identical twin stitches.
So today's stitch will be the twin, Closed Feather Stitch. (Here is the link to RSN's Stitch Bank).
Look at my photo instructions:
Both stitches start off in the same way.
where the needle is inserted.
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| TAST #86 Turkman Stitch |
Can you see the difference?
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| Sunday Stitch School #337 Closed Feather Stitch |
No? Look again:
In Turkman Stitch, the needle is inserted in the same hole as the previous stitch.
In the Closed Feather Stitch, the needle is inserted slightly below the previous stitch.
Insert the needle slightly below and outside the loop.
If you were ever to take an "Identify the Stitch Test", you'd probably need a magnifying glass to tell which stitch it is!
However, if you think of the names, Turkman Stitch is also called Double Chain Stitch, and today's stitch is named Closed Feather Stitch. Stitches in the Chain family use the same hole, but Stitches in the Feather Group do not. Gosh, the more you think of it, the more complicated it gets. I need to climb out of the rabbit hole I've fallen into!
I would like to say, though, that keeping the needle outside the loops gives a straighter line on both the left and right sides.
Add Closed Feather Stitch on these samplers.
I like this stitch and have used it to cover crazy quilt seams.
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