Friday Revision Homework - Stitches 211 - 215

 At last, the pandemic seems to have taken a holiday, and so can Sue.

Sunday Stitch School - Revision: Stitches 211 - 215

Five weeks and five stitches pass by so quickly! Now it is time to look back and review the five latest stitches. Click on the title for a link to the instructions.

211 Holly Braid Stitch

A historic stitch that takes you back to the Tudors. With the help of Rachel of VirtuoSew Adventures I have worked this elegant braid stitch into a nice linear stitch. It looks complicated, but actually it is easier than you think.

212 Loose Frech Knots

On the other hand, here IS an easy stitch. Chubby and free.

213 Zig-zag Whipped Back Stitch

Here is a  chance to be cruel, without hurting anyone - whip the back (stitch)!

214 Threaded Blanket Stitch

Bridge building!

215 Up and Down Crossed Buttonhole Stitch

I got this beautiful stitch from Annet of Fat-Quarter. Impressive, both in looks and ease of stitching.

Homework.

Time to make another Sunbonnet Sue. What will she be doing, how will she be dressed and where will she be.... Just wait and see.

Friday Homework for Lesson 211: Holly Braid Stitch

There is no doubt about it, Holly Braid Stitch IS a difficult stitch. I have the feeling, though, that the more you stitch, the better the result will be. So practice makes, if not perfect, at least better.

Also, once you get into the flow, the stitch is quite relaxing. Again, I guess that the more you use it, the better the flow will get and you end up having an enjoyable and relaxing time.

Aida Sampler

Sunday Stitch School Reference Chart

Mottled Wool Scribble Cloth

The purple cotton thread was a nightmare to stitch with. If you look closely you can see it has a Z-twist, unlike the red DMC perle with its S-twist. This Z-twist made the purple thread behave badly, so I will make sure to use an S-twisted thread in the future, and please notice that I obviously will need more practice, instead of putting the blame for any wonky stitch on the directions the thread is twisted!

Sunday Stitch School - Lesson 211: Holly Braid Stitch

It is time to set out on another stitch adventure - I have five new stitches for us to explore.

The first one will be a challenge, but is it well worth the effort of trying. It is called Holly Braid Stitch. 

I first spotted it in Jacqui Carey's excellent book 'Elizabethan Stitches' (a fantastic study of historic stitches)

where today's stitch is shown as a true BRAID stitch. With that I mean a stitch made with a stiff 'thread' like gimp, purl, wire or similar. Such threads are suitable when you make a wide stitch and the result will be similar to a length of upholstery braid.

My second encounter with Holly Braid Stitch was on a blogpost at VirtuoSew Adventures where Rachel had experimented with different threads, some that made, not a wide braid, but a narrower line. I now really wanted to try the stitch with Perle Cotton, one of my favourite threads, to see if it could be a useful linear stitch for freeform embroidery.

Proof that that is possible I found in a floral design Rachel made on this blog post. DO check it out as it also contains an excellent video Rachel has created of how the stitch is worked.

THANK YOU Rachel for the help and constant inspiration you give me.

Following is my set of photo instructions for Holly Braid Stitch:

You need to follow this diagram to start the stitch line.

Don't pull the thread too tight, instead leave a loop.

When you take a bite of the fabric (F-G) lead the needle through that loop.

Now tighten the loop over the needle.

Pull the needle through and stretch the working thread upward to the left.

For the next step, take the needle underneath the three threads on the right (without biting the fabric).

Pull the working thread downwards, pull the needle through to create another loop.

Once again, you need to stretch the working thread up to the left.

Take the bite of fabric, and lead the needle through the loop.

Pull the thread to 'strangle' the needle, and take the thread to the left,

and then down underneath the needle.

Pull the needle through, and stretch the working thread up and to the left

and hopefully you now remember what to do. Yes, go through those three threads

pull through until you have a loop...

bite and through the loop...

'strangle' the needle...

lead the thread down under the needle...

three threads

loop

bite and through the loop....... and so on.

Anchor the final stitch at the top for a pointed tip.

As you can see, I still have to work on tension and evenness. I also want the group of stitches at the start (that diagram) to be closer together.

Isn't this a real stitch adventure?

Homework: