When I first saw a stitch with the name Fairy Lights, I knew that Sunbonnet Sue would want to become a fairy, for a day at least.
So here she is lighting the magic light bulbs and stretching garlands across the garden.
It is time to work the last five stitches again and add them up on a Sunbonnet Sue sampler.
Click on the title to see the instructions.
This way of making the Chain Stitch might take a bit more time compared to the traditional 'in-the-hand' stitching and of course, the fabric needs to be stretched in a frame or hoop, but the stitches become even and neat.
Building on the previous stitch, just add laced loops on both sides of the chain and you get this beautiful braid-like stitch.
This is a magical stitch perfect for a scene of garlands of lights at a garden party. With metallic thread, you get a good glow.
Want some lace on the edge of a handkerchief? You don't have a crochet hook or a bobbin pillow with pins and bobbins? Fear not, you can embroider the lace!
290 Threaded Herringbone Stitch
I have found that there are two ways that the basic Herringbone Stitch can be embellished and called Threaded Herringbone Stitch. Here is the more unusual way.
The other, which is more often seen, has also got another name and I will eventually add it to the Sunday Stitch School collection, then under its alternative name. That's for another lesson, though.
Homework:
Think up a good way to let Sunbonnet Sue get entangled with all these five stitches.
Reversed Chain has proven to be easy and adding Buttonhole stitches to the edges was not difficult either.
Personally, I like the Reversed Chain Stitch better than the standard Chain Stitch. It is important to remember that the former requires the fabric to be stretched in a hoop whereas the latter can be worked in the hand. Also that if you want to work quickly standard Chain Stitch is faster.
Now for adding Buttonhole Edging... you can of course do that to both stitches.
Actually, I have already done a version of 'Chain Stitch with Buttonhole Edging' - #78 Interlaced Chain Stitch, see the tutorial here. In that version, you first complete the lacing,
Anyway, here is today's homework:
Reversed Chain Stitch with Buttonhole Edging
Aida Sampler
Sunday Stitch School Reference Chart
Mottled Wool Scribble Cloth
Let's add more work on last week's stitch. Reversed Chain Stitch with Buttonhole Edging may be a bit of a mouthful to say, but it is not hard to work!
I found it at Baroque Embellishments, a blog run by Kimberly Servello. Rachel at VirtuoSew Adventures has also used this stitch. Both ladies were working on Gold Work projects. Here, I will try my hand at the stitch with ordinary Perle No 8.
Start by making a line of Reverse Chain Stitch.
Take a second thread, of the same or a different colour. Come out at the beginning of the chain. Take the thread up through the second link, and down at the first link, without going through the fabric. Look carefully at the picture to check that you have placed the needle correctly.
