After spending each morning in the vineyard or in the garden, I have been working on getting the instructions for 'Golden Leaves' ready. I discovered that I had used quite a few variations of Blanket Stitch and it made me think about just what a versatile stitch Blanket Stitch really is. It is fabulous and I use it all the time - you may have noticed if you have been following along here for a bit.
The basic Blanket Stitch is really quite simple, I have put the steps HERE if you need to see how to do it. What I find can be a little confusing is that when the stitches are worked close together, many stitch directories and patterns will refer it as `Buttonhole stitch`. I tend to ever only call it Blanket Stitch - my logic being that just because the spacing of the stitches is closer, doesn't make it a different stitch.
For my crewel work I often use Blanket Stitch to fill narrow shapes - I love the effect of the neat `purl` edge that the stitches create. When you use Blanket Stitch like that or if you have very long rows, you are bound to have to join a new thread sooner or later. If you simply anchor the last stitch and then start a new thread, you get this little lump and you can pick where the join is. There is a little trick to joining a new thread when working this stitch - you may already know it. Blanket stitch - Joining new thread 1. When you are ready to start a new thread, take the old thread to the back as you would for the next stitch. Leaving a thread loop, bring the `old` thread to the front away from the line of stitching and un-thread the needle. 2. Secure the new thread and bring it to the front inside the thread loop. 3. Pull the `old` thread tail until the loop anchors around the new thread. 4. Continue stitching - and there you are, an invisible join. The tail of the old thread can be secured later. |
Happy Stitching,
Anna X