Take a Stitch Tuesday Week 8 Basic TAST
This week the challenge is Buttonhole stitch – or blanket stitch, as many people call it. This stitch is actually the foundation for a whole family of stitches. People classify embroidery stitches in different ways. I like to classify stitch families according to the hand movement you need to make in order to create the stitch. I have found that if you think in terms of your hand actions, it’s easier to make sense of it. That way, you already have a rough idea of the sort of movement your hand needs to make.
Grouping hand embroidery stitches in families can be a useful way to think about them. Does the idea of families of stitches just confuse you? Don’t worry, I just mean it to be a way of thinking about a stitch – not a big thing.
Also, just try out Buttonhole stitch don’t get yourself tangled in testing a whole family of stitches just because I mentioned it!
Take a Stitch Tuesday Week 8 Beyond TAST
Closed buttonhole stitch is of course a variety of Buttonhole stitch. Since it is part of the Buttonhole family it is a great stitch to use on the edge of something. It is also decorative enough to explore and work row upon row as a filling. It is a great stitch to use I hope you have fun with it!
Where to share
If you are new to hand embroidery the challenge is to learn the stitch and share what you have learned. If you are an experienced embroiderer, enjoy Beyond TAST and give your work a modern twist. And of course, share it online so beginners can see what can be done with a little imagination.
If you are doing the design challenge you have a month to work a design and stitch it up.
So the idea is to stitch a sample, photograph it, share it in the Take a Stitch Tuesday facebook group or use the hashtags #TASTembroidery and #PintangleTAST on Instagram.
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You can have Pintangle including TAST delivered to your inbox — just type in your email address and click on the Subscribe button below. Then check your email inbox for a confirmation email and click the link to confirm your subscription. If you don’t see a confirmation email, check your spam folder — sometimes the computer puts it there.
If you need more information the challenge guidelines are on the TAST FAQ page.
Thread Twisties!
Experimenting with different threads can be expensive. You would normally have to buy a whole skein of each type of thread. My thread twisties are a combination of different threads to use in creative hand embroidery. These enable you to try out stitching with something other than stranded cotton. For the price of just a few skeins, you can experiment with a bundle of threads of luscious colours and many different textures.
These are creative embroiders threads. With them, I hope to encourage you to experiment. Each Twistie is a thread bundle containing silk, cotton, rayon and wool. Threads range from extra fine (the same thickness as 1 strand of embroidery floss) to chunky couchable textured yarns. All threads have a soft and manageable drape. Twisting them around a needle makes experimental hand embroidery an interesting journey rather than a battle. Many are hand dyed by me. All are threads I use. You may find a similar thread twist but no two are identical.
You will find my thread twisties in the Pintangle shop here.
