satin stitch - everything you need to know
Hello my embroidery loving friends! As I keep adding to my stitch Index, I wanted to do an in-depth tutorial for you on satin stitch. It's one of the most common and easy to learn stitches, but I have some tips and suggestions for making your satin stitch look neat and professional. If you have any questions or requests, email me at laura@throughrainorshine.ca or leave a comment on this post!
I'm also adding a few video tutorials of these techniques to my IGTV!
Technique:
Satin stitch is essentially laying down the thread back and forth to cover an area. I use satin stitch for larger flowers and leaves, or other larger filled in areas. Basically, just start at one side and stitch to the other.
I like to skip spaces when I use satin stitch over a large area because it gives you a guideline to ensure that all of your stitches are even and going the same direction. You can go back and fill in the area after to ensure coverage.
Seems relatively straightforward, right?
Satin stitch is easiest when filling in square or geometric shapes. But what about something like a leaf or flower petal that has curves? If you simply follow the edge of the leaf with a regular straight satin stitch, you'll get something that looks like the leaf on the left , with what I call a "ladder edge".
Want to know my trick to avoiding this?
Avoiding "ladder edges"
Instead of simply placing your stitch right next to the one beside it, I like to tuck the needle under the edge of a previous stitch to keep the outer edge of the leaf smooth. I also angle the stitches to help keep the shape of the leaf. Give yourself some guiding stitches before filling in the whole leaf! This works best with larger leaves.
As usual with embroidery, while there are techniques that you can learn, ultimately everything is up to you and your preference. You can't go wrong with creativity! Experimenting and practicing are the best ways to get good at something and learn new things for yourself. So just go ahead and give it a try! You'll be so glad that you did.
My name is Laura and I'm so glad that you're here to learn about my favourite craft! I hope you learned something new.
If you'd like to request a topic or technique for me to go over in a post, please let me know! You can email me at laura@throughrainorshine.ca. Happy Stitching!!
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