I have already made a lot of Stem Stitch on my practice cloth, for example outlining uneven edges, stems of flowers and veins of leaves.
The main reason for using Stem Stitch from the very beginning of TAST is the smooth and nice outline. Here are some ”Paradise Flowers” from previous weeks:
This week I have tried Stem Stitch in a new way. I worked them in rows close together as a filling stitch. This flower is Stem stitch only.
A stem with three rows of Stem Stitch.
My ”Paradise flowers” embroidery will become a pillow case when it is finished. I need smooth edges easy to sew with a sewing machine. Stem Stitch is a perfect choice.
Bellow are some pictures of previous embroideries. First whitework inspired by wool embroideries from the province of Skåne in the south of Sweden. Those embroideries are often very colourful naive fantasy flowers but I made them white, using white cotton thread on linen instead of wool.
Stem stitch is outlining the whole motif.
And finally a small linen towel all stitched in Stem stitch except the centre of the flowers, which is Satin Stitch with a Cross Stitch owner.
Links:
Google picture search
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Highlights
Variations of Stem stitch:
Whipped Stem stitch
Portuguese Stem stitch
Cable Stem stitch
Raised Stem stitch
Pekinese Stem Stitch