Tutorial Tuesday

This will be the last of the Satin Stitch Tutorials.  And the last Tutorial Tuesday for a while.  I'm trying to decide what to do next, and I'm coming up blank.  If there are any Hardanger techniques you'd like to learn, please let me know in the comments on this post.  Thanks!

So this week is a "sunburst".  This was a lot of fun, and really quick to stitch.  For a review of how to make the base shape, the Star, click here.

The arms on this sunburst curve to the left.  To make the arms curve the other way, do these steps backward. :)  (Text instructions for this are at the end - pictures are limited because this literally stitches so quickly that I forgot to take pictures in between!)

Start with a left-hand diamond - mine starts by covering 2 threads, and it covers 6 at the widest part.

Run the needle behind the stitches, and come up 2 threads away from the right edge of the bottom stitch.  Work a right-hand vertical ship.

(To make a right-hand curve, start with the left-side vertical ship - curve to the right - then work the right-hand diamond.)

Run the needle behind the stitches and come up 2 threads down from the right edge of the bottom stitch (turning the corner).  Work 1 left-hand diamond and 1 right-side vertical ship on each side.  When it's finished it will look like:

If it goes the opposite direction, it will look like:

And a look at the whole Tutorial Sampler so far.  I want to do something interesting in some of the diamonds - instead of cutwork, I mean.  And I need to finish the wrapping and filling on the sides.

New Motif - Star

The satin stitch star is an easy way to embellish any stitchery. In Hardanger, it's often used as a focal point of a piece (like in Baroque, on the left). It can also be used as a border by only stitching half a star.

You stitch each point individually, making an angled diamond. When you have completed one point, go back to the center and work on the next point.

I begin with the top left point. Starting at the narrow bottom of my diamond, I come up on the right and go down on the left. Depending on the thread count of my fabric, I will skip one or 2 threads. Next I bring my needle up one hole above my starting point, count over one extra thread, and go down on the left (i.e., if I skipped 2 threads in the first row, I skip 3 in the second). Continue increasing each row until you reach the desired width for each diamond (usually about 6 threads wide). Remember, that you will stitch another diamond for this side, so your finished width will be double.

Now we decrease. This time, instead of matching up the "inside" holes in a straight line, we will match up the outside hole. This will give us the angled look. So come up on the right side, one row above your last stitch, and one hole to the left. Go down on the left in the hole immediately above your last stitch. Decrease by one hole on the right side each row until you reach your top point. Again, consider your fabric when deciding whether to make your point one or two threads wide. Some fabrics are not friendly to one thread satin stitches.

To achieve the drawn thread look, always bring your needle up in the shared holes in the vertical line between points (see picture). So when you stitch the other half of the top of the star, you will come up on the left, and go down on the right. To keep the back neat, slip your threaded needle under your completed satin stitches to go back to the bottoms of the points. Should you need to change thread while stitching stars, loop your thread around a couple of stitches and pull all the way through a completed diamond before cutting.

Sorry for the picture quality on some of these - I was photographing while I was stitching, so I had the fabric propped on my lap, and I was trying to stay out of my own light....As always, if something is hard to understand let me know.

Something else that's important to know - while these are satin stitches, they are not the same as Klosters! You cannot cut along the edges of stars - your fabric will fall apart (trust me!)

New Hardanger stitches I'll be covering soon

I'll be adding tutorials for eyelets and more things to do with satin stitches - stars and ships. These motifs can/may be worked into your SAL piece, but they also make a great addition to your stitch repertoire - they make everything look more finished.

I used a star as the center of my "Baroque" piece (on the left), and there are eyelets between the buttonhole edging and the Klosters of the same piece. I often use the ship motif to make an interesting looking flower.

Edging Technique #1 - Satin Stitch

Well, by Laura's request, I'll cover edging next. I'd hate to leave her with unfinished ornaments!

Edging allows you to cut your project free of the larger piece of cloth and frame it, mount it, use it as an ornament, whatever. The easiest way to edge your project is to do a satin stitch perimeter - I usually do the same size as my Klosters, so over 4 threads. Pay attention when you get to the corners - you will want to share the corner hole with at least 3 stitches to turn the corner. When you get to the corner (starting from where your needle is entering the project), count over 2 and up 4, go down in the same hole, then count over 4 and up 4 (this is the point of your corner), go down in the same hole then count over 2 and up 4 (going down the other side). Each time you pull the thread taught, you will enlarge the shared hole.

Note: if you need the piece to be very sturdy, consider doing 5 stitches in the corner, instead of 3. Be sure to use your fray prevention product before you cut!

This technique works well for simple square, diamond or rectangular shapes. It's also a good option for pieces that have additional turns that would be awkward with Buttonhole Edging, which I will cover next.

Can you count to 5?

Yes? Then you can do Hardanger! I'll explain some of the basic terms and stitches. This post should give you an eerie look into who I am!

First of all, Hardanger is based on simple rules. These simple rules make it easy to not only follow the pattern, but to design your own. I love the rules! They actually set my creativity free - if I have too many options, my brain gets tied in knots and I don't know what to do! With a little structure, I'm able to create things that I love and other people seem to appreciate as well. (This applies to the rest of my life, too!)

• The first, most basic part of Hardanger is the satin stitch. Generally speaking (unless the pattern says otherwise), a satin stitch covers 4 fabric threads (count down 4 holes). That's it. Easy, right?


• Next is your first Hardanger-ese term (yes, I make up words whenever it suits me) - Kloster. Kloster means a group of satin stitches. Say it outloud - it sounds like "cluster". Generally speaking (again, unless the pattern says otherwise), a Kloster is a block of 5 satin stitches. Usually they are called Kloster blocks because that's the way stitchers think of them.


• Klosters are created from satin stitches. The easiest and fastest way to create Klosters is to keep the needle on top of the fabric. To do this, bring your needle up through the fabric at your start point. Insert the needle 4 holes down from where you came up, but don't pull through. Instead, "needle over" to the hole to the immediate right of where you first came up. Then pull the needle all the way through. Be sure to catch your tail on the underside of the fabric as you start. Continue this way until you have 5 satin stitches on top of the fabric.


• Now we're going to pivot. This is easiest to do with your needle still in the "down" hole, and with practice you'll learn how to do it that way. It makes the Klosters work up very quickly. So, turn the fabric counter-clockwise and count up 4 holes from where your needle is going down (think of this as an inside corner). Then bring your needle up. Now go back down in that inside corner hole, and needle over to the hole to the right of the top of your new Kloster.


• Make a total of 5 satin stitches, pivot, Kloster, pivot, Kloster. You just made a tiny diamond! Yay, you! That tiny diamond is the foundation of everything you need to know to do Hardanger.

If you've actually completed that little exercise, you deserve a break and a treat, because you've just learned a new skill. Once I've had a chance to sit down with some fabric and thread and think about how to explain things so they make sense, I'll do another lesson on Klosters, explaining how to make larger diamonds, so you can do things like the picture at the top.