Playing with embroidery stitches

One of the reasons I love teaching Mountmellick embroidery is because it is so much fun showing students how they can play with stitches. Often we learn the basic stitches but don’t learn variations. Its the variations that I find so much fun. When we go through feather stitch in my classes, it gets rather amusing when I have to keep saying “but there’s another variation also…” Sort of like those dreadful TV ads where they say “But wait, there’s more!”

So I am loving the suggestions that people are giving me for my left handed stitch dictionary. Its forcing me to try some of the much lesser known stitches, and learn new ones.

BUT there’s a problem with all this… Where am I going to use them?!

If you want to give yourself a challenge, find an embroidery stitch that you’ve never tried before and give it a go. And then see what you can do with it. It can be so much fun!

Oh, and everyone else has probably commented on this well before me, but if you haven’t been over to The Embroiderer’s Story to see the jacket that they are recreating at Plimoth Plantation, make sure you do! Its a fascinating read, and they’re using some really interesting stitches. If you need some inspiration for new stitches to try, you’ll certainly find it there. 🙂