Today's stitch comes from one of my favorite catch-all categories…a composite stitch. Technically, virtually all stitches are composite stitches. And this is why I don’t obsess on stitch names. Are they helpful? Absolutely. Are they consistent? Absolutely not.

The stitched sample is me playing with blue Elegance (black lines) and green Petite Silk Lame (yellow lines) on 18M. A full square (that includes the four oblique crosses in the corners) in the stitched sample is just a smidge over a square inch. So, you need some open space to get the most out of this stitch. The stitch will make a great wall or background, or even a floor on an appropriately sized canvas. A really cute variation on this stitch is to alternate straight stitches in two colors. For example, each block of straight stitches is five rows wide (or tall). Do the first, third, and fifth rows in a solid color, say blue. Stitch the remaining straight stitches in a white thread. Add a blue sparkly thread for the aqua lines, and you are off to the races.

I am absolutely loving the rising popularity of needlepoint, and if you are new to the blog, I want to take a second to chat about stitch names. TLDR: Don’t overthink them.

Most of the names for the stitches you see here are made up out of whole cloth. When I started needlepointing 30+ years ago, a teacher would draw or describe what she recommended, and off I went. Seriously. When I started my blog, an industry friend told me stitch names were crucial. I searched high and low for proper stitch names. What I found was stitches with no names or, even worse, identical stitches with two or more names from different sources. On top of that, some of my favorite stitches had generic names, such as Rug 1 and Rug 2. I quickly learned to focus on the diagrams, which are prettier (and more important, imo).

There are some commonly understood stitch names, such as basketweave, continental, Scotch (3X3 and above squares), Mosaic (2X2 squares), Smyrna Crosses, and Hungarian (groups of diagonal stitches over 2-3-2 rows). It feels like it ends there. When naming stitches for my blog and books, I make every attempt to integrate generally accepted names, but also feel that a legible diagram is more important.

I’ve also learned that there is a very good chance that a stitch pattern that I come up with may not be new. But it is new to me. I spent almost an entire afternoon at a stitching friend’s home, poring through binders of stitches and notes she gathered over the five decades. Not only were many of them drawn by hand (whoa!), I discovered stitches that I thought were created decades later, with a different name, in a different presentation, from a different source. So, a stitch doesn’t belong to a single person or teacher. They are all part of a huge and decades-old network of really creative people.

Today’s stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here. Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.

Click on image to see the **whimsicalstitch.com Stitch Library** on pinterest.com. Includes all #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams.

As you are auditioning stitches (from any stitch source), count the number of canvas threads on the diagram that match your mesh size. And there you have what an inch of the stitch will look like. Evaluate that against the area where you plan to use the stitch and make your final decision. If you start integrating this step into your stitch selection process, you may be surprised at how many stitches you think are large are much smaller than you realize.

More from whimsicalstitch.com
If you like what you see on this blog, there's more. Mary’s Whimsical Stitches is a series of four books offering contemporary how-to collections of more than 200 stitches (in each volume) for all stitchers, regardless of skill level. All books include updated and sequenced diagrams from this blog, plus a collection of all-new stitches from private lessons and other class projects. Visit here to find a needlepoint retailer that carries my books.

New to needlepoint or looking for a refresher? Please download a handy how-to guide covering basic needlepoint stitches and stitch compensation techniques, along with new top-line information on needlepoint materials and tools, how to handle threads, and other helpful needlepoint resources.

A Note about Diagrams
I use color in diagrams to make them as clear as possible. The primary function of different colored lines is to illustrate a stitch sequence. For example, the layering of colors demonstrates you add them in that order. They can also provide ideas on integrating additional threads (one line for each color). Or, you can use the same thread for all color lines. That's where I encourage you to use your imagination for the space you are stitching!

#whimsicalwednesday blog