How to Stitch Whipped Back Stitch

Back stitch is a special cross stitch that uses a single line of stitching (as opposed to x shapes) to highlight part of a cross stitch design. It can be used to outline part of a design, as a frame for a project, for details like animal whiskers, or even to add simple lettering or to sign a project.

If you want to make your back stitching a little fancier for a border, the stems of flowers or other embellishments, you can do a fun variation called whipped back stitch.

It starts with standard back stitching, so you can use this anywhere you already have back stitch in a project, or you can add back stitch (as for a border) if you like.

Using a second color, you weave the thread in and out of the back stitches you’ve already made to add more color and texture.

Check out this post at Fab Reilly for a full tutorial.

There are also variations on this technique that you could try, such as using the same color for both threads, using more or fewer threads for one of the passes, changing the direction of the wraps as you go around the border, adding a metallic thread, or even trying to use a thin ribbon or yarn for the weaving instead of embroidery floss.

Once you try this technique I think you’ll find lots of reasons to use it. It doesn’t take much more time or effort to embellish your project in this way, but it does automatically make it look fancier.

The tutorial includes a video that shows just how it’s done if you need more instruction. If you try this one out I’d love to hear how you used it, or if you’ve done it before and have tips to share, that would be great!

[Photo: Fab Reilly]

I was recently approached by Alyssa, the cross stitcher behind the Etsy shop Stitchonomy, to take a look at her cross stitch pattern subscription club, known as The Pattern Club.

I took a look around and there’s a lot of cute stuff and fun options you’ll want to check out, especially if you love themed patterns that are small, easy to stitch and fun to combine.

The Pattern Club combines cross stitching with a social network. When you open the site you’ll see a news feed and have the ability to share updates much like you would on Facebook. You can see who is online, have buddies and post your own updates and photos. The community aspect is a little sparse right now but that should only grow.

The stitch along hub is the place to find the most recent patterns and information on the current stitchalong. As of this writing the Book Lover’s stitchalong was happening, with little designs like Peter Rabbit, a skull for Hamlet and keys for Jane Eyre as well as authors including Arthur Conan Doyle, Charles Dickens and Jane Austen.

Other pattern collections include European designs, Halloween, ocean life, an allotment garden and more. Alyssa tells me there’s a new theme every month that either she picks or members in the community suggest. You can stitch just the patterns you want or put them together to make a larger collage.

The Stitchanomini vault gives you access to all of the previous patterns, and new patterns are released daily through the stitchalong. You can download individual patterns (most of them are 19 by 19 stitches) as PDFs or Pattern Keeper files. The PDFs include a color and black and white chart as well as a floss list.

Another cool thing you can do is build your own pattern collages from all of the squares that have been released. The collage configurator allows you to add patterns of your choosing to a grid ranging from 2×2 patterns up to 4×4. You can scroll through all the current patterns or search by theme and size to make a project that suits your needs. (Above is an example I made kind of at random but you get the idea.)

If you want to check it out, you can grab a three-day free trial and see all the pattern options. Membership is $7.99 a month, or if you pay for a year at a time you’ll get two months free. In addition to the patterns in the club, members receive discounts on patterns and supplies purchased through the shop within the club. Annual members get access to three paid/retired stitchalongs and lifetime members receive all retired patterns.

If you check it out I’d love to hear what you think!

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