This is a very easy stand alone single knot stitch. It looks like a knot in the centre of a cross. The legs of the cross can be made short or long, depending on how you want the effect to be. This stitch can be used as a stand alone stitch or can be used in multiples as a filling stitch.

Fig 1: As shown, Bring the needle out from A, in through B and out through C. The point C is in right angle to A and B.		Fig 2: Now, take the needle under A-B without plucking the fabric beneath. Twist the thread from C under the needle as shown. When you would pull out the needle, you would get a knot over A-B.
		Fig 3: To finish off, take the needle in through a point right angled to A and B, and in straight line to C. You get a knot with four legs. The length of the legs can be adjusted by adjusting the distance of stitch between A, B and C.

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Tags: embroidery, four legged knot stitch, hand embroidery tutorial, knots, single knot

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Also known as: Ghiordes knot

This is a very interesting stitch which can be used in many ways to create different effects, like make ‘hairy’ fillings or rug like edgings.

I would work over a straight stitch line. You can also try the edge of a fabric to create this stitch.

Fig 1: To begin, do not knot the thread ending as we would normally. Like in the illustration, put the needle in through A. Leave a length of thread. Now, bring out the needle through B, in through C and again out through A. The point A lies in the middle of B-C.		Fig 2: Now, take the needle in through D and out through C. The point C lies in the middle of A-D. Make sure you do not pull the thread looping between A-D is pulled through completely, but left as a loop.
Fig 3: Now, continue this process, each time leaving a loop of thread. Try to keep all the loops of the same length.		Fig 4: A finished row of this stitch would look like this. This adds nice finishing touch when the loops fall free out of the edgings.
		Fig 5: You can bring out a different effect by cutting these loops in the middle leaving the threads to hang open. The closer the stitches, the denser it will look. You can also do fillings by doing rows of closely stiched turkey rug knots to cover the  inside of the pattern. Later, cut the loops and trim it to desired length. This gives a ‘velvety or hairy effect to the pattern fillings.

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Tags: embroidery, ghiorders knot, hand embroidery tutorials, knots, turkey rug knot

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This picture dictionary will help you to identify the stitches based on how they look. Hovering over the stitch picture will display the stitch name. Clicking over the picture will take you to the respective tutorial pages.

Back stitch family
Blanket stitch family
Chain stitch family
Chevron stitch family
Cross stitch family
Fishbone stitch family
Feather stitch family
Fly stitch family
Herringbone stitch family
Knots family
Running stitch family
Satin stitch family
Stem stitch family
Straight stitch family
Weaving stitch family

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Tags: back stitch, chain stitch, cretan stitch, cross stitch, embroidery tutorials, feather stitch, fishbone stitch, fly stitch, hand embroidery, herringbone stitch, knots, palestrina stitch, picture dictionary, running stitch, satin stitch, stem stitch, stitch dictionary, stitch family, stitch variations, weaving stitch

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This stitch is a very simple stitch, which does not incorporate knots, but loops.  It is worked from right to left.

I will be working over a single stitch line.

	….
Fig 1: Begin by bringing out the needle at the right end on the stitch line, at a point A. Then, take the needle through B, which lies on the stitch line and bring it out from C, a point right below B.		Fig 2: Now, before pulling the stitch A-B tight, take the needle under it as shown. Do not pluck the fabric underneath.
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Fig 3: Pull the needle out completely to get the first knot. Then, again, take the needle in through D, which lies on the stitch line and bring it out through E, a point right below D. The shorter this stitch, the more ’round’ and ‘pearled’ the look. Continue the procedure for the entire length of the stitch line.		Fig 4: A completed row of pearl stitch would look like this.
….

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Tags: embroidery tutorial, french knot, hand embroidery, hand embroidery tutorials, knot stitch, knots, loop stitch, palestrina stitch

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This stitch looks like series of crosses or Xs with a knot in between each X. Once you learn this stitch, you can experiment widely with this stitch by making various geometrical patterns like circles. You will then see how the same stitch could look differently wtih each pattern.

I will follow a slightly  curved line. This stitch is done from left to right.  The thinner the thread or bigger the base, the more it accentuates the feature of this stitch.

Fig 1: Start by bringing out the needle through A and putting it in through B. Both these points lie above the stitch line. Then, bring the needle out through C which lies right under A and below the stitch line.		Fig 2: Keep the stitch A-B a bit loose. Take the needle under A-B without plucking the fabric beneath.
Fig 3: Now, once again take the needle under A-B as shown in the illustration.		Fig 4: Pull the needle out to get a knot as shown above and slightly pull it down to bend the stitch A-B towards the centre. Then, put the needle in through D, a point right under B and below the stitch line. Bring it back up again from B as shown.
Fig 5: Continue the procedure by taking the needle in through E, which lies above the stitch line and bring it out through D. Make the knot and pull the stitch B-E towards the centre so that the knot falls on the stitch line. Keep up with this procedure for the entire design.		Fig 6: A finished line of sorbello stitch would look like this. Using a thinner thread would have accentuated the features of this stitch.
		Fig 7: This is a sample of the sorbello stitch done on a broader base. Here, you can see the features of this stitch more clearly.

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Tags: italian embroidery, italy, knot family, knots, palestrina embroidery, palestrina stitch, sorbello stitch

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