Wool Appliqué Mini Class – Part 3

Welcome back to the last installment of my wool appliqué mini class. This is part 3 in the series. If you are new to the blog, find the previous posts here: Part 1 and Part 2. This week will be all about the stitching of the motif now that it’s ready after last week. I’ll have a mini video tutorial on stitching at the end of this post that demonstrates the stitching. Time to get started!

Wool Appliqué Stitching

There are two basic stitches most commonly used by stitchers to secure their wool appliqué pieces to the background of their project. The first is the blanket stitch shown in this diagram I have drawn on the left.  On the right is how the stitching looks on an actual project I stitched:

You can use threads that match the color of your wool piece or you can do a contrasting thread, like I did, so the stitches show. I like my stitches to show to give my projects a primitive look.

My favorite threads to use are perle cottons in neutral tones. I use Valdani size 8. You can use whatever brand of perle cottons you like or you can use embroidery floss. If you use floss, you will need to use enough strands to get the right amount of thickness you prefer.

The other stitch used often is the whip stitch:

I generally use a whip stitch on tinier or thinner wool pieces that are not wide enough for the “teeth” of a blanket stitch, mostly the thin stems in many of my motifs. I also will use the whip stitch when I do not want my stitches very visible, even if I am using matching threads. It’s easier to hide a whip stitch than a blanket stitch.

Here’s how the whip stitch looks on one of my stems:

The whip stitches appear as little “dots” along the edge of the wool. And if you use a thread that closely matches the color of the wool, those stitches will basically disappear.

Stitching Tips for Relaxing Stitching

Here are some of my favorite stitching tips that I share when I teach wool appliqué workshops. I want your stitching experience to be relaxing and fun so you will love wool appliqué as much as I do.

Besides good lighting with desk and/or floor lamps with magnifiers that I shared in this post, here are some other tips for you:

Tip #1: Thread length and prep: For stitching, pull off a piece of the thread no longer than 18″. If you have a longer piece, there is more of a chance that it gets tangled and frayed. To prevent as much fraying as possible, I use Thread Magic thread conditioner.

This is an acid free treatment for the thread that is not beeswax. It leaves no residue on your project. I like this brand because of the design of the container. The slots make it easier to run your thread through and enables you to use the entire amount of the product in the container. Here’s how it works:

Just run your thread over the top of the thread conditioner and it coats it for easy stitching.

Tip #2: If you worry about the evenness of your stitching, here is a technique you can use to make sure your stitches are evenly spaced. Mark two lines on your thumb and use that as a guide for stitch spacing.

Tip #3: As for needles, my favorite needle is called a chenille needle. I like the John James chenille needles, but you can use any brand you like. 

I’ve used sizes 22 and 24. I prefer the size 22 needles because they have a wider eye to accommodate the thicker perle cotton threads, but I also like the size 24 needles because they are shorter. If you use the 24 with the smaller eye, simply use a needle threader to help thread it.

Tip #4: When you have finished stitching a piece or you have come to an end of your thread, here is a handy way to end so there is no knot on the back:

As shown above, simply guide the remainder of your thread through the last few stitches on the back of your project to secure your stitching. This is a tip I learned from cross-stitching when it was time to end a piece of embroidery floss.

Fun with Stitching

For fun, I like to add embellishments to my stitching. If you are really experienced with the large variety of embroidery stitches there are, consider “dressing up” your project with some of them. I confess, I only know how to make French knots and stitch a lazy daisy … but I am working on learning more!

Below, I stitched a criss-cross pattern on the stems on the left. On the right, I just stitched a running stitch down the center of the stem to secure it. These options would be instead of the blanket or whip stitch.

Also, to secure berries onto a project or the small square in the photo on the right, I use French knots or an “x” stitch. That square on the right is only 1/2 x 1/2″ so the “x” is probably the best way to stitch it down.

Finally, I had some fun on the center of the flower below. I used a French knot in the middle and then radiated stitches from it for an interesting design element.

Aren’t those fun? Try out some other embroidery stitches to embellish your wool appliqué motifs if you want. As you can see, my knowledge of embroidery stitches is quite limited….

Here is the mini video tutorial for stitching. Sorry that some of my camera work isn’t the best, but I hope you are still able to see most of what I am doing.

So that’s the end of this mini class series! I hope you enjoyed it and have learned some new things even if you are already a wool stitcher. If you’re a beginner, I hope this encourages you to begin your first wool appliqué project.

Leave a comment or ask questions below and you will be entered into a drawing for my wool only kit for Sew with Friends.

The drawing will be next Monday, May 6th. Good luck!We have a winner! Congrats, Karen H.!

Happy Stitching!
Deanne