TAST 2012 – The Fly Stitch

Nothing like being a week late, but here is my example of the first week for the TAST 2012 sample:

 
This was my take on the classic fly stitch.  I elongated the stitch and made a very short tail on it – much like a stab stitch, so that it disappears in the embroidery.  I worked one row, turned the hoop, and sewed in the opposite direction for the second row, making sure the needle went in the same holes at the top of the stitch as the previous row.

There are lots of variations for this.  If I had made the stitch the same width, but halved the length, I would have ended up with a squatter, rounder effect.  I like this diamond effect though, and plan on adding at least 2 more layers of stitching to this piece.  Something will be added to the middle of each diamond, and where the little stab stitch is will have either a bead or a rounded stitch sewed with metallic thread.

What I learned:

I don’t like using a hoop.  That stitch lay beautifully in the hoop.  The thread tension was perfect, and the stitches were nice and even.  The minute I released the fabric from the hoop, the threads loosened and it wasn’t perfectly straight anymore.  Obviously, I had the fabric stretched too tightly in the hoop.  It was a spring hoop, so there wasn’t much I could do to loosen the tension.

It was awkward for me to hold the hoop and sew at the same time too, but saying that, I will try a different hoop for this week’s stitch.  This time I’ll try a hoop where I can adjust the fabric tension – a screw hoop.  And I’ll make two samples – one with a hoop, and one without so I can compare results.

Thanks so much to Sharon Boggins for offering this challenge again.  I’m experimenting with lots of different ideas and the “what if I try this” concept will help me learn a lot more about embroidery.

Hugs…