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So this is the stem stitch, and as you
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can see I've used it for stems, but you
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can use it for so many different things
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in your embroidery. It makes a really
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nice straight line or a sweeping curve
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or whatever you want. It's great for
0:14
So by the end of this video, you're
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going to be doing your own stem stitch,
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and perhaps you'll be doing it in a slow
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stitching book like I'm doing here. So
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if you're more interested in the slow
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stitching book, do check that out on the
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link above and in the description below.
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And here are some more stem stitches,
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and as you can see I've just done wavy
0:33
Lots of different techniques you can use
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So let's see how we actually do it.
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So you're going to need some embroidery
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thread, and it's up to you whether you
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use your embroidery thread as it is with
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all six strands, or whether you'd like
0:47
to break it apart. Now I tend to work
0:53
so that's what I'm going to do today.
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Now I've got my needle with quite a big
0:57
eye, so I could use the whole embroidery
0:59
thread. It's actually an embroidery
1:02
uh but I'm going to divide it. And the
1:04
easiest way of doing it
1:06
is to separate your thread,
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and then take hold of those two separate
1:11
threads in one hand, and run your finger
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down the length of the thread. Now you
1:16
hold the thread vertically to do this so
1:18
that it can swing free. I can't do that
1:20
cuz I won't be able to show you, but it
1:22
works beautifully if you do that.
1:24
And then you've got your length of
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three. So just run your fingers down to
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make sure it's not too twisted and
1:31
And then we're ready to go. The first
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thing you need to do is thread your
1:36
Now you can wet the end of it and push
1:40
or you can fold it over the end tight
1:42
and then push that through.
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And that's the way I tend to use.
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So you want a long end and a short end,
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and the long tail is going to have a
1:53
knot in it. So it's a good idea to just
1:57
pull one knot through like that.
2:00
And then, if you don't think it's big
2:02
enough, you can do another.
2:05
And then, you're ready to go. So, you
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can see I'm all set up here. I'm going
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to do one straight run of stem stitch.
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It doesn't matter whether you go left to
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right or right to left. Please don't
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Just come up where you want to start,
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which may even be top to bottom or
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And pull the thread all the way through
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so that the knot sits nicely at the
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a little bit further along
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the length of the stitch that you want.
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But don't let the whole length pull
2:37
through. I'm holding that loop down at
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the bottom, and I'm coming back up
2:41
halfway along that first stitch.
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And then I'm going to pull that loop
2:45
down to the bottom again. My thread is
2:49
And then I'm going to go on the length I
2:50
want and come back at the end of the
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last stitch. I can do it in one step, or
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you can do it in two separate steps like
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I'm doing here. So, I'm now bringing the
3:01
where the last stitch ended. Keeping
3:08
And then I'll go again. Get my thread
3:11
put my needle in, and bring it back out
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at the end of the last stitch.
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You see how that's all lying really
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needle in at the length I want, back at
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the end of the last stitch.
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And there we go. Now, I've kept that
3:30
thread on the same side at all times. It
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would have been perfectly all right if
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I'd had it above, but I've kept it
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What you don't want to do is have it
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above for some stitches and below for
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others. You won't get that beautiful
3:43
smooth line that you're looking for,
3:45
which you can see is appearing now.
3:50
you can see how now I'm doing it in one
3:53
movement. It's a beautiful flowing
3:58
Now, don't pull your thread too tight.
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That's a common problem, which makes all
4:03
your fabric pucker up. So, just make
4:06
sure your your thread's sitting flat,
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but it's not trying to pull the fabric.
4:13
Try to keep your stitches a similar
4:14
length, but please don't worry about it.
4:18
People get really hung up on this and
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That's not what we're about here. We're
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doing slow stitching, hand embroidery,
4:26
enjoyment. So, try and get them all the
4:28
same length, but don't stress about it.
4:31
You'll look at my videos and go, "Well,
4:33
hers are perfect." No, they're not. And
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I'm quite happy with that. I really
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Now, if your thread starts to get
4:43
just let your needle hang, and it will
4:45
untwist, and then you can carry on
4:51
it's growing quite quickly.
4:54
So, it's a really nice stitch to do.
4:58
Now, if you're enjoying this, I am doing
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a series of these stitches, so do keep
5:03
an eye out for that. And if you
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subscribe to my channel, hopefully
5:06
you'll get a notification and you will
5:08
know that the next one is out. You can
5:11
see from the page of my book that I'm
5:13
using here some of the ones that are
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what else have I got? French knots,
5:21
cross stitch. We've got all sorts
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And I do like to do them in books.
5:27
It's so relaxing. And I choose to do my
5:30
books like this with separate pages and
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then put them together.
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Now, you can see I'm coming to the end
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of my stitching, and I'm just going to
5:40
And that just finishes it off.
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I've got beautiful row there.
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So, now onto the back,
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I'm just going to go through the back of
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one of those stitches,
5:51
do the same again and I could just keep
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doing that over and again to secure it.
5:58
go through my loop to form a little
6:00
knot. I just find it's more secure.
6:06
there you go. You've completed your stem
6:08
stitch and I hope you're going to use it
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and I hope you like the fact you can use
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it for stems but for lots of other
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and next time we're going to be doing
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chain stitch. Happy stitching.
