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CUTWORK EMBROIDERY
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Cutwork Embroidery is a lovely technique
of creating a design through cutting away portions of the fabric,
and binding the cute edges with the Buttonhole Stitch. The parts of
the design that are cut away are usually stabilized with Buttonhole Bars or Branched Buttonhole Bars.
This technique is traditionally worked on white or light-color
linen with a fairly fine weave, and is often seen on table linens.
The thread used should be the same color as the fabric, although
some modern designs use contrasting color thread for effect.
In the example below, the stitching is shown in color for clarity.
The first step in any cutwork design is to mark the pattern
on the fabric with a fine washable fabric marker. Place a dot
in every section of the design that will be cut away. |
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| Next, baste all lines that will be covered
with the Buttonhole Stitch. Do not baste
the lines that represent bars. If you need to double back on
your basting in order to avoid cutting the thread and starting
a new one, that's okay. |
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Now stitch the Buttonhole Stitch around the outside
circle, with the "purl" of the stitch facing inward, which will
be cut away. Make sure that each stitch takes a tiny bite of
the fabric, and wraps the basting thread.
When you come to a point where a bar meets the outside circle,
make a Buttonhole Bar to the flower's petal.
When you make the tiny bite of the fabric at the end of the
bar, make your bite around the basting thread. This way, the
bar will not become detached. When you finish the bar, continue
stitching around the outer circle.
With many designs, the bar needs to branch in order to stabilize
the cut-away regions. When this happens, make a Branched Buttonhole Bar. |
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| Add Buttonhole Stitching to the inner
circle, now. This stitching does not face a cut-away section.
The "purl" of the Buttonhole Stitch should face the outside. |
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| Now stitch the petals. Notice in the drawing
that the petal on the upper right was stitched first, because
the Buttonhole Stitches go all the
way around the petal. The next petal clockwise was stitched
starting at the first petal, not at the flower's center. To
make the thread start at the new position, turn the piece upside-down
and weave the thread under the stitching, without catching the
fabric, until you get to the new position. |
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| After the petals have been stitched, embroider
the center line in each petal using the Outline Stitch. Carefully cut away
the areas marked with a dot, close to the stitching. Do not
cut into the stitching or into the bars. |
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| Sometimes, the Buttonhole Stitch or the Buttonhole
Bar is decorated with a picot. This adds a little fanciness
to the work. |
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| See also:
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