Knot stitch guide

French knots, bullion knots and lazy daisy stitch

These lovely textured stitches seem to have got themselves a bit of a reputation. Stitchers often avoid them, opting to add a tiny bead instead. We want to set the record straight. We can’t deny that knots take a little more time than your average embroidery stitch but once learned, there’s nothing quite so satisfying as using a perfectly placed French knot to form an eye or deploying a bullion knot as the stamen in a flower design.

If you’ve not tried these stitches before, find yourself some chunky thread to practise with as this will help you see the magical way these stitches form. And we promise you it is like magic – a few careful twists of the needle and you’ve created something that looks pretty impressive.

Big brother to the French knot is the brilliant bullion knot. A little more concentration and a few more twists are required but the end result is a thing of beauty that lets you bring an amazing 3D touch to your embroidery.

The odd man out in this category is the lazy daisy stitch. Not quite as knotty as the other two but still a very useful ‘ isolated’ stitch. As its name suggests, it looks simply amazing in groups to form wonderfully retro- looking flowers. Try whole rows of them in the headband project on page 46 – careful now, you won’t be able to stop!

As well as the three knots outlined here, you’ll also find fun projects featuring Danish knots, four- legged knots and colonial knots in this section, which also include step- by- step instructions on how to work them.