Chain stitch embroidery

Chain Stitch Tutorial How to use in your textile art

Chain Stitch can be a very versatile embroidery stitch which can be used in many ways in your embroidery projects and fabric art.  I particularly like to use the detached chain, but I find them both very beautiful.  Below is a quick graphic, that shows you how, if you have not tried to do it before. I advise you to add it to your list of stitches in your stitch toolbox!

Detached chain stitch

Bringing your thread up from underneath, have the thread loose on top of the fabric to one side.  Put the needle back in close to where you came up making sure that the thread is under the needle as shown, then when you pull your needle through you will find that the loose thread is trapped in a loop,  then do a small stitch on the other side of the loop to anchor in place.

Chain stitch diagram

So that is how you do a single chain, then you would bring your needle up again where you want to do the next one.  But if you wanted to do a chain of stitches like a rope, then as in this illustration you would not do the last stage which is the little anchoring stitch, instead you would follow on and do your second stitch and so on as far as you want to creating a chain of stitches.

Slow stitch collage with chain stitch decoration

If you look closely in this picture you can see I have used it 3 different ways.  I have a Chain of Chain stitches, some detached chain, and also a little flower made from detached chain.  Once you get started, you find a lot of ways to use it.  The feature image is alot of different detached chain, which I have done many different yarns.  With this I have tried to lead the viewers eye by meandering in a curving line from area to area with these stitches.  Here is another section below. Here it has lead your eye to this little dragonfly. Note how the colours used are all part of the background fabric, they almost appear as if they could be part of the river.

Chain Stitch Textile Art

This is something that I have covered by video on my YouTube channel, so you can refer to that if you would like, to see how to use this beautiful stitch in your textile art.  

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