Brick stitch

How to work it

1. Come up one full stitch from the edge

   

   Start at one end of an edge. Bring the needle up at A, inside the shape, one full stitch length from the edge.

2. Go down on the edge

   

   Take the needle down at B, on the edge straight above A. This is a full-length stitch.

3. Add a half stitch beside it

   

   Bring the needle up at C, right beside the first stitch but only half as far from the edge. Go down on the edge next to B. This is a half stitch.

4. Alternate along the edge

   

   Carry on across the shape: full, half, full, half. Only this first row has two lengths. The stepped line along its lower side sets up the brick pattern.

5. Second row: all full stitches

   

   Come up at D, one full stitch length below the end of a half stitch. Go down at C, in the hole at the end of that half stitch. Do the same under every stitch of the first row.

6. Fill the shape and level the edge

   

   Keep adding rows of full stitches, each one meeting the end of the stitch above it. In the last row, use half stitches where they are needed to finish in a straight line.

At a glance

Used for

filling shapes that are too large for satin stitch; shading in bands of color; counted work on canvas; crewelwork and other surface embroidery

Thread

There is no set number. Upright stitches cover less well than slanted ones, so add strands or change to a thicker thread if the fabric or canvas shows through.

Needle

An embroidery (crewel) needle on plain-weave fabric. A size 7 suits about three strands of floss. Use a blunt tapestry needle on canvas or evenweave fabric, where the stitches are counted.

Tips

• Choose one length for the full stitch and keep to it. The half stitch is half of that. On canvas, a full stitch over two threads with a step of one thread is a common size.
• Keep every stitch parallel to the others. Drawing light guidelines across the shape, one for each row, helps.
• From the second row on, come up in empty fabric and go down into the hole that is already there, at the end of the stitch above.
• Lay the stitches close enough that they touch. Vertical stitches cover less well than slanted ones, so add a strand if fabric shows through.
• Change color from row to row for shading in bands.
• On a shape that narrows, such as a leaf, start at the wide end and shorten the stitches as the shape tapers.

When it goes wrong

The brick pattern drifts out of step

The stitch lengths vary. Keep every full stitch the same length, and use evenweave fabric or drawn guidelines if you need help.

Gaps show where two stitches meet end to end

Go down into the same hole as the end of the stitch above, not just below it.

Fabric shows between the stitches

Place the stitches closer together or use one more strand of floss.

The rows slant

Check each stitch against a guideline. On evenweave fabric, follow one fabric thread for every stitch.

Left-handed

Nothing about the stitch changes. Work each row in whichever direction is comfortable.

Variations

• Long and short stitch. A shading stitch in which each row comes up through the stitches of the row before, at uneven depths, so the rows blend. Brick stitch keeps its rows distinct.
• Counted brick stitch. On canvas or evenweave fabric, every stitch covers the same number of threads and each one sits half a stitch higher or lower than its neighbor. Medieval German pieces in museum collections are worked this way, with the pattern made by changes of thread color.
• Bricked couching. Called bricking in goldwork. Pairs of laid threads are tied down with small stitches that are offset from row to row, which gives the same brick pattern.