Knots, loops and line stitches · Beginner
Backstitch
A line of straight stitches laid end to end, each one worked backward into the hole where the last began.
How to work it
Make the first stitch backward
This line grows to the right in stitches over two canvas threads. Bring the needle up at 1, two holes to the right of the hole where the line starts, and go down at 2, in the starting hole.
One stitch length ahead, then back
Bring the needle up at 3, two holes beyond the right-hand end of the first stitch. Stitch back to the left and go down at 4, in the hole where the needle came up at 1.
Continue to the end of the line
Repeat the two moves: up one stitch length ahead, down in the hole where the stitch before came up. The last stitch comes up in the hole where the line ends.
Turn, and fit the length to the line
Work this second line the same way, following the numbers from 9 to 14: at each turn, come up one stitch length away in the new direction and go down where the stitch before came up. The length changes to fit the line: the stitch from 13 to 14 covers three canvas threads.
Finish the second line
Follow the numbers on from 15 to 20, through three more turns. The last stitch covers the one canvas thread left before the line ends.
At a glance
- Also called
- back stitch
- Used for
- thin outlines; lettering; fine details
- Coverage
- A thin, unbroken line that lies flat on the surface
- Direction
- Horizontal, vertical or slanted
- Stitch length
- Any length; 1 to 3 canvas threads, or 2 intersections, in the pictures
The line can turn at any hole, so backstitch follows an outline or the strokes of a letter whichever way they run. A thin line of tent stitches breaks into steps where it climbs to the left. Add the backstitch last, on top of finished tent stitch, or stitch it first on bare canvas and work the other stitches up to it.
Keep one length along a straight run, and go shorter for curves and fine details. Long stitches are quicker, but they shift and snag more easily. One strand of embroidery floss gives a fine line; more strands, a heavier thread such as size 3 pearl cotton, or a second row of backstitch beside the first gives a bolder one.
Start and end by running the thread under a few stitches on the back of the canvas; a knot there can show on the front as a bump. Where no stitching is near, hold a tail of about an inch (2 to 3 cm) against the back until the first few stitches pin it down.
Tips
- Over finished stitching, use a blunt tapestry needle and go through the holes between the stitches, never through a thread.
- Where a line falls between two holes, move it to the nearer one.
- Do not carry dark thread across the back behind pale stitching, where it can show through as a shadow.
When it goes wrong
- The line has a gap after every stitch.
- The stitches were worked forward, which makes running stitch. Come up one stitch length ahead each time and stitch back into the hole where the stitch before came up.
Variations
- Wrapped backstitch. Bring a second thread up where a finished line of backstitch starts and, with a blunt needle, slip it under one stitch after another, always from the same side and never through the canvas. Take it down where the line ends. The line turns smooth and corded, for stems, vines, lettering and any line that curves. Embroidery calls it whipped backstitch.
Questions
- How are the backstitch lines on a cross stitch chart worked in needlepoint?
- Those lines run between the squares of the chart, where no tent stitch can lie. Leave the outline out, chart it again as dark tent stitches, or backstitch it on top once the needlepoint is finished.
- How is backstitch different from stem stitch?
- Backstitches meet end to end and lie in one flat line. In stem stitch each stitch overlaps the one before to one side, and the line comes out twisted.