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Knots, loops and line stitches · Intermediate

Bullion knot

A long raised coil of thread, wrapped many times around the needle and laid between two canvas holes like a small caterpillar.

Bullion knot: the finished stitch on canvas, three horizontal coils over four canvas threads each, the middle one in a second color
The finished stitch on canvas. Each knot is a coil lying between two holes; the colors only tell the knots apart. In the steps, new stitches are red.

How to work it

  1. Come up, go down and leave a loop

    Bullion knot, step 1: no stitch is finished yet; a dot marks the hole where the needle has come up. A loose loop hangs between the two holes.

    With the canvas taut on a frame, come up where the knot begins. Go down where it ends, here four canvas threads to the right, and draw the needle through, but keep most of the thread on the front in a loose loop.

  2. Stand the needle in the first hole

    Bullion knot, step 2: no stitch is finished yet; a dot marks the hole where the needle has come up. A needle stands in the first hole.

    Bring the needle's point up again in the first hole, beside the thread. Stop with the eye still at the back of the canvas and hold it there in one hand.

  3. Wrap until the coil is long enough

    Bullion knot, step 3: no stitch is finished yet; a dot marks the hole where the needle has come up. Nine wraps sit side by side on the needle.

    With the other hand, wrap the thread around the needle, starting where it comes out of the first hole. Slide each wrap down to the canvas, snug but not tight. Stop when the coil is a wrap or two longer than the distance to the second hole; lean the needle that way to check.

  4. Draw the needle through the coil

    Bullion knot, step 4: no stitch is finished yet; a dot marks the hole where the needle has come up. The coil stands on the first hole, the needle clear of it.

    With the hand that wrapped, pinch the coil lightly. With the hand at the back, push the needle up as far as it will go. Then bring that hand to the front, take the needle and draw it out. Keep the pinch until the whole thread is through.

  5. Lay the coil down and finish

    Bullion knot, step 5: the first stitch on the canvas. The coil lies between the two holes.

    Pull the thread toward the second hole until the coil lies flat and the slack is gone. Even out the wraps with the needle's point, then go down in the second hole.

  6. Add more knots

    Bullion knot, step 6: three stitches on the canvas, the two this step adds in red. Three coils lie one canvas thread apart.

    Work every knot the same way. Here the second lies one canvas thread lower and two to the right, the third two threads below the first.

At a glance

Also called
bullion stitch, caterpillar stitch, coil stitch, worm stitch
Used for
fur and animal coats; beards and hair; palm fronds and foliage; flower petals and stamens
Coverage
A raised coil; side by side, a textured filling
Direction
Any direction; horizontal in the steps
Stitch length
Any length; over 4 canvas threads in the steps

A bullion knot is not a counted stitch: the design decides where each one goes, on bare canvas or over tent stitch. A single knot is a stamen or a petal; knots laid close together build the dense texture of fur, hair, a beard, palm fronds or other foliage.

The steps take a hand on each side of the canvas, so put the frame in a stand if there is one. Do not scoop the needle in at the second hole and out at the first in one move, as on soft fabric: taut canvas will not bend for the scoop, and a needle held that way is hard to wrap.

Use a blunt-tipped bullion needle, whose eye is no wider than its shaft; the wide eye of a tapestry needle jams the wraps and leaves a slack coil. A milliner's (straw) needle has the same narrow eye.

Tips

  • Learn with a single strand of pearl cotton: its smooth finish lets the wraps slide. Wool clings, so nudge each wrap into place with a fingertip.

When it goes wrong

The needle will not pull through.
The wraps are too tight. Ease them until they no longer grip the needle.
The knot tapers toward one end.
The thread was pulled too hard at the finish. Stop when the slack is gone.
Knots in one piece look different.
They were probably wrapped in different directions, which changes how the thread's twist shows. Wrap every knot the same way.

Variations

  • Bullion loop. Set the two holes very close together and wrap far more than the distance needs: the coil bends into a loop for a petal.
  • Bullion rose. Two short knots side by side for the center, then longer knots curved around them as overlapping petals.

Questions

How many wraps does a bullion knot need?
Measure, do not count. A wrap or two more than the distance needs lies flat and makes up for a coil measured short; many more make the knot bow up, and too few leave the coil short of the second hole.

Where to go next

Stitches

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