In the following tutorial, IвЂ™m working on linen fabric stretched taut in an embroidery hoop. To help you avoid some of these common problems with French knots, letвЂ™s work our way together through making a French knot and then IвЂ™ll share my five tips. The knots end up lopsided, irregular in shape or size, or sitting up loosely on the fabric.The working thread gets a knot in it, before it finishes its journey through the stitch.The knot pulls through to the back of the fabric.So much can go amiss in the process of making that one tiny stitch! Common problems with French knotsД¬ommon problems that you might encounter with French knots include the following: And as isolated stitches, they make perfect little accents.Д«ut the French knot can be difficult to conquer. Scattered loosely, they add an airy lightness to embroidery. Clustered together, French knots create a dense, textured filling. The French knot is a lovely and versatile little stitch. YouвЂ™ll find yourself a happy knot-maker in no time! If you have trouble with French knots, try these five tips for foolproof French knots. Some people love вЂ™em, and some people hate вЂ™em. I know you can do it.Oh, those naughty knots! The French knot is one of those hand embroidery stitches that is either your best friend or your worst enemy. If it didn't turn out just right the first time, don't worry- try it again and you'll eventually get the feel for it. You'll start thinking of all sorts of neat ways to use it. Once you get the hang of it, I bet it will become one of your favorite stitches to use. Keep practicing and you won't even have to think about the steps. (Didn't work? Go back to step one and we'll go over it again.) Step 7: See? You've just pulled your needle, and the floss trailing behind it, down through the center of the coil that was wrapped around the needle. Step 6: With your coil snugly held in position against the surface, now push your needle all the way through! Give the floss a little downward tug with that hand, so that the coil will tighten up, and slide down your needle to make a little bundle against the surface of your fabric. Step 5: Remember your non-needle hand pinching the length of floss? Remember? Wake it up! This is when it goes to work. The next step is an even more important one. Don't push it all the way through juuust yet. And hold it right there! Keep your needle in this position. So, simply return at a point a little bit away from the exit point. If you enter the same hole, your knot may pop all the way through and disappear when you finish (and you say 'wha?'). Next, (this is an important one) re-insert the tip of your needle just next to, but not into the same exit point on your fabric. Step 4: Okay, you've wound around the needle, the coil is pulled nice and taut.

This is the first way your knot can go wrong! Meaning, don't try to use your needle hand to do the wrapping by getting all twirly with your wrist. IMPORTANT: Keep your hand holding the needle still while winding it with the floss in this step. Continue the tension of the floss with your left hand (non-needle hand) to prevent it from uncoiling. Step 3: Wind the floss around the needle once or twice (shown winding twice), depending on if you want a bigger or smaller knot.

French knot embroidery