I have a silly question so hope you'll all be patient. Until recently I have been a petit point fanatic. However, I bought Dimensions Gold 'Jewels of The Orient' which is a cross stitch piece. If anyone has done this piece, I've done a small amount of half stitch 'branch' coming down from the top of the picture. Now I have to do something called backstitching. Do I do this backstitching in the same holes as the 'branches' are in, or do I do it in the holes next to the leaves. If I do it in the same hole, it kind of hides my half-stitch branches. But if I put the needle into the holes next to the half-stitch branches, it's too far away from the branch stitches and leaves a gap where the fabric shows. Thank you for any info you can give me. :)
Maureen P.S. For what it's worth, I LOVE this new found needle art!
Silly me, I always thought petit point was just cross stitch on very fine fabric! Guess I was wrong about that!
To answer your question, though, you use the same holes. Usually backstitch is done with a fewer number of threads than the stitches, e.g. your half stitches are probably done with 2 threads, so backstitching would be done with one. It won't cover the stitches and adds a whoooole lot to the picture, imho. Now, having said that, sometimes your backstitches will kind of cross over areas and stitches
*will* stick out the other side. Once the piece is done, your eyes don't really see those tiny points of the stitches, just the nice, smooth lines from the bs.
I took a look at this design. It's going to be gorgeous!
Thank you for the help and your comment Joan! After being a part of our local karate assn. for the past 20 years, I've become rather immersed in the culture as my home decor reflects. I'd like to pair the'Jewels Of The Orient' with Dimensions "Mighty Warrior", but I think the face on the warrior looks more Fabio than Japanese Warrior. :)
I did 2 5"x7" kits that are very similar-- Geisha Beauty and Elegant Geisha. They both have the half stitch's and the back stitching. Joan's explanation was spot on.
My little ones are very pretty and I'm sure your larger one will be stunning.
Lucille
ps-if this shows up twice, forgive me. I thought I sent it a while ago but it seems to be lost in space.
As Lucille said, Joan's explanation was great. I will reinforce the fact that, once the whole design is stitched and the back stitching added and the piece is framed or made into a pillow or something, you just DO NOT see the little points of the stitches sticking out beyond the back stitching. Your eye sort of fills in the "wonky" areas :-).
Now, since Joan mentioned that she didn't really understand what petit point is, I will give the explanation that I was taught by Granny and my Fabric Design teacher a verrrrrry loooooooong time ago. I KNOW MY EXPLANATION IS DIFFERENT THAN WHAT OTHERS BELIEVE!!! We can discuss the differences but let's not have a flame war over this, OK? So ***In general*** Petit Point ***usually*** refers to a needlepoint (which has only ONE diagonal stitch, not two stitches as in cross stitch) design that is done on canvas (mono or penelope) that is a minimum of 18 count. Since NP canvas is often 8 or 10 ct. working 18 ct results in a very fine mesh. Joan, there are two types of NP canvas, mono and penelope. Mono canvas is made with single threads in both directions -- like an even weave linen. Penelope canvas is made with two threads close together in both directions and this is the type of canvas I would use for petit point. With say, 14 ct. penelope canvas, you can work over the double threads and have 14 stitches to the inch. For finer detail, as in faces, etc. you can do the body of the design over the double threads and then do the face over single threads so that the face is done with 28 stitches per inch. When I would work petit point, I almost always used penelope canvas and worked the design over the single threads and then did the background over the double threads. Since a lot of NP has the whole canvas covered with stitches, it's a lot quicker to do the background over two stitches. OY -- pedantic teaching mode off :-). CiaoMeow >^;;^<
I have the patience of a gnat, so when I finished the few branches at the top of the chart, I added the back-stitching right away before moving on to the next area. And I love it! You guys are right, it doesn't show those seemingly 'out of place' stitches! This is going to be great fun! Thanks you guys. :D
Hi Maureen, I am happy you are enjoying cross stitch. If you love petit point, consider also working a design on silk gauze or doing a counted cross stitch over one set of threads on linen.
It is hard to give you specific information without seeing your piece, but I'd look at your piece and put the back stitches so they flow into each other. Backstitches should generally form a line (straight, curved or branched) in most of the designs I have worked. Does the design come with an illustration? If so, look at it carefully.
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