
This week we start working down to the point in one of the two-patch legs in the Color through Gold Needlepoint Samplers. Patch 2 is next to the Rice Stitch Patch. The picture, above, shows part of the patches around it so there is some context.
For this patch you will need:
- metallic ribbon in your metal color
- non-metallic solid accent thread
Because this is a straight stitch, ribbon threads fill up the canvas better than the round metallic braids. If you will be doing straight stitches with metallics, try to make this thread substitution whenever you can, it will greatly improve the look of your stitching.

Lazy Roman, above, is one of those stitches that looks woven but isn’t. Pairs of straight stitches in the metallic ribbon go over four threads. Between two sets of stitches in the row, the accent thread is used to make a perpendicular stitch. In the stitch diagram a single row is shown at the bottom with three rows shown at the top.
Not only does this little stitch create a nice color accent, it hides the joint between the two pairs. This makes those rows of crossed stitches appear to be continuous.
Make one row, including the accent stitches, before beginning the next row. In the adjoining rows the metallic stitches will cover the ends of the accent stitches in the previous row. Because these ends are covered, the accent stitches also look continuous and as if they are woven through the metallic pairs.
It makes for a pretty stitch, best made in two colors.
You can change Lazy Roman easily as long as your stitch pairs are over an even number of threads. With longer paired stitches you might want to use a heavier thread for the accent stitches to keep things looking proportional.
The next Color through Gold patch will be February 15. Next week will be more free vintage charts.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
[…] Color through Gold Needlepoint Sampler Patch 2 – 1 freebie(s)? […]