
I’ll admit it, every time I stitch a background and it ends up matching, I’m both surprised and delighted. It’s not that they never match all the way around, usually they do. Often enough, they haven’t matched and those stick in my craw and make me anxious.
You might have this problem too. I’ve come up with some tips for making needlepoint backgrounds easier and I want to share them with you.
Begin by Looking
Does your piece have lots of small areas?
Is there lots of background?
Canvases with lots of fiddly bits, such as the one pictured here, really benefit from stitching the background first. You will be able to see the holes to count more easily.
When there is lots of background, stitch around the focal point enough to establish the stitch and enough to be sure it will match. You’ll have less background left at the end. Finishing the piece will be fun, not a chore.
Pick a Stitch that Fits
You probably know the rule that you should have three repeats of a stitch in all directions — otherwise the stitch is too big. That’s true, but do you think about compensation when you pick a background?
If a design is fiddly, with lots of detail, you will end up compensating lots if you pick a larger stitch. Even if there is lots of space around the focal point, so a bigger stitch will fit, a small stitch that requires less compensation might look cleaner.
On my mini-sock, there wasn’t much room. Because I picked a Tent Stitch variation, compensation was easy. Even so, there are places where the areas are so small, there are no stitches.
Pick Your Places to Match
On this design, as in many others, the focal point is in the middle. I used to stitch away, not thinking about where the design would meet up. Then I’d get into trouble because the pattern would meet, or not, someplace really obvious. So the mistakes would be obvious as well.
As you stitch the background, look for the narrowest point, the place where the background comes closest to the edge of the piece. On my stocking it’s along the left edge. Here there is only one thread of background. If I make this the place where my round of background stitching meets, a non-match will not be noticed.
I stitched down to the top of that area and stopped. Then I continued all the way around until i got to that area again. The stitching did fit, but I wasn’t stressed about it because I knew I’d be OK.
Try this you’ll be so happy with the way it makes backgrounds easier.
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
Your comments on the background stitches was very informative. I’m a little stressed on the piece I’m working on as it is of the hand, the background is completed. So will take your info to heart to decide. Thank you
You’re welcome. Let me know how it turns out.
Keep stitching,
Janet