How to Anchor a French Knot
Needlepoint, embroidery and cross stitch all share some common traits, among them the French knot. Completing the French knot can frustrate some stitchers because, if they do not complete the stitch correctly, the embroidery floss slips through the fabric, leaving them without a completed knot on top of the fabric. When the stitcher takes her time in completing her first French knot, moving slowly through each step of the process, she can finish with a completed knot.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Evenweave fabric
- Embroidery hoop
- Tapestry needle
- Embroidery floss
- Scissors
Instructions
-
-
1
Place the even weave fabric on top of the bottom half of the embroidery hoop, centering it. Set the top half of the embroidery hoop on top of the fabric and push down firmly, catching the fabric between the two halves of the hoop. Tighten the top half with the attached screw.
-
2
Thread the tapestry needle with two strands of embroidery floss. Do not knot the floss.
-
-
3
Push the needle from the bottom to the top of the fabric. Hold the end of the embroidery thread on the bottom of the fabric with the fingers of your other hand, leaving a tail 2 inches long.
-
4
Wrap the embroidery floss around the needle twice. Insert the tip of the needle close to the point where you brought it up. Hold the floss wrapped snugly around the needle and slowly push the needle down through the fabric, stopping as soon as you pull the floss through to the bottom of the fabric. You have just completed a French knot. Practice more French knots until you are comfortable with the process. After anchoring the floss under several completed stitches, cut the floss with the scissors as close to the last anchor stitch as you can.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
As you wrap the floss around the needle and you stick the tip of the needle back into the fabric, slide the wraps of floss down onto the fabric before you push the needle entirely through the fabric. This technique helps you form the knot before you push the needle and floss down.
Instead of making unsightly knots on the back of the fabric, catch the ends of the floss under the fabric with the stitch loops. As you pull the stitches snug, the loops will catch and hold the floss ends. Run the needle and floss under several completed stitches when you are ready to cut the floss and begin with another color.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
