Hi Everyone! In Part 4, Kathy wraps up the topic with a few more stitch demonstrations as we finish up our smocking project! In this lesson you will learn the Trellis Stitch, Wheat Stitch, and the Wave Stitch. Follow along in the video tutorial and practice, practice practice!

Part 4: A Few More Stitches and The Wrap up

Trellis Stitch

The trellis stitch is any stitch that is 2-steps or more and can be executed between a half- row, a full row or many rows. For the graph included, a 2-step trellis stitch will be used. Sometimes the 2-step trellis is referred to as a 2-step wave. The 2-step trellis is much like the wave stitch, but with an additional traveling stitch in each direction. Begin the stitch just like every other stitch. Start with a down cable stitch. With the thread below the needle, travel half way up to the row above and over one pleat - take a stitch.

Again, with the thread below the needle, travel up to the row above and over one pleat - take a stitch.

At the peak of the trellis stitch, an up cable will be completed.

To travel down, hold the thread above the needle, travel half way down to the row below, move over one pleat and take a stitch.

Once again, with the thread above the needle, travel down to the row below, move over to the next pleat and take a stitch.

The bottom of the trellis stitch needs to be completed with a down cable stitch.

This completes a trellis stitch.

Trellis stitches can contain many steps between the rows. The smocking graph will indicate how many steps (4-step, 6-step, etc.) And how many rows these steps will cover (between 1 row, between 2 rows, etc.).

Trellis Diamonds

To create diamonds, the smocking will be a mirror image of the row above. To begin the row below, start with an up cable that will sit just below the down cable from the row above. Travel down with 2 steps to the row below. Cable 3 (down, up, down) and then trellis 2-steps up to the row above. Cable 3 (up, down, up). Remember that the cable stitches in the center of the diamond need to “kiss” each other.

6-Step Flowerette

A 6 step flowerette is made by stitching 3 cables – a down, up and down cable, then taking the needle to the back, bring the needle back to the front of the fabric, directly below the first cable stitch that was made (see arrow) and pull needle through to the front.

The needle can be brought to the back of the fabric and then come out again underneath the first stitch, or the needle can pierce through all the pleats (shown in diagram) to exit again underneath the first stitch.

Stitch an up cable that mirrors the down cable above it, then do a down cable, and finish with the last up cable, pushing needle through to the back with this stitch. This completes the flowerette.

Stitch an up cable that mirrors the down cable above it, then do a down cable, and finish with the last up cable, pushing needle through to the back with this stitch. This completes the flowerette.

The flowerette covers 4 pleats. For the graph included, the flowerette is stitched inside the trellis diamonds.

When the smocking has been completed, remove all but the top 2 gathering threads. These 2 threads will be removed AFTER the neckband has been sewn on.

Now it's time to finish up sewing the Katya top by following the instructions in the pattern! We'd love to see your finished tops! Share them with us in the FB group or add your images to the Inspiration Gallery for all to see!

And once again, I wanted to give a special shout out to Kathy Dykstra! Thank you so much for sharing your expertise with our community! This has been so much fun! I'm guessing I'm not the only one who would love to have you back to show us more in the future!

Hi Everyone! In Part 3, Kathy continues to walk us through our smocking project with a look at several more stitch types. In this lesson you will learn the Stem Stitch, Wheat Stitch, and the Wave Stitch. Follow along in the video tutorial and practice, practice practice!

Part 3 Smocking Stitches:

Stem Stitch

The stem stitch is worked exactly as the Outline Stitch but with the thread always remaining below the needle. The completed stitch will appear to slant downwards to the right (left diagram).

Wheat Stitch

The wheat stitch is created by first stitching a row of outline stitches and then stitching a row of stem stitches directly underneath the outline stitches.

Wave Stitch (also called a baby wave or Chevron stitch)

The wave stitch is worked between 2 rows of pleating threads, coming up on one row and traveling a full space to the next row.

Begin the stitch in the same manner as all stitches. However, because 2 rows of waves will be sharing the same pleating/gathering stitch for this smocking design, begin this first stitch a needle’s width above the gathering thread.

In smocking, whenever the stitch moves up or down, it is called “traveling”. Whenever traveling, the thread is always held in the opposite direction. So, when traveling “up”, the thread will always be below the needle.

Start by making a down cable. Hold the thread below the needle and travel up to the row above and over one pleat, take the stitch and pull thread through.

Now, an up cable needs to be made. Hold the thread above the needle, move to the next pleat, at the same level, and take a stitch.

Hold the thread above the needle, travel down to the row below, move to the next pleat and take a stitch a needle’s width above the row.

Moving over to the next pleat, keep needle on the same row and with the thread below the needle, take a stitch (down cable). This completes the wave stitch.

Continue stitching in this manner across the row.

Whenever smocking stitches share a starting and stopping point, it is important that the stitches begin and end at the same level on the pleat. This creates a visually appealing look. Keep this in mind as the next row of wave stitches are stitched.

Start this stitch in the same manner as all stitches start, directly below the wave stitch above.

With the thread above the needle, move over to the next pleat staying at the same level, and take a stitch. This “up” cable will kiss the “down” cable above. No fabric should show between the 2 cable stitches.

With thread above the needle, travel down half way to the guide thread/row below, move over one pleat and take a stitch.

Keeping the needle at the same row, move over to the next pleat, keep the thread below the needle and take a stitch to complete a down” cable.

Move over to the next pleat, travel up to the previous stitch and place needle in the first stitch of the cable above it, kissing the cable stitch above. Pull needle through.

With thread above the needle, move over to the next pleat and take a stitch – this “up” cable stitch kissing the “down” cable stitch above it. This completes one diamond. Continue across row to complete diamond row.

Note: To check for accuracy, there will always be 2 pleats showing in the center of the diamond shape.

Accent Stitches: Straight/Satin Stitch

An accent stitch can be added to the inside of the diamond shapes. It adds a pretty pop of color to the design.

To create the stitch, start a stitch by coming up in the middle of the 2 pleats inside the diamond shape. Take a stitch through the pleat to the left, just as is done when any stitch is started.

With the thread above the needle, go over 2 pleats, as if to create a cable stitch and go to the back and then come up again underneath the first stitch. (Alternately, the needle can pierce through both pleats and come up underneath the first stitch.)

With the thread below the needle, go over the 2 pleats and insert the needle into the second pleat directly underneath the previous stitch, going through to the back side of the fabric. Knot off the thread.

Homework

Complete the stitches learned in this lesson on the pleated fabric as shown in the graph.

Hi Everyone! Are you ready to move on to Part 2? Follow along as Kathy takes us one step further in our smocking journey. She will be demonstrating the basics of working with embroidery floss, creating the first stitch, the cable stitch and the outline stitch. I always love to see the various ways people do the simple things, like knotting the thread! I picked up a few new things to try in my everyday hand sewing that I'm sure will become new habits too!

Follow along in this video demonstration as Kathy walks us through the next part of the process:

Here's a full breakdown of the process, stitches, and a few charts too!

Part Two Preparing The Thread:

Cut a length of the DMC floss that is between 12” - 18” long. A ruler isn’t necessary. From your fingertip to elbow is approximately 18”.

Geometric smocking is most frequently done with 3 strands of thread.

The threads always need to be separated strand by strand and then put back together before threading the needle.

Hold the floss between your thumb and fore finger, locate a single strand and pull upwards to release the strand from the group. Shake out the thread bundle and then pull out another strand until 3 strands have been removed.

Set aside the bundled group and put the separated strands back together. Before threading the needle, stroke the strands between the thumb and fore finger to get the kinks and twists out of the thread ( 5 -10 times or more). This will result in a smoother stitch.

Thread the needle. Place a knot in one end of the strands and you are ready to smock.

Right Handed vs. Left Handed

Right handed individuals will smock from the left side of the fabric to the right side of the fabric while left handed individuals will smock from the right side of the fabric to the left. Instructions will be given for right handed students. The left handed student will do the same steps, only from the opposite side of the fabric.

Starting and Stopping

The pleats in the fabric can be referred to as having “peaks” and “valleys”. The “peak” is the top of the pleat that will be smocked while the “valley” is the depth between each of the “peaks”.

Looking at a cross section of the hand-pleated fabric, the gathering thread falls half way between the peak and the valley.

The first row and last rows of gathering threads are considered to be a holding row and will not be smocked.

On the second row (Row 1), come up in the valley between the first and second pleat. Pull up the needle and thread until the knot touches the valley of the fabric.

To take the first stitch, point the needle to the left (right for lefties) and take a stitch through the pleat, picking up about 1/4 of the peak of the pleat. Going deeper into the pleat would likely cause you to catch the gathering thread.

This is how to begin stitching each row regardless of the smocking stitch that will be completed.

As the end of each row is reached, the final stitch will be taken on the last pleat, then slide the needle along the valley between the last 2 pleats until the needle is next to the final stitch and push the needle to the wrong side of the fabric.

Once the needle and thread have been pulled through to the back side, pick up a small bite of fabric, pull it until a small loop is formed (STEP 1), then weave the needle/thread through in a figure 8 (STEP 2 & 3) and pull tight to secure. The knot should slide down and sit on the fabric. Trim the tail tow 1⁄4” – 3/8”.

Cable Stitch

Having taken the first stitch described above, keep the thread above the needle, go over to 2 pleats and take a stitch through only the second pleat. Pull the needle through.

Note that the thread hangs below the stitch. This first stitch is an “up” cable – the thread was “up” above the needle when the stitch was taken and stitch is “up” on top.

Leaving the thread below the needle, move to the next pleat and take a stitch, keeping the needle directly on top of the guide row. Pull needle through until it “kisses” the previous pleat. Note that the thread is now above the stitch. This completes the second cable stitch and is considered a “down” cable because the thread was kept “down” below the needle when the stitch was taken and the cable is “down” below the first stitch.

Continue this pattern of stitching to the end of the row. The needle always remains constant and at the same position on the pleating row – directly on top of the guide thread - while the thread will alternate position either above or below the needle with each stitch.

The goal with your stitches is to keep them smooth and straight with even tension, which will give good coverage. Remember to pull your needle through the fabric in the same direction as the needle is pointed.

Outline Stitch

The outline stitch is the tightest (least stretchy) of all the smocking stitches. It is worked with the thread always being held above the needle and moving over one pleat for each stitch.

Begin stitching as described previously. Keeping the thread above the needle, go over 2 pleats, take a stitch through only the 2nd pleat and pull thread through. Place thread above the needle again, move over 1 pleat and take a stitch. This stitch is always worked with the thread above the needle. The completed row will appear to slant upwards to the right.

Part Two Homework

Stitch a cable stitch on Row 1 (the second row of gathering threads) with DMC#3716.

Stitch the outline stitch just below the cable stitches on Row 1 with DMC#369. Slide the needle up the pleat until it is directly underneath to get the stitch just below the cable stitches.

Join us next week as we continue with Part 3!

Hi Everyone! Today we kick off the April topic Small Scale Smocking For Dolls! I'm super excited to learn from smocking expert Kathy Dykstra and even more excited to have you learn from her too!

More about Kathy: Kathy  learned to sew at the age of 12 by  taking classes with the 4-H club and then continued taking many more classes over the years.  She continued sewing for herself and then took pattern drafting classes in college.

After the birth of their first 2 daughters, Kathy learned how to smock and do French machine sewing.  These quickly became her preferred sewing and she pursued classes over the years from many of the icons in the heirloom sewing world.  

Kathy has been teaching smocking, French machine sewing and related needle arts since 1984 both locally as well as nationally.  She is a SAGA (Smocking Arts Guild of America) certified teacher and has taught at smocking guilds around the country, Martha Pullen’s School of the Art Fashion as well as the national SAGA conventions and retreats.

In addition to teaching, Kathy’s patterns have been featured in Australian Smocking and Embroidery, Les Smocks (French publication), Sew Beautiful and more recently in Classic Sewing Magazine. Smocking and sewing for children continue to be her favorite pastime and passion. You can find more childrens size smocking pattern in her Etsy Shop Kathys Heirloom Sewing. The Analise Top is the girl size coordinating design to the Katya top used in this demo!

Let's Get Started! 

Supply list: