A Border Stitch (Fig. 60).—To work as Fig. 60 three rows are required to complete the stitch. First make a row of horizontal stitches on a level with each other; then take a long thread and pass the needle, eye foremost, up under the first small stitch, down through the second, and so on, till the first row is finished—the second row of interlacing completes the link.
Fig. 61.
An Interlacing Border or Filling (Fig. 61).—The stitch may also be used as a background or filling, in which case the ground must first be patterned over with alternating rows of horizontal and vertical stitches, equally spaced. The vertical stitches hold the lower and upper edges of the links together—one such stitch is seen on the left of Fig. 60. Fig. 61 looks well if the foundation stitches are worked in one colour and the interlacing threads in another. By looking at the figure it will be seen that four small horizontal stitches are required to support the interlacing threads, in groups of two. These must be equally spaced so that the rings may be equal in size. After the foundation stitches are worked proceed exactly as in Fig. 60. Take a long thread for the interlacing of the first row; pass the eye of the needle foremost through the small stitches to prevent splitting of the threads; follow by a second row, which completes the ring.
Fig. 13 gives a row of large back stitching with an interlacing thread which is worked in a similar way, and which makes a good firm line or heading to a border or hem.
Fig. 62
Two Leaf Fillings (Fig. 62).—This filling for a leaf or oval form is quickly worked; it may be used equally well for a surface stitch. Fig. 62 represents a leaf with a lace braid for the outline. The central thread which forms the mid-rib is stretched first, the loosely worked loops are then threaded over this. This very simple arrangement looks remarkably well, and can be still further enriched by spacing the loops much wider apart, stretching horizontal lines across the spaces and forming little woven wheels, or rosettes, over them, down the mid-rib. This is, of course, a much more elaborate type of leaf, and would be used to fill quite a large space.
There are many simpler methods of filling leaf forms or oval spaces—a row of button-holing, point de Bruxelles (Fig. 52) worked round the inner edge, followed by one or two rows of looped button-hole stitch (Fig. 53), and closed down the centre by a line of faggot, or Russian stitch, finally overcasting a few stitches to the edge in order to finish off the thread neatly.
Similarly, Fig. 62 b, may also be worked either as a surface filling or as an open one. The horizontal lines are stretched first, then overcasting from left to right of the straight lines fixes these transverse threads; otherwise they would be apt to get out of place, as they are only threaded over the one line and under the other.