While regular shapes, such as circles, squares, or rectangles, make lovely needlepoint, often we want to finish something which is irregular in shape. This could be as simple as the domed top of a stand-up, such as the Petei buffalo pictured above. Or it could be an irregular shape, such as this bouquet from Happy Hear Designs.
We’re lucky, as stitchers, that so many canvases don’t have backgrounds, so we can finish them as we please.
But there is a problem. Too often only stitching to the edge doesn’t leave the finisher enough room to make the design stand out. That’s when you need to add a thin (3-5 stitch) border of Basketweave. Stitching the entire background in Basketweave is often the most effective background of all as well.
In a wonderful four part tutorial, Judy Harper discusses why to have a background of Basketweavme with several examples. These also show the items from which they are adaptations.
In a two part tutorial she shows you step-by-step, with lots of illustrations, how to stitch Basketweave around odd shapes. Here are links to part one and part two.
So many of these kind of shapes are highly irregular. What she doesn’t say, but your first step should be, is to draw and outline around the entire shape three to five stitches around. Don’t go in and out around the shape, but make it more or less rounded or squared into what she calls an “amoeba shape.”
Then, when you stitch the background, fill in those indentations. The fourth part of her tutorial, shows you how to do this, step-by-step, with some great advice.
I have a Charley Harper cat canvas and some stitched but not finished pieces in my stash which I’m going to use to master this great technique. One I’m thinking of is a charming stitcher’s basket which is a perfect size for an ornament if it has this kind of background.
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