Indian Edging Stitch: Pattern and Embellishment

I wanted to do this last post on the Indian edging stitch that I learned from Anne Gailhbaud. The focus of this post is on pattern and embellishment. I know I can’t say everything I want to in reasonable amount of space but I want to attempt to say and illustrate what is most important to me. I enjoy taking one stitch and exploring it as thoroughly as I can. As I do that, I enjoy the challenge of not just doodling but putting those variations into a piece.

Involvement in Sharon b TaST challenge has allowed me to do the doodling but has not permitted me the time to do the designing portion of stitch exploration. Working with the Indian Edging stitch has allowed me the privilege in a limited way to do both the stitch experimentation and the design work.

Once I get some understand of the stitch and how it may be distorted. I’m ready to start using it in a pattern. This is work that I still consider part of doodling. Sometimes the design work will force me back to more distortions or patterns. But I always work to obtain some understanding of the pattern and rhythm of a particular stitch before I work on the design. I don’t mean this in a “right” vs. “wrong” way to do something as you learn about a stitch, but just by way of explaining my own thought process.

The next three photographs are some of the smallest elements of pattern that go beyond the simple step, repeat, layer and mirror.

An inner circle. And look at the outer shape. Perhaps it’s a diamond at an angle.

An open space at the center and other spaces between the Indian edge stitches. That’s where embellishments or other stitches may be used to create a larger pattern.

A straight edged diamond on the outside; a square on the inside (Great for either negative space or for embellishment.). Overall a stable shape for larger patterns.

An extra fly stitch at the end of the elongated Indian edging stitch to create this simple narrow repeating pattern.

Elongated and curved bottom Indian edging stitches mirrored. Embellished with beads.

Perhaps the most complex pattern in the post with some simple embellishment. There are six Indian edging stitches in this pattern with some straight and back stitches. In a design this pattern will easily make a line vertically or horizontally. And if vertically, a decision to mirror or repeat will make a big difference in this pattern.

The last photograph unfortunately isn’t a great shot, but it is the largest pattern worked out in what I’m posting today. First, the small pattern it is made from.

The larger pattern is made up by adding a cross stitch at each corner of the square, stepping the pattern. Then filling the resulting negative space with stitches looped through the cross and Indian edging stitches. I added a bead in the center of the loops both for texture and color.

There is still so much more to be done with this stitch beyond distortion, pattern and embellishment. But I’m going to let this series of posts end here for now. After the first of the year, I’d like to pick it up again for at least one more post on “off grid” work.