4. The Chain Stitch

By on 30. January 2026   /   blog, embroideries   /   Leave a comment

The 13 basic stitches of Schwalm whitework

A. The decorative stitches
4. The Chain Stitch

To cover the thread ends of the fabric threads that will be withdrawn later, chain stitches are embroidered closely within the coral knot stitches.

thread weight: depending on the fineness of the linen, coton à broder thread No. 25 or No. 30
building the rows: from right to left
direction of needle movement: from right to left
way of working: Bring needle up

and lay the thread in a loop to left and bottom.

Insert the needle in the emerging point, cross under the fabric a small step to the left and bring needle up again inner the loop.

The looped thread is below the needle tip.

Pull the needle through and the thread to the left.
The first link in the chain has formed.

Further chain stitches are added in the established way.

The chain stitches should be placed directly adjacent to the coral knot stitches, leaving no gap between them. If the chain stitches are placed too close to the coral knot stitches, the outer half of the chain stitches may overlap them. This should be avoided.

Chain stitches, like coral knot stitches, are line stitches, but they form a single line on the back

and a double line on the front.

This has the advantage that threads to be withdrawn can be cut close to the chain stitch line on the back,

but the thread ends are covered on the front by the inner half of the chain stitches.

One can also pull the edge stitches of the filling pattern under the inner chain stitch line to achieve a perfect edge finish.

This is also important for the clean drawing up of the basic stitch grids.

To achieve the best possible results, it is therefore important to embroider short chain stitches and to pull them evenly, but not too tightly. This makes them appear more rounded and cover a wider area than short, tightly pulled or long stitches.


1. The Coral Knot Stitch
2. The Blanket Stitch
3. The Satin Stitch

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3. The Satin Stitch

By on 9. January 2026   /   blog, embroideries   /   Leave a comment

The 13 basic stitches of Schwalm whitework

A. The decorative stitches
3. The Satin Stitch

Satin stitches extend between two lines/dots, with the lines usually not running parallel.

thread weight: depending on the fineness of the linen, coton à broder thread No. 20 or No. 25
building the rows: mostly from bottom to top
direction of needle movement: from right to left
way of working: Bring needle up on the left/outer line and lay the thread in a loop to bottom and right. Insert the needle on the right side, cross under the fabric between the both lines and bring needle up again in the left close to the previous emerging point.
Pull the needle through and the thread to the left.

The variable length of the stitches makes the satin stitch universally applicable.
In Schwalm whitework they are used for small one-piece

as well as pointed divided

and heart-shaped leaves,

small flowers and small circles.

Similarly, semicircular – often surrounded by eyelash stitches -,

pointed

or radial borders of motifs are created with this stitch.

See also: Schwalm Designs (9) – 2short-2long
Schwalm Designs – Knife Points (3)
How to work small pointed leaves?
Advent Calender 2016 – No. 3 (Coral KNots, Blanket stitch eyelets, pointed leaves)
In the embroidery of the „Horizontal Bird Border“
one can find many of the previously mentioned possibilities.

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Winter Tree with Berry Bowl

By on 19. December 2025   /   blog, Konturenmuster, embroideries   /   Leave a comment

The “Winter Tree with Berry Bowl” is a charming little seasonal motif. The design by artist Gudrun Hartwig leads from the bare autumn tree, through the fir branch-like arrangement with the star-shaped tip and other decorations, to the Christmas bird feeder.

All outlines were embroidered with slanting wide stem stitches (Early Schwalm Whitework, page 5). To emphasize the fir tree character, I chose a pattern from the book Limetrosen II (page 21).

In contrast to the dense and three-dimensional pattern, the star was first embroidered with the delicate rose stitch variant (see: Advent Calendar 2019 – No. 1 Images 3 – 5) and then covered with a spider web(Early Schwalm Whitework, page 61).

The little birds were decorated with chain and blanket stitches.

The titmouse ring was embroidered with individual chain stitches (= daisy stitches) (Early Schwalm Whitwork, page 79).

The apple was given a simple pattern with the “Close, 2-thread weaving” (Early Schwalm Whitework, page 19).

The berry bowl was filled in the lower section with “raised band stem stitch” (Early Schwalm Whitework, page 62). The edge was decorated with satin stitches.

The berries were embroidered as blanket stitch eyelets.

The “Winter Tree with Berry Bowl” also looks very appealing as a window decoration.

You can order the pattern as a PDF for €5. Slightly modified versions are also available, featuring a bird perched on the bowl instead of berries, a drawing showing only a feeding bowl, and a design showing a pecking bird instead of a berry bowl.

You can find more Christmas embroideries, designed by the artist Gudrun Hartwig, here:

Advent Calendar 2016 – No. 23 – “Tiny Fir Wreath”
Advent Calendar 2016 – No. 22 last image- „Hellebores and Star“
Fabulous Pictures in Whitework – “Mother Holle”
Adventskalender 2019 – “Christmas Wreath”
Advent Calendar 2019 – No. 24
Advent Calendar 2018 – No 6 “Garden Angel”
Advent Wreath with Balls

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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2. The Blanket Stitch

By on 12. December 2025   /   blog, embroideries   /   Leave a comment

The 13 basic stitches of Schwalm whitework

A. The decorative stitches
1. The Blanket Stitch

Blanket stitches extend between two lines/dots, with the lines usually not running parallel. Blanket stitches are used in many formations in Schwalm whitework. They are used to embroider rounded leaves, semicircular, pointed, or radial outlines of motifs, small flowers, and small circles.

thread weight: depending on the fineness of the linen, coton à broder thread No. 20 or No. 25
building the rows: mostly from top to bottom (sometimes also from left to right)
direction of needle movement: from right to left (sometimes also from top to bottom)
way of working: Bring needle up on the left/outer line and lay the thread in a loop to bottom and right. Insert the needle on the right side, cross under the fabric between the both lines and bring needle up again in the left close to the previous emerging point. The looped thread is below the needle tip.
Pull the needle through and the thread to the left.

In this way, blanket stitch scallops are created,

or blanket stitch scallops worked around a center point – so called “half-eyelet scallops”,

blanket stitch tips (so called “knife points”) and

worked around a center point blanket stitch tips – so called “pointed half-eyelet scallops”,

Also eyelash stitches are created using blanket stitches,

likewise the the blanket stitch wheel (so called blanket stitch eyelet).

(The rose stitch is also a blanket stitch, but it is not used as a decorative stitch, but as a filling pattern and is therefore described in detail under this category.

See also:
How to Work a Blanket Stitch Eyelet
Design for Practice Exercises.
Tablecloth for all Seasons – October: Creepers and Grape
Advent Calendar 2016 – No. 7

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Advent Wreath with Balls

By on 5. December 2025   /   blog, printed designs, embroideries   /   4 Comments

The motif “Advent Wreath with Balls” makes a lovely decoration for a seasonal tablecloth. The design was created by the artist Gudrun Hartwig.

The fir branches made from coral knot stitches and satin stitches are quickly embroidered.

The circular shape of the differently sized balls offers many possibilities for filling pattern selection.

In this example, they were embroidered exclusively with patterns from the book “Stars”. These patterns have a particularly three-dimensional effect and are suitable as individual stars for the smallest balls as well as magnificent continuous patterns for the large ones.

Of course, you can choose many other patterns. A single branch with a ball is a good choice for a gift bag. Let your imagination run wild!

The embroidery shown here was done on 16/cm-count linen. The wreath has a diameter of 40 centimeters. I have a stencil for this design, so I can print the wreath.

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