embroideries

Filling the open areas between the motifs – typical in Schwalm whitework – tendrils, small leaves and small flowers were worked. Embroidering these small embellishments is straightforward with little opportunity for variations, so both runners are very similar in these areas.

The tendrils on the oval runner were worked with Coton à broder No. 20.

The tendrils on the rectangular runner were worked with Coton à broder No. 16.


For the short stem with small flowers and rounded leaves on the oval runner Coton à broder No. 20 was used for the Coral Knot stitches and No. 25 for the Blanket stitches.

On the rectangular runner the leaves were worked using Satin stitches instead of Blanket stitches.
Coton à broder No. 16 was used for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 20 for the Blanket stitches and Satin stitches.

Of course, the same threads were used on the remaining stems with small leaves and small flowers.

On the oval runner Coton à broder No. 20 was used for the Coral Knot stitches and No. 25 for the Blanket stitches.

On the rectangular runner the leaves were again worked using Satin stitches instead of Blanket stitches. Coton à broder No. 16 was used for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 20 for the Blanket stitches and Satin stitches.

The first part of this series can be found here.
The previous part of this series can be found here.

This comparison of two embroideries using the same outline design shows the wide range of possibilities one has in choosing filling patterns, stitches, thread weight, and hem decoration.
Abundant variations make Schwalm whitework unique, and the working of it so exciting.

Along the sides of the longitudinal axis three different smaller motifs are found: one tulip and two circle shapes. The first circles (here a little bit enlarged) are surrounded with “2 short–2 long”.
On the oval runner “2 short-2 long” was stitched closely following the marked lines; the thread used was too thin. The result is not 100% satisfactory.

The circle was filled with the Limet pattern “Limetrosen” (Limetrosen I, page 27).

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 20 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 25 for the Satin stitches, No. 30 for the Chain stitches and the filling pattern.
On the rectangular runner the stitches were more densely placed and a thicker thread was used.

The circle was filled with the Limet pattern “Kleines Ochsenaugenraster” (Limetrosen I, page 15).

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 16 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 20 for the Satin stitches, No. 25 for the Chain stitches and the filling pattern.
The second circles (here enlarged) are surrounded with scallops.
On the oval runner all lines were covered with Coral Knot stitches. Inside the scallops Chain stitches were worked beside the Coral Knot stitches. The inside areas of the scallops remain unworked.

The circle was filled with the Limet pattern “Rosenstiche” (Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework, pages 50-52).

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 20 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 30 for the Chain stitches and the filling pattern.
On the rectangular runner the scallops were worked as half-eyelet scallops (Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework, page 24).

The circle was filled with the openwork pattern “Double Crosses – in straight rows” (Openwork Pattern Samplers, pages 46 and 47).

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 16 for the Coral Knot stitches and the filling pattern, No. 20 for the Blanket stitches, No. 25 for the Chain stitches.
The small tulip motif looks like this:
On the oval runner all lines were covered with Coral Knot stitches. The outside petals were filled with Satin stitches. The areas between the outside petals and the center remain unworked.

The center section of the tulip was filled with the Limet pattern “Gefieder” (Limetrosen I, page 9).

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 20 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 25 for the Satin stitches, No. 30 for the Chain stitches and the filling pattern.
On the rectangular runner all lines were covered with Coral Knot stitches, and the outside petals were filled with Satin stitches. The areas between the outside petals and the center were surrounded with Chain stitches. The inside spaces remain unworked.

The center section of the tulip was filled with the Limet pattern “Diagonal Cross Filling stitch” (Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework, pages 39 and 40).

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 16 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 20 for the Satin stitches, No. 25 for the Chain stitches and the filling pattern.

The first part of this series can be found here.
The previous part of this series can be found here.

The center circle is flanked by additional tulips. The outline is shown here a little bit enlarged:
The center part of the tulip is well suited for a filling pattern. Outside the center are 2 narrow, long and pointed petals on each side. How to stitch those forms?

To better accommodate the center section’s filling pattern, it would be possible to change the lines of the upper petals.
Regardless, the shapes of the outside petals are too narrow to embellish them with withdrawn thread patterns. There must be other ways.

On the oval runner the petals were embroidered with Satin stitches. To control the stitches and to keep them neat, the petals had to be divided. (More detailed information on how to stitch divided leaves can be found in Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework, pages 29 and 30).
In the center part of the tulip the Limet Pattern “Kleiner Reißverschluss – versetzt gearbeitet” (Wickelstiche I, page 29) was worked.

Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No. 20 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 25 for the Satin stitches and the filling pattern, No. 30 for the Chain stitches.

It is also possible to stitch the outlines of the pointed petals with Coral Knot stitches and to fill the remaining area with Satin stitches (as worked on the rectangular runner, seen in the picture below).

As mentioned in an earlier post, in early Schwalm whitework there are many patterns suitable for long, narrow shapes. So, I used the opportunity to mix both techniques here also. In the bottom petals I used an element of the early Schwalm whitework embroidering a variation of the Wheatear stitch (Early Schwalm Whitework, page 75).
In the middle section of the tulip, one stripe of the Limet pattern “Krönchen” (Limetrosen I, page 55) was worked. The areas at both sides were filled with Four-Sided stitches. For the tulip opposite, I made some changes; the areas of the top petals, inside the Chain stitches, remain free of further embellishment, and I worked one row of Satin stitches between the “Krönchen” stitches to get the pattern centered.
Coton à broder in the following sizes was used: No.16 for the Coral Knot stitches, No. 20 for the Satin stitches and the variation of the Wheatear stitch, No. 25 for the Chain stitches and the filling pattern.

The first part of this series can be found here.
The previous part of this series can be found here.