Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Tip to Share: Smyrna Cross Stitch

To make stitches look fuller or more rounded try a Smyrna cross stitch. This is a closeup of the stemmed cherries at the bottom of the Chocolate Covered Cherries.



I ‘plumped' these tiny cherries by adding a + on top of the x stitch to make them look fuller and more rounded. The photo is a bit fuzzy but I hope it shows the difference between the red cherries at the bottom of the stems and the green x at the top. By adding a horizontal and a vertical stitch on top of the diagonal stitches of the initial cross stitch a Smyrna cross stitch is formed! I use this stitch when ‘rounding’ out an eye, for example. The top stitches can also be done in a different color for subtle shading or bright contrast.

4 comments:

  1. Thanks for the tip! That's a great idea.

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  2. thanks for shearing your idea today i learnt something new that i will use in the future.

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  3. I love Smyrnas, but I never thought about using a different color for the +! What a great idea!

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