Melitastitches4fun's Blog

Tips for Pieces of Eight

Here are tips you can hand out to your ANG chapter members. I compiled them for my fellow Main Line Stitchers & they found them useful. This covers Octagons A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, M & N.

Octagon A

• Use a 30 inch thread to complete 1 unit or ½ of each heart (you really don’t want to stop in mid-unit).
• Could lay overdyed threads so all 4 match or could switch placement to create less of a pattern.
• Stitch 2 complete hearts that lie opposite each other rather than proceeding in a clockwise fashion (to work in more open holes).
• Push threads in towards the heart in order to find holes 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 & “come up outside” of previous stitches.

Octagon B

• Use a 20 inch thread to make 1 full Rhodes Stitch.

• Use two 75 inch or three 50 inch threads to make the Walneto (because 150 inches would be too cumbersome to work with).
• For the Walneto, before going down into hole 10, pass the needle along the canvas under the threads from bottom to top. (If not, you’ll end up with a square like a Waffle Stitch that will cover up your Rhodes stitch and you’ll have to pull it out like I did!!) Also can refer to “The Needlepoint Book” by Jo Ippolito Christensen (1999, pages 267-269).

Octagon C

• Use a 45 inch thread for beginning and ending the Waffle Stitch (stitches 1-22 and 47-62).
• Use a 25 inch thread for middle portions (stitches 23-46).
• Park needle and thread after stitching 1-22 until you are ready to complete stitches 47-62).

Octagon D

• Use a 27-30 inch thread to complete each Rhodes. Place 3 separated threads together.

Octagon E

• No tricky stitches as long as you pay attention.

Octagon F

• Rotate the directions in order to place the main spratshead correctly.
• Use a 12 inch thread for spokes of Woven Spider.

Octagon G

• Use a 50 inch thread to complete all the crosses.
• Work from the outside into the center of the eyelet.

Octagon H

• The star uses a lot of thread (I didn’t measure)
• Focus & pay attention to the schematic. Somehow, I was off but most wouldn’t notice & it wasn’t worth reworking.

Octagon I

• 4 to 6 threads of floss cover more of the canvas (than the 3 I used).

Octagon M

• Use 35″ thread to make the Waffle Variation.
• There are 2 errors including the 31 near the top left should be a 36 and the 79 neat the top right should be a 77.

Octagon N

• Nothing tricky here to making the Double Straight Cross
• You do have to pay attention to how the pattern of the Alternating Cashmere turns (I had to unstitch a few times).

Good luck everyone!!

If anyone is in the area come join us at 7:15 pm on the 2nd Mon of each month just 30 minutes from Center City Philadelphia& 10 minutes from King of Prussia. Contact us at: MainLineStitchersChapter@needlepoint.org for more information.

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