How to make a French knot in embroidery?

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:46

French knot, "fruzelok" or "frenchie" is a technique for creating three-dimensional compositions in cross-stitch and ribbons. They look very sophisticated and are used to decorate and complement embroidery. With the help of a French knot, it is convenient to emphasize the details of the work, such as inscriptions, the eyes of characters, parts of flowers. In addition, fruzelki are used to form perspective on large canvases. Pictures can also be created entirely from French knots. The stitch itself looks like a bead of floss threads twisted in a special way. French is an ancient way of decorating embroidery that never goes out of style. It can be done with both floss threads and satin ribbons.

History of Frenchies

Surprisingly, the method of embroidering with voluminous stitches did not appear in France, as you might think, but in China. French needlewomen only borrowed thistechnology, copying it from the oriental goods imported into the country. The stitch got its name due to its popularity among local craftswomen. They actively used it in decorating clothes, including for roy alty. Fruzelki add realism to the picture, emphasizes details, places accents and gives volume to the image. But creating the perfect stitch takes a lot of practice and patience. First, you will need to perform several dozen such knots in order to understand the principle of operation and master this technique fluently.

Using fruzelks in needlework

It seems that the French knot in embroidery is easy to perform, but it will take some skill and effort to obtain it. When working in this technique, part of the embroidery becomes convex and acquires a 3D effect, unlike the cross, which simply lies on the fabric. Some needlewomen use beads instead of a French knot, sewing them onto their work. But this method can be recommended only if it is not possible to complete the stitch with this method at all. It is better to practice and learn how to make them from threads, laying Frenchies in various ways. Depending on the number of threads and the number of turns around the needle, the stitches may come in different sizes.

Which is the optimal thread size to choose?

To create a French knot in cross stitch, first we fix the thread on the wrong side of the canvas in any convenient way. The fabric on the hoop should be well stretched. Take an embroidery needle with a sharp end. It is important to choose the right size. The thinner the needle, the narrower the fruzelok will turn out. For very thin French knots, it is best to take a beaded needle. It is convenient to measure the optimal length of the thread with the elbow. It will be equal to the size convenient for work. Usually it is about 25-30 cm. Too long a thread will start to get tangled and prevent you from making a beautiful French knot. Too short will have to be changed often. After fixing, we bring the needle to the front and carefully pull it out. The most important thing in the process of creating a stitch is to hold the thread with your left hand so that the wrap around the needle is tight.

How to make a French knot in embroidery?

Now you need to make a loop out of the floss, and, holding the thread with your left hand, wrap the thread around the needle several times. The number of turns depends on how large the knot will be. Almost any number can be used. Stepping back from the exit point about a millimeter, we bring the needle inside out and begin to gently pull the thread, tightening the knot. It is important to ensure that the needle is perpendicular to the threads. When it is pulled through the hole, it should enter perpendicular to the canvas. Then the knot will turn out neat and even.

At this stage, it is important not to overdo it, otherwise the Frenchie will pop out. We tighten the thread not to the end. The result should be a floss ball. French knots can be obtained in various shapes, which is not always convenient. Height, dependingfrom the number of threads and entanglement, will also differ. For example, when embroidering the eyes of characters, they must be the same. Therefore, needlewomen came up with different ways to replace this technique.

Number of folds to create a knot

The more the thread is wound around the needle, the more voluminous the stitch is. For embroideries, where you need to emphasize small details, a thread in 1 and 2 additions is usually used - it all depends on the scheme that is attached to the embroidery kit. How to make a French knot and how many twists to use should also be indicated in the diagram. It is easy to determine the required number of threads when working without a specific pattern: for a small canvas, a floss in one addition is enough. For denser material with large holes, you will need more. Usually 2-3 is enough to get a certain type of stitch. If you do not want to create knots, they can be replaced with an alternative option - winding threads through a loop. This method may seem rather laborious, but it allows you to create even stitches of the same size. To apply this option or not, you will have to decide on your own.

How to avoid broaches?

Sometimes French knots have to be done in an open space on fairly transparent fabrics. Therefore, any, even a small, broach on them will be noticeable. In order to avoid them, after completing the first fruzelka, the thread must be passed through the embroidered places on the canvas. This will help hide the ugly broach. Someonce we pass under the already embroidered stitches to secure it, and then bring it out to the place where the next stitch should appear.

An alternative way to create a voluminous knot

An alternative to frenchie is entwining a thread through a loop. To do this, we fix it on the canvas in the right place so that it does not fall out, and display it on the front side of the work. Then we make a loop by passing the needle under the thread, and then wind the same loops one by one until the floss ball becomes sufficiently convex. After that, we bring the needle inside out, and we fix the thread or continue to work. This method of creating a bulk stitch is simple, but very long. The resulting effect is in no way inferior to the French knot.