When I was in junior high and high school, I did a lot of counted cross-stitch, but I didn’t do much straight-up embroidery. I haven’t done much needlework (aside from knitting and crochet) since then. Over the past few years, my Pinterest feed has been full of beautiful embroidery. The designs range from cute to fanciful, traditional to modern. I’ve been pinning the gamut with hopes of picking up needle and floss again one day. Lately, I’ve been especially drawn to the Japanese folk embroidery technique called sashiko.
Traditional sashiko calls for white cotton thread on indigo-dyed cloth, but modern applications can be found in other colors. Literally “little stabs,” sashiko stitching is made by a basic running stitch. You might be used to using an embroidery hoop, but being able to scrunch the fabric and take several running stitches at a time is easier without the hoop. This keeps lines straighter and is less taxing on your arm and shoulder. (more…)