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Needlework Dictionary

Aida - a type of cross stitch fabric that consists of a dense weave and easy to use grid; best for beginners

Anchor - a popular brand of six-stranded cotton embroidery floss

Anchoring - running floss under completed stitches on the backside of your work in order to hold a new strand of floss in place

Backstitching - a stitch made backwards over one stitch length; often completed with a single strand of floss and commonly used to outline shapes

Band Sampler - a sampler consisting of horizontal bands that repeat the same pattern across the width of fabric

Blackwork - a form of embroidery using a single color of floss (traditionally black) and completed using primarily backstitching

Blending - stitching with two different colors of floss in the same needle to create a blend of colors

Charles Craft - maker of affordable needlework fabrics

Confetti - an area of stitching that consists of single stitches of multiple different colors

Couching - the process of pinning long stitches in place

Cross Country - pulling your floss across the back of your fabric to continue stitching an area with the same color of floss already in use

DMC - perhaps the most popular brand of embroidery floss with over 500 colors; made in France since 1746

Dropping the Needle - letting the needle hang loosely on the floss in order to undo twisting

Evenweave - a type of needlework fabric that consists of single fibers weaved evenly throughout; can be stitched over 1 or over 2 fibers

Fabric Count - the size of a fabric's weave; the higher the count, the smaller the weave

FFO - Fully Finished Object

Filament - a shiny, plastic additive that can be used to add shine to a design and is stitched in with floss; similar to metallics; some fabrics come with filament weaved throughout 

Fractional Stitches - stitches that do not make use of the entire stitching area; most commonly 3/4 stitches

French Knots - a decorative knot made by wrapping the thread around the needle before pulling through the fabric

Frogging - pulling out stitches usually due to a mistake; called frogging because you have to "rippit, rippit"

Grime Guard - a decorative piece of fabric that fits over a q-snap or scroll frame to keep your fabric from getting dirty whilst being worked

Hardanger - a type of embroidery that is traditionally worked with white thread on white fabric and utilizes drawn thread techniques

Kreinik - maker of metallics and blending flosses

Lacing - a method used to attach a finished piece of needlework to a mounting board

Linen - a type of needlework fabric that consists of single fibers weaved throughout; made of linen fibers which are often rougher and contains varying fiber widths making for a less even weave

LNS - Local Needlework Shop

Long Stitches - similar to backstitching but done as single stitches over multiple stitching spaces

Loop Start - the process of attaching a new strand of floss to fabric using a single looped piece of floss

Metallics - a metallic thread used to give some sparkle to a design

Mill Hill - a popular maker of beads that can be used in cross stitch

Needle Minder - a decorative double magnet placed on fabric and used to hold a needle while not in use

ORT - Old Raggedy Threads; scrap threads sometimes kept in a jar or box for reasons we can't explain but also can't stop doing

Over-dyed - a process of dyeing a fiber that already has color to it; used to create multi-toned effects

Parking - a process of keeping multiple working threads going at once and pulling them to one side of the fabric to keep them out of the way of the workspace 

Pearl Cotton - a type of embroidery thread that cannot be separated therefore cannot be used in cross stitch; used in embroidery, crochet, and smocking 

Project Bag - a decorative bag used to hold a cross stitch project; excellent for stitching while travelling 

Q-Snap - a type of square plastic frame that snaps together over the fabric

Railroading - a technique in which the needle is placed between the strands of floss before pulling through the fabric; helps with twisting and keeping stitches flat and plump

SAL - Stitch-A-Long; a project to be stitched with a group on a pre-determined schedule

Sampler - a traditional form of cross stitch that was used to teach young girls the craft; usually consisting of alphabets, bands, quotes, and decorative figures

Satin Floss - a type of embroidery floss that has a silky and shiny texture; can be used for cross stitch but can be difficult to work with

Scroll Frame - a type of embroidery frame that uses split dowels and scrolls the fabric into working position; best for large projects and keeping fabric wrinkle-free

Skein - embroidery floss or yarn cut to a certain length (several yards) and sold in a small bundle

Slubs - random clumped sections of fiber found in linen fabrics

Stash - a hoard of craft supplies of which one should be very proud

Stitch Count - the number of stitches in a pattern given as dimensions, for example 90 X 100 stitches

Stitching Space - the space in which a single cross stitch can be worked on fabric

Tapestry Needle - a blunt-ended needle used for cross stitch available in varying sizes

UFO - UnFinished Object; a project that is likely to never be completed

Variegated - a fiber or fabric that has varying color(s) throughout

Week's Dye Works - maker of hand over-dyed fibers

WIP - Work In Progress

Zweigart - maker of high quality needlework fabrics

1 over 1 - stitching over 1 thread on evenweave; requires special techniques

2 over 2 - stitching over 2 threads on evenweave; 28 ct becomes 14 ct.

6 Stranded Cotton - embroidery floss made of cotton and coiled using six separatable strands; DMC, Anchor and all embroidery floss used for cross stitch is produced like this

Printable Dictionary

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