Welcome to June, the month of whatever stitch strikes my fancy.  We kick off June with what I call the Explosion Stitch.  Its origin is "The Potpourri of Pattern" by Ann Strite Kurz, one of my favorite pattern books.  Ann does a lovely job of combining patterns for a stunning effect.  Yet, I find the individual patterns just as intriguing.

This pattern creates a beautiful trellis.  I find the trellis pattern surprising, simply because no stitch in this pattern is more than over two rows.  Yet, it fills a large space quickly.  I prefer to leave the open diamonds just that...open.  

As always, the fun begins with what stitch to put in the intersection.  If you want to keep the diamond shape, I suggest the alternating tent stitches in the main diagram.  You can dress it up with beads or add some texture with a Smyrna Cross.  Be sure to have fun with the bead sizes.  A really large bead, such as #6 or #8, would be a wonderfully dramatic touch for the single bead center.

My preferred thread combination is a matte thread, such as Pepper Pot Silk or Silk Pearl for the gray lines, and a contrasting metallic for the yellow centers.  The stitched sample on Instagram uses Elegance and Kreinik Metallics Fine Braid #8 in a vintage metallic finish. 

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This stitch diagram, along with other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on www.pinterest.com/whimsicalstitch/whimsicalwednesday.  

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If you like what you see on this blog, want to learn some very creative decorative stitches, and how to put them all together, whimsicalstitch.com sells stitch guides for seasonal Melissa Shirley designs.  22 guides are currently available and more are in the pipeline.

Enjoy!