Don’t get me wrong. I love darning stitches, yet I’ve been eager for something other than my go-to darning stitches. Going down that rabbit hole this past weekend landed me on this cute little layered stripe.

The first layer is what I call the base threads with Petite Silk Lame (gray lines). I covered the base threads with pairs of horizontal stitches over three rows with size 12 Finca Perle (aqua lines). I filled the six rows in between the stripes in Alternating Skip Tent with white Petite Silk Lame (black lines). Truth be told, that could be any stitch you favor. You could do vertical (or horizontal) rows of Continental stitches with an empty row between columns. I strongly considered leaving the white areas completely empty but changed my mind when given the opportunity to add a bit more sparkle.

The great thing about this stitch is its scalability. It will literally work for columns of any width. The top layer of the stripes starts at the outer row and ends one row in from the opposite edge. For wider rows, consider making the groups of straight stitches more than two stitches. This stitch doesn’t need painted stripes to work. I would love to see the stripes on pants with 1-2 empty rows between the stripes. If the pants have shading, leave the rows between the stripes unstitched. If you want to add a stitch, I would stitch in between the stripes in basketweave or a Satin Stitch.

This stitch diagram, along with all other #whimsicalwednesday and #smallspacesunday stitch diagrams, can also be found on a Pinterest board here. Be sure to follow whimsicalstitch.com on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

IIf you like what you see on this blog, there's more: Mary’s Whimsical Stitches Volume 1 is a contemporary how-to collection of more than 250 stitches for stitchers regardless of skill level. The book includes updated and sequenced diagrams from this blog, all-new stitches, and a chapter on the basics of needlepoint. Mary’s Whimsical Stitches Volume 2 features chapters on Balanced, Beading, Diagonal, Layered, Oblique, Small, and Straight stitches.

Also, you can download The Essentials for free. The Essentials is the first chapter from my first book which covers basic needlepoint stitches and stitch compensation techniques along with new top-line information on needlepoint materials and tools, how to handle threads, and other helpful needlepoint resources.

whimsicalstitch.com also sells Stitch Guides and Stitch Concepts for Melissa Shirley Designs, Zecca Designs, Sandra Gilmore, Purple Palm, Maggie, and Penny MacLeod, and many more. Click here to see the newest guides and click here to see the entire collection.

I hope you have the perfect spot for this stitch! Please enjoy! Have a wonderful #whimsicalwednesday!

A Note about Diagrams
I use color in diagrams to make them as clear as possible.  The primary function of different colored lines is to illustrate a stitch sequence.  For example, layering of colors demonstrates you add them in that order.  They can also provide ideas on how to integrate additional threads (one line for each color).  Or, you can use the same thread for all color lines.  That's where I encourage you to use your imagination for the space you are stitching!