As I stitch around the sun in my little Windy City quilt, I meditate on the amazing variations of the Fly Stitch. The Fly Stitch is an open looping stitch that is easy to make and has lots of stitch possibilities. Here’s a few you can try:
- Extend the center thread of the Fly Stitch to make a Y shape like branches in a tree,
- Use the Fly Stitch with a pinked fabric and the thread follows the pointy edges and tacks down fabric shapes at the same time,
- Add a French Knot between lines of Fly Stitches (like those on a pinked fabric edge) to build pattern and add hits of color,
- Stack Fly Stitches to make leaf like shapes, or
- Use a French Knot to hold the center of the stitch in place. This is also known by those of us who are fast food connoisseurs as the French Fly.
And finally, surround a group of French Knots with Fly Stitches to make a flower. Ah, the Fly Stitch, so much talent in such a tiny stitch.