This common embroidery stitch is an easy way to create bold outlines. Large areas can be filled by building up parallel rows of chain stitch.
To create the stitch:
1: Stitch up through the fabric where you want your chain to start – point A.
2: Stitch back down into the exact same hole you stitched up through. Do not pull your thread all the way through.
3: Stitch up at point B, making sure the needle goes through the loop.
4: Tighten the thread neatly, so that there’s no loose thread but so that the chain loop is still a loop.
5: Stitch down at point B, continuing the same stitch up and down through the same hole, catching each loop of thread process. The back of the work will be a line of straight stitches.
The distance between stitches is primarily determined by the weight of the thread – small stitches for fine thread, larger stitches for heavier thread – and what you think looks best.