Tatreez for Beginners
Chapter 4 - How to Cross Stitch

Lesson 12: How to End Your Stitches

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Ending your stitches neatly is just as important as starting. A secure finish prevents your work from unraveling and keeps the back of your fabric clean. In Tatreez, both methods below are commonly used depending on personal preference.

1. Knot Finish

After your final stitch, you'll find the needle at the back of your fabric. Completing your cross stitch with a sturdy knot at the back of your project is essential to ensure your hard work stands the test of time.

How to Knot Your Finished Product

Optional: you can thread under the back of a few cross-stitches before or after you tie your thread.

  1. Create a loop with your thread and insert the needle in the center.

  2. Stabilize the knot so that it forms closest to your fabric and not in the middle of the thread.

  3. Repeat until you are satisfied with the sturdiness of the knot.

2. Tuck Finish

A more advanced ending technique is simply tucking the thread without knoting it at the end. Follow these instructions to create a tuck finish

How to Create a Tuck Finish (Knotless Finish)

  1. Your needle is positioned at the back when you finish your stitch.

  2. Insert the needle through the back of multiple cross stitches.

  3. Cut thread from the needle, close to other stitches.

If you feel comfortable with the tuck finish, you can also use the same idea when starting your stitches. This method is called the tuck start, where you secure the beginning of your thread by stitching over the loose end instead of tying a knot. It keeps your work neat and traditional, with no bumps from knots. You can learn the full step-by-step process in our Tatreez Tips guide.

NEXT LESSON

STITCH THE MOON OF BETHLEHEM

The next lesson provides a step-by-step guide to stitching the traditional Moon of Bethlehem motif, giving you the first full Tatreez design to practice.