I hadn’t planned to do a series of posts on LSS but it seems that I’m not finished with it yet. This is not intended to be a definitive guide; I am certainly no expert on the subject. These are just my ramblings and pictures of my sample stitching. The method describe in my previous post was based on the Japanese embroidery technique nagamijika-sashinui (alternating LSS). The foundation row consists of long stitches (approx. 10mm) alternating with short stitches (6-7mm). The stitches of the following row are all the same length (approx 10mm) and worked between the long stitches of the foundation row, splitting the short stitches about half way along their length. The stitches of the following rows are also the same length and are worked between the stitches of the preceding row, splitting the stitches of the previous row about one-third along their length. The stitches in the final row are worked in the same way and are shorter, ending in line with the ends of the stitches in the previos row. In her book Painting with a Needle, Young Yang Chung describes a different method; one that uses long and short stitches in every row. The first row is worked in the same way as for nagamijika-sashinui but with slightly shorter stitches (approximately 8mm and 5mm). The following rows also consist of alternating long and short stitches that overlap and interlock the stitches of the preceding row. The long stitches are roughly 13mm and the short stitches about 5mm. Young Yang Chung says that the stitches should come from below the stitches in the previous row rather than split them. She suggests moving the stitch aside with your finger; I found it easier to do this with my tekobari. The stitches do not travel across the fabric as the above diagram suggests. I drew it this way to illustrate how the stitches overlap and interlock. And this is how it looks stitched. Happy Stitching