A double back stitch can be worked on either the front or the back of a piece of cloth. When worked on the front it is done as two parallel rows of back stitches, which create the effect of a closed herringbone stitch on the reverse side of the material (A). If it is worked on the reverse side it is carried out in the form of a closed herringbone stitch, which produces the effect of two parallel rows of back stitch on the front side (B).
Military or soldiers’ quilts are a form of nineteenth century patchwork quilts made by British soldiers from the wool serge or woven worsted and twill cloth used to make military uniforms. Apparently in the Great Exhibition of 1851, over thirty examples of quilts were submitted by military personnel. Soldiers were encouraged to take up sewing as an alternative to drinking and gambling.
For thousands of years, people in Africa, Asia and Europe have obtained a fast, red dye from the roots of the Rubia plants. The term Rubium comes from the Latin word ruber meaning ‘red’. The English word madder derives from the Old English mædere and can refer to both the name for a plant (Rubia genus) and the red dyestuff obtained from its roots.
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An extended tabby is a tabby weave in which the warp (ends) and weft (picks) threads are normally used in groups of two or more. Sometimes, however, the warps are used in pairs while the weft threads are single, or the other way around.
With respect to sewing and decorative needlework, a tuck is a fold or pleat in a piece of material that is sewn in place. When these tucks are very narrow they are called pin tucks.