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Techniques

How to Start and End Embroidery Thread Without Knots

You can start and end embroidery thread without knots by securing the tails under stitches on the back. To start, use a waste knot or an away knot that you cut off later, or, if you are stitching with an even number of strands, a loop start. To end, weave the remaining thread under four or five stitches on the back and trim. These methods keep the back flatter, stop lumps from showing when the piece is framed or pressed, and prevent knots from pulling through looser weaves.

A knot on the back of your work is not a crime, and plenty of people stitch happily with them. But knots can pop through looser fabric, make bumps that show when a finished piece is mounted flat, and catch on later stitches. On anything seen from both sides, like a bookmark, the back matters even more. Learning one or two knotless starts is worth the extra minute.

Three ways to start

Waste knot. Tie a knot at the end of the thread and take the needle down through the front of the fabric a couple of inches from where you will stitch, in the direction you are about to work. Stitch toward the knot so your first stitches cover the thread running along the back. When you reach the knot, snip it off from the front. The tail is now held by your stitches.
Away knot. Similar to a waste knot, but placed farther away, outside the area you will stitch. When you finish with that thread, cut the knot off, thread the loose tail onto a needle, and weave it in on the back.
Loop start. This works only with an even number of strands. Take one strand twice as long as you need, fold it in half, and thread the two cut ends through the needle. Bring the needle up from the back, leaving the loop hanging behind the fabric, make your first stitch down, and pass the needle through the loop. Pull gently and the thread is anchored with no knot and no tail.

How to end a thread

Stop when you have about four inches left, enough to thread comfortably. Turn the work over. Slide the needle under the backs of four or five nearby stitches, ideally the same color so nothing shadows through, then go back the other way under two or three stitches to lock it. Trim close but not flush. Avoid carrying a dark thread behind light fabric or an unstitched area, because it can show through on the front.

If you are ending in an area with only a few stitches, such as a single line of running stitch, weave through those stitches anyway and add one tiny stitch over an existing stitch on the back for extra hold.

Mistakes to avoid

Starting with too much thread. Anything much longer than your forearm frays before you use it up.
Trimming flush. A tail cut right at the stitch can work loose when the piece is washed or handled.
Weaving through the fabric instead of the stitches. Catching the fabric puckers the front.
Pulling hard on the first stitches over a waste-knot tail. Keep tension even so the covered tail lies flat.

Where to practice

The Basic Stitch Practice Sampler is a low-pressure place to try all three starts on simple rows. A narrow project like the Linen Bookmark Embroidery Kit makes a good next step: a bookmark is handled often and its back is easy to see, so tidy starts and finishes make a visible difference. Keep spare thread, for example from the Cotton Embroidery Thread Pack, for practice rows so you are not using up colors a kit needs.

How to check your work

Run your fingertips over the back. You should feel a mostly smooth surface without hard bumps. Tug a finished tail gently with the needle tip; it should not slide out. Then hold the piece up to a window and look at the front for dark shadows from carried threads or tails. If you find one, snip it on the back and re-weave both ends under nearby stitches.