How do you hand-sew a gathering stitch?

I want to make a choker necklace with a fabric flower and ribbon. In order for me to make a fabric flower for the necklace, I have to use a gathering stitch. I don't know how to do this. Can somebody give me some easy directons to do the gathering stitch by hand?

How do you hand-sew a gathering stitch?
A gather stitch is just a loose running stitch, but it is doubled. I'll try representing it here. = = = = = = = = = The lines represent the surface exposed threads, and the spaces represent where the thread is exposed on the back side of the fabric. The stitches should be 1/8 to 1/4 inch apart evenly front and back of the fabric. Allow a couple of inches of thread to protrude at the beginning and end of the stitches. To gather the fabric hold the threads on one end while pulling the threads from the other end. The fabric should begin to bunch, but you can slide it along the threads to gather it evenly. You may prefer to make a gather using only one thread since the ribbon is so narrow.
Reply:Using needle and thread start at one end of what you want to gather, space each stitch about 1/4 to 3/8 long stitches. The thread on the needle needs to be longer than length of what you are gathering. Start at one end with your stitching, pulling the length of thread though after every 4 or 5 stitches, but you will need to leave enough thread at each end so that you can get hold of the thread.



Stitch two rows about 1/4 in. apart. When you have finished stitching hold the string at one end and start pushing the fabric back on it's self, You can either/or push fabric or pull string or both til you get the size you want, tie a knot in the thread at both ends so that the length won't change.



Hope this helped.



I love the creative nature in man kind.
Reply:For a small project, like a fabric flower or yo-yo, you only need one line of stitching. Be sure to put a knot at one end.

I use a running stitch. Larger stitches like 1/4" to 3/8" tend to work better than smaller stitches. When you've run the thread from one end to the other, gently pull the fabric like a curtain on the thread. Key word is gentle!

Also, I have found that hand quilting thread works extremely well when gathering by hand. It is coated so the thread pulls smoothly through the fabric and vice-versa.