How To: Japanese Ribbon Stitch for flowers on needlepoint projects

Learn how to complete the beautiful Japanese ribbon stitch to create delicate flower buds on your needlepoint canvas! 🌸 In this tutorial, Melissa MacLeod of The Wool & The Floss shows you how to use a ribbon-laying tool, chenille needles, and silk ribbon for the perfect stitch. She demonstrates step-by-step techniques to keep your loops intact and your petals looking flawless. Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more needlepoint tips and tricks! 🧵✨

Coco the Chicken Canvas: https://woolfloss.com/products/coco-the-chicken
Ribbon laying tool: https://woolfloss.com/products/handcrafted-wood-ribbon-laying-tool

TRANSCRIPT:

Hello, stitchers! Today, we are here to talk about how to complete this Japanese ribbon stitch that has been used for these flower buds on my friend Coco the chicken.

One thing you'll be utilizing is a ribbon-laying tool. You could also use another needle or a trolley needle, which also works really well. But this is our Wool & The Floss exclusive colorway ribbon tool.

This tool is made of metal, of course, and it has a very blunt end so it won’t snag your silk ribbon, which you’ll be using to make the flowers.

In this case, your ribbon work will be a little easier if you use chenille needles. Chenille needles have a very sharp point, allowing them to pierce your ribbon better than a standard tapestry needle.

You will bury your ribbon well in the back of your canvas, but for the purposes of this demo, I’m just going to use a little waste knot here.

Now, you're going to come up through your canvas and lay your ribbon the length of your petal. Then, you're going to pierce that ribbon with your chenille needle and pull it through.

(I'm pausing because I should have had this in my other hand.)

You're going to hold this off and let the ribbon-laying tool hold onto that little loop. Then, slide it out really carefully and move on to your next petal.

One thing I will tell you to be wary of: if I pull this too tightly, you're going to lose that little loop. Sometimes, I hold it down with my other finger until my thread is all the way up.

Again, you’re going to lay the ribbon down the length of your petal, pierce your thread, pull it through, and use your laying tool to leave yourself just that little loop. And you’re good to go!

That will create these cute little floral buds that you see up top.