Learn The Whipped Back Stitch – It’s Very Simple But Looks Fancy!

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to do the whipped back stitch, a variation of the basic back stitch that can be used to add some extra color and decoration to any embroidery.

This stitch looks very similar to a stem stitch. In fact, it’s a great alternative to the stem stitch when you are stitching really tight or small curves, as it’s easier to achieve smooth curves.

You can also use it for embroidering letters, outlining shapes, decorative borders, and more. Use one color or choose a contrasting color to make it look striped.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you choose to purchase an item.

For this tutorial, I am using Zollie’s Array yarn. I highly recommend you check it out if you enjoy stitching with wool yarn. It’s the same weight as about 4 strands of embroidery floss, making it a great option for this stitch. However, any embroidery thread will work to follow along!

Whipped Back Stitch Tutorial

Make A Back Stitch

First, make a line of back stitches using one color.

Step 1: Come up along a marked line with needle and thread. Make a stitch along the line.

Step 2: Come up along the line a stitch length ahead.

Step 3: Make a stitch backwards, ending at the top of the first stitch.

Repeat steps 2 and 3 the desired length.

Whipping The Stitch

Cut a new strand of embroidery thread. You can use the same color or choose a second color.

Come up directly beside the top of the line of back stitches with your needle and thread.

Place your needle under the first back stitch and pull the working thread through. (As a right handed person, I find it easiest to do this from right to left when I’m working along a vertical line, but either way works. The important thing is to stick to one side once you start.)

Place your needle under the next back stitch, making sure the needle is under the working thread.

Repeat until you’ve gone under all of the back stitches.

To end this stitch, place the needle at the very bottom of the last back stitch.

How To Stitch Along Curves

This stitch can be a little bit confusing when you have lots of twists and turns. The general rule of thumb is to stick to one side when whipping the stitches. This will ensure that the second piece of thread twists and lays properly.

• For a squiggly line, start from one side of the back stitch (left or right, or top to bottom depending on the line’s orientation) and stick to it along the entire line.
• For circles and spirals, if you began whipping the stitches starting along the inside of the shape, you should stick to whipping the stitch from the inside around the entire shape.

Keep your foundational back stitches short and even to prevent them from becoming jagged along the curves.

Begin whipping the stitch from one side. For this example, the needle is placed along the inside of the curve.

You may find it helpful to turn / flip your work around as you go.

I hope you found this tutorial helpful! Take a look at even more embroidery stitch tutorials.

Amanda

Amanda is a hand embroidery teacher and artist. With over 15 years of experience in the craft industry and embroidery, she owns and runs Crewel Ghoul, sharing accessible tutorials and patterns to help inspire fellow crafters to get creative. In addition to running this website, she teaches on Skillshare and Youtube.