The button hole stitch is a great stitch for finishing off your applique.  Whether the applique has a raw edge or a finished edge– it doesn’t really matter.

This hand stitch is a great way to keep all the look edges together, and is easy to take with you and stitch on the go.

Materials Needed:

DMC floss (or your favorite applique thread)  In this video I used 2 strands of floss

Needle

Button Hole Stitch Tutorial:

1- start with your needle and thread coming out along the outside edge of the applique shape

2- take your needle down inside the applique –this will determine your stitch depth, so make this consistent with each stitch

3- wrap your thread around to the back of your needle — if you don’t do this your stitch will not stay and disappear to the backside!

4- pull your thread to tighten the stitch

5- repeat stitches 2-4 keeping them consistent in length and depth

Here’s a Video to help you see it in action:

Learn more about applique here!

Interested in other kinds of stitching around your applique?

Raw edge applique

Button hole stitch- by sewing machine

Other ways to finish your applique

Have any hints for using this stitch?