Puncetto Valsesiano, Part 2 – The Stitch

In my last posting on the subject, I gave a short introduction to Puncetto Valsesiano.

In this posting I will show you how to make the basic stitch.

Puncetto Valsesiano is worked back and forth in rows (or rounds, if you are making a circular doily or working around the outside of a square piece). The work is never turned over and the same side always faces you. The needle is held pointing away from you.

Puncetto Valsesiano is not worked on the edge of a piece of fabric unless you are working an edging. Motifs and doilies usually are started with a loop of thread, but it is easier to show the back-and-forth movement of the stitches with a firm base, so I used a folded piece of fabric. (In the next lesson I will show you how to make a “ladder” base, which is used for starting square and rectangular motifs.)

Materials

• Crochet thread. Any smooth, mercerized cotton thread suitable for crochet can be used. Perle 8 is fine for a beginner. Later you may want to try something finer like size 30 or 50.
• Needle. I used a needle with a sharp point in the photos below because I was working through the edge of fabric, but I recommend a fine, blunt tapestry needle. Size 26 would work well. Just make sure that the size of the needle is proportionate to the weight of your thread. Don’t try to force a thick needle through fine stitches.

Working Left to Right

1. Thread a needle and hold the tail on the fabric, near the edge.

2. Insert the needle, point facing away from you, through the edge of the fabric. Note that the thread that you are holding with your left thumb passes in front of the needle.

3. Wrap the thread behind the needle, from right to left, forming a loop.

4. Grasp the needle with your right hand and draw it through the loop.

5. Carefully draw the needle through the loop and tighten the knot. This forms the first stitch or knot.

6. Insert the needle to the right of the first stitch.

7. Loop the thread around the needle again, left to right, then behind the needle and right to left.

Repeat until you have a row of stitches. Now look carefully at the stitches. You will see loops of thread between each knot. These loops are used for working the next row of knots.

Working Right to Left:

These instructions presume that you have already worked one row from left to right. Do not turn the work.

1. Insert the needle under the first loop.

2. Wrap the thread in front of the needle, from right to left, and then behind the needle, from left to right, so that it forms a loop.

3. Grasp the needle with the right hand, draw the needle through the loop, and tighten the knot.

4. Insert the needle under the next loop of the previous row, wrap the thread around the needle, and draw the needle through the loop to form the stitch.

That is how you work horizontal rows in Puncetto Valsesiano. This stitch is also used for filling in the solid squares and pyramids. Try not to work it too tightly or you will end up with a very stiff, dense lace.

• Puncetto Valsesiano, Part 1 – Introduction
• Puncetto Valsesiano: Part 3 – Foundation Thread