Welcome to the next article on Flossing: Vs and Chevrons!

I’m going to jump right into the next edition, so if you’re wondering what type of floss you should use, or other basic questions, please refer to the first article in this little series, Flossing Xs and Crossovers.

This article is going to talk about Vs and Chevrons. Vs are an integral stitch type in corset flossing, and they’re a frequent building block in complex designs. However, they look beautiful just on their own, as well! When I refer to chevrons, I’m referring to several Vs on top of each other, forming a stack.

The Symington Sampler provides us with many samples that incorporate the Vs and chevrons.

The stitch starts by securing the thread (via knot or several stitches in place), then bringing it from the back to the front in the centre of the boning channel, at the bottom (or top) of the boning. Bring across to the right hand side of the channel, counting up three machine stitches, and stitch from the front to back to form one stitch (FIGURE 1). Bring the thread across the back of the channel, and bring it though the fabric at the same height as the top of the stitch on the other side of the channel (three stitches from the bottom of the first stitch). Bring the thread across to the centre bottom, just beside the first stitch, and pull through to the back (FIGURE 2).

FIGURE 1 FIGURE 2

This is the V at its simplest. These can be stacked, or repeated close together, to create effects, or spaced out to create motifs.

NOTE: If you’re looking closely at this photo and have an eye for detail, you can see that these two sides are not lined up exactly, which makes the V appear slightly off-kilter. This is because I counted stitches, rather than measuring specific stitch height in millimetres. I find this easiest for describing the stitches, so will be counting stitches in this article, as I find that using a hem gauge to measure each stitch takes me much longer to work each stitch.

A hem gauge can be used for more precise measurements, once you’ve gotten the hang of the motif. You can either measure each stitch specifically by height (FIGURE 3), or lay the hem gauge or other straight ruler across the top or bottom of a row of motifs to match them up (FIGURE 4).

FIGURE 3 FIGURE 4

I suggest that you experiment with which way works best for you – and keep in mind that on a corset resplendent with flossing, a viewer is very unlikely to notice that one side of a single V motif is slightly off-kilter!

On its own, a single V is very plain, but can still be (technically) a functional method of holding boning (a stitch to keep in mind for the back of a corset, where you may want it to be flossed, but don’t want to spend much time!)

You can also create a row of Vs, such as in Figure 5, which is inspired by the background of this small sample from the Symington Sampler (FIGURE 6). Although the sampler motifs are much more complex, I think this would lovely on the back of a corset with row of boning channels.

FIGURE 5 FIGURE 6

Copying the motif more closely, you can add flipped Vs over each channel. Doing this in one colour creates two Xs in each channel, (FIGURE 7), while alternating emphasizes the Vs. Pull the thread through at the far right of the channel, at the same height as the bottom of the Vs. Insert needle into the middle of the channel at the same height as the tops of the Vs (FIGURE 8) and point the needle straight down to exit the channel to the back (FIGURE 9, showing back). Poke the needle through to the front on the bottom left of the channel, crossing to the top centre to finish the stitch. Again, point the needle straight down again to exit the channel at the back (FIGURE 10). This will help secure the bone in the channel, as there are now four threads holding it in place, instead of two with a basic chevron. Repeat this sequence of stitches on the channel to the right or left (depending which direction you choose to work in), bringing the needle into the new channel just on the edge of the machine stitching. The alternating colours of chevrons motif is completed with the same sequence of stitching, using a different colour of thread.

FIGURE 7 FIGURE 8 FIGURE 9 FIGURE 10

Sample 15 from the Sympington Sampler (FIGURE 11) is a fairly simple motif that you can use to practice “stacking” the Vs to create chevrons. Stitches cover the centre and edges, so the design lends itself to hiding the uneven stitches you might have when you start out flossing as a beginner.

FIGURE 11

To recreate Sample 15, start with the basic V at the base or top of the bone that as 3 machine stitches tall, as in Figure 12 (or keep in mind my note from Article 1, that the flossing can be completely decorative and be positioned anywhere on the channel or the corset). Bring the thread out on the right side, just inside the machine stitching line. I’m spacing the Vs ½ machine stitch apart on each side when using two threads of silk floss – you’ll need to experiment with your materials to see what spacing works for you to create a regular row of Vs without gaps of fabric showing through. Stitch into the base of the V, sliding the needle over the bone to the left side to emerge ½ stitch above the top of the bottom of the left V (FIGURE 13). Insert the needle into the centre to create a second V that has centre stitches at the same height, pushing the needle to the right side to emerge ready to complete the next V in the stack (FIGURE 14). Continue pushing the needle from the centre to the edge on each side, ensuring that the centres of the Vs match up in pairs. When you have enough Vs to create a high enough motif (five Vs in this case), insert the needle straight down into the channel to emerge at the bottom back of the corset or sampler (FIGURE 15) This adds one more thread to keep the bone in place, while getting the thread to the back of the corset.

FIGURE 12 FIGURE 13 FIGURE 14 FIGURE 15

Next, you’ll add the “edge” to the chevron, along with the little flower-esque flourish. Pull the thread through at the top of the V at the base, on the left side, completing the stitch at the top of the left V (FIGURE 16). Pull the thread through about 2-3mm to the left of the adjoining channel, slightly up and to the left of the left point of the chevron (FIGURE 17). Make a small stitch with the needle going into the point of the chevron – I try to have this stitch be on the same angle as the Vs. Create two other small stitches, once along the stitching line, and one at about a 30 degree or shallower angle (FIGURE 18). The original Symington Sampler 15 has the middle stitch slightly longer, but I preferred these to be all similar height. Create another little flower on the right side of the channel.

FIGURE 16 FIGURE 17 FIGURE 18

The next step is to complete the same motif, but flipped upside down. Don’t match up the points of the Vs, though – leave a thread or so of space between the bases of the Vs so that there’s room for the contrast colour stitches that come shortly (FIGURE 19). Figure 20 shows the completed “mirror” motif.

FIGURE 19 FIGURE 20

Choose your second colour, and pull the thread through to the front where the two Vs meet. The stitch should end halfway up the V at the top of the stack. Slide the needle through to the centre of the channel, at approximately the height of the top of the chevrons (FIGURE 21). Back stitch, with the needle emerging to the left at the same height of the stitch you’re completing (FIGURE 22). Backstitch to complete the left side of this “flower,” with the needle going through the nexus of it to emerge on the right at the same height of the top of the other two petals (FIGURE 23). Insert the needle into the nexus of the flower, emerging above the flower the same height as the first flower (about 2mm in the case of this sampler). Repeat the same steps to create another flower directly above the first. When you’re completing the final right stitch, push the needle to the bottom of the first flower. Pull the needle through, and complete a stitch on the far right of the channel, at the same height as the base of the top chevron (FIGURE 24). Pull the needle to the front of the fabric on the left at the same height, completing the stitch at the base of the flower. Push the needle vertically through the boning channel, down to emerge at the base of the V, on the back of the fabric (FIGURE 25).

FIGURE 21 FIGURE 22 FIGURE 23 FIGURE 24 FIGURE 25

Repeat this sequence up on bottom of the motif, mirroring the stitches. You have a complete motif! (FIGURE 26)

FIGURE 26

The wonderful thing about more complex designs like these is that you can use portions of the design in other parts of the corset, and they’ll tie together beautifully. You can do the full motif on the front boning channels at the bust, and create a simple portion of it for the back channels or other less-seen areas. The simple motif in Figure 27 looks elegant, but takes less than five minutes to complete, which is much more manageable time frame to do a corset resplendent with boning!

FIGURE 27

Another variant of this motif is the Sample 8 from the Symington Sampler (FIGURE 28). You can see how edging the chevrons in another complementary colour drastically changes the look of the design. I’ve recreated the motif in Figure 29, changing the centre stitches slightly. The original Sample 8 makes twenty stitches in a very tight space – I chose to just mimic this effect of a crossed-over circle. I did this by stitching a "+" in the contrasting colour, with four individual stitches in each direction (FIGURE 30). I used the main yellow thread and wound the thread under the stitches to fill in a circle (FIGURE 31), so it appears almost like the thread is couched.

FIGURE 28 FIGURE 29 FIGURE 30 FIGURE 31

Another design that I love form the Symington Sampler is motif 26 (FIGURE 32), which uses chevrons and Vs together, in contrasting colours, in opposing directions. This design inspires me to see how the same basic stitches can be placed differently to create completely different looks. To recreate this stitch, create a chevron consisting of four Vs – I put this at the base of the boning, and the Vs are about four machine stitches high. (I also flipped the design upside down from how it shows in the original sampler photos, as I prefer the bases of chevrons to be at the bottom of the bone.) When completing the last stitch of the top V, push the needle through to the centre of the channel, in line with the top points of the V (FIGURE 33). Start your second chevron from this spot, and then until you have three chevrons (FIGURE 34). The three chevrons are overlaid with the geometric flowers that are created using the same the steps shown above in Figures 21- 24. Create a small flower at the bottom with the nexus of the petals at the base of the chevron (FIGURE 35). Pull the thread to the right side of the fabric through the nexus of the bottom flower, at the base of the chevron. Stitch up to 2mm or so above the valley of the chevron, and create the next larger flower using this point in the valley of the chevron as the nexus of the stitch, and extending the “petals” to the same level as the pointed base of the chevron (FIGURE 36). Continue this pattern on each chevron, so that you have six flowers (FIGURE 37). Complete the motif with one stitch extending about 2mm beyond the top of the first chevron (FIGURE 38). Voila!

FIGURE 32 FIGURE 33 FIGURE 34 FIGURE 35 FIGURE 36 FIGURE 37 FIGURE 38

The last motif I want to outline uses only Vs and flowers (which are really a V with another stitch in it!). This design from the Symington Sampler doesn’t have a number written beside it, but is shown here as Figure 39. This design uses such basic stitches, but looks unlike the typical Victorian flossing – to my eye, at least!

FIGURE 39

Start with a basic V at the base of the bone, about 2.5-3 machine stitches high. Bring the thread out at the top right of the V, inserting it in the centre approx. 1-2mm below the height of the tops of the V (FIGURE 40). Stitch to create a very shallow V, creating a quadrilateral, and then bisect this shape down the centre (FIGURE 41). Add two stitches coming from the base of the V, one on each side of the centre line, about half the height of the triangle (FIGURE 42). I created three of these leaf shapes using the same stitches, stacked on top of each other to mimic the leaves of a plant (FIGURE 43). Add a vertical stitch 5mm high, coming from the valley of the top V. Next, create two stitches coming out of the top of this vertical stitch, that are a 30-45 degree angle to each other, that extend slightly past the edge of the boning channel (FIGURE 44). Connect the ends of these two stitches with two stitches that are a very shallow V (like a sideways version of the leaves below!). Create another stitch to connect the valleys of these two Vs (FIGURE 45). You’ve just created one petal! You can add two small stitches in the petals, as in the leaves, if your boning channel is wide enough to allow this without looking cramped. I continued with two more petals, creating a design shown in Figure 46 that appears a little more like a clover leaf than a flower. I really want to emphasize that it’s ok to alter and adapt the designs that inspire you! And as with the Symington 15 sample, you can also adapt this to simpler motifs to use on some boning channels, like in Figure 47.

FIGURE 40 FIGURE 41 FIGURE 42 FIGURE 43 FIGURE 44 FIGURE 45 FIGURE 46 FIGURE 47

That concludes this instalment of step-by-step flossing tutorials. I’d love to hear from you in the comments below – have you tried any of the designs I’ve described in the past two articles? Do you have any questions about the instructions? Are there any steps that are unclear? Do you have any requests for a step-by-step of any particular designs from the sampler, or types of design? Please let me and Foundations Revealed know by leaving comments below!

The next instalment will look at fan motifs, which are the style that has many threads coming from the same nexus. This was briefly touched on in this article, where the Vs intersect, but these step-by-steps will feature styles that focus on this technique.