New Stitch: Tete de Boeuf

I don't know where I first saw the tete de boeuf stitch, but it was recent and I immediately wanted to learn how to do it. It's an adorable little stitch that combines two stitches, the fly stitch and the detached chain stitch, to make shape that looks like a bull. Tete de boeuf literally translates to "head of beef," but the stitch is referred to as bull stitch (which is hilarious if you say it too fast - I'm a child sometimes). Anyway, I love the stitch and I've been waiting to try it out. You can learn more about the stitch from the Royal School of Needlework's Stitch Bank (amazing resource for stitches and tutorials).

What's fun about the tete de boeuf stitch is how it makes different patterns depending on how you stitch it. Stitching it on a circle creates a cool design on its own, but then you start to see the patterns within the stitches. It can stand alone, little tiny bulls all over the fabric. It has a floral look even though it's not a flower on its own.

For today's piece, I wanted to showcase the tete de boeuf stitch in a number of ways, so I did a double circle, individual stitches, and a reverse circle (usually the chain stitch appears in the circle when the stitch is done in that pattern).