well as for ornament, and that the work is
often put upon objects that have to endure daily wear.

Open work is frequently mixed with other, and especially with white
embroidery, and such things as counterpanes may be seen arranged with a
chequering of alternate squares of embroidered linen and open work.

Fig. 121 shows in progress a simple method of filling a space, mainly
making use of the strengthening threads that have been left at regular
intervals over the cut part. The threads are covered with an overcast
stitch, and alternate squares of those that recur over the space are
decorated with a cross. This is made by the working thread, after
reaching the right point at the centre of an overcast line, being thrown
across the space and then twisted back over itself to the
starting-point, where it is in the right position for continuing the
overcast line. The crosses being put in at the same time as the
overcasting of the bars renders some forethought necessary to get each
in at just the right time and place.

[Illustration: Fig. 121.]

[Illustration: Fig. 122.]

Another kind of filling can be seen in progress in fig. 122. The
stitches used in it are overcast and buttonhole. With the help of this
last-mentioned stitch patterns of all kinds can be carried out, for each
succeeding row of the stitch can be worked into the heading of the last
row, and in this way it is possible to build up any required shape. This
figure is a working diagram of a piece of cut work of which the
completed square with its surrounding decoration can be seen in fig. 34.
After overcasting the raw edges a diagonal thread is thrown across (E D
on plan), upon which the pattern shall be built up; the thread is taken
once to and fro and then twisted back again for a third crossing.
Commence by overcasting the threads from point D, and upon reaching the
part where the pattern is widened out, change the stitch to an open
buttonholing (as shown on line B). It is worked openly in this way in
order to leave space for another row of the same kind of stitching to be
fitted in from the opposite side, which is the next thing to be done.
Then an outer row of buttonhole stitch is worked on each side of the
central bar and into the heading of the first row of stitching; this is
shown in progress where the needle is at work. The entire pattern is
carried out in this way, first laying down foundation threads in the
necessary places and then covering them up w