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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) icon
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork)

Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) main image

This version of tent stitch is worked by threading a bead onto the working thread before making each stitch; once a length has been worked, the thread is taken through the beads to hold them firmly together.  The beads sit.  Tent stitch is one of the simplest canvaswork stitches: it is worked in a diagonal direction normally across one intersection of canvas. (This version is most similar to continental tent stitch as it has a long diagonal stitch on the reverse of the fabric.) 

For more information about this stitch see the entry for tent stitch.

The term ‘trammed’ is normally used to mean a long thread which is laid along the weave of the canvas to provide a small amount of padding and create more effective coverage.

add_circleMy Stitches
Raised Embellishment Filling Shading Bead Embroidery Counted Thread Canvaswork Continental tent stitch

Further Reading

RSN Essential Stitch Guides: Bead Embroidery by Shelley Cox
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Tent Stitch - Trammed (Beadwork) is generously sponsored by the San Diego American Needlepoint Guild.

Method

When working tent stitch in beadwork it is important to note that the rows are always worked from left to right and usually from top to bottom.
When worked on mono canvas, work a tent stitch over one thread. If working on evenweave or linen fabric, work over two threads, as shown below in the step-by-step example.
When tramming evenweave, linen or a double canvas (known sometimes as Penelope), you can bring the needle up through the fabric between the threads at the end of the row and go back down between the threads at the beginning of the row, so that it looks neater.

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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 1 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 1 photograph
1

Start with a waste knot at one end of your design line. Work at least three small back stitches to secure the thread along the line back to the beginning. Bring your needle up and thread your first bead. Work a tent stitch over two intersections (one intersection for mono canvas) diagonally left and below.

Back stitch
2
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 2 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 2 photograph
2

Pull the thread through and bring it up two holes to the right of the starting point. Pick up another bead and take the needle down across two intersections, as before.

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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 3 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 3 photograph
3

Continue until the end of the line, then trim away the waste knot with embroidery scissors.

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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 4 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 4 photograph
4

Bring the needle up through the top right hole that is holding the final bead. (You could bring the needle up between the two fabric threads for a neater finish.)

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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 5 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 5 photograph
5

Take the needle straight through the holes in all of the beads and pull it through.

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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 6 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 6 photograph
6

Take the needle down through the lower left hole that is holding the first bead. (You could take down the needle between the two fabric threads for a neater finish.)

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Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 7 illustration
Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork) method stage 7 photograph
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Repeat the process for any further rows. To finish your thread, turn over and darn through the stitches on the reverse, knotting at least three times.

Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork)

Structure of stitch

Raised

Common uses

Victorian beadwork, particularly Berlin woolwork, commonly involved attaching beads with a tent stitch in pictorial designs, and this stitch is a fundamental part of adding beadwork to counted-thread fabrics.

Embellishment Filling Shading

Embroidery Techniques

Bead Embroidery Counted Thread Canvaswork

Variant Stitches

Continental tent stitch

Identifying Tent stitch - trammed (beadwork)

​Tent stitch - trammed will be identifiable as a row of beads that have been attached to the base fabric using tent stitch.

References

  • Various Authors, The Royal School of Needlework Book of Embroidery (2018) , p.365
  • Shelley Cox, RSN Essential Stitch Guides: Bead Embroidery (2013)