100 Stitches - Leaf Stitch

It's time for another stitch from my 100 Stitches journey!  This beautiful stitch is appropriately named the leaf stitch:

How perfect for a couple of autumn leaves! You also might notice some french knots :

To stitch this, 100 Stitches did their demonstration using a leaf shape, so I used one from my Autumn embroidery pattern packet and transferred it to my fabric.  I didn't transfer the little accent "leaf vein" lines, just the main center line.  That center line is important for this stitch.

For my demonstration I am using this gorgeous green pearl cotton floss.  The DMC number is 988:

This stitch seems to be all about sloping stitches criss-crossing over a center area.  I just have a single center line, but 100 Stitches had double lines spaced a bit apart to indicate that you are not stitching on a center line, but to either side of it.  The first step is to bring the floss up through the fabric on the left hand side of your center line:

pull the foss all the way through and take a sloping stitch to the opposite side of your leaf. 

Pull the floss all the way through:

Next, come back up through the fabric on the right hand side of your center line:

Take a sloping stitch to the opposite side of the leaf.  Notice, the floss is going over the first stitch:

Pull all the way through and this will form an x:

Come back up through the fabric just like your first stitch,  on the left hand side of the center line :

and make a sloping stitch across to the opposite side of the leaf.  Notice, this stitch is going over the second sloping stitch:

Pull all the way through and then come back up through the fabric on the right hand side of the center line:

Make your sloping stitch and then come back up through the fabric on the left hand side of the center line.  You are just alternating stitches on each side:

stitch back and forth until you are at the leaf tip:

This is an easy stitch to do

and leaves ;) a  nice, neat underside:

Now to finish this stitch, 100 Stitches suggested that you outline your leaf with either the stem stitch or the chain stitch.  I chose the stem stitch:

I used the back stitch for the stem.  I think it gives this leaf a beautiful finish!

This stitch is #13 and is in the flat stitches category of 100 Stitches.