Saddle stitch is a hand-sewing stitch commonly used in

bookbinding Bookbinding is the process of building a book, usually in codex format, from an ordered stack of paper sheets with one's hands and tools, or in modern publishing, by a series of automated processes. Firstly, one binds the sheets of papers alon ...

leathercraft Leather crafting or simply leathercraft is the practice of making leather into craft objects or works of art, using shaping techniques, coloring techniques or both. Techniques Dyeing The application of pigments carried by solvents or water i ...

, and

shoemaking Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or '' cordwainers'' (sometimes misidentified as cobblers, who repair shoes rather than make them). In the 18th cen ...

Structure

Saddle stitch uses two threads in alternating running stitches through a single line of holes. The holes may be created by the sewing needles themselves in lighter materials, or by an awl,

pricking iron In leathercraft, a pricking iron is a handheld tool resembling a fork that is used to create dimples in leather a fixed distance apart that can then be pierced with an awl and stitched. A pricking iron is different from a leather chisel in that ...

, or stitching iron in thicker materials, such as

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning (leather), tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffal ...

. Compared to the more common

lockstitch A lockstitch is the most common mechanical stitch (textile arts), stitch made by a sewing machine. The term "single needle stitching", often found on dress shirt labels, refers to lockstitch. Structure The lockstitch uses two Thread (yarn), th ...

often sewn by machine, breaking one side of a saddle stitch loosens only one side of the stitch, rather than several surrounding stitches on both sides.

Standardization

One variant of the saddle stitch, with threads running parallel, rather than twisting, is designated stitch number 201 by ISO 4915:1991.

Notes

References

* * * {{cite book, last=Stohlman, first=Al, date=1976, title=The Art of Hand Sewing Leather, publisher=Tandy Leather Co., isbn=9781892214911 Crafts Sewing stitches