Stitch Basics

I started my husband's landsknecht shirt about 2 weeks ago. I haven't worked on it religiously, but I doubt it would have taken more than a few days if I had. At any rate, half way into completing one of the gussets, I found a very basic guide on how to do sewing. I'd always thought you knotted the end of your thread when you sewed and apparently this isn't the case. According to "Home And School Sewing" by Frances Patton (1903), the only instances where you knot the thread is with basting, gathering, various stitches on flannels and sometimes with sewing buttons. I'd never considered this. Therefore, it made a heck of a lot more sense to me once I read how to deal with the loose ends on hemming without using knots. Needless to say, half of his shirt is sewn improperly, but from here on out, I'll use the techniques in the book and things will come out much smoother. :D

I'd never actually considered basting either, but it makes a heck of a lot more sense than using pins, which don't appear to have been as prevalent during period. At any rate, learning leads to confidence, which leads to more garb. I'm all for that!