Definition
A slip stitch is a nearly invisible hand stitch in which the thread travels hidden inside a fold and picks up only a thread or two of the fabric opposite.
The slip stitch is the hand stitch for finishing: hems, the inside edge of a waistband, lining hems, facings and binding turned to the inside. Because most of the thread is hidden inside a fold, it shows only as tiny dots on the outside.
How to sew a slip-stitched hem:
- Knot the thread and bring the needle out through the fold of the hem, hiding the knot inside.
- Directly opposite, pick up one or two threads of the garment fabric.
- Slide the needle back into the fold and run it along inside the fold for about 5 to 10 mm (1/4 to 3/8 in).
- Bring it out and repeat, keeping the stitches loose enough not to pucker the fabric.
Use a fine needle and a thread that matches the garment, not the hem. On thick fabrics, catch only part of the depth of the garment's threads, so nothing comes through to the right side.
The name is used loosely. Some instructions say slip stitch when they mean ladder stitch, used to close a gap between two folded edges; the two are related, since both run inside folds. The machine equivalent of a slip-stitched hem is the blind hem. Learn more in hand sewing stitches you will actually use.