Stitch guide · Texture and details

How to do a woven wheel stitch

A woven wheel, often called a spider web rose, starts with an odd number of straight-stitch spokes radiating from a center. A second thread then weaves over and under the spokes, round and round, without going through the fabric. It builds a raised, round flower. Use it for roses, buttons and berries.

Level Easy
Also called Spider web rose, Woven spider web

Use it in a pet portrait for…

Roses in a flower crown, or a wreath around a memorial portrait.
A raised rose tucked into the collar.
A round button on a little coat or a bandana.

How to do it, step by step

First stitch five spokes from the center out (always an odd number). With a second thread, come up at 1 near the center, between two spokes, and weave over one spoke and under the next, round and round, without going through the fabric. When the spokes are covered, go down at 2 at the edge of the weaving.

Odd numbers: come up from the back Even numbers: go down

Draw a small circle and mark an odd number of points around it, usually five.
Make the spokes: a straight stitch from the center out to each point. Finish the thread on the back.
With a new thread, come up near the center, between two spokes. A blunt tapestry needle makes the next part easier.
Weave over one spoke and under the next, round and round, without going through the fabric. With an odd number of spokes, the over-and-under changes on every round by itself.
Keep weaving outward. Ease the thread rather than pulling it tight, so the rose stays round.
When the spokes are covered, take the needle down under the edge of the weaving and finish on the back.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

The weaving doesn't alternate.: You have an even number of spokes, so the thread lies over the same spokes every round. Use five or seven.
A flat, pulled-in web.: Don't pull the weaving thread tight. Let it sit loosely around the spokes.
Spokes show at the edge.: Keep weaving until the spokes are covered, packing the rounds close together.
The needle splits the spokes.: Weave with a blunt tapestry needle, so it slides under the spokes instead of piercing them.

How many strands?

Two strands for the spokes, in the same color as the rose. Weave with more strands, or a thicker thread, for a plump rose: the more thread, the sooner the spokes are covered.

Embroidery floss comes as six thin strands twisted together. Cut a length from your fingertips to your elbow, pull out the strands you need one at a time, and lay them back together (DMC’s guide to stranded floss).

Questions people ask

How do you do a spider web rose?

Stitch five spokes from a center point, then weave a second thread over and under them, round and round from the middle out, until the spokes are covered. The thread only goes through the fabric at the start and the end.

How many spokes for a woven wheel?

An odd number, usually five, or seven for a bigger rose. With an odd number, the over-and-under weave alternates on every round.

Does the weaving thread go through the fabric?

Only at the start and the end. In between, it slides over and under the spokes on the front.

What's a whipped wheel?

A cousin of the woven wheel. Instead of weaving over and under, the thread goes back over each spoke and under the next two, which wraps every spoke and makes ribbed lines. It can use an odd or even number of spokes.

Sources: Royal School of Needlework Stitch Bank: Woven wheel · Royal School of Needlework Stitch Bank: Whipped wheel · Wandering Threads: Spider web stitch