100 Stitches - scroll stitch

The scroll stitch is the latest stitch I have just learned. Such a beautiful stitch, 100 Stitches suggests using it for a border stitch and I agree - it would be gorgeous to use on a border...provided you have a lot of practice!

This disaster is my first attempt:


What's wrong? I'll explain at the end of this post. For now, here are the steps: first, come up through the fabric:

Next, make an easy loop to the right of where you came up, and insert the needle into the fabric inside the loop - if you look closely, you can see my faint pencil line indicating the stitching line. Notice (and remember) that the needle is going into the fabric perpendicular to the stitching line!

Make a small stitch and make sure the loop stays under your needle as you draw it through:

Now pull it all the way through and carefully guide (this is where the practice comes in) the thread to form this knot:

Now go through the fabric again at your preferred distance from the first stitch to form your next stitch. Just repeat the exact stitch:
And carefully pull the thread through:

Until you have a nice long line of stitches that would make a beautiful border!
I have concluded that in the disaster picture, I was following the steps from 100 Stitches and they instructed you to use a slanted stitch inside the loop - slanting to the left, not perpendicular to the stitching line. I did and I just couldn't form the knot evenly. Out of frustration, I did some internet research and at needlenthread.com found an extremely helpful tutorial for this stitch! Once I followed these instructions, I was able to make an even smooth line of scroll stitches!

I used six strands of dmc #907. This stitch is #32 and is in the looped stitches section of 100 Stitches.