December 2009 Chilly Hollow Newsletter Article

It is almost Christmas as I write this, so I am sending holiday greetings and hopes for a good New Year for all stitchers to everybody.

It seems a good time to go look at beautiful goldwork, right? Here's Sandy Vass's blog. Ever wondered how stumpwork flower petals were made? Or how to do invisible couching? Or how circular or nue patterns are done? The answers are here. Just browse a bit and admire her lovely stitching.
http://goldnstitches.typepad.com/gold-n-stitches/

Want to see some fabulous Japanese embroidery? Visit with Jane in England at her blog to see her latest project, her own design of a little Japanese box called an inro.
http://nuido.blogspot.com/2009/12/je-challenge-finished.html

How about various colorways of Laura Perin's charted designs? She has showcased several wonderful pieces on her blog. Visit her website (second link) to see her original colors and then dream up your own favorites to try.
http://two-handedstitcher.blogspot.com/2009/12/show-tell-time.html

http://laurajperindesigns.tripod.com/index.htm

Finally, a blogger in Maryland visited the designer Ruth Schmuff's store and takes us along in photographs and words. What a wonderful visit!
http://plays-with-needles.blogspot.com/2009/12/bedecked-and-beadazzled.html

Have fun browsing and relaxing over the holidays.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow

The Light Coverage Stitching Imperatives

Yesterday's posting showing off two alternate "looks" for O'jishi's jawline brought many interesting comments.  If you haven't read them yet, go back to the previous posting and click on Comments.  You'll find it at the very end of the article after my signature line in tiny tan printing.  Click on "5 Comments" --or however many there happen to be when you arrive--and you'll see what folks said.

After reading them, I decided to use all gold threads in the balloon stitch on O'jishi's jaw.  Last night I ripped out the right side of his face and started re-stitching it in balloon stitches.  When I finish that, I'll post another photograph and talk a bit about adding more of the hot coral, cream and deep chocolate brown colors back into my stitched version of the Noh lion mask.

For today, I wanted to mention something technical about light coverage stitching that a photo from yesterday showed particularly well.  As you know, my stitching style tends toward fancy stitches on painted canvas done in such a way that you can see some of the painted canvas through the threads.  Anyone who stitches a needlepoint canvas this way needs to keep in mind three things:  the correct way to start and stop a thread for this style of stitching, that it is important to not twist threads during stitching, and the importance of using a laying tool.  The photo above illustrates this beautifully.

As you know, when I use a stitch that I can't find charted online, I stitch an example of it on 10 count black plastic canvas in thin, brightly colored threads so you can see how the stitch is done.  Doing this means I constantly have twisted threads since I am using too little thread for the canvas count.  Folks doing light coverage stitches face the same problem.  If you look at the photo, you can see the twisted reddish orange thread at the bottom where my anchored beginning thread started the stitch.  See how it is twisted back toward where the starting thread is anchored?  To prevent this, use a Locking L stitch or pin stitch located in an area you plan to cover with stitches.  Also use the same technique to end off a thread or you will also see it pulled off to the side where it was anchored in the traditional way by running the tail end of the thread under stitches on the back side.

You probably should also always stitch so that you have the maximum amount of coverage of thread on the back side.  You may have heard about Yankee stitching where you do a long stitch from top to bottom, then start the next stitch at the bottom and go to the top.  Alternating the beginning stitch this way saves thread (Yankeees are rumored to be thrifty!) as there isn't much on the back side.  However, it adds maximum twist to the threads as they are pulled to the side.  When you are doing light coverage stitching, you need to avoid this as much as possible.

You also need to use a laying tool of some sort to keep the threads as straight as possible in the needle.  I'm using two plies of silk in my current piece and also used two plies of red cotton thread above.  You can see how the plies get turned and overlap instead of laying parallel on the plastic canvas.  The same thing happens on NP canvas.  It's just that you don't notice this much when you are fully covering the canvas with threads.  When you aren't covering the canvas fully, this is very obvious.

Light coverage stitching means you have to take special care with the technical aspects of your stitching.  Even if you never stitch this way, seeing clearly what happens is important.  It is happening to you regular stitching folks, too--it is just harder to see when there is a lot more thread on top of your canvases.

Ok, end of lecture.  I'll be back tomorrow with progress on O'jishi--promise!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow