Embroidery Is A Craft For All Seasons

Perhaps the most important function of  the craft of embroidery work today is to provide relaxation and the opportunity to exercise one’s imagination.  The result, however, should also be attractive and durable.  The materials and stitches must therefore be wisely chosen, and the work itself carefully prepared and carried out.

The fabric and the threads must be of good quality and compatible. The thread must be able to slip easily through the cloth, and be able to form the texture the crafter has in mind.  The needle must be of the right size for the fabric and thread to be used.

For traced embroidery, use a sewing needle or a darning needle with a point.  A tapestry needle, without a point, is better for canvas or counted thread work on coarser material.  A needle very slightly coarser than a double thickness of the thread to be used in it will be the easiest to work with.

Scissors are important for this craft. They should be small, sharp, and pointed.  A stiletto is necessary for work in which threads are forced aside to form eyelets.

When choosing fabric for counted thread embroidery, check the number of threads needed per motif, so that the finished work will be the intended size. For some kinds of work it is also important that the warp and the weft have an equal number of threads per square inch, that is, an inch measured in either direction should contain the same number of threads, otherwise a pattern that is supposed to have the same dimension vertically and horizontally will be distorted.

For drawn thread and drawn fabric work, material woven of dyed yarn is best: if it is woven of white yarn and then dyed, the threads will not always be completely even in color throughout.  Make sure of this by pulling a few threads from the cut edge.

Fabric to be used in appliqué, or any kind of work in which material is pieced together, should be pre-shrunk and checked for color-fastness.

Square or graph paper is very useful if a motif is to be enlarged or reduced. 
Embroidery to be worked over counted threads follows a pattern drawn on graph paper.  It is helpful to mark the center line and the boundaries of important sections on the grid.

For embroidery on closely woven fabric, the design is drafted on transparent paper.  There are various methods of transferring it to the fabric. For instance, carbon paper can be laid between the drawing and the fabric, after which the design is transferred by tracing firmly with a hard pencil.  It is also possible to rub the reverse of the drawing with a soft pencil, as a substitute for carbon paper.  In either case, the fabric must be held smooth and taut and the pattern fastened down.  A firm base much be used, and care must be taken not to cause smudging by pressure of the hands.

A better method, but rather more elaborate, is to prick out the lines of the pattern with a needle or a perforating wheel, using a soft underlay. Spread the fabric over a layer of paper.  Place the pricked out pattern on top. Hold one side of the form with weights or any heavy objects adhesive tape is also a possibility. Moisten a piece of rolled up felt or foam rubber with oil paint, thinned down with paint thinners or turpentine. Use blue on a pale fabric, white on a dark, and press the color gently through the holes. The craft pattern paper can be raised carefully now and then to see whether the design is coming through clearly.  If not, another layer of color can be pressed through.  If dray powdered color is used, the lines much be worked over with a pencil. Not all fabrics take color equally well, so it is wise to experiment beforehand on a scrap of the material.

For fine work, it is well to use a frame to avoid puckering in this craft.  Circular frames consist of two rings that fit into each other. The inner ring is laid under the fabric, the outer ring on top.  The fabric is stretched and held firmly between the rings by means of screws. Usually this type of frame is small enough to be held by the thumb above and the fingers below.  As well as holding the frame firm, this hand raises the fabric just enough to allow the free and to take the needle down and up through it. There are larger rectangular frames, which hold the fabric stretched by means of wooden rollers.This kind of frame needs to be supported against the edge of a table, or a chair back, since the wok is done with one hand above and the other below the fabric.

Never start with a knot.  Some stitches, for example, the Chain stitch, the Buttonhole Stitch, the Feather Stitch, call for a special method of starting a new thread.  The last stitch made with the old thread is not drawn tight until the newly fastened thread is taken upwards into the loop and completed.  In this craft there are many types of stitches and many books and patterns to help one create their masterpiece.

About the Author

Linda McRae is a retired Postmaster, who has a business at home. She has written many articles about the loves of her life, while working from home. This one being about her hobby of crafting, you can find some beautiful projects by visiting this website, <a href=”http://www.craftsrus.info”>Make Easy Craft Projects.</a>