I have so many different colours and never knew what to do with them. Thank you for all the tips i will now dig them out of my sewing box and give it a try :)
By variegated, Im assuming you mean the over-dyed. I use that a lot and havent noticed any real striping. I always complete each stitch before moving on to the next one, and the shades develop a subtle change. However, I like that idea of jumping around. Thanks for the tip, Lucy.
Oh, I didnt know the term over-dyed showed up in cross stitch. Thats textile terminology.
Variegated is any thread, regardless of dye method, where the thread color changes in a gradual gradi
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Post time 2012-4-24 09:05
By variegated, Im assuming you mean the over-dyed. I use that a lot and havent noticed any real ...
Oh, I didnt know the term over-dyed showed up in cross stitch. :o Thats textile terminology.
Variegated is any thread, regardless of dye method, where the thread color changes in a gradual gradient between two or more color values. It can be overdyed, space dyed, or any other method that doesnt produce a solid color along the whole line.
Just a suggestion for those who are not so familiar with variegated threads. DMC has a line of them you may want to try. They are fairly inexpensive compared to many others. They usually run about $1 per skein compared to the standard floss at .39/skein (where I live). Silks like Caron and Gloriana generally range from $5-$8 per skein. Gentle Arts Sampler Threads, Crescent Colors, and Carries Creation are usually around $2 per skein (these are cotton over dyed). I mention the approximate prices only for a "heads up" and also before investing in several of them, one may want to buy a skein and just try it out for the sake of practice or seeing if you like them. With all these mentioned and many others not mentioned, there are many subtle differences in the various manufacturers and their various lines they offer. So prices and colors vary greatly between all. Personally, I am addicted to them and with so many designers selecting them for their designs once your collection starts to grow, you will inevitably use the colors as frequenlty as your DMCs or Anchors, etc.
I find the variegated threads work well for blackwork and samplers. Vikki Clayton has a lot of variegated silks for a reasonable cost. So I usually browse her site and select 5-6 colours that I like. Mind you Im saving these for smaller designs which at the moment I have non in progress.
With variegated threads I find that I get the stripey effect from finishing each cross as I go. Stitching in one direction and crossing on the return gives a more blended look to the design. Also, using the loop method gives a tweedy effect (kind of like when using blended threads). Its all a matter of preference, really. Looking at the picture on the chart, will go along way to deciding how I stitch with variegated threads.
I use tone on tone variegated to stitch reproduction samplers and I use the Danis method ( //// on the first pass then \\\\ on the second pass.) This gives me variegation, but its a lot more subtle than cross each stitch as I go.
chekccard