Saturday, August 27, 2016

Maybe I’m just too picky

The peace dove (earlier post - HERE) has such a pretty, swirly tail – it just begs for sparkle, some type of shiny thread. The first time I stitched the ornament for an exchange a dozen years ago, I tried several things (no real idea what at this point) but gave in to concerns about finishing in time and finally stitched the tail in DMC’s then very new bright white color, B5200.

Look really close and you might be able to tell the difference.


So now that I’m stitching it again to keep, of course I’ll be able to find just the right thing to add that sparkle I envisioned when I first saw the graph.

Riiiiight.

Pulled out all the shiny, fancy fibers I could think of and started test stitching in the top margin. Tried – and rejected – white shiny Rainbow Gallery, some DMC sparkly something, a narrow white Balger braid, a sparkly white Balger cord, high luster silver Balger under white DMC, white Rajmahal silk… Didn’t try the white Marlitt, but only because I couldn’t find it.

Thought I’d come up with an answer - a half cross of pearl Balger blending filament over a completed cross stitch in white DMC looked good when I tried it out, but after stitching several tail tendrils, the stitches looked clumpy and the sparkle was inconsistent.

Everything that looked good against the fabric was too thick or too wiry to stitch over one.

Once again, the dove’s wings and body are stitched in plain old DMC white, and the tail’s in B5200. Here’s a progress shot. See the needle? Stitches to the right are plain white; to the left is the bright white.


Nah, I can’t tell the difference either. Sigh. (Ugh, you can also see that my stitches looked much nicer the first time around. Guess it’s time to get a stronger pair of cheaters.)


>^..^<

1 comment:

  1. Ah. Brings back memories of earlier years when I first became reckless. It's been so long, I don't remember the product. But something was to hold fine glitter, I lightly brushed the areas I wanted some sparkle, covered the rest, and dusted it with ???? Fine glitter? Crushed glass glitter? Don't remember, but it came out really nice. Took me quite a few test runs on samples, and I think I used a tea strainer for the light dusting. See? Reckless.

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