"Red" Work Embroidery

I knew there had to be a good reason for it!

Hey! mutter, mutter....okay, so is that a shot about my desert rat complexion??? ;-)

Michelle > That's why we're so pretty. The steam is good for our complexions. Polly >

Taria,

I'm with you about the humidity. I used to live in southeast Kansas. It was hot AND humid. I have no idea how I ever withstood it now.

Best regards, Michelle in Nevada, USA

Polly: Wow, I had never heard of the practice of stripping the floss to have 2/1 strands like that. I will give that a go.

The hint about removing the project from the hoop between work sessions bears repeating ... in case anyone else is starting a similar project. (I learned that the hard way on my first Cross Stitch piece.)

Thanks. Pat

I'll keep my desert rat complexion as long as I don't have to feel all that humidity. I am sure they are all pretty where Polly lives. I guess it comes down to lizard or lobster? So where can we find the in-between? I wonder what the weather is like there in Ohio where John lives and they have craftsmen still available?

Here in SE Minnesota, it's been a perfect summer day -- high temp about

80, fairly low humidity, light breeze, clear and sunny. Down to about 60 tonight. Tomorrow is supposed to be more windy with some chance of rain, which we need. Of course, you might not like our winters :)

Julia > I'll keep my desert rat complexion as long as I don't have to feel all that

You don't get snow there do you? LOL, just teasing. No, I doubt I could live in your winters. I am the one that never saw snow actually fall until I was over 30. I am admittedly a weather wimp. I am amazed everytime I am in snowfall though. It is a beautiful thing to behold.

Taria

Now we're all in trouble because we get into 'if memory serves' but I think I learned that from Wendy Schoen who designs the pattern line Petite Poche and you can see her really lovely work at

Wendy studied at some incredible academy in London as well as probably everywhere else. So. Yes, Susan. I think you get really fine results from having one go one way and one the other. Might be one of those YMMV things. Polly

"Susan Laity Price" Have never heard the Strip technique. When you say "put them back

Well! I declare. Don't know what's gone so crazy with Wendy's place tonight or the net. Something? Anyhow. I had agreed to embroider a beak on a bird for a friend's bird appliqué. I did the strip, spray and use 2 threads - one going one way, one the other. It is smooth and has a lovely sheen. Do try it. Polly

I wonder if it was the Royal School of Needlework (now based in Hampton Court Palace)? If so, one of my aunts took courses there! . In message , Polly Esther writes

Polly, I tried your link to Wendy Schoen's page, but i ended up in a baby shower site. go figure.

I did print out your lovely directions for Redwork. I, too, was confused on the subject of the threads. Are they placed one strand next to each other in opposite directions and sprayed? I think last time I did embroidery, I used 2-3 strands right off the skein.

amy in CNY

this one, i took the 's' off designs in the link.j.

"amy in CNY" wrote... Polly, I tried your link to Wendy Schoen's page, but i ended up in a baby shower site. go figure.

I did print out your lovely directions for Redwork. I, too, was confused on the subject of the threads. Are they placed one strand next to each other in opposite directions and sprayed? I think last time I did embroidery, I used 2-3 strands right off the skein. amy in CNY

"Polly Esther" wrote:

Thank you, Jeanne. I was hoping you'd come by and clear that up. I know just enough about citing sites to be a little bit dangerous. Well. More like useless. I did want our serious embroidery folks to see Wendy. I don't embroider much any more but I do love to watch Wendy. Polly

"J*"

try this one, i took the 's' off designs in the link.> j.

Doesn't much matter how you place them when you 'strip' them, Amy. The object of the game is to have one thread going in one direction and another thread (or two) going in the other when you thread your needle. You can inspect the cut ends and see that one will look sharp and the other end kind of fluffy. There wasn't any spray starch here when I did the bird's beak stitches so I tried Niagara Easy Iron non-starch spray. It worked very nicely and maybe bugs won't be attracted to it. I could ask. Polly

"amy in CNY"

Thank you! that site is lovely. i adore the fleur de lis pattern, it just jumps out at you.

ahhh, ok. i was using a filament for some embroidery, but this tecnique seems easier. Is it ok to use sizing instead of starch?

amy in CNY

I just don't really know the purpose of giving the floss a spray; might be to make it smoother? It's been a long, very long time since I learned to 'strip' it. Why don't you give a piece a dose of the sizing and make a test? Could be it will be even better . . . or dull . . . or stiff. Only one way to find out. And oh my yes, Wendy is fine. I haven't used any of her patterns but did benefit from her teaching and I do use some of her baby clothes patterns.

I wonder if the "spray" is to help hold the ends of the threads together? I use "Thread Heaven" which comes in a little blue box and is a silicone based (?) replacement for beeswax. It helps strengthen the thread as well as smoothing it and helping those ends stay together when you thread the needle. When I learned to do embroidery, back in the dark ages, we separated the strands we wanted to use from the plyed floss by "pulling" down the length of the cut floss. I learned to "strip" the floss when I took a smocking class, and it is soooooo much easier to separate what you want. However, we were taught to keep all the strands going in the same direction and to find the "grain" of the thread. It does feel smoother in one direction than the other when you hold it between finger and thumb and pull it through. That plus the Thread Heaven have really improved my hand embroidery. Don't do as much of it as I have in the past, but may be getting back to it soon.

Just remember: What ever works for you, and gives you the results you want is "right".

Have fun, Pati, > I just don't really know the purpose of giving the floss a spray; might b= e

You could always run the thread through "Thread Heaven". It seems to tame almost any thread, including some dreaded metallic in cross stitch!