I was a little sad when I put the last stitch in on this piece. It’s been a great learning experience and, although working with the Japan thread was difficult, I feel successful and the results look wonderful. I’m hooked on goldwork!
The top of the design needed a bit of gold to balance the bottom so I decided to outline the gold silk with Japan thread couched down with the maroon silk. I did one very important thing working with the Japan thread differently this time and I think it made a big difference.
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When I went to plunge the thread through to the back I used a much larger crewel needle. This had two advantages: the hole the needle made was larger so the Japan thread passed though more easily and the eye of the needle is larger so it didn’t catch on the Japan thread and strip off the gold.
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Above is pearl purl #1 couched down with maroon thread in every other trough or valley. It adds just a touch of color on that line and repeats the maroon color that is throughout the piece.
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The pearl purl #1 makes a beautiful, delicate gold line and I love how it looks. However, it is very difficult to see if I’m stitching in the evening without daylight. Even with my wonderful light, it is still hard to see clearly. As I said before, wrinkles or magnifying glasses. I think I’ll go for the glasses… The next time I use gold I’ll be using #2 and #3, both of which are larger and easier to see.
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One of my favorite qualities of gold work is how it catches the light. As I was finishing, the sun came out and the sparkle caught my eye. Magical!
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Now that it’s finished, I’m considering adding a decorative border of some kind all in gold around the design. Opinions welcome!
