Free Style SAL: Lattice Heart Finish!

Happy news! I've been co-hosting the Free Style Sew Along (SAL) on Instagram (I'm @aureliaeglantine) with my friend Marianne Matthews (@mariannemathewsxx), and it has been an amazing stitchy adventure! In my last post, I shared some of my progress.

This was my first planned spontaneous stitching project 😂 By which I mean that when I stitched my Joyful Jester, I started with a basic outline for felt applique and then I sat down with a bunch of embellishments - acrylic gems, sequins, beads, trims, metallic thread - and just made it up as I went along. It was so much fun, and just sort of flowed!

Ever since then, I've wanted to try to recapture that feeling, and with this project I deliberately set out to be flexible and spontaneous. I started with a basic double heart outline and a very simple idea (please see my SAL intro post for details):

As cross-stitchers, we're used to planning out our whole project before we start. We usually choose the chart, fabric, threads and any extras before we begin. Spontaneous stitching is a different way of creating, and it is both frustrating and freeing! My cohost Marianne works in this style for all her projects, both embroidery and cross-stitch, making them up as she stitches. It's a technique that lets you experiment!

Some of my stitch ideas, such as this Turkey Stitch Flower, didn't work out:

I tried a lot of stitches on this project that were new to me, and it became a sampler of sorts. Although I loved this idea, it didn't fit with the image I had in my head for my heart, and so I cut it out. But the stitches themselves were not wasted - now I know how to make a funky loopy or cut flower for another project some other time! So while it was frustrating in the moment that it didn't work, it was also a great learning experience.

One of the other fun things about hand embroidery is that it's usually a lot easier to "unstitch" than cross-stitch - this flower took me over an hour to put in, after fussing with the cutting and taking process photos, but less than a minute to cut out 🤣

I found myself constantly thinking about different ways to stitch flowers and leaves, and how to put into practice stitches I've always admired but never tried. The Fishbone Stitch leaves and Buttonhole Stitch flower are some of my favourites, and I love the Double Cast On Stitch I learned for the fuschia roses! The Granitos stitch I learned for the Daisies is super useful, incredibly easy, and one I will definitely be using again 🌼

For inspiration, I even made a a special Pinterest board for the SAL, which has lots of tutorials and ideas you can use in any embroidery! I will also link to some of the tutorials in the list of stitches at the end of this post. It was very interesting to see my heart grow, blossoming from a simple lattice to a cheerful, colourful riot of flowers:

And after some surprisingly serious internal debate, LOL, I decided not fill in the empty spaces between flowers with French Knots. I thought that they would take away from the little French Knot flowers I had already added. I did try a few stitches but ended up taking them out, and instead added some turquoise seed beads for sparkle:

You know I love sparkle! Overall, this was such a fun project and now I just want to stitch flowers on EVERYTHING 😆 For anyone who is interested, here are some details:

I don't think I've ever shown one of these before, but I make little cardboard thread keepers like this for nearly every project and find them very helpful for keeping my working threads from becoming tangled! I just use nice white cardboard, usually rescued from some kind of packaging (this was gift card holder), punch as many holes and I need (as you can see, I added a few extra to this one as I went along!) and write the project information and floss colour names with a fine Sharpie. They usually look a little neater than this one, but I forgot to take a better photo, so please forgive the mess!

DMC Floss Colours: (from top left, clockwise):

554 (Violet, Light)
892 (Carnation, Medium)
444 (Lemon, Dark)
907 (Parrot Green, Light)
3607 (Plum, Light)
3708 (Melon, Light)
3837 (Lavender, Ultra Dark)
3846 (Bright Turquoise, Light)
B5200 (Snow White)
972 (Deep Canary)
905 (Parrot Green, Dark)

🧵 Stitches Used, with tutorial links🧵

💛 Small Heart 💛

Lattice:Jacobean Couching (Lattice 3846, Cross Stitches 444)
Center Heart Scalloped Border: Scalloped Buttonholed Chain Stitch (3708)
I later whipped the bottom of the green Chain Stitch base with 3837, as you would for Whipped Backstitch

💙 Large Heart 💙

🌸 Flowers: 🌸

Loose Cast On Stitch, also known as Double Cast On or Two Needle Cast On
Buttonhole Stitch Flower, double layered
Spiderweb Roses also known as Woven Wagon Wheel Roses
Granito Stitch (see also Mary Corbet's video tutorial on flowers)
Lasy Daisy (also known as Detached Chain), some filled with Straight Stitches
French Knots (also see this very helpful article by Mary Corbet, which includes this great tip: use a Milliners Needle - a needle whose eye is the same width as the shaft - for French and Bullion Knots! It totally changed my stitching and made French Knots - my longtime Stitchy Foe - possible for me 😃)

Flower centers: Satin Stitch Dots, Needleweaving, French Knots (444 & 972)

🌿 Leaves: 🌿

Raised Fishbone Stitch
Fly Stitch Leaves
Satin Stitch with Stem Stitch edging
Lazy Daisy, with Straight Stitch filling
Buttonhole, with Straight Stitch filling

💙💛💙 Border: 💙💛💙

Worked like Whipped Backstitch, but the base is a Double Granito stitch, for extra width and a more even ratio of turquoise to yellow (Base 3846, Whipped Stitches 444)

If you have any questions about this project at all, please don't hesitate to ask! I really want to thank everyone who took the time to follow along with my progress, and those who left helpful and encouraging comments 😊

Your enthusiasm for my Lattice Heart kept me going, even when I was frustrated. Spontaneous Stitching is such a simple concept, but like most things, it's easier said than done and requires practice like any new technique, at least to those to whom it doesn't come naturally - like myself 😂 Whenever you're trying something new, there's always a bit of uncertainty and self-confidence - am I doing it right? Is it good enough? Am I wasting my time?- and all your feedback really helped 💙

I haven't final finished my Lattice Heart off; for the photos, I just tucked the excess fabric under the hoop. But I really like the way this Anchor Glitter Hoop matches the project, and I may buy another and finish it off as Hoop Art.

The Free Style SAL is still ongoing - anyone can jump in, at any time! It's a completely free, relaxed, and flexible stitch along. I'll be sharing some fabulous SAL finishes in my next post. Please use the hashtag #freestylesewalong when posting on Instagram so we can find you! You can also post elsewhere, but please send me a link so we can feature you. Just chose an outline motif and fill it with spontaneously stitched flowers 💐 Any needlework style is welcome - cross-stitch, embroidery, quilting, mixed media, needlepoint etc. - as long as it fits the spirt of the SAL!

Does the idea of Spontaneous Stitching appeal to you?

Adventures in Embroidery II

Hello Stitchy Friends!

So sorry I haven't been around for the last week or so. I've just been having one of those times where a lot of little things - which wouldn't be so hard to deal with on their own - have all piled up one on top of the other and become A Major Headache. Would you believe that I haven't put a single stitch in anything lately? *Sighs*

However, I'm happy to be back today, sharing the long-promised test piece done for my Bluebirds of Happiness, which was done as a test piece for my current WIP, Twilight Angel. Whew! Sounds silly, I know, but it really did help to do this little experiment. Honestly, when I was working on the Bluebirds, I never intended to use French knots for the middle of the flowers. Although it turned out, remarkably!, that I did so, I never ever would have added them if I hadn't done this little piece first, which I'll call Bluebirds Test Piece for obvious reasons.

Here's a overview of the project:

As you can see, I worked with the same blue cotton and floss colours from the Bluebirds of Happiness. In fact, all of the flowers, excepting the three in the bottom left-hand corner (which were the result of my trying to make flowers free-hand), are from the Bluebirds pattern; I cut a snippet, of the three flowers on the end of the right-hand branch, from my transfer, and ironed it randomly onto the fabric, to give me a stitching guideline. Re-using part of the original transfer worked well, although the lines did get fainter with each pressing.

Then I put the fabric into a small hoop (I used a 6" inch) and worked all the pink lazy daisies and the green leaves. I really wanted to see how the flowers would look using a certain type of center, and so I went crazy trying different things that came into my mind. I really do recommend using a hoop - I think it's what made the whole miracle of finally defeating my long-time stitchy foe the French knot possible. You need two hands free to work this stitch, and so trying to hold the fabric in your hands at the same time is all but impossible if you're not an octopus!

Here are some closeups of the flowers:

Top Left

Flower 1 - Satin Stitch, 3 strands of floss
Flower 2 - Seed Stitch, 3 strands of floss
Flower 3 - Padded Satin Stitch, 3 strands of floss

Top Right

Flowers 4, 5 and 6 - French Knots, 1 loop, 3 strands of floss
(I did three of these the same because I couldn't believe that the first one worked, lol)
Flower 7 - French Knots - center knot 2 loops, rest 1 loop, 3 strands of floss

Bottom Right

Flower 8 - French Knots, four (quarter?) loops, 3 strands of floss
Flower 9 - French Knots, triple loops, 3 strands of floss
Flower 10 - Seed Beads, attached with 1 strand of floss
Flower 11 - French Knot, five (quintuple?) loops, 3 strands of floss

Bottom Left

Flower 12 - Seed Bead, attached with 1 strand of floss
Flower 13 - Seed Beads, attached with 1 strand of floss
Flower 14 - Seed Bead Center, attached with 1 strand of floss, surrounded by multiple French Knots, double loop, 1 strand of floss

The seed beads I used are just random ones I had lying around in my bead stash, colour-core transparents (part of a multiple colour-core assortment)  that I picked soley because the yellow core happened to perfectly matched my thread :)

I found the way that the French knots change shape and texture depending on the amound of loops made to be very interesting. I think a lot of it is also the size of the needle that you use. I forgot to mention it in my last post, but for embroidery, you need embroidery needles - sharps, which are what we think of a 'regular' needles. Trying to use a tapestry needle, with its dull point, is not easy!

From the lovely comments on my last post, I have deduced that I am not the only stitcher waging war against the French knot, and so I'm working on trying to do a little picture thing that will explain how I managed these. I've seen so many different takes on the technique through the years, but the one I tried (off the top of my head!) actually worked, and so I'm sticking with it, whether it's proper or not.

Besides the French knots, I really like the effect of the Seed Stitch (Flower #2) and the fluffy effect of the loose French knots done multiple times with only one strand (Flower #14). I think that the latter would look very neat, without the bead in the center, for flowers with a lot of seeds or stamens in the middle. The raised texture is really cool, and I could see adapting it to other things - like animal fur - as well!

Here's a view of the front and back:

I'm still not used to all this carried thread on the back, and this one is really messy, because I honestly did not try to be neat, in case I wanted to take anything out.

So there you have - the test piece for a test piece ;)

This whole embroidery thing is rapidly becoming addicting - it works up so fast! - and I think there might be more such stitchy experiments in the near future!

Adventures in Embroidery!

Hot on the heels of my last Stitchy Adventure, in Couching, I somehow got in into my head that I should try embroidery! Now, cross-stitch is, in fact, a type of embroidery. But for all the years I've been cross-stitching, I have had a love/hate relationship with "real" embroidery. As in, I love the look of it but hate to work it.

And on what is my irrational hatred based, you may ask? On a misbegotten, never-finished, free-form embroidery done in the hand (this was before I started using hoops) and discarded after much frustration, never to see the light of day again.

I got as far as some sort of line stitch (whip maybe) and French knots. I didn't even make it to the lazy daisy stage! French knots. So innocent looking, all pretty and round and nestled neatly together in the centers of flowers. And yet so very evil.

Oh, I tried to be patient with them! I have never been one to give up easily, and this was no exception. I made knot after knot in that scrap of fabric, and all of them ended up lopsided, or funny looking, or pulled too tightly (so tightly that I had holes in the fabric) or too loosely (so that they flopped over, never to rise again). And trying to wrap the thread around the needle? I don't even want to go there. And so, at the tender age of (if I remember correctly) eight, I acquired my first Stitchy Foe.

And what a Foe! All these years, the French knot has plagued me! I never ever embroidered again, but it kept invading my stitchery, appearing in patterns I loved and just had to stitch, as flower centers and dots over alphabets, as eyes of creatures and persons alike; in borders, in backgrounds, in figures all over, the French knot surfaced cunningly in elements I could not leave out of the design!

It would not leave me alone, and so I waged war. Yes, I took to slyly substituting seed beads where ever a knot occured, and when that didn't work, I would cross-stitch a filling, or some other clever disguise. But it irked me. Oh, how the damnable, wretched French knot irked me!!! I despaired of ever stitching crewel work, the French knot's favourite stitchy style. And for every work I fashioned a substitution for that I was pleased with, there was one I was secretly not proud of, as I thought the French knot would have been better, despite its demonic, hellish nature.

Therefore, when I bravely embarked on this Stitchy Adventure, I did so with great deal of anticipatory dread. As I mentioned in my last post, the gold loop-de-loops on my Twilight Angel's skirt are lazy daisies. And that's all the instructions said. No diagrams, no helpful tips. Since I had found my couching test piece so helpful, I decided that I would do a lazy daisy test piece too. And so, I set about finding a hand embroidery pattern with a lot of lazy daisy stitches in it, and I hit the jackpot!

It turns out that there are a lot (and I mean a very great many) intrepid stitchers out there scanning in and posting vintage embroidery patterns. Some of them, admittedly, are very cutesy (e.g. bonnet-wearing beribboned kittens curled up in flowered baskets), and others are just plain strange (e.g. the animated, dancing foodstuffs - tomatoes with legs and arms and eyes, waltzing with the cutlery).

I decided on a simple pattern of two bluebirds on a flowering branch, from NeedleCrafter.com, a really neat site with a large design library that appears to be on hiatus for the time being. Why bluebirds? Well, I have a thing for bluebirds of happiness. I don't why, I just do. And so, I present Bluebirds of Happiness:

And what to my incredulous eyes should appear...

...but multiple French knots, tied so neatly its weird ;)

How did I conquer my dreaded Stitchy Foe and make those French knots so neat? Weeellllll. I did a test piece for the test piece. No, really. I actually did. And was totally glad of it. I'm going to put up tons of pictures in the next post as proof!

You may have noticed that there are no in-progress pictures of this work. This is because I was absolutely convinced that I, noted embroidery diaster creator, was going to mess it up irrevocably at some point. And I was afraid to jinx myself!

Now, on to what I did and where and with what:

The fabric is 100% cotton in a dark sky blue; since I wanted the branch to look like it was in the sky, that was a no-brainer. I choose all my floss colours to compliment it.

All stitches were worked with three strands of floss; all colour numbers are DMC.

~ The Bluebirds were worked in Stem Stitch with 798 (DK Delft Blue).
~ The Beaks and Toes were worked in Satin Stitch in 720 (DK Orange Spice)
~ The Branches were worked in Couching using 801 (DK Coffee Brown).
~ The Flowers were worked in Lazy Daisy Stitch using 961 (DK Dusty Rose).
~ The Flower Centers were worked in French Knots using 743 (MD Yellow).
~ The Leaveswere worked in Lazy Daisy Stitch using 909 (V DK Emerald Green).

The eyes of the Bluebirds were done in Satin Stitch using the blue (798).

I omitted the wavy lines on the breasts of the Bluebirds.

What impressed me most about hand embroidery is how fast it works up! I couldn't quite believe that I had the whole thing done in two days (and would have had it done in less time except I kept picking out my lazy daisies: it's very easy to pull them too tight and you have to keep your tensions a little loose to get them round - the very tight ones on the skirt of my Twilight Angel were done that way based on the model).

After I got over my initial trepidation, I actually found the stitching - especially the lazy daisies - very fun, which was entirely unexpected! I also like the way that the long surface stitching in embroidery leaves sections of the floss free so that the lovely sheen of DMC shows in the stitched elements. This is not something we often see as cross-stitchers, since our floss is tightly worked in the fabric. It's pretty!

Here's a picture of the back, and I warn you - it's messy! I was very dubious about this, but my Stitchy Guru Mother has informed me that since embroidery carries its threads from small element to element (e.g. from flower to flower) there will necessarily be more strands on the back. We cross-stitchers are used to closely darning everything and carrying only when strictly necessary, so it was a bit strange:

Honestly, I had a bit of of a hard time at first, especially turning corners with the stem stitch, and my lazy daisies could be a lot neater - I found it difficult to get them to met exactly at the end. And my satin stitch needs a lot of practice - while it seems like the easiest stitch from reading the stitch diagrams, I actually found it the hardest to work in the whole piece, as getting the strands to lie flat and working with the angle is very challenging! Overall, though, I'm quite pleased with it.

I really like this bit of doing test pieces that can stand as projects on their own. It's fun, and useful to try out the techniques, and you have an actual work at the end instead of random scraps of fabric! This is something I can see doing more of. And, despite all my previous feelings to the contrary, I can actually see trying embroidery again. At least simple designs like this (and this and this).

And the French knots? We are happily (on my part) locked in a stalemate for now ;)

(I couldn't resist, LOL!)

Stitchy Adventures in Couching!

EDIT: I had to repost this several times, trying to get the text to align properly. I'm very sorry if you recieved multiple notifications for this post!

A little while ago, I mentioned that I did a test project for the couching work that I need to do on my Twilight Angel. There are several reasons that I decided to do a test piece, the most important being that I wanted to try my hand at the technique.

Couching, put simply, is a method used to stitch down threads or ribbons or decorative braids (the "laid thread") with tiny tacking stitches (the "tacking thread") that may be the same colour as the material, so as to virtually disappear, or may contrast strongly with the laid material for decorative effect.

This is actually the first test piece I've ever done. Usually, I just forge ahead and see how it goes! But for trying out the look of a technique, and for getting experience in that technique, it seems only logical to try some stitches out on another piece of cloth first. I really like the idea of doing a full test piece, using an actual pattern, because you then end up with a whole new work completed at the end of your trial process! I really enjoyed this project, and will definitely be doing testers again!

Now, couching can be used for various applications, and the way that you use it determines the result that you get, as does the materials you use. The couching in my Twilight Angel is done for the purpose of outlining her sash and the bottom band of her skirt; it is supposed to flow with the tiny curves and twists, and will add a 'ribbony' effect when finished. As this is a type of backstitch, the threads are much finer than the large braids or ribbons typically used for couching. The pattern calls for 1 strand of yellow and 2 strands of gold metallic to form the "laid thread" and for 1 strand of gold metallic to be used as the "tacking thread".

The gold metallic is not what we stitchers typically think of as metallic (e.g. the DMC Light Effects range). The Twilight Angel kit came with very fine thread that, after a lot of digging in my mother's thread stash, I was able to identify as machine embroidery thread. It is very fine, with a segmented look, and actually consists of layers of gold metallic material wound around a very fine white nylon core. It is quite strong, but can break (which I how I found out about the core, lol).

The gold that came with the kit was a bit greenish, and clashed horribly with the truer yellow gold in the star sequin embellishments and charms. So I substituted some gold machine embroidery thread that my Mother thankfully had (and kindly lent me), and used that same thread for this sample project, that I call Couched Rose, for reasons that will become obvious. Here is a picture of the threads that I used:

For this project, I used a 100% cotton fabric in a light pink, as I have been informed by my Stitchy Guru Mother that real cotton is much better for embroidery than the synthetic poly-cotton blend (of polyester and cotton). This fabric, as you can see from the photo, is rather thin (you can see the floral cushion pattern below it).

There are only two threads used: the gold metallic machine embroidery thread (Signature Metallic/Metallique, 42% Nylon, 58% Metallic, in shade 906 - colour number 36771 92906, brand Art. 92) and a thicker thread burgundy upholstery thread (Guterman tapestry thread, 100% Polyester, in shade 450 - colour number 077780008694). Both are fairly strong threads, with the nylon and the polyester, and this is important since you will constantly need to pull the threads taught while stitching. I used a 6" inch hoop to hold my fabric tight.

For my pattern, I used a vintage couching pattern found free online at this blog. The pattern sheet includes several different designs in black, overlaying designs for stems and leaves in a light ink. I chose the rose for this project, but I am very taken with the swirly butterfly, and will be trying to couch him in the near future :)

To get my rose design on my fabric for stitching, I used an iron-on transfer method using transfer pencils. I tried two different brands, using artist's tracing paper (a little thicker than regular tissue tracing paper). First, I tried a newer pencil, EZ brand:

The lines were good, but were a bit thick. I found that this pencil lead quickly dulled and became rounded, and this was responsible for the thicker lines. It turned out a light magenta colour. Tracing depends very much on a steady hand, and I had a bit of trouble with that, especially at first. To trace, I placed the tracing paper - smooth side facing up (as it is in the artist's pad) - over the computer-printout of the couch designs, and then used the pencil to go over the design. It is helpful to keep an even and firm pressure that is not too hard, so as not to go through the paper.

Secondly, I tried a very old set of never-opened transfer pencils that my Mother had in her sewing stash. I was almost loathe to open them they're that antique :) These pencils are from the Aunt Martha's company, which is noted for their iron-on transfer pattern sheets (for household linens, clothing, pillowcases, etc.).

These pencils had much harder leads, that keep a sharp point easily, and that traced a much thinner line. This is essential since the threads to be laid are so fine. This is the final transfer that I used; the snippet taken out of the corner was a little test swatch that had a few pencil scribblings. Before I ironed the design to the fabric, I ironed the test swatch first to see that it would transfer. As this was my first time using iron-on transfer pencils for anything, I ironed test swatches from both pencil brands (as I feared the older pencils would not transfer); both turned out equally clear, with the Aunt Martha's pencils leaving slightly darker lines.

Here is a slideshow showing my progress from the design transfer to the completion of the stitching. After the slideshow, I'm going to share a few tricks I learned:


This was the first project in which I tried to take a photo during every major stage of progression, and I ended up with a ton of photos (almost 100!). Unfortunately, I was also trying to limit myself to one or two takes of each, and that resulted in some blurry pictures, and I apologize for that. In future, I'll have to try and remind myself to slow down and take the time to get multiple shots of each point.

When I first started my "laid thread" (1 strand gold, 1 strand burgundy, 1 strand gold), I brought in through to the back knowing that I would need to darn the tail in. However, with the fabric so thin and with no stitches to darn it back into, I needed something to hold the tails tight until I was ready to darn them. I tried making a few tacking stitches to hold the threads down, but they moved around.

I had done a bit of online research on couching beforehand, but I hadn't found any advice for this particular situation. So I borrowed a little trick from my beading experience, and used a "stopper bead" to hold the tails. Stopper beads are usually beads with a large hole, threaded onto the end of your stringing material to keep smaller beads (usually seed beads) from falling off before you fasten the clasps on. In this case, I used a burgundy wooden bead, a 4mm, that I had lying around from another project, and looped the tails of the "laid thread" through the bead hole twice, and then tying a loose overhand knot to keep them in place.

(You can see that I inadvertantly tangled my "tacking thread" on the back; I cut the strands and darned the seperately, so that error no long shows on the finished piece!)

This ensured that when I needed to pull on the "laid thread" strands that they were tight against the fabric. When the time came to start another section, I unpicked the knot, unlooped the strands from the beads, and then darned them carefully into the stitches on the back left from the "tacking thread". And I repeated the same process when starting the inner petal, that was not close to any of the other lines and that had to be darned into its own stitches. To keep the "tacking thread" tight, I looped it twice around the stopper bead, but did not knot it (as the 1 strand of gold was too fine); the first few tacking stitches kept the thread tight, and having it looped with the "laid thread" strands kept the tail out of my way until I was ready to darn it in.

By far, the most important thing I learned is that you need to keep your tension tight while couching. The hoop was a good choice, because you frequently need to turn the work in order to place the tacking stitches accurately and to follow the lines.

This is how I learned to keep the multiple strands of my "laid thread" together:

I started out by laying out the strands of my "laid threads" in order (left gold, center burgundy, and right gold), in the direction I was stitching. At this point, I just gently positioned them over the rim of the hoop (note: I found it very helpful to have a small pillow in my lap while working this project so I could rest the hoop on it while adjusting my threads). Next, I placed my finger over the strands and pulled them taut. Finally, I moved my finger forward against the hoop, keeping pressure on the strands, until they aligned closely together. It is essential, when working with multiple strands, that they lie even on the work and that they do not tangle underneath your tacking stitches.

While I was making tacking stitches with my "tacking thread", I kept the pressure on the strands. Between sections, I stopped holding the strands, as I found it was important to take occasional breaks to prevent cramping in my hand from keeping the "laid thread" in postion. Although I do not think you will need to keep as much pressure when using only a single strand for your "laid thread", you will need to keep that thread tight in much the same way.

Also, by instinct, I found it very helpful to add several extra tacking stitches wherever the design lines joined, as you can see in this extreme close-up:

I also did this when the "laid thread" strands came up through the fabric, at the start of a line, and went back into the fabric, at the end of a line, as you can see here:

This technique is also necessary when working closely angled curves; if you do not cluster the tacking stitches, you really can't get the point of curve in correctly:

As you can see from these extreme larger-than-life close-ups, it is possible to see the pink of the iron-on transfer line shadowing the threads every now and then, even though I took care to cover as much of the line as I possibly could. This doesn't really show up when viewing the piece at regular size, but it is something to be aware of if you try any surface embroidery pattern that uses an iron-on transfer method. Unlike other techniques, iron-on pencils leave a permanent line, which is usually covered up by your stitching. But since the threads used in this project are so fine, there is a bit of occasional 'bleed through'.

If I were to do this project again, I would possibly choose a thicker fabric. You can see some of the thicker lines resulting from the darning when the work is held up to the sunlight. However, I do intend to back the fabric when I decide what I would like to finish the work into, and so this will not be much of an issue. I am really pleased with the goldwork effect; in full light, the gold thread, although a simple synthetic machine embroidery brand, shines like molten liquid gold, and it is much more beautiful than I had ever thought it would be while working the project.

I do intend to try more couching in the future, and now feel that I can tackle the couching details on my Twilight Angel with confidence, which was the whole purpose of the project after all! But besides being a test sample, I have inadvertently made a stitchery work in its own right and both techniques - couching and test works - are highly recommended :)

So, what so you think? Does a couching project like this appeal to you?

Honestly, I had no idea that couching existed as a stand-alone specific embroidery art; I thought it was just a stitching technique used for limited elements in different embroidery styles, like crewel work. It is a very simple stitch, but lends itself to making beautiful curves, and is wonderful for outlining any type of stitched work!

I really enjoyed this stitchy adventure, and am going to force myself to embark on more of them in the near future! There are so many stitchy techniques that I've wanted to try, and I've decided that now is the time to try them out :) Wish me luck!