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Keeping theback tidy
Hi!
One trick I just learned recently was the loop start. You use one strand of floss and double it, and then thread the needle with the two ends. Then, when you start your stitch, you just take your needle through the loop at the back to anchor the thread. This reduces by almost half the number of tails that you have to deal with. It doesn't take any extra time, but the backs of my projects already look better. I also find that it's easier to add the backstitch to a piece when the back is tidy. The only thing to remember about the loop start is that it only works where you need an even number of strands. Have a good day! Louisa |
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#2
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Loop start with odd number threads (was: Keeping the back tidy)
wrote in message ups.com... Hi! One trick I just learned recently was the loop start. You use one strand of floss and double it, and then thread the needle with the two ends. Then, when you start your stitch, you just take your needle through the loop at the back to anchor the thread. This reduces by almost half the number of tails that you have to deal with. It doesn't take any extra time, but the backs of my projects already look better. I also find that it's easier to add the backstitch to a piece when the back is tidy. The only thing to remember about the loop start is that it only works where you need an even number of strands. Have a good day! Louisa Yes, Louisa, the loop start is a great help, but it can also be done with an odd number of strands. Jim Cripwell gave us these instructions for three strands back in 2004: "Make sure you cut your threads to a standard length. For three threads, take one full strand and one half strand. Loop the full strand in the usual way, but thread the needle *unevenly* with three strands. At the loop end, have a long piece of the third strand. Do a loop start in the usual way. Unthread the needle and bury the third strand at the back of the work. Do *not* snip the end, but carefully pull it until the end is *just* buried. At the other end, the three threads will be approximately equal. Re-thread the needle and start stitching. HTH." Felice |
#4
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Keeping theback tidy
I do that always, as long as I don't use variegated or multicoloured
threads. Doesn't work then, because you don't have the matching colour flow. -- Happy Stitching Sibille www.myenchanting.com wrote in message ups.com... Hi! One trick I just learned recently was the loop start. You use one strand of floss and double it, and then thread the needle with the two ends. Then, when you start your stitch, you just take your needle through the loop at the back to anchor the thread. This reduces by almost half the number of tails that you have to deal with. It doesn't take any extra time, but the backs of my projects already look better. I also find that it's easier to add the backstitch to a piece when the back is tidy. The only thing to remember about the loop start is that it only works where you need an even number of strands. Have a good day! Louisa |
#5
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Keeping theback tidy
"Tia Mary" wrote in message ... wrote: I also leave my thread ends on the front of the fabric when I am at the end of a length of floss. After my last stitch, I bring the needle up to the front in the midst of a previously stitched area and unthread the needle leaving the loose ends to sort of dangle. You want to make sure you aren't too near the area where you are stitching or those loose ends will get in your way. I do this until I am ready to change colors and then, before starting the next color, I pull all of the loose thread ends to the back and bury them. If I am doing a large area all of the same color, I will stop and bury the threads when I have 5 ot 6 loose ends on the front. CiaoMeow ^;;^ PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at http://community.webshots.com/user/tiamary I do a similar thing - but take the thread BEHIND an area still to be stitched before I bring the needle up, Once you`ve stitched that area, safely anchoring the thread, just snip it off close to the work at the front and rub it through with a fingernail on the back. You can then, if necessary, snip any remaining tail off close to the work again. More than one ways to skin a cat, as they say! When you only have one hand to work with it`s amazing how many tricks you work out! Pat |
#6
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Keeping theback tidy
On 5/26/07 2:55 PM, "Pat P" wrote:
"Tia Mary" wrote in message ... wrote: I also leave my thread ends on the front of the fabric when I am at the end of a length of floss. After my last stitch, I bring the needle up to the front in the midst of a previously stitched area and unthread the needle leaving the loose ends to sort of dangle. You want to make sure you aren't too near the area where you are stitching or those loose ends will get in your way. I do this until I am ready to change colors and then, before starting the next color, I pull all of the loose thread ends to the back and bury them. If I am doing a large area all of the same color, I will stop and bury the threads when I have 5 ot 6 loose ends on the front. CiaoMeow ^;;^ PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at http://community.webshots.com/user/tiamary I do a similar thing - but take the thread BEHIND an area still to be stitched before I bring the needle up, Once you`ve stitched that area, safely anchoring the thread, just snip it off close to the work at the front and rub it through with a fingernail on the back. You can then, if necessary, snip any remaining tail off close to the work again. More than one ways to skin a cat, as they say! When you only have one hand to work with it`s amazing how many tricks you work out! Pat It's kind of like doing an away or waste knot in reverse. I do this more in NP, or sometimes with specialty stitches. Usually with XS I can find a place to run the stitches through. Donna is shaming me into behaving again. After the mess of Summer Garden, I seem to have been on a downhill spiral. I generall start with holding the tail on the back, and make sure to capture it with the first few stitches. For ending, I hope there's something nearby, or do as Pat - but I'm pretty careful to go where the color won't be an issue. If not, I bring the thread up away, or just on the back to the margin and just anchor (yeah, pink hair tape). Then eventually I will weave it back under a stitched area. The little baby piece which I'll finish with another 15 minutes of work has a pin stitched border - done in silk - which doesn't give much for anchoring, so I've been doing a little weave through the pin stitches, and then ending in some cross-stitched area - that may be an inch away, but, it won't show. Starting, same thing - I go through a cross-stitched area, and then under some of the pin stitches, then start. I had a little tool, like a dololly, that you can use to pull thread tails through. The problem for me is if I leave them so there are several before I do it, then a mess can happen. But, when I'm being conscientious, I get all the tails woven, anchored, and snipped off short right away. So complicated - for a fun and relaxing hobby ;^) ellice |
#7
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Keeping theback tidy
ellice wrote:
It's kind of like doing an away or waste knot in reverse. I do this more in NP, or sometimes with specialty stitches. Usually with XS I can find a place to run the stitches through. ............... ellice AHH but then you have to turn your work over to the back side! My whole reason for bringing the ends to the front is so that I don't have to turn my work to the back. I've tried to bring the ends to the front going across the area to be stitched next but I always seem to get things all messed up and in a snarl on the back. VBS -- hence bringing the ends to the front in the middle of an area that has already been stitched. CiaoMeow ^;;^ PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at http://community.webshots.com/user/tiamary |
#8
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Keeping theback tidy
"ellice" wrote in message ... On 5/26/07 2:55 PM, "Pat P" wrote: "Tia Mary" wrote in message ... wrote: I also leave my thread ends on the front of the fabric when I am at the end of a length of floss. After my last stitch, I bring the needle up to the front in the midst of a previously stitched area and unthread the needle leaving the loose ends to sort of dangle. You want to make sure you aren't too near the area where you are stitching or those loose ends will get in your way. I do this until I am ready to change colors and then, before starting the next color, I pull all of the loose thread ends to the back and bury them. If I am doing a large area all of the same color, I will stop and bury the threads when I have 5 ot 6 loose ends on the front. CiaoMeow ^;;^ PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at http://community.webshots.com/user/tiamary I do a similar thing - but take the thread BEHIND an area still to be stitched before I bring the needle up, Once you`ve stitched that area, safely anchoring the thread, just snip it off close to the work at the front and rub it through with a fingernail on the back. You can then, if necessary, snip any remaining tail off close to the work again. More than one ways to skin a cat, as they say! When you only have one hand to work with it`s amazing how many tricks you work out! Pat It's kind of like doing an away or waste knot in reverse. I do this more in NP, or sometimes with specialty stitches. Usually with XS I can find a place to run the stitches through. Donna is shaming me into behaving again. After the mess of Summer Garden, I seem to have been on a downhill spiral. I generall start with holding the tail on the back, and make sure to capture it with the first few stitches. For ending, I hope there's something nearby, or do as Pat - but I'm pretty careful to go where the color won't be an issue. If not, I bring the thread up away, or just on the back to the margin and just anchor (yeah, pink hair tape). Then eventually I will weave it back under a stitched area. The little baby piece which I'll finish with another 15 minutes of work has a pin stitched border - done in silk - which doesn't give much for anchoring, so I've been doing a little weave through the pin stitches, and then ending in some cross-stitched area - that may be an inch away, but, it won't show. Starting, same thing - I go through a cross-stitched area, and then under some of the pin stitches, then start. I had a little tool, like a dololly, that you can use to pull thread tails through. The problem for me is if I leave them so there are several before I do it, then a mess can happen. But, when I'm being conscientious, I get all the tails woven, anchored, and snipped off short right away. So complicated - for a fun and relaxing hobby ;^) ellice Of course if it`s for something that`s going to be washed once and framed you don`t have to anchor it quite as firmly. I only ever do stuff for framing. Pat |
#9
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Keeping theback tidy
On 5/26/07 6:20 PM, "Tia Mary" wrote:
ellice wrote: It's kind of like doing an away or waste knot in reverse. I do this more in NP, or sometimes with specialty stitches. Usually with XS I can find a place to run the stitches through. ............... ellice AHH but then you have to turn your work over to the back side! My whole reason for bringing the ends to the front is so that I don't have to turn my work to the back. I've tried to bring the ends to the front going across the area to be stitched next but I always seem to get things all messed up and in a snarl on the back. VBS -- hence bringing the ends to the front in the middle of an area that has already been stitched. CiaoMeow ^;;^ Ummm, hating to be contrary ;^) - but an away knot or waste knot are also done on the front. Usually a couple of needle lengths away - you make the knot, go down from the front, come up where you will start stitching. Then the thread stays on the back, gets covered by stitching, and the knot gets snipped on the front when you get there, so to speak. Sounded to me from your description that you're essentially doing this at the end of a stitching seesion or thread, rather than as a start. For XS though, I do, as I said, more typically run the thread end under some existing stitching - which yes, does mean going to the back. I guess I should've but the "usually with XS" sentence in a new paragraph to clarify that I wasn't implying that to be similar to what you do. Ellice |
#10
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Keeping theback tidy
On 5/26/07 7:40 PM, "Pat P" wrote:
"ellice" wrote in message ... On 5/26/07 2:55 PM, "Pat P" wrote: "Tia Mary" wrote in message ... wrote: I also leave my thread ends on the front of the fabric when I am at the end of a length of floss. After my last stitch, I bring the needle up to the front in the midst of a previously stitched area and unthread the needle leaving the loose ends to sort of dangle. You want to make sure you aren't too near the area where you are stitching or those loose ends will get in your way. I do this until I am ready to change colors and then, before starting the next color, I pull all of the loose thread ends to the back and bury them. If I am doing a large area all of the same color, I will stop and bury the threads when I have 5 ot 6 loose ends on the front. CiaoMeow ^;;^ PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at http://community.webshots.com/user/tiamary I do a similar thing - but take the thread BEHIND an area still to be stitched before I bring the needle up, Once you`ve stitched that area, safely anchoring the thread, just snip it off close to the work at the front and rub it through with a fingernail on the back. You can then, if necessary, snip any remaining tail off close to the work again. More than one ways to skin a cat, as they say! When you only have one hand to work with it`s amazing how many tricks you work out! Pat It's kind of like doing an away or waste knot in reverse. I do this more in NP, or sometimes with specialty stitches. Usually with XS I can find a place to run the stitches through. Donna is shaming me into behaving again. After the mess of Summer Garden, I seem to have been on a downhill spiral. I generall start with holding the tail on the back, and make sure to capture it with the first few stitches. For ending, I hope there's something nearby, or do as Pat - but I'm pretty careful to go where the color won't be an issue. If not, I bring the thread up away, or just on the back to the margin and just anchor (yeah, pink hair tape). Then eventually I will weave it back under a stitched area. The little baby piece which I'll finish with another 15 minutes of work has a pin stitched border - done in silk - which doesn't give much for anchoring, so I've been doing a little weave through the pin stitches, and then ending in some cross-stitched area - that may be an inch away, but, it won't show. Starting, same thing - I go through a cross-stitched area, and then under some of the pin stitches, then start. I had a little tool, like a dololly, that you can use to pull thread tails through. The problem for me is if I leave them so there are several before I do it, then a mess can happen. But, when I'm being conscientious, I get all the tails woven, anchored, and snipped off short right away. So complicated - for a fun and relaxing hobby ;^) ellice Of course if it`s for something that`s going to be washed once and framed you don`t have to anchor it quite as firmly. I only ever do stuff for framing. Pat Sure, but I have the paranoia of one who worked doing framing in a LNS. Which means I've done my share of fixing people's stitching - 90% of the time without us telling them. The other 10 % - they may ask for something to be checked. I'm not totally paranoid about it, just a little picky. I did learn not to run threads on the diagonal in NP - especially with tent stitch - you really can see a kind of zipper line if you do that. Lately, I'm trying to do a bit less for just framing ($$) and some pieces I'm finishing as little hanging pillows, etc. I don't expect any great heirloom value to be put on them, so, if they come apart some time, oh well. Just still I'd like them to last through finishing ;^) I'm usually more concerned with a lot of the open type specialty stitches - sometimes it's so easy for those to just pull out, while you're still stitching. When doing pieces with a stitch mix, I'll try to leave any of the really open, loose stitching towards the end - if I can. Minimize the handling. I imagine that's why some designers will instruct you to do all the XS, then go back and do the specialty stitches . I noticed on the Drawn Thread Love & Wisdom piece, she's very specific about that, so after doing the entire border length, then it's head back up to the top and start inserting the specialty stitches. Ellice |
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