Chatelaine pattern material substitution?

Oh, I stitch on silks. The material I plan to use is some I bought
for my Japanese Embroidery. I've just never tried to stitch a
"structured" design on a very fine weave before, and so wasn't real
sure how to maintain the required spacing. The waste canvas idea
sounds like a good one. I plan to buy some and test it on a scrap
first.

The only thing I think I have to be real careful of is to make sure I
don't warp the fabric as I attach the waste to it, as the design is 19
X 19 inches, and so a pull will be very noticable. This will be on of
the times where careful preparation will be absolutely imperative.


On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 08:21:14 -0400, Sara wrote:

On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 00:45:25 GMT, fran
wrote:


My advice is don't even try it. I just finished a large Chatelaine
yesterday (Alhambra Garden), and IMO you will be driven mad trying to
stitch it on "regular" fabric. Take a piece of your fabric for color,
or match it to DMC and get a nice piece of linen or evenweave. There
are lots of different "tans" available and it will make your stitching
much more enjoyable.

Sara

fran wrote:
Oh, I stitch on silks. The material I plan to use is some I bought
for my Japanese Embroidery. I've just never tried to stitch a
"structured" design on a very fine weave before, and so wasn't real
sure how to maintain the required spacing. The waste canvas idea
sounds like a good one. I plan to buy some and test it on a scrap
first.

The only thing I think I have to be real careful of is to make sure I
don't warp the fabric as I attach the waste to it, as the design is 19
X 19 inches, and so a pull will be very noticable. This will be on of
the times where careful preparation will be absolutely imperative.

I like silk as well, more for tactile than process reasons probably.

Are you backing the silk with muslin? Staystitching all three layers
together with grain aligned might be enough to keep the fabric from
warping out too much.

Be sure to report how your experiment works out.
Dora

Oh my goodness.... I'm now about to become totally broke! And I just
spent too much on a Saturday trip to the not-so-LNS (it's in the next
state, about 120 miles away...)! The Allhambra is stunning!
Heather
drooling at work again...

RESULTS OF TEST USING WASTE CANVAS

I decided to try using waste canvas on a scrap of silk. I found I had
some 14-count waste canvas fron Zwiegart already, so I sandwiched the
waste canvas, the silk, and a scrap of light-weight interfacing.

I basted the interfacing to the silk first, then basted the canvas to
the pair.

I tried two tests: the first with the waste canvas straight out of
the bag, the second after washing the canvas first. For both tests,
I stitched a pair of 5-stitch by 5-stitch squares at 14-count at an
angle so they meet at one corner, and two sets of two 5 X 5 squares at
28-count, again at an angle.


What I found is thus:

The unwashed canvas is very stiff to work with, and you will have to
dampen it before pulling the waste threads out. However, the floss
lies very smooth and even on it, and you get a very precise stitch
with it.

Pros: even, smooth stitching
Cons: stiff fabric, have to dampen the canvas to pull it out, which
may cause issues with the silk floss.


The pre-washed canvas is easier to stitch on, and pull out, but the
stitches themselves are not as smooth or as precise, especially when
doing the over-one or 28-count stitches.

Pros: being pre-washed, don't have to worry about getting silk floss
damp, is easier to stitch and handle
Cons: Much harder to get even, smooth stitches on the over-one stitch
blocks, as the threads move around (the starch holding them in place
is gone).


My Conclusions:

1) test the silk floss first for ability to withstand getting damp
(not wet, just damp), and if OK, use the unwashed canvas. It will be
a pain, but will result in much nicer stitches.

2) baste the material sandwich every two inches to prevent the layers
from sliding. It may even be best to remove the waste canvas after
finishing each concrete section. This would, of course, depend on the
pattern, but in most patterns, you can find "stopping points" where it
would work to do this.

3) Use shorter lengths of floss (18" max, 12" prefered) because
pulling the floss through the tight weave wears it down fast.

4) Use an embroidery sharp, not a tapestry needle (I used a # 10), and
keep an emory bag handy so you can clean the needle frequently. This
really helps in pulling the needle through the material. I ended up
using the bag every time I loaded the needle.


So:
The waste canvas idea is very do-able. The stitching looked nice, and
so I'm going to try this. It won't be until later this year, as I have
a couple of deadlines on other projects to hit first, but I'm looking
forward to it - a new challange!

I'll have to try this sometime. It might be a good technique to use
with crazy quilts in silk, although with all the layers of fabric I
might need a set of pliers.
Dora