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This was the second time we've discussed stitching with metallics at Class Act Chat. I chose to use the topic again because I've been seeing a great deal of conversation about them in other chats. :-)
For the purposes of our class, I divided metallics into two categories: blending filaments, which are used on the same needle with one or more strands of floss; and other metallics which are generally used by themselves. Some of the hints below can be used for both kinds of metallics.
We began with blending filament. The most readily available is Balger blending filament from Kreinik. It's a very fine thread that comes on a spool in a wide variety of colors. Although blending filament is considered a metallic fiber, it's manufactured from manmade substances and requires a little more caution than cotton floss. The most notable one occurs when you iron a stitchery containing blending filament. Manmade fibers melt at lower temperatures than do cotton or linen, so you must be careful of your iron settings when you press needlework containing it. The best recommendation I can give you is to use a scrap of counted-thread fabric, do a row or two of stitches, and then go play with your iron settings until you find one that will press creases, etc., out of the fabric without melting the metallic. If you make a note of it, you'll remember where to set the iron each time you iron metallic fibers.
One of the most often-heard complaints about blending filament and other metallics is that they fray at the ends. As many of you already know, I'm not a great enthusiast about using chemicals in my needlework, but here, I make an exception. After I cut a length of blending filament, I use on each tip of it a very small drop of Fray-Check. I let it dry and then go ahead to do my stitching. I leave a long tail when I anchor the threads at the beginning so I can cut off the treated area when I'm finished. One chatter suggested dipping the ends into the Fray-Check instead of putting a drop of it on them. This would certainly save a mess.
There are two hints that can help you when filament twists, as it often does when stitching is going on. First, use a short length of the blending filament. I can't begin to tell you how much this has helped me. True, it means threading more needles, but the work is much less frustrating. A second thing you can do to avoid twisting is to let your needle dangle down every few stitches. When you do so, the needle spins around and removes twists. Finally, dampening the blending filament and/or floss with a damp sponge can help make stitching with a blended needle much easier. I have not had blending filament bleed on any of the projects I've done with it.
As I mentioned earlier, blending filament is meant to be used in a blended needle with one or more strands of floss. One problem encountered by stitchers is that the filament tends to slip through the needle, and often, the slippage makes the filament longer than the floss. One help in solving this problem is to thread the filament onto the needle first with a loop. If you buy Balger in packages, these instructions are included. If you purchase just the spool, they are not. To thread your needle, take the length of blending filament and fold it 2-3 inches from one end. This makes a loop. Put the loop through your needle far enough to see it well on the other side of the eye. Then, draw both the short and long end of the filament through the loop. Doing so will knot the filament to the needle. Because it's so fine, the knot will not impede your stitching. After you've looped on the blending filament, thread your needle in the normal way with the floss that goes along with it.
Using blending filament with floss can present another potential problem. For several reasons--weight, elasticity, etc., some of your blending filament may slip under the floss in stitches. There are two ways to help it stay on top if you want more glitter than simply stitching produces. One thing some stitchers do is to stitch the area using only floss and then go over top of each x using the filament. This makes twice the work, but the people who do it think it's worth it. The other suggestion is to use a laying tool when you do your stitches with the blended needle. A laying tool is an instrument you put between the stitch and the fabric as you do the stitch. As you pull the blended needle through to the back of the fabric, you gently smooth the fibers in the needle until the stitch is completed. This causes the threads in the needle to lie side by side and to be more visible. Laying tools are available at cross-stitch and needlework shops in metal and wood. They taper at the business end to slip under small stitches. A trolley needle is another kind of laying tool. It has a ring that fits over the end of a finger, and there's a needle pointing outward from the ring. This needle slips under your stitches as you go. If you saw any of the Batman movies, Catwoman's fingernails are trolley needles. What concerns me about these is that I might poke myself in the eye if I forget I have it on. ;-) There are things around the house you can use as laying tools. The one I prefer is the tapestry needle with which I'm doing my stitching. It's always there, it's small, and it works very well. Thumbs and fingernails make good laying tools, too. I've heard of stitchers using toothpicks, but I'd be concerned that the surface isn't smooth enough not to catch on the fibers.
Speaking of smoothness, I saw a number of stitchers mention when their hands are dry, the blending filament can snag on their hands. I would suggest using a glycerine-based hand cream when you stitch if you have this problem. One of the most commonly recommended is Udder Cream, something that's come from the farm. It will not cause your hands to leave oily stains on your stitching and softens very well. It's available in small quantities in needlework shops. I've heard stores like Walmart also carry it.
The second group of metallics we discussed are the braids, etc., that are used by themselves instead of in a needle with other floss. Most of the suggestions from the blending filament work well with these. If the metallic is fine enough, you can use the loop method of threading the needle. If it seems too heavy and you think the knot made by the loop will impede your stitching or enlarge the fabric holes too much, then try threading the needle in the usual fashion.
Some metallics are easier to use than others. What I recommend here is if you buy one you absolutely hate, try going to another brand that's the same size. Your shop owners can help you here. For example, I absolutely detest the DMC spooled 280Z series and have always felt as if I'm using barbed wire to stitch. I've chosen to go to a Kreinik braid instead. I haven't yet used the skeined DMC metallics, but I hear they're much easier to use than what comes on spools. They feel smoother and more flexible than the spooled variety.
Again, dampening the metallic, using short lengths, and Fray-Checking the tips will help. So will letting the needle hang down every few stitches to allow the fiber to untwist. As with the blending filament, these are manmade fibers and can be tricky to iron.
At the very end of each chat, I mentioned something I have never seen but would love to try someday. The metallics we use aren't really made of metal. There is, however, at least one place in the U.K. where gold thread is made in the same way it has been for many hundreds of years. The process is fascinating, as I know from having seen a fellow-EGA member's slidshow from her trip there. If I am able to find an address for anyone in this country who has this gold available, I'll let you all know. One caution: I'd expect to have to pay a premium price for it.
Copyright 1997 Jill Martz
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