A Geek's approach to metallic thread in eight easy stages Part 1 Thread

 

People get freaked out trying to embroider with metallic thread.  And understandably so…it shreds, it breaks, it nests more than ‘standard’ thread.  But once you get your head around some basic principle of working with the ‘metal stuff’ then you can get fantastic results with a few cautionary steps.  In this series of 8 fortnightly blog posts I’ll give you the tips I use to get great results from working with metallic thread.  Now I will talk specifically about digital embroidery but the principles are the same what ever machine you use be it a standard sewing machine doing inbuilt stitches or a long arm quilter doing free motion work.

I often think of digital embroidery and regular sewing machines like 19^th Century horses which is hilarious as I am one of the most un-equine people on the planet. Your basic sewing machines are like pit ponies; basic workhorses that can labour away on a task without much fuss or fills; a good mid-range sewing machine like the lord of the manor’s hunter; solid, reliable, good looking.  You can go up the hierarchy of machines until you reach digital embroidery machines.  I think of them like dressage horses, beautiful specialist animals that do the most amazing things that can take your breath away.  And just like with horses you need to treat in a special way; they can be particular or indeed fussy about what you put in them, refusing to perform unless they have high quality ‘feed’ and handling.  Don’t expect to drive your delicate embroidery machine the same way you can your pit pony sewing machine!

Number 1 Quality of thread

My first rule of digital embroidery is always quality needles and thread.  My first proper experience of digital embroidery back in 2007 was a painfully slow with constant shredding and breaking (every 30 seconds) and once I realized that it was to do with cheap unbranded machine needles and manky old thread that had been kicking around for years my work transformed.
For metallics I use branded thread like Madeira.  Their FS40 has been my go-to thread since the mid-1990s and I don’t think I have ever been without Gold 4 since 1986.  If you are looking for a cheaper option, I have had good results with the CR40 range; it’s got good colours in addition to the standard metal colours BUT I personally feel its thinner than the FS40 and have had issues with pattern fill blocks appearing slightly transparent.  I’ll talk through ways to solve that another time.  I use the Sulky metallics when I can get them but I burn through big reels and its often an issue of getting hold of them in quantity.  I have used other brands including some dodgy chinese brands with mixed results.

I’ll also talk about alternative metallic threads like lurexes and hologram sliver threads in episode 8 of this series

Think about how old your thread is?  Thread will deteriorate with age and if its left in sunlight.  It becomes brittle and frankly only good for embellishing machines! I have had branded thread snap all the time when it has been left on a window sill.  If your embroidery is shredding and snapping ask yourself is the thread a problem?  Can you run through your design with a standard rayon on a similar fabric no problem? Does the thread snap more easily if you pull it between your fingers.  These might indicate that you have a problem with your thread.
For a while I took a hard line that I wouldn’t use anything with an unfamiliar brand that I had bought on a market stall. That unfair on market stall holders but as a rule I would always say proceed with caution; only buy small quantities until you have tested the quality.  In fact I have had some good results with cheap metallics if I was careful with some of my other stages in stitch out.  Also be aware that you might not be able to get EXACTLY the right colour again if you run out on a project halfway through. 
If you are new to digital embroidery invest in some good quality threads.  You don’t want to be frustrated by thread that will easily shred and snap.

Recovery Quilts: The path back

Recovery Quilt 3 : Out of the dirt, 2019, approx 180x120cms

I’ve been on a bumpy road lately.  Challenging things have happened to me and those around me.

It left me in a dark place.  

Whilst I have been working, it’s been on project work.  I hadn’t done a piece of personal studio work for about two and a half years.  In the past my studio practice has always been the safety valve; a way to vent the pressure.  But this time I couldn’t work; I was blank; I was empty; I lost my way.

As part of the journey, back I decided to make a quilt; a comforter.  It was the action of making that was to be the important bit.  It was a private thing.  There was no ‘story’ to tell. I wasn’t thinking of you, the audience, just myself as a maker.  Think of it as a displacement activity.  The main criterion was it was to be joyous.  When faced with a design choice I had to choose the more joyful option; to go for a trumpet blare of colour rather than the sludgy monochrome I have been submerged in.

And I wanted it to be technically slick.  Contained, flat with very accurate stitchery.  Some might say it’s out of character.

But at the same time, I don’t want these ‘Recovery Quilts’ to be bland ‘fridge magnet’ quilts with insipid inspirational quotes.  The words are very personal to me.  The texts have been chanted in my head the whole time; my mantras for getting through.

The piece above is Recovery Quilt 3 : Out of the dirt.  It has been shortlisted for the Vlieseline Fine Art Textiles Award, one of the most prestigious textile competitions in Europe.  It will be on show at Festival of Quilts NEC Birmingham 1-4^th August.  I can't explain how great that has made me feel.  

Recovery Quilt 3: Out of the dirt.  detail of digital embroidery and applique.

the last stitches...for real

These are the final stitches on the piece….from a technical point of view its me joining piece 8 and piece 9, that’s the seam at 45 metres.  So what you see is the embroidered ECG being joined up.

 

And this is what 100 metres of lovely British woollen face cloth with my embroidery on looks like when its rolled up and ready to go.  It weighs about 4 stone.

The red threads

A big thank you and ‘star of the day’ must go to the guys at Madeira thread.  You might remember that they sponsored the thread for my piece (see: ‘The empty spool’ post).  I reckon that by the time I am through I will have got through 20 miles of the thread. It’s pretty close as to whether I have used more black or red.  Its hard to tell when I am using five different reds and just one black.  The plan is that the colour of the ECG waveform changes as the piece goes along but you don't really notice the colour change as its subtle; its stronger up one end and mellower at the other.

I was running low on one of my favourite reds. I spoke to them at Madeira and another spool was in the post that day.  Great stuff.  Thanks

The empty spool

When I picked up the cloth from Hainsworth in Leeds I carried on to Madeira thread in Ripon.  Karen Burrows had kindly said that she could help me out with some thread for this project.  They let me loose in the sample boxes and I came away with a treasure trove of stuff. 

I knew that I would be after some of their Classic embroidery thread; good colour, great sheen, dependable to use.  Its lived up to its reputation.  It sits on the woollen cloth and looks gorgeous; the texture of them both looks great.

So as you can imagaine I am eating up the thread at a fair ol' rate.  Give the size of the embroidery I had picked up 5,000m cops.  This is my first one empty; a black Classic.  However there are two reds looking pretty skinny and a white on the slender side.  I reckon I will easily have used more than 18 miles once the piece is finished and thats not including the bobbin fill.