Lightweight or delicate fabrics will need strengthening in the embroidery area. An iron-on interlining is easily applied to the wrong side of the fabric following the manufacturer’s instructions. You then work the embroidery through both layers.
(3) NEEDLES
I always use size 10 embroidery needles. These support the single strands of size 25 embroidery floss that I use, but also fit my hand and make working comfortable. Feel free to experiment with thinner or thicker needles to find the right fit for you.
A slightly thicker needle may be necessary when working with a stiff fabric, and it can also be useful to use a needle one size bigger than your working needle to loosen holes as you work. If you find your stitches are always tight, try using a needle in the next size up.
(4) EMBROIDERY HOOP
A 6- or 7-inch (15- or 18-cm) embroidery hoop is the perfect size for the projects in this book. While a smaller hoop will hold the embroidery area, you really need space around the edges of the design to make working easier and more comfortable.
It is a good idea to diagonally bind the inner ring with cotton tape to provide a better grip to keep the fabric in place. Some hoops are lined with nonslip rubber, which can degrade and stain your fabric, so I suggest you remove old rubber and bind with cotton tape instead.
(5) TRANSFER PAPER
Dressmaker’s transfer paper leaves lines on the fabric that disappear on washing. Simply lay the transfer paper on top of your fabric and your template on top of that, then use a ballpoint pen to trace over the template lines.
(6) THREAD TRIMMERS
Small, sharp scissors are fine for cutting threads, but thread trimmers are especially good for cutting away the loose threads at the back of your embroidery.
(7) SEAM RIPPER
If you need to take stitches out, a seam ripper allows you to work under the stitch without cutting into the fabric below.
(8) PIN CUSHIONS
My thread-painting practice has been changed dramatically thanks to a cheap pin cushion found in a children’s sewing set. The sections all around the edge of the cushion really help me to organize my needles and threads.
You will be using a lot of similar thread colors to embroider your cats, so I advise you to organize your pin cushions well: having too many needles on a pin cushion will cause the threads to tangle, so you may well need more than one.
Group your shades in a way that is logical to you, then make ink dots on the cushions so you know where to replace your needle. You will also be able to pick up the shade of thread you need next more easily.
(9) THREADS
Separate skeins of size 25 embroidery floss and use single strands (see pages 18–19). The projects list exactly which thread shades to use, but keeping a more extensive selection at hand can be good for freestyle work and for feeding your creativity at the time of working—just like a painter who may have more colors on their palette than they actually use on the canvas.
STITCHING TECHNIQUE
Using just a needle and single strands of embroidery floss, you can achieve soft color-shading effects and replicate the patterns and textures of a cat’s fur.
LONG AND SHORT STITCH
Painting with thread uses a stitching technique called long and short stitch, although the name is slightly misleading, since long and short stitches are used to start an area of embroidery, but the shading is actually completed using irregular satin stitches. The first row of stitches will feature alternate long and short stitches, but subsequent rows use stitches of roughly equal length, staggered to fill in the gaps of the previous row. You use your needles like a paintbrush, filling in color changes and light and shade. You may bring your needle up next to preceding stitches or through them, and may even pierce the thread of existing stitches.
To work the first row, alternate long and short stitches.
Fill in the gaps with a row of satin stitches.
Now fill in the next gaps with more satin stitches.
The stitches at the edges are long and short again.
You can keep the overlap between stitches short. . .
. . .or long.
NATURAL COLOR GRADATION
To create natural-looking cats you will use lots of threads, often in very similar shades. By using multiple colors you can create smooth and subtle gradations. For example, while moving in color between black and white, you might expect to need to use a gray. In fact, look closely at a photograph of a cat and you will see that various shades of gray, and perhaps browns too, are apparent between the extremes of white and black. Don’t be afraid to use lots of threads: we are lucky to have so many shades available.
To understand what I mean, start with two distinct colors.
Work between those colors with similar shades to begin to soften the transition.
Keep building a natural gradation using slightly differing shades of thread color.
TEXTURE
The long and short stitch technique is perfect for replicating the direction of a cat’s fur. Every cat is unique, so study the furry details and use your stitches like brushstrokes, changing their size and direction to emulate the nap or texture of the fur. That said, the changes in direction, like the changes in color, need to be subtle, so keep your stitches roughly parallel with only small changes each time as you round a corner or make a change in direction.
