Tips & Hints

Handfinishing:

• Many of the finishes are completed by working from the wrong side of the fabric.
  
  
• Corners show mastery of the technique - they should lie flat, with identical processes followed to turn every corner. The stitches may be mirror images of other corners, but there should be a distinct pattern - not a hodgepodge of stitches that somehow manages to get the corner turned.

Japanese Kogin

• Always begin your stitching at the center of the design, and work outward from there. Many Kogin designs are laid out as mirror images. A complete design can be developed from a fragment containing only a quarter segment of that design.
  
  
• The patterns are worked over an odd number of threads (forming a square shape), OR over an even number of threads (forming a diamond shape) - not both. Except for helping to shape squared areas, rarely are odd and even counts mixed in a design.

Japanese Temari

• The designs should have sharp angles at pivot points - not softly rounded corners. If the pattern develops rounded points, try increasing the distance between the rows.
  
  
• Substitute narrow (1/4 - 3/8") gift-wrapping ribbon for the paper strips used for marking. Choose the smooth, flat, lustrous ribbons, but avoid the dark, strong colored ones, as they might discolor the ball. Avoid crinkled or folded ribbons, because inaccurate measurements could result.
  
  
• To help in combining colors, observe the choices used in fabric, wallpaper, wrapping paper, packaging materials, greeting cards and pictures.

Norwegian Hardanger

• It is best to purchase all of the thread for the project at the same time (especially when working with watercolors.) A color to be careful with is Ecru, since it can vary in tone from white to yellow to gray, depending on the manufacturing process and the age of the thread. On an Ecru project, instead of the color labeled "ecru" you may want to purchase DMC color 712 (most common substitution) – or 746 or 822 to assure color consistency.
  
  
• If your design has several repeats along the length of the fabric, or is worked in parallel rows, work the parallel rows as groups, and then use the groups as grids to check against. I generally work one complete thread in a row and then move to the alternate row and work one complete thread in it. DON'T work one row all the way around, before adding the subsequent rows - it's too easy to miscount this way, and most likely you'll need to remove a larger portion of stitching to correct a mistake.
  
  
• Poke a fine awl, a large needle, or a tiny knitting needle into the center of the finished eyelet to even up the size and shape of the hole.

Swedish Sollerosom

• Generally, the colors used for stitching the two layers are in sharply contrasting colors or hues. A single color is used to complete each layer of the design. Surprisingly, it doesn't make any difference which color is placed first. From a distance, the colors blend so well that the eye can't distinguish which layer is on the bottom. For the first layer you may decide to use the most easily manipulated fiber, or the cheapest fiber, or the one you have in the greatest supply.
  
  
• When working with variegated thread, the placement of the fiber will determine whether the movement is vertical or horizontal. If the variegated fibers are used for the first layer, the movement is vertical. In contrast, using variegated threads for the second layer produces a horizontal feeling of movement. The length of the repeat in the variegated fiber might also be a factor in determining which layer to use it on (i.e. a lengthy repeat would only be visible when used for the first layer - unless the project is a very large one.)

Swedish Weaving

• When you build a pyramid of several rows, you must have in the bottom row of your starting row at least the same number of running stitches between pyramids as you have in the height of the pyramid. That is, if your pyramid is going to be 9 rows high, there must be at least 9 running stitches between the pyramids, as the number of running stitches decrease with each row that you build.
  
  
• Stitching for the Left-Handed: Swedish Weaving Designs are easily reversed, since the designs are normally worked from the center to the edge of the cloth, and thus are reversed between the two sides of the design. You may choose to experiment with the vertical starting position to determine if the top or the bottom row should be completed first.

Ukrainian Nyzynka

• Until you are comfortable with the rhythm of this stitching, you may choose to work with 18" lengths of the soft cotton. The cotton will begin to wear if frequent re-stitching is necessary to correctly follow the pattern. More experienced stitchers may choose to use 36" lengths.
  
  
• The first few rows are the most difficult and must be carefully counted. After the pattern begins to develop, it is possible to work without consulting the stitch chart, frequently checking the pattern from the face to make certain the pattern lines are developing correctly.
  
  
• To help reduce the bulkiness of the rewoven area (where you weave in the raw ends of your thread), stagger the point at which you resume stitching. In other words, begin the pattern at either end of the design, not only at the position where the last thread was completed.