From Start to Finish: Wrapping Up

Well, the journey is over. All the loose ends have been safely tucked away, all the stitching done.

I had a few decisions to make at the end, mostly about the background stitch and finishing the tulle. For the background stitch I decided to go with a thread-saving version of  a trellis cross. Usually a trellis cross is made by stitching a large cross stitch, then an upright cross stitch over the intersection. If you stitch each large cross stitch one at a time, you face the problem of the carry thread showing through, even if your thread is white and the canvas is white. I incorporated the carry threads into the design for my son’s wedding sampler, taking great care that all of the thread ends wrapped on the back so that all of the carry threads were the same. As a result, I used a lot of thread.

Another way to stitch the trellis cross is to stitch all of the stitches that slant left across a row, then come back and stitch all of the stitches that slant right. This also uses a lot of thread, and you still have the vertical carry threads on the back.

For this project I used a thread saving method that has the same look, without the carry lines on the back. I laid long diagonal lines, all in one direction, then came back and laid long diagonal lines to cross the first lines. The carry threads are hidden on the edges of the stitching, and are very short, which saves most of the thread for the top of the canvas. Then I stitched the upright crosses over the intersections to hold the long lines in place. Very economical and yet it has the same look on top of the canvas. Background stitch solved.

Then I had to deal with the tulle. I wanted each piece to be a little bit different. So on the right side I just tacked it down with the final border stitch. On the bottom, I ran three lines of #8 braid through the tulle before tacking it down. On the left side I tacked the tulle in place, then stitched over it. And at the top I gathered the tulle before stitching it in place.

I’m not finished with adding other fabrics to the canvas as a design element. I want to experiment with actually stitching on the tulle, then applying that to the canvas. I need to figure out how to hide the thread ends, and the stitching needs to be reversible to do so. I’m mulling that over, and know I’ll solve the problem one day soon and be able to apply that to the canvas. But for now, Diamond Delight 10 is finished! Thanks for taking the journey with me.