Drawn Thread

8/7/2019 Drawn Thread

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A First Lesson InDrawn Thread Embroidery

This is a nine-part lesson which takes you through all the basic steps to create severaldifferent drawn thread design examples. The patterns were taken from Therese de Dillmont'swork (Lacis reprint) Drawn Thread Embroidery. If you follow these steps in order, you shouldthen be able to follow most pictures you find and understand how they are made. Anexcellent magazine which features drawn thread work is from Italy: Rakam. It is currentlybeing sold through Amazon Books.

Table of Contents

Step One: Preliminary Instructions

Step Two: Setting Up the Fabric

Step Three: Basic Knotting

Step Four: Basic Knotting Part Two

Step 5: Fancy Knotting Part One

Step 6: Fancy Knotting Part Two

Step 7: Fans - Part One

Step 8: Fans - Part Two

Step 9: Additional knotting instructions

Instructions are for your personal use. For other uses, please obtain permission.Copyright 2002 - Heritage Shoppe

315 Congress Street - Oconto, Wisconsin 54153920 835-4240

[email protected]


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Preliminary Instructions

You need to have a withdrawn area about 6-inches wide by 8 inches long. See graphicsbelow text.

Muslin or lawn is just as easy to knot and work with patterning as coarser fabrics. However,it is more difficult to withdraw the first few threads in a section. In fact, it can be downrightfrustrating. But don't let that stop you from using it, as it is cheap and works up easily in thepatterning.

A good cloth to work with is 40 count or up. Coarser linens or other fibers, such as 28-count,won't yield the same finished results, but you can practice on them easily enough. And, afterall, that's all we're doing: practicing.

Once you understand the knotting and how to knot, you are on your way to creating whateverit is you want to do. The knotting is the entire key to drawn thread work. In these directionsyou will learn a knot used by many experts and taught by Italian teachers.

You will have to prepare a cloth that is large enough to withdraw a center area of six inchesby eight inches. If working on a fine ground, you will need to withdraw a thread six incheswide (see below) in the center of the fabric. After that is accomplished, clip a thread at theside of this mark and draw it down to a length of 8 inches. Proceed to draw another across at6 inches and go up 8 inches on the other side. Don't get fussy or worry. Being exactly six oreight inches isn't of concern.

The reason for withdrawing threads is so that you can buttonhole down the 8-inch length. Onfine fabrics, if you don't withdraw a thread, you won't be able to easily know where to stopthe buttonholing. Buttonhole over about 3 threads (tad more on finer stuff), with the pearltoward the center of the cloth. Bring your needle up at the drawn thread line.

It is not necessary to buttonhole over every single ground thread when working on finematerials. Every two or every three is sufficient. If working on coarse grounds, buttonholingover every thread might be prudent to prevent raveling.

The buttonhole stitches will prevent raveling at the sides and hold the cloth taut. If you don'tbuttonhole the edges, the cloth won't stay taut and you won't be able to adequately knot thethreads. If you skip this step, you'll get frustrated. Not buttonholing contributed to my earlyfailures.

Once the 8-inch sides are buttonholed you will cut the cloth on that drawn thread line. Donot cut at this time! You won't be cutting the full length but leaving blank spaces.

This should give you plenty of time for preliminary set up. Dillmont cautions to withdrawthe necessary threads prior to mounting. I have done it both ways and there are plusses andminuses. In the end, I choose to mount and then withdraw because it is a tad easier towithdraw fine threads. If you choose to do it this way, you may have to remount.

If you do not have a frame large enough for the entire piece of fabric, don't despair. You canpiece the work with other cloth on as many sides as necessary. I've been piecing so that I


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could usescraps forpractice ina largetambourhoop.


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Setting UpPreliminary Instructions

Fabric shown is Italian ricamo linen,40-count.

Use a needle to pull out the threads youneed to withdraw. See next graphicbelow.

1. Remove 2 to 3 threads across the top.Only 1 if using very coarse linen. Do thisby clipping at the buttonhole edge.asshown for Step 3. You can leave thethreads at the right-hand side (or left,whichever way you are working) andremove them when everything is

finished, or you can clip them as you goalong at the opposite buttonholed edge.To make cutting simpler, use your thumbnail to pull back the buttonhole stitchesaway from the drawn thread line. Seenext graphic.

Once you get the hang of cutting and pulling out the threads, you will probably find yourown preferable method. I frequently cut both sides at once after having pulled the threads atthe top and bottom of an area, and pull out at the center or a couple of spots across the area tobe pulled. Depending upon the fabric you are working with, some threads draw easily, othersyou need to handle a bit more.

Having trouble pulling out that first thread? Pull it back in the direction you are going. Thatis, if you cut it on the left and are going right, pull the loose thread hard to the right. Thethread will pop up from the ground and be easier to see.

If you have drawn threads containing slubs, or the thread breaks during the pulling, makecertain you clean them out of the drawn thread area. Use a sharp needle to pull them out. Ingeneral, don't try to remove slubs in the vertical (up and down) threads that are leftremaining. In some instances, you can damage the thread. On finer fabrics, this isn't critical,but on coarser linens, this can be a a time-consuming fix. Don't let this caution make younervous. Just something to think about as you go. Most things can be fixed if you mess themup - including breaking a vertical thread.

2. Leave 3/8" or slightly less.

3. Remove next 5/8" - scissors shown cutting in this area.


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The area in the red oval showsthe buttonhole stitches pulledback on themselves to moreeasily see where to cut. Whenfinished, smooth them back intotheir proper position.

4. Leave 3/8" or slightly less. It isnot necessary to count thethreads so that it exactlymatches the first 3/8" space you

left intact. If you need these intact areas to be exact for your design, you must count them, nomatter the type of material you are using. We're practicising. Don't count threads for thisexercise, just measure them.

5. Remove 3/4". This area is being worked on in the above graphic.

The finished drawn areas. Notice some ofthe threads are loose. This will have to beremounted and tightened as I withdrewthreads while mounted for bettergraphics.

You'll have lots more room at the bottomfor more areas to try your skill. This isenough for now.


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Basic Knotting - Part One

Note: I am working this with ablue No. 8 pearl cotton so youcan see the thread. Normally,this is white-on-white work,although traditionally in manycountries colored threads weresometimes used, particularlywith children's clothing,aprons, etc. You normally usea thread that is similar inthickness to the threads of theground. It can be slightlylarger.

Broder threads are the mostoften used, but these arelimited in the U.S., comingonly in sizes 12 and 16, whichare quite large. Smaller sizes

can be had by some lace shops. In addition, shops in Germany, Australia and Italy also carrythem. You can look for them on the Internet. Cordonnet (a high quality twisted cotton usedfor lace making and crochet) can also be used. However, it is more stiff and knots up readily,making it difficult for novices and experienced alike to handle.

Your biggest problems will be twofold: 1. Which way to loop the thread, and 2. How to knot

the thread so that everything is taut. You willget this. It just takes time. Make certain yourwork is framed/mounted very taut. If not, this is the time to do it.

FIRST: Affix the working thread on the back of the work under the buttonhole stitches. Tokeep it from loosening up, I go under a few buttonhole stitches, back one or two, then forwardagain to where I need to start. The thread must be firmly anchored. It's not necessary to knotit.

SECOND: Determine your fabric and what will make a nice bundle of threads. On muslin, 8threads is good, on this 40-ct, 4 threads is okay. Keep the number of threads bundled an evennumber. Not always necessary, but for our practice piece, do it. You'll understand why as weprogress.

THIRD: For your first stitch, you will be leaving halfthe number of your normal bundlingalone at the right of the first bundle. Since 4 threads in a bundle works on this fabric, thatmeans 2 will be left alone. I brought the needle up 6 threads to the left.

I use very long lengths of thread for this work because it is difficult to end off and start a newone. It may be much easier for you to use shorter lengths (about 30 inches) and use a wasteknot where necessary. Let's not worry about perfection on this go-around. We should


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concentrate on making the knots -which are actually coral knots.Loop the thread as shown. It goesdown, left, up and around back to theneedle.

Pick up the first bundle of threadsexactly as shown - under the right sideof the loop and over the left side of theloop.

Pull the needle through and then pullneedle and thread to the RIGHT. You

will pull with your fingers. Don't pull from the needle. Keep pulling to the RIGHT until theknot is up against the bundle quite snug. Give it a sharp pull to seat it firmly at the center ofthe bundle.

Go directly below as shown, pick up the firstthreads you ignored and half the threads fromthe upper bundle. In this case, I always pickup 4, so I'm picking up the 2 ignored threadsin the top row and the first 2 threads of thetop bundle. The stitch will be slightlyslanted.

Loop the thread again as shown - just like thefirst one only this time: Pull down and

slightly to the right, then give a sharp quickpull at the center of the bundle once seated.

Pulling in the opposite direction from whereyou want the eventual knot helps to keep the

thread taut until you seat it. The knot will start out about half way down the open area andwill look like it's going to knot hard there. But just before it does, you gently guide it up andthen quickly pull at the center.

Knot didn't turn out? With a sharp needle (this is why I choose to use sharps) lift up thethread to the left of the knot - almost behind the bundle. Pull. It will loosen readily and youcan either undo the knot and start over or try to balance the threads from this point and re-

knot.

Don't get frustrated. Your mind, hands and fingers need to figure this all out. The knots areeasy to remove. Just keep going. You may have loose threads. That's okay. By the time youget to the end of the row, you should be at least 50% proficient. By the time you finish thissampler, you'll be 85% proficient with the knots. By the time you do this again, you'll have it99% of the time. Nobody's perfect.


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Now, loop the thread up, left, down andaround. Pick up the next bundle of the firstrow and make another knot. This time,pull UP as you begin to tighten. It helps tohold the loop down with the non-dominant

thumb until you're almost ready to seat theknot.

Continue in this manner, going up anddown across the row. The threads at thefront of the row make a zig-zag pattern. Asyou get to the end, figure out how many

threads are remaining. You may have to pick up one or two extra in the last few bundles tomake it come out right. You do not want to have just 1 or 2 threads in your last bundle.

We'll do a different pattern on the other open spaces.


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Basic Knotting - Part Two

As you did the first time, affix your thread on the back ofthe buttonhole stitches and come out as shown. Pick upthe same number of threads as you did in the upper area,in this case, the first four.

Loop the thread DOWN as shown and knot it.

Looping the thread UP, pick up the top bundle.

Slide the needle and thread behind the area and come outto the left of the next bundle.


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The result is a row of vertical bars which contrastsnicely with the upper border of zig-zag knottedstitches.

To check your work, make certain that the vertical

threads on the back of the work don't have a lot of"play" in them. They should be fairly snug. Not drumsnug, but snug against the border.

I'm working with pearl cotton. It is a tad "fuzzy". Ifyou use cordonnet, you will have a crisp border both at

the top and the row we just finished.

By now, your non-dominant thumb should be able to flick the loop in the direction it needs togo without much thinking. Don't feel badly if your stitches are loose and you're still havingtrouble. It is a simple matter to undo the threads across a row and start again. I did, and stilldo, many times. By the time you are finished with this sampler, you'll be much improved.

Our next step is to do fancy knotting between the areas we have just finished working.


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Fancy Knotting - Part One

At this stage, you may be a little insecure about your knotting, but that's normal. If you aregenerally making secure knots, and seating them correctly 90% of the time, you're on yourway.

The following lesson uses a simple coral knot. The same one we have been practising.However, it doesn't always hold the threads firmly, and comes a bit loose. You'll see it in thediagrams. Dillmont doesn't caution about this phenomena until later.

If you are having difficultly with loosening knots, you can make TWO knots at each junction,or you can use the special double coral knot as shown on the final page of this study.

This area is easier to work as shown at left with thetop of your work to your left.

Affix the thread on the back of the work and come upat the middle of the top bundled area. Bring theneedle and thread out to the front of the first twobundles. With the loop down (toward the right), knotthe first two bundles.

With the loop UP (left), pick up the second and thirdbundles and knot them as shown. Keep the threadpulling toward you.

Go slowly and gently. When the knot is seated in theright spot, you can give it an extra tug toward you.

\Come straight over to the right, loop the threadtoward the right, pick up and knot the second andthird bundles.


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Loop toward left, pick up the third and fourthbundles at the center. Make certain you pick up thelong thread from the second knot. You have two

threads showing between the bottom (left) and centerknot. If using a cordonnet, this wouldn't show.

Continue in this manner, remembering to loop rightwhen going right and loop left when heading to theleft. See next graphic.

This is how the bordershould look at the endof this section.Amazing how huge

5/8 of an inch appears.

In Dillmont's book,this is one of the firstborders taught. It can

be a bit troublesome. However, it is a good lesson in fortitude and understanding the entireprocess. You'll figure out how to get those knots evenly across the row and how taut to get thecarrying threads. It is easier to keep the knots tight if you work in the direction shown. Youwill notice, however, that some of mine are too loose. The better ones are toward the left inthe above graphic. There is an illustration on the double coral knot which holds these better.Also, some teachers maintain that that pulling on the thread straight up is the key. This didn'twork for me.

There were no instructions as to how to end the border, so I attached it to the side. In theillustrations, nothing was attached to the sides. The thread was brought into position at theback of a bundle. Again, a cordonnet thread grips a little better.

IMPORTANT NOTE: In the next section, we will do a different pattern in the open area. Youwill need to bundle up the threads in the next undrawn area. Choose one of the methodsalready learned here or use four-sided stitch.


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Fancy Knotting - Part Two

Again, go up on the back side under the buttonhole stitches. Thistime, go across the back of the work, picking up the knots fromprevious stitching to secure the thread, and come out beside thethird bundle.

Knot bundles 2 and 3 (loop down) slightly above the half-way pointof the open area. Loop up, knot bundles 1 and 2 at the midpoint asshown.

Loop up, knot bundles 2 and 3 directly above the bundles knottedfirst.

Loop down, knot bundles 3 and 4 between the first and third stitchand directly across from the second stitch.

You have made a diamond shape just like in the first knotted area.

Loop down, knot bundles 4 and 5 slightly lower than the center of

the open area.


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I will no longer tell you which way to place the loop. Whengoing up, it's loop up. When going down, it's loop down. Whengoing straight across, loop down OR loop up, depending upon

where you need to place the needle.

Knot bundles 3 and 4, then 4 and 5 again, then 5 and 6.

Knot bundles 6 and 7 at the same height as the first knot at bundles 2& 3

Continue in this pattern to the end of the row. See image below forcompleted border.

Look at the 8th and 9th bundle in the graphic. It has been incorrectlybundled, borrowing a thread from a previous bundle.

There are two ways to fix this. Remove the narrow row that bundledall the threads at the bottom of this border and restitch it, or snip outthe errant thread. If you do the latter, snip out at the center, threadinto a needle and anchor on the back. Or, snip at the knotted thread,

since on this sampler, there is little risk that it will come undone.

There are two ways to fix this. Remove the narrow row that bundled all the threads at thebottom of this border and restitch it, or snip out the errant thread. If you do the latter, snipout at the center, thread into a needle and anchor on the back. Or, snip at the knotted thread,since on this sampler, there is little risk that it will come undone.

Here we are up to this point. This borderdoesn't work as well with colored threadsas there is a blank area between the firstand fourth stitch in each diamond whereinno thread is connected.

The next section will be fans, and we willbundle the threads at the bottom of thenext open area with knot chain. This is aninvaluable stitch to learn for hemming.Easy, soothing, rhythmic.


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Fancy Knotting - FANS

The instructions show four rows of knotting for each fan shape. If this seems too tedious, youmay do three. Two rows will not be sufficient either for practice or to hold the fans in placeproperly when released from the frame.

Two things have happenedin the graphic at left.

1. A knotted chain has beenplaced at the bottom of thedrawn thread border.Working right to left, affixthe thread on the back.Pick up the first bundle andknot it the same way wehave been knotting

bundles. Make certain the knot faces left. Continue this across the row.

2. Making the fan shapes: Use a very long length of thread.

The fans should have an even number of bundles, preferably 8 or 10. The above example has8. If there are extra bundles at the end, knot them into the cloth as shown above. You mayneed to double knot the bundles at their center. If a single knot isn't holding, make anothercoral knot and pull taut. Both knots will snug up. Dillmont recommends the double knotmethod for stubborn fans. Or use the not recommend in Lesson 9.

Don't cut the thread when you get to the end. Turn the work and go on to the next step.

The work is nowturned so that youcan work right toleft.

Bring the thread tothe bottom (towardcenter) of the firstfan and knottogether twobundles across thearea. Pull the knots

toward the previousone as you seat them. This helps to keep each space taut.

Bring the thread up to the top of the next fan and knot each bundle separately.

Continue with the next fan at the bottom, knotting 2 bundles at a time, etc. across the row.

Note the the knotting is in a rounded pattern and not straight across. To do this, each knot


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goes one knot space up from the last until the middle, then go one knot space down. Justposition your knot just under (or above) the previous one.

Note the red arrow at the upper left. When you get to the end, go down (or up whennecessary) the last bundle a slight distance (starting the second row) and knot the thread. Thethread is still attached to the needle and is going off the picture at left from the second knot

on this bundle. Confused? Seethe next graphic.

At left shows the first 2 rowscompleted. Note on thebottom right, the thread wascarried directly above andknotted at the first bundle ofthe fan just above the first row.This corresponds with the redarrow in the previous graphic.

On the second fan, knot each bundle separately. Only the first lower row knots 2 bundles at atime.

The last, upper fan at left has been knotted slightly above to start the third row.

However, I am short of thread and won't be able to complete another row. This is the place tostop when that happens. There are a couple ways to end it.

1. Bring the thread all the way up the bundle without knotting it to start the first row, hide iton the back of the work, and start a new thread at this third row. This new thread will bebrought back down to the proper position from the top of the last bundle.

2. Weave the thread on the back of the knots of the second row and clip close. Start a newthread as indicated in No. 1, knotting it in the proper position to begin the row.

Continue until you have four rows completed. Turn the work for each row. Notice below howthe fourth row is ended: goinginto the side.

The first half completed.

You will now start at the rightside and again, begin the first

row at the upper right fan closeto the center. Pick up 2 bundlesfor each knot stitch. Before youdive in, however, go to the next

page.


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Fancy Knotting - FANS - Part Two

At the center of the right hand edge we begin the second half to complete the fans.

After the first fan (at right) is bundled (in twos), we knot the center thread that grouped the

fans and the thread from the previous stitching. Knot each long thread that connects the fans,then work the top of the lower (second) fan.

When knotting the long threads, make certain you pull in the direction of the previouslymade knot to maintain tension. If you pull to hard, you will distort it, if you don't pull hardenough, it will be limp. The knots are loose enough and you can move them with your fingersor needle to line them up if you need to slide them to balance the space.

The above picture shows the third fan worked at the center (bundles of two) and the needlepicking up the center thread and the thread from the previously worked fan.

Continue in this manner until you reach the end.


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A close-up view of the left-hand side of the fans.

In very fancy knotting, threads are carried from the fans to

the side of the work and needleweaving is incorporated.When this embroidery turns a corner, gorgeous motifs areplaced in this open areas, either with needleweaving, orreticella. I merely carried the threads to the side forillustration. I lack sufficient skill to carry you through thoseadventures. The focus of this stitching exercise is to further

the art of this work for those who have never attempted it before, and to have us master theknotting. Once you master the knotting, the field of this embroidery is wide open. You cannow learn from a real master of the art, glean information from books, and not feel like youare totally inept.

Below is the finished work. If there's enough enthusiasm left from all your hard work, youcan add a very pretty border at the bottom with little fans grouped in bundles of three andlovely spider webs in between them.


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Drawn Thread Knotting - Double Coral Knot

Above is illustrated a graphic and actual progression on cloth in two steps. You work thisknot from left to right. When the second loop is made (right above), pull firmly toward theright. The knot will seat beautifully with perfectly tensioned thread between the clusters.

This knot is promoted by Antonietta Monzo Menossi in her book "I Miei Sfilati". Uppergraphic provided by Stefania Bressan from the Menossi book. This book is written in bothItalian and English and Stefania is working to find a U.S. distributor. For a delightful tour ofembroidery, visit Stefania at: http://digilander.libero.it/angolostefania

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