Updated: February 27, 2018
I have always been afraid to use silk gauze. First there’s the eye thing — I don’t do well with magnifiers. Second there’s the mesh size thing, I tend not to like things which are that delicate and small.
But Kreinik has taken silk gauze out of this world and into the world of basic needlepoint with silk gauze in 18 mesh. It comes mounted or unmounted. Since retail is 3 or 4 times the cost of canvas, I like the mounted best. You can order on-line through Kreinik’s excellent on-line mall or your LNS can order it for you.
In 2011 I had a chance to make the piece pictured above on 18 mesh silk gauze and it was tons of fun. I can’t wait to make more. Last week I stitched a quilt portrait pn this same gauze. It’s so pretty!
Silk gauze is often not sold by the inch, the way canvas is, but is sold in precut sizes mounted in mat board. This is because the silk is expensive and the mat board provides the unworked margin. I also found that the mat board is it’s own frame, so the project was very portable. You can also buy it in 1/4 yard lengths, costing almost as much as a yard of mono canvas.
Silk gauze also has a couple of other important characteristics, you need to consider when using it. The threads are pretty much translucent, so they can almost disappear against the background as you stitch. I found having something solid and dark as a backdrop worked best. The printed skirt I was wearing wasn’t good, but the dark carpet was.
You can see from the picture of my stitching just how transparent it is, the thread ends on the back can be seen easily.
The threads are also thinner than mono canvas, more like the size of interlock or a bit thinner. This could mean that you need to use slightly thicker threads, but I found I didn’t.
You also need to stitch with a looser tension. This is for several reasons. First off, the mat board isn’t that sturdy, so it’s pretty easy to bend or even to have the gauze come off. Second, silk gauze is woven like interlock canvas, so there isn’t “give” in the intersections. Pull too hard and you will have a mess.
I loved using it and I loved the results. My mind is bursting with possibilities for using this ground and I’m going to be trying some experiments over the next couple of months.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
I’ve been wanting to try silk gauze myself but haven’t for the same reasons.
Maybe I’ll pick some up
I just bought some silk gauze and have been timid about trying it. (It is 40 ct so I will either be stitching w/no glasses and living in peril of putting my eye out or using a magnifier.) Your tips will help a lot – now I just need to decide which pattern to stitch on it!
I’ll have to look for this. Been stitching on 40ct for 10 years. Some of those pieces I look at and can say honestly – I can’t believe I stitched the whole thing – at 1,600 stitches per square inch!
Silk gauze is not especially difficult to stitch on and the results can be amazing. For your first piece, look over your designs and choose a simple design-perhaps your initial or a single flower to stitch for the top of a ring box. Do not worry about filling in the background on your piece unless you want to. The bare silk gauze looks attractive. Stitch in good light and use a magnifier, if needed. I prefer stitching under natural rather than artificial light. Silk gauze can be worked on with cotton floss, with silk threads or perhaps another fine diameter thread from your stash. The number of strands you need obviously depends on your mesh size. When your piece is finished, sit back, smile and admire your beautiful work.
The idea sounds interistering – I don’t see to well but I would like to try silk gauze.
from which website can i buy 10 yards of silk gauze,natural colour ,40 count?
This is a huge quantity of silk gauze and pretty much any shop that carried silk gauze would be able to order this quantity for you, but I am pretty confident that no one would have it in stock. To find shops that carry silk gauze, you should just do a search in Google.
Since I rarely stitch on silk gauze I don’t have any specific recommendations.
Keep Stitching, Janet
Janet, you are a BAD influence. Just ordered a silk gauze kit through Kreinik, but it is for Christmas, so perhaps I’ll at least get started by then.