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Belle Soie thread
Posted on April 12th, 2008 by lefthandedstitcher
The feel and look of this thread is fabulous, but it has been difficult with which to work. Even with Thread Heaven conditioning, I am still getting horrible knots. And this is working with a single strand doing cross stitches over one. Only rayon threads and blending filament have frustrated me this much.
It is also showing wear very easily. My ground fabric is 28 count Lugana, and the thread seems to begin shredding quickly. This is already in precut lengths, but I am going to try cutting these in half to see if that helps.
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The thing I don’t like about the Belle Soie threads is that it bleeds more than other silk threads that I have used. If you ever have to take any of it out, it shows on the fabric with some of the color left behind. It is more expensive than other silks that I have purchased as well. It should be easier to use and not bleed like it does for the price.
This just means I’ll have to be extra careful. I hope it doesn’t cause issue when I’m ready to finish the piece.
After reading your review of the Belle Soie threads, I have some suggestions for you. I learned these techniques during a “Handling Silks & Metallics Class”, taught by Doug Kreinik of the Kreinik fibers company.
Problem #1 – Belle Soie’s 12 plies are very tightly twisted into the 12-ply strand. After separation, they’re as wavy as unbraided hair. Those waves are what cause the knotting, and Thread Heaven is not designed to penetrate fibers and relax those “waves”. So I use tap water or distilled water (depends on local water quality). Just a small amount does the job, and allows the fibers to dry quickly. Depending on my location and the amount of fibers to be “straightened”, I use one of the 2 following methods:
1- Lay plies on a towel, spritz with water, tug smooth and and lay down to dry.
2- Moisten thumb and forefinger with water, draw a ply thru the damp fingers to moisten and smooth at same time. Lay or hang to dry.
Problem #2 is fraying and fuzzing. To solve that, try stitching with a needle 1 size larger than you’re currently using. Even better is one that has a larger eye (like Piecemakers). This will temporarily widen the weave just a bit, allowing the fiber to pass with less friction. A larger needle eye also puts less stress on the thread where it passes thru the needle.
Using these 2 techniques, I was able to use the full length plies of Belle Soie with no signs of fraying or fuzzing. They even worked when stitching on irridescent Lugana, which is notoriously hard on fibers. I have pics of the project on irridescent Lugana; just email me for link to online photos.