Thanks to all who have replied to my questions about bullions. I have scattered these questions all over the internet, and from everyone’s responses have put together a collection of great tips. Because I am stuck here in Ethiopia with my little netbook, I can’t give you any diagrams for working bullions, but I have put together a list of tips for working better bullions.
Type of needle For working better bullion stitches, your needle is the most important thing. You need to use one that’s eye is the same thickness as the rest of the needle. The best ones for this purpose are milliner’s or straw needles. The reason why this is important is that it is much easier to pull the needle through the wraps if the needle doesn’t get bigger at the eye.
These also have a lovely long length, meaning that if you want to make long bullions, they will assist with that too.
Mountmellick embroidery, which is one of my areas of specialty, uses thicker threads than can be threaded into straw needles. So instead, we use darner needles, as they don’t get too much bigger at the eye.
Size of needle Your needle should not be too small, as this will also make it harder to pull the needle through the wraps. A needle’s purpose is to make a hole big enough to easily pull the thread through. If it is too small, it adds wear and tear to the thread (it goes fuzzy and looks worn).
To choose the right size of needle, you need one that is approximately the same thickness as your thread doubled over. The reason for this is that at the eye, you have a double thickness thread – it goes in one side and out the other: two thicknesses.
If you find that your thread is becoming very worn, change to a larger size needle.
You need to remain calm and relaxed It was amazing to me how many people reported symptoms of anxiety when working their bullions: sweaty hands, grubby thread from sweaty hands, contorted mouths, holding breath etc.
Okay people, you have to relax! Bullions are NOT impossible, and you are NOT going to let them beat you. You CAN do it, and you will produce a great looking bullion!
So, relax. Take a deep breath and believe that you can do a great bullion. Then follow your best bullion instructions (I recommend my books The Right-Handed Embroiderer’s Companion and The Left-Handed Embroiderer’s Companion for bullion stitch instructions), remembering to breathe in and out as you go. Just before pulling the needle through the wraps, take a deep breath and breathe it out slowly. Now pull it through.
If you do find your hands getting sweaty, wash them regularly with soap, so that the thread has no chance of getting grubby.
Wrapping your bullion Make sure all the wraps are right up next to the previous one. If there is a gap in between, that means that there is extra thread needed to travel from one wrap to the next. When the bullion is pulled through, that extra thread needs to go somewhere. That usually means that either one or both of the wraps on either side will take in that extra thread, meaning that those wraps are slightly bigger. As you want even wraps, make sure all wraps are right next to their neighbours.
Don’t wrap too tightly If you wrap your needle too tightly, you will only make it harder to pull your needle through. But then, if you wrap too loosely, you have more of a chance of the wraps getting messed up!
Wrap your bullion stitch with gentle tension. If you have wrapped clockwise, just before pulling the needle through, take the wraps on the needle between your thumb and forefinger and turn them just slightly in an anticlockwise direction. This will allow the tension to loosen just slightly.
If you wrapped anticlockwise, you will need to turn the wraps just slightly clockwise.
Pulling the needle through Loosely hold the wraps between your thumb and forefinger. This keeps them stable as you pull the needle though. Do not hold tightly, or it will make it more difficult to pull the needle through.
Take a deep breath, then breathe it out slowly. Pull the needle through the wraps slowly and gently.
When most of the needle and thread is pulled through the wraps, so that the bullion is almost lying against the fabric, then and only then should you release the gentle hold that you have on the wraps.
Pull the thread all the way through, so that the bullion sits proudly against the fabric.
Tickle your bullion’s tummy At this point, some of the wraps may have gotten a little out of place. Don’t panic!! (I always tell my students not to panic until it is absolutely necessary. We are nowhere near that point yet!)
Take the point of your needle and smoothly run it along the underside of the bullion – “tickle its tummy”! This will help to even out any of the wraps that have become uneven.
You can also gently wiggle the top of the bullion from side to side, as if you are rolling it back and forth. This can also help to even out wraps.
Sometimes I demonstrate to my students how a bad bullion can become a good bullion. I let the bullion pull through terribly messily, then pull the thread down so that the bullion sits against the fabric. With all the wraps in a big mess, I tickle the tummy, and roll my bullion back and forth. It is very unusual not to be able to resurrect a bad bullion. You just have to let it know who is boss!
Bullions with a tapered end Sometimes bullions are tapered towards one end. Usually this is because there are not enough wraps to cover the whole distance, so the last few have to stretch themselves out to reach.
To fix this, you will need more wraps to fill the distance. I usually fill my needle with what I judge to be enough wraps to span the length of the bullion, then just add one or two more for good measure.
New to bullions? If you are new to bullions, then treat yourself nicely and make the learning experience as easy as possible. Start off with a more forgiving thread, such as wool yarn. Wool stretches, so it will be easier to pull your needle through your wraps.
Then you could progress to using a single strand thread, such as perle cotton, as single strands are easier to control.
Then, when you have mastered that, you could try progressing to multi-strand thread such as embroidery floss. Regardless of how many strands you use at once (e.g. 3, 4, 6) you should always strip your threads.
This means that you cut the length of thread you need, then separate each of the strands completely. Then put the number you need back together and stitch with them. Doing this means that the strands will lie more happily against one another, without twisting around one another uneasily.
Tomorrow I will deal with wrapping direction and thread twist – probably the most contentious issues to do with bullions! Stay tuned…
By the way, if you find these tips helpful, please let me know, and share the blog post address with others. I do not give permission for these instructions to be reproduced elsewhere, but you are welcome to tell people where to find them. Thanks for respecting my copyright.
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I sometimes get tappered ends and did not know why so I found that tip particularly useful. Next time I do bullions, I will add more wraps.
Thank you for the advise.
I’ll be bookmarking this, Yvette. Bullions are one of my blind spots!
HI Yvette – thanks for these tips. I’ve always been fairly confident about bullions but it’s great to find a tip or two to make things work even more easily !! I have done quite a bit of Brazilian embroidery with some very long bullions – it’s difficult to do if you lay the needle on the fabric if they are very long, so while wrapping the thread I support the needle at the back of the work – you can gently push the tip of the eye into a bottle cork so that the needle stays in place, leaving both hands free to wind and stroke the thread down the needle. The cork from a bottle of bubbly is perfect because of its rounded top and flat bottom.
Excellent Yvette – made me ‘think’ more about what I was doing as embroidering rather than just doing it. I’m looking forward to part II for the wrapping direction.
Hi there Yvette,
Lovely tutorial on bullions. I remember how nervous I was the first time I attempted bullions, about 4 years ago. I do love them now and enjoy doing them. Mind you, if I have had a bit of a break, I do get a bit tense until I have done the first one, and then I relax back into it!
Thank you for the tip about tapered bullions. Like you, when I think I have enough wraps I always add another 2 or so for good luck! Glad to learn that there is nothing wrong in doing that.
Thanks for White Threads.
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thank you!! love all these tips!