Technique
Prick & pounce is a fabulous traditional technique still used widely today that once mastered means you can transfer any design of your choice onto fabric.
Kiss goodbye expensive printed kits and take ownership of your own creativity.
Technique
Prick & pounce is a fabulous traditional technique still used widely today that once mastered means you can transfer any design of your choice onto fabric.
Kiss goodbye expensive printed kits and take ownership of your own creativity.
Prick & Pounce – Step-by-Step Instructions
First find the design you wish to transfer. Whether it’s your own design or something you have found that is pleasing, think about the kind of embroidery you want to do. Is the design the right size to accommodate the stitches you envisage.
Trace your design onto tracing paper. Secure using scotch tape.
Once you have your design on tracing paper you will need to place it on a soft surface. I use the inside a an old jewellery box. A folded t-towel would also work. You need to be able to prick through the tracing paper whilst protecting the surafce of your table underneath.
The design I am using is the Daisy & Butterfly, one of the designs used for beginners at my mixed ability workshops.
Then using a pricker or a pin, prick little holes along all the design lines about 1-2mm apart. You can buy beautifully ornate prickers, but a pin works just as well. I use my grandmothers pricker. It was made by my grandfather from a lace making bobbin and needle. It still has an old cork from a bottle of my grandfathers red wine on the end of the needle.
Make sure you have covered your whole design. I like to hold the design against a light source such as a window to check there are holes along all the lines.
Lay your twill onto a flat surface, making sure that the weave of your twill is running from bottom left to top right. Find the centre point of where your design will sit on the linen twill. I do this by folding over the corners and giving the linen a finger press.
Tape or pin your design centrally to the linen. Next you will need a pounce applicator or a soft cloth. The pounce I am using is crushed charcoal. Apply a small amount of pounce to the applicator and holding the applicator vertical to the linen use circular movements to push the pounce through the holes in the tracing paper.
Once the pounce has been rubbed across the whole design remove the tracing paper. You will be left with a dotted outline in charcoal. This charcoal will disappear with movement so you now need to join the dots to outline your design in a very fine permanent marker or a sharp soft pencil.
Give your linen a little shake to remove any excess charcoal and you will be left just with your design. Ready to start your embroidery. Happy stitching.
Workshop Dates
Jacqueline runs mixed ability small group embroidery workshops, in various venues, at scheduled times throughout the year.