Or Nue or Shaded Gold work. Ready to try it on painted canvas?

Or Nue Daisy by Anna S.

This past Saturday I took a class in Or Nue taught by Brenda Kocher. Had I liked my work I would have shown a picture of my progress but rather than chance discouraging anyone I thought it better to show what I think are some gorgeous examples of others Or Nue work. In the most simplistic terms you lay (gold) threads on a ground fabric and create a design by couching over it.

Some if not all of the examples below are stitched on fabric (vs. canvas) allowing you to lay the gold threads near perfectly side by side. In class we worked from a chart on unpainted 18 count canvas and I couldn’t keep the canvas threads from showing through. We couched a single strand 16 count Kreinik braid. Perhaps couching over two strands of a thinner gold thread I could have achieved more even coverage; all examples I found online show couching over two strands of thread. Shading is achieved by how close together your couching is and of course can be accentuated by change in value of the thread color.

What I came to realize is so many of us are so eager to try new techniques, and if your not trying the latest others seem to question your level of passion about needlepoint. Or Nue is fascinating in its endless opportunities but it requires patience. Adding bling with the latest too-dad or other manufactured charm is one thing but to have the foresight to integrate bling and beauty in your work is a practiced discipline, Or Nue for example dates back to the 1400’s. Have we as stitchers really pushed needlework further? Hmm, I think not. Yes we’ve changed it from what we knew needlepoint to once be in our lifetime but if we’re looking for new techniques I think history is a good place to start.

Here are two links that offer further information. The article by Jane Zimmerman is excellent.

http://www.janezimmerman.com/Temp/Techniques/Or%20Nue.pdf

http://www.needlenthread.com/2009/01/or-nue-goldwork-in-color.html

Flower sampler designed by Elsa Cose, stitched by Jane Zimmerman?

“Detail from a a silk and metal thread sampler I executed and taught in the 1970’s – designed by Elsa T. Cose. Many techniques were used including applique of gold kid over padding and use of check purl “beads” in the flower center.”

http://stitchinfingers.ning.com/photo/or-nue-daisy-finished

http://stitchinfingers.ning.com/photo/2105845:Photo:16278 stitched by JoWynn J.

http://stitchinfingers.ning.com/photo/or-nue stitched by Sandy V.

Thinking about painted canvases that might work up quite lovely I thought of these. The Ivory Woods collection by Julie Mar are 5″ x 5″. I think all the others are smaller. Sharon G’s pansy has my attention!