Rainbow Butterfly by Danji, Laurel Burch Artwork, Antennae, Outlines, and Beads

December 15, 2024, 6:53 pm
Filed under: ANG Main Line Stitchers Chapter, Laurel Burch Rainbow Butterfly by Danji

The final steps (antennae, outlines, and beads) of my Rainbow Butterfly by Danji.

I wanted the antennae to be more substantial than the black outlines, so I used Kreinik Facets and Petite Facets, respectively. These were all couched into place with Kreinik #4 Braid in matching 005 Black. I had to make the starting and ending holes pretty large to sink the Facets. Wrapping the thread with tape and making a pointed end allowed me something to grab and nudge through the enlarged hole, which I then tacked into place.

I planned my path with the Petite Facets to minimize the number of starting and ending holes. One long piece goes from the top left side of the yellow-orange wing down and around the body and across to the top right side. Two shorter pieces follow along the top of the fuchia-purple area. I made the “tape needle” again to start each side but used a large eye needle to finish.

The Kreinik Petite Facets 002 Gold looked more gold than the Kreinik #16 Braid 002 Gold that I had used for the body, and it was too thick, especially considering how much was getting outlined. I couldn’t have gone to #12 Braid because I needed the thicker #16 Braid to cover the width of the outline. I couched with #4 Braid 002 again. I also used #4 Braid to outline the edge of the small green and blue areas.

I often refer to Marilyn Owen’s article in the ANG Needle Pointers May/June 2021 issue for beading techniques. I used 2 different methods to attach the same size bead with 2 strands of black DMC floss. Both methods orient the beads vertically, but one is over 2 canvas threads and the other over 1 canvas thread. This allowed the same size beads to appear larger on the top half compared to the bottom, which is how the canvas was painted. I used Mill Hill Antique Glass Beads 11/0 (03040).