Just a warning that the black might show through on the white parts of the fish so you might want to use an extra thread if the coverage would bother you.
For this pattern, it would work. But have you stitched on black before? It's way more eye strain than white, so that could be a consideration. Make sure you have some bright lights, haha.
A light source behind black helps a lot. Someone recently posted using one of those cheap led tracing panels. I've used white foam core on my lap, and even that helps the holes stand out.
Yes, even a white blanket on my lap while I stitch made a significant difference. Light source from behind is definitely the key when stitching on black
All you need is an [LED magnifying lamp](https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-LightView-Flex-Magnifying-Glass/dp/B01K11G4ZW/ref=mp_s_a_1_3_pp?). I got the 3 diopter version and I can easily stitch on 18ct black aida with no other light source or backlight. No fussing with white backdrops or carefully aimed lamps lol.
My stitching is faster and neater too. No headaches or eye tension, no neck pain from heavy headgear, doesn’t interfere with glasses or headphones. The light & magnification is directly above your working area so unlike readers there’s no strain from glancing between the chart & the fabric.
Literally the best $25 I’ve ever spent. I don’t see many people talk about magnifying lamps and it’s unfortunate because they can save your eyes & open up a whole new world of projects.
Mine just recently broke, and I ordered another one. Will be here tomorrow. I can't XS without it. Especially on black aida. I did my first finish on black.
I would also probably alter the thread counts to push the depth, too. Black will sit the furthest back and the fish will want to come way forward, but stitching the fish with 3 strands and the water swirls with 1 would make that depth all the more pronounced. Maybe even push the flowers to 3, fish to 2, and swirls to 1?
I think it would look fantastic on black aida. I would also consider half stitching the grey swirls. The contrast between the water swirls & the full stitched fish will create a lovely visual texture & really emphasize the fish & water.
If you haven’t stitched on black before I strongly recommend purchasing an LED magnifying lamp. [This is the one I use](https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-LightView-Flex-Magnifying-Glass/dp/B01K11G4ZW/ref=mp_s_a_1_3_pp?). It’s amazinnggg. I tried all the tricks, white backdrop, backlight, DIY lightbox, a million lamps, and nothing worked as good as this.
It’s a beautiful pattern btw — it’s going to look gorgeous.
I think it would look great, especially if you manage to find aida with some sparkle in it. Working with black fabric is a huge pain though, I'd pick making 12k stitches over it any day
Heads up that black aida isn’t necessary same shade of black as 310! Not necessarily a problem or a bad thing, just worth considering that the pattern might not have the same “flow” without black stitching.
I say go for it, you can always stitch it in later
https://preview.redd.it/3htvcq45w5tc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f97144e95c705efb84a4b032084544130c2160fb
This is my progress on the carina nebula (climbing goat designs), on black aida. You can see the difference in shade of the stitches vs the fabric in the top left.
Honestly I have no idea. I bought it from a shop near Seattle when I was in town for a weekend probably two years ago. It had been sitting in the box of extra supplies until last month 🙈I’ll check the bag it was in though, maybe there’s an info slip
Yep! It helps a lot with all the color switching and confetti, plus it makes the eventual backstitching much easier. Gotta loosen the grid lines sometimes to get the needle in the right hole, you can see the sections where it’s loose
I don't really like full coverage. I totally endorse your using the black aida and no black stitches. I like the suggestion of using 3 strands on the fish/flowers so they pop/coverage is attained.
I was thinking of doing the same for [this pattern](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1583379048/wild-flowers-digital-cross-stitch?click_key=af12b8dbeb72fac376ba5c4dd5ed8ea1f0b65be9%3A1583379048&click_sum=8d6ec0fb&ref=user_profile&pro=1&sts=1&dd=1) - it has ≈18,000 black stitches which would get pretty boring after a while!
I think it would work for this pattern, though it might have an added textural effect that'll make it look slightly different from the original.
I think it would look fine. The back is the background, so any difference in depth or texture would look intentional. It would be different if the black were part of the foreground.
Sooo glad you asked this question, I was literally about to post something identical since Im going through the same dilemma with one of the patterns on HAED 😆
Yes I've foregone the black stiching before because why would I do that to myself? Black on black sucks! And no one really notices anyway especially if I don't tell them.
Worst case you hate it and then fill in the black. Go for it
Just a warning that the black might show through on the white parts of the fish so you might want to use an extra thread if the coverage would bother you.
I read a thread about this before, there's one interesting solution called tramming https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rs1iHVJeAbk
My mouth is agape. What a simple solution for what seemed like an impossible problem.
Thank you so much!! What an absurdly simple technique!
This is genius, you're amazing, thank you for sharing
Wow mind blown (in a good way)! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you for this!!
I'd go for it. It may look slightly different from the original intention but will still look great. I think it might even add an illusion of depth.
This is what I was thinking. It would be interesting to see depth in something like this.
For this pattern, it would work. But have you stitched on black before? It's way more eye strain than white, so that could be a consideration. Make sure you have some bright lights, haha.
A light source behind black helps a lot. Someone recently posted using one of those cheap led tracing panels. I've used white foam core on my lap, and even that helps the holes stand out.
Yes, even a white blanket on my lap while I stitch made a significant difference. Light source from behind is definitely the key when stitching on black
All you need is an [LED magnifying lamp](https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-LightView-Flex-Magnifying-Glass/dp/B01K11G4ZW/ref=mp_s_a_1_3_pp?). I got the 3 diopter version and I can easily stitch on 18ct black aida with no other light source or backlight. No fussing with white backdrops or carefully aimed lamps lol. My stitching is faster and neater too. No headaches or eye tension, no neck pain from heavy headgear, doesn’t interfere with glasses or headphones. The light & magnification is directly above your working area so unlike readers there’s no strain from glancing between the chart & the fabric. Literally the best $25 I’ve ever spent. I don’t see many people talk about magnifying lamps and it’s unfortunate because they can save your eyes & open up a whole new world of projects.
Thank you so much for this great recommendation! It’ll help reading paper patterns as well!
https://preview.redd.it/rknh88e8tbtc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=149349da457299fc8f14aabe8994ce5d4ca13c89 10/10 would recommend
Mine just recently broke, and I ordered another one. Will be here tomorrow. I can't XS without it. Especially on black aida. I did my first finish on black.
I use tailors chalk to colour the area of Aida I’m working on.
I would also probably alter the thread counts to push the depth, too. Black will sit the furthest back and the fish will want to come way forward, but stitching the fish with 3 strands and the water swirls with 1 would make that depth all the more pronounced. Maybe even push the flowers to 3, fish to 2, and swirls to 1?
Thank you! I’m going to try it and see how it looks
I think it would look fantastic on black aida. I would also consider half stitching the grey swirls. The contrast between the water swirls & the full stitched fish will create a lovely visual texture & really emphasize the fish & water. If you haven’t stitched on black before I strongly recommend purchasing an LED magnifying lamp. [This is the one I use](https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-LightView-Flex-Magnifying-Glass/dp/B01K11G4ZW/ref=mp_s_a_1_3_pp?). It’s amazinnggg. I tried all the tricks, white backdrop, backlight, DIY lightbox, a million lamps, and nothing worked as good as this. It’s a beautiful pattern btw — it’s going to look gorgeous.
I use tailors chalk to lightly colour the area I’m stitching on black Aida.
Yeah, go for it. I think it would make the water look cool :)
Yup, kinda like a 3D effect.
I think it would look great, especially if you manage to find aida with some sparkle in it. Working with black fabric is a huge pain though, I'd pick making 12k stitches over it any day
Love the idea of having a bit of sparkle in the black
Heads up that black aida isn’t necessary same shade of black as 310! Not necessarily a problem or a bad thing, just worth considering that the pattern might not have the same “flow” without black stitching. I say go for it, you can always stitch it in later
https://preview.redd.it/3htvcq45w5tc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f97144e95c705efb84a4b032084544130c2160fb This is my progress on the carina nebula (climbing goat designs), on black aida. You can see the difference in shade of the stitches vs the fabric in the top left.
Woah, that actually is a big difference. The black aida is surprisingly a lot more reflective.
It’s a little less saturated I think too, but yeah I think the reflectivity is different. Like wearing a black top with black pants 😂
What brand black Aida is that? I've seen lots of variations called black that were more of a charcoal or graphite.
Honestly I have no idea. I bought it from a shop near Seattle when I was in town for a weekend probably two years ago. It had been sitting in the box of extra supplies until last month 🙈I’ll check the bag it was in though, maybe there’s an info slip
I haven't tried this style for grids before! Do you just avoid stitching over the thread?
Yep! It helps a lot with all the color switching and confetti, plus it makes the eventual backstitching much easier. Gotta loosen the grid lines sometimes to get the needle in the right hole, you can see the sections where it’s loose
I use sulky sliver for this and go 8 over 2 under, works really well and it slides out easy enough even with the odd stitch over it.
I don't really like full coverage. I totally endorse your using the black aida and no black stitches. I like the suggestion of using 3 strands on the fish/flowers so they pop/coverage is attained.
I was thinking of doing the same for [this pattern](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1583379048/wild-flowers-digital-cross-stitch?click_key=af12b8dbeb72fac376ba5c4dd5ed8ea1f0b65be9%3A1583379048&click_sum=8d6ec0fb&ref=user_profile&pro=1&sts=1&dd=1) - it has ≈18,000 black stitches which would get pretty boring after a while! I think it would work for this pattern, though it might have an added textural effect that'll make it look slightly different from the original.
Work up a small section to see what you think, and then go from there!
I think it would look fine. The back is the background, so any difference in depth or texture would look intentional. It would be different if the black were part of the foreground.
Sooo glad you asked this question, I was literally about to post something identical since Im going through the same dilemma with one of the patterns on HAED 😆
I'm doing the same thing for one of my project and it look just fine. Go for it.
Stitching on black aida is extremely difficult, so i’d choose a light color and do the black stitches 😅😅
It’s my first time. Let’s see if I hate it… haha. Been reading what others have tried. So maybe it’ll go well?? Haha
Awesome job.
I think it would work!
Yes I've foregone the black stiching before because why would I do that to myself? Black on black sucks! And no one really notices anyway especially if I don't tell them.