The Gilded Edge: Couching Page 1

Couching Technique

COUCHING Japanese Gold and Silver

Japanese gold and silver are usually couched in a manner that de-emphasizes the couching stitches and allows the viewer to concentrate on the glimmer and shine of the metal. In order to achieve this, the couching stitches must be evenly spaced and exactly perpendicular to the metal threads. The interval of the couching stitches is usually 2 wraps of the gold paper as you view it on the foundation. This interval and the perpendicular angle must remain constant as the gold follows curves, changes direction, or remains straight.

The length of the couching stitches should be exactly the width of the couched metal. If it is too long the thread will move and not remain flat to the surface. If it is too short the metal thread will be pinched creating a depression or the strands will become stacked on top of each other creating bumps. In any of these cases the reflected light will be distorted and the shine of metal reduced.

As you couch, watch the wrapping on the strands. If you notice that it is a little loose, tighten it by twisting the thread between your fingers if it is on a felt roll; or, if it is on a koma, by picking up the koma, unspooling it a little and, using the same motion you used to wind it (clockwise, beckoning), tighten the twist as you rewind the koma. It may be necessary to do this a couple of times to get the twist tight.

It is very important that the gold or silver lay as flat and tight to the surface as possible. To help achieve this, give a little tug to the metal strands every few couching stitches and try to keep them taut.

Vermicelli

This is a couching pattern that allows the gold to meander across the foundation in an irregular pattern. It is usually couched in a single strand and the strand usually does not cross its own path.

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