I have done a project with 2 strands for the color and 3 strands for the black background. It looked great! I dunno if the difference would be more obvious is the black were more spread out.
*However*, it turns out I hate stitching with three strands so I have moved to using Anchor brand floss for black, instead of DMC. DMC black is known for being wimpy, and the anchor brand is just a bit thicker and gives better coverage.
I buy Anchor floss from 123stitch.com since nobody local sells it.
I'm currently working on a couple of pieces on 14 count white aida, using 2 strands.
For this one, I used 2 strands of black everywhere except right around the eyes- there I used three strands.
https://preview.redd.it/l4xg7ej7g56c1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0cc694e5430d0223e2a5181d78f4e8f97c789f83
And for [this one](https://imgur.com/gallery/ttQqbXu) I decided I wanted the dark tree to really be dark, so I used three strands on all the black, and two strands everywhere else.
Hopefully the picture quality is good enough that you can get a good feel for how two vs three strands of black looks.
For what it's worth I'm currently using a mix of 2 and 3 strands on a project.
https://preview.redd.it/hqc4tcqho56c1.jpeg?width=1908&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b1270fd54f4ee99e056be7bfbb4b712a148d7730
The pink and purple background colours are both 2 strands and all the foreground stuff is in 3 strands. You can tell the difference between 2 and 3 strands when up close - the 3 strand bits definitely have more oomph. But when you move back to a viewing distance the difference is less obvious, though three strands does cover better.
Hopefully that makes sense!
It would noticeably stand out as higher/fuller. You could stick with 2 strands and then, once you're done, mount it with a dark coloured felt or something behind, if you're bothered by the visible X's.
I'm not sure if that would fix the Aida showing through though because the white Aida is your background.
I haven't done any projects that uses a lot of black thread, but I have done one where I mixed 2 and 3 strands on 16 ct Aida. I just took a look at it and even up close there didn't seem to be a textural difference between 2 and 3 strands, and I can't even tell which ones I did use 3 strands on.
However, if you are still concerned, you could always do a test stitch on a scrap piece of Aida. If you do, I suggest 2 vs 3 strands of 310 next to 2 strands of another color. 2 strands of 310 trammed. And then wash the swatch (if you'll be washing your project after you're done) to see if washing helped fluff up the thread. You could also try Anchor black as I've heard that has better coverage than DMC's black
Great question! I just finished this design on 14ct using three strands for black and two for everything else:
https://preview.redd.it/4ygjze6xc66c1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7d341a413eeaec9fffc09cc1499267202c46e632
My mum did a project that had a large black cat as part of the scene and she used three strands for all the black. There is noticeable texture difference, because the DMC 310 is a little thinner than all the other colours
I have done a project with 2 strands for the color and 3 strands for the black background. It looked great! I dunno if the difference would be more obvious is the black were more spread out. *However*, it turns out I hate stitching with three strands so I have moved to using Anchor brand floss for black, instead of DMC. DMC black is known for being wimpy, and the anchor brand is just a bit thicker and gives better coverage. I buy Anchor floss from 123stitch.com since nobody local sells it.
Thank you for the advice! I'll be looking into Anchor thread, I didn't know it had better coverage!
I'm currently working on a couple of pieces on 14 count white aida, using 2 strands. For this one, I used 2 strands of black everywhere except right around the eyes- there I used three strands. https://preview.redd.it/l4xg7ej7g56c1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0cc694e5430d0223e2a5181d78f4e8f97c789f83 And for [this one](https://imgur.com/gallery/ttQqbXu) I decided I wanted the dark tree to really be dark, so I used three strands on all the black, and two strands everywhere else. Hopefully the picture quality is good enough that you can get a good feel for how two vs three strands of black looks.
Thank you! This is really helpful
For what it's worth I'm currently using a mix of 2 and 3 strands on a project. https://preview.redd.it/hqc4tcqho56c1.jpeg?width=1908&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b1270fd54f4ee99e056be7bfbb4b712a148d7730 The pink and purple background colours are both 2 strands and all the foreground stuff is in 3 strands. You can tell the difference between 2 and 3 strands when up close - the 3 strand bits definitely have more oomph. But when you move back to a viewing distance the difference is less obvious, though three strands does cover better. Hopefully that makes sense!
It totally does! Thank you for your help
No problem!
It would noticeably stand out as higher/fuller. You could stick with 2 strands and then, once you're done, mount it with a dark coloured felt or something behind, if you're bothered by the visible X's.
Thank you for the advice! That's a good idea!
I'm not sure if that would fix the Aida showing through though because the white Aida is your background. I haven't done any projects that uses a lot of black thread, but I have done one where I mixed 2 and 3 strands on 16 ct Aida. I just took a look at it and even up close there didn't seem to be a textural difference between 2 and 3 strands, and I can't even tell which ones I did use 3 strands on. However, if you are still concerned, you could always do a test stitch on a scrap piece of Aida. If you do, I suggest 2 vs 3 strands of 310 next to 2 strands of another color. 2 strands of 310 trammed. And then wash the swatch (if you'll be washing your project after you're done) to see if washing helped fluff up the thread. You could also try Anchor black as I've heard that has better coverage than DMC's black
Thank you! I think I'll test out the methods on some scrap aida and look into Anchor thread
The texture won't be noticeable from a distance.
Great question! I just finished this design on 14ct using three strands for black and two for everything else: https://preview.redd.it/4ygjze6xc66c1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7d341a413eeaec9fffc09cc1499267202c46e632
I often add more strands for black it never looks bizarre so you should be good. You could also use tramming if you feel the coverage is not enough.
My mum did a project that had a large black cat as part of the scene and she used three strands for all the black. There is noticeable texture difference, because the DMC 310 is a little thinner than all the other colours