Tonal Color Story
MAKING MONOCHROME MAGIC
Aside from the hyper-realistic butterflies embroidered in true tones, Wilson is
notorious for putting a twist on the usual, creating something both familiar and
entirely new with his tonal variations of these same butterflies. Seen flitting among
these pages, you will spot vibrant pinks, subtle shades of white, and even metallic
gold for tonal butterflies that evoke a whole new air of importance. "When I
embroider tonal butterflies, I don’t follow any sort of plan. I kind of just …wing
it," he humors.
Creating a tonal color palette for threads is not as difficult as it may seem. Begin
by selecting the tonal color palette you want to incorporate, generally consisting
of six to eight thread color shades based on the same hue, such as eight shades of
pink. Then, as the design calls for a color change to a highlight or lowlight detail
in the butterfly, you will select one of your eight pre-selected shades. Repeat this
process with each butterfly, and once complete, you will have a tonal swarm ready
to take flight on any project or surface you can imagine.
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