Embroidery thread - Tonkin cards

Tonkin is a gimped yarn, which signifies that is has a base, in this case a strand of gold lurex, which is encompassed by a polyester thread. This bulk polyester has a slightly puffy aspect. In general a gimped yarn is an assembly of two threads, the outer layer protecting the inner. This operation is carried out on special machines with hollow rods through which the core thread is passed.