I
The velvet is the patron — never argue with its nap.
Lay the chapan so the pile runs downward; the gold will catch the lamp only when worn, never when judged in the workshop.
II
Couch, do not pierce — the bullion remembers every wound.
Anchor the metal cord with a silk catch-stitch every four millimetres; a single needle through the gold dulls the whole arabesque by sundown.
III
Build the palmette outward — the centre eats the first hour.
Begin at the heart-medallion and let the scroll grow toward the cuff; an emir is paid in density, and density is set in the first six tendrils.
IV
Sign nothing — the robe carries the workshop's name in its weight.
A master never embroiders his initials; he weighs the finished chapan against an iron seal and lets the scales speak in the bazaar.