The problem I had with the Hungarian and Mosaic stitches' appearance was solved in this way: I reduced the number of strands to 6, and I stripped them prior to stitching. I also began using a laying tool (a large tapestry needle) to keep the strands separate and parallel when putting down each stitch. This has solved the problem almost completely, although I can see that different stitches may require different number of strands depending on the canvas. This is only going to be figured out by experimentation.
How did I come to the solution? I consulted a mailing list (ang list) I discovered on the American Needlepoint Guild website. At first I thought it was members-only but when I saw the fine print saying anyone could join, HUZZAH! I read the rules and a couple weeks of digests and then fired away. All I can say is: What a great group of people. In one day, I got faster, smarter, better -- if I had resigned myself to trial and error, I'd still be trying to solve my problem.
Here are two pages on using Laying Tools given to me by the ANG listserv folks or that I found:
How to Use a Laying Tool
Laying Threads
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