I was a bit sad about that but I did get some bargains....so it wasn't a complete loss.... and anyway the last few times I went there, they just didn't have what I wanted.
In the last couple of days, before they closed, they had some grab bags for $5 & $10 of lace and various notions so I bought three and I must say they were a bargain. In one of the bags though there was about a dozen skeins of variegated embroidery thread.
What do you do with variegated embroidery thread?
The only thing I could think of was Huck toweling. When we had the family fabric store we used to sell several boxes of variegated embroidery thread to the local high school Home-Economic teacher for one of her in-school yearly projects......and, a couple of bolts of Huck toweling.
She used both to teach a type of embroidery stitching. I have since learned today that it is really a type of "weaving" and it is also called Swedish Weaving.....you learn something new everyday:)
Huck toweling is very narrow and it's finished on the selvage edges. The students made tea towels and did the "weaving" on the bottom edges. Then they would pull threads at each end to make a fringe.
Here is a picture I found on this site........these have lace on the edge though.
I didn't realize that this type of work was still being done. I haven't seen Huck toweling for sale in any of the stores I've been to but then my mum used to go to a special outlet to get a couple of bolts every year.
Well I didn't have any Huck toweling hanging around so I thought I'd use the embroidery thread to do some cross stitch. I saw a freebie pattern on a site called Cargaud la Brico.
I decided to do the pattern "de frises en coeur" with one of the skeins and it turned out really different.
It has a kind of 70's look:).......the needlepoint canvas that I had on hand was pretty small.......14ct per inch. I was a bit rusty using that size but I think it turned out OK.
There was a tutorial that I saw about doing an inset heart which I might work around for this and then I can maybe make a small pillow or pin cushion.
It may looked good paired with a denim coloured fabric in keeping with a retro look.
I think I might use the rest of the embroidery thread for more hearts.....maybe a different pattern.
Take care:)
When I was a kid..I used to use variegated to do some little flowers on pillowcases. I iiked the pink. Sometimes I would cut off the palest end bits though. .... and used the variegated greens for stems and leaves...
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