January 23, 2023
Damaged Book Sale – Coming Soon!
Happy Monday, my friends!
Today, I just want to give you a quick heads-up about an “event” here on Needle ‘n Thread this week. We’re going to have a Damaged Book Sale.
Here’s the gist!
January 20, 2023
Stitch Snippets, 2023: The First Adventure
Happy Friday!
To whet your appetite for upcoming projects on Needle ‘n Thread, this morning I thought I’d give you a sneak peek at our first Stitch Snippets adventure for 2023, and introduce newcomers to the concept of the Stitch Snippet Series here on Needle ‘n Thread.
I’ve had a lot of feedback from last year’s series, and it seems that participants really enjoyed it! I’ve also had some constructive feedback that I very much appreciate!
January 18, 2023
We Call it “Grinch Green”
Sometimes, you can’t get away from associating a color with something very specific.
In the present case, the color is green. And while it’s supposed to be a sunny, bright, springy, happy green… I can’t think of it now as anything other than Grinch Green.
January 16, 2023
Goldwork Progress: Moving Forward!
Anna sits on her side of the frame.
I sit on my side of the frame.
We’re catty-corner to each other, each hugging the edge of the slate frame and trying to manipulate our arms around the trestles as we embroider letters situated near the edge of the ground fabric.
We work pretty much in silence, except for some soft background music.
And slowly and steadily, we make minute progress on the goldwork lettering that we’ve been working on since last spring.
It’s been a while since we’ve been able to sit and concentrate on embroidery, but at long last, we’re finally able to dedicate specific time to stitching.
January 13, 2023
Embroidery & the Arts & Crafts Movement
I tend to be somewhat infatuated with the Arts & Crafts Movement. There’s much about it – historically, socially, and artistically – that I admire and that intrigues me.
The Arts & Crafts Movement was an era of development of the decorative arts, spanning about 1875 to about 1920, give or take some years.
As with any era or trend in the decorative arts, it’s hard to establish an exact beginning date and an exact ending date, because no trend in art is isolated from its preceding and subsequent trends. What came before influences the era; what comes after develops from the era or as a reaction to it. But roughly, that’s that time frame – 1875 to 1920, beginning in Britain and spreading throughout Europe and America.
January 11, 2023
Floss Trucking & Visitors!
It was the perfect end to the holiday season.
Come Monday morning, I knew that the time had come to take down the hastily-prepared and seldom-enjoyed Christmas decorations, but I didn’t want to. This year, the Christmas season didn’t seem very holiday-ish. Everything went by in a blur. So, early that morning, I found myself thinking that I don’t really want to end Christmas just yet. “We need to do something to mark the season here at work,” I said to myself. Something aside from slapping up some last-minute decor and then squishing it all away into a box, forgotten until next year.
I didn’t know what to do, so I put on some light Christmas jazz and started the day, Christmas lights twinkling in the window and the world madly rushing by once more according the expected rhythm of life.
The sun rose and the morning commute traffic slowed down. The Christmas lights turned off. I turned down the music. Anna arrived for work. We turned our attention to making a gazillion twists of thread while planning the next few months.
The clock ticked towards noon.
And then it happened! A First in the history of Needle ‘n Thread! And when I think about it, the perfect end to the holiday season!
What happened, you ask?
Why, the Floss Truck arrived!
January 9, 2023
Thread Talk: A Great Way to Start the Year!
I’m back in the studio! Happy 2023! It’s lovely to be here!
Golly, life has been crazy for the past 2.5 months. It started with the big Needle ‘n Thread Studio Move, which aligned with the launch of the last Stitch Snippet of 2022. Lesson learned: never upheave when you’re launching a project! (Not that we had a choice, but…)
Just as we began shifting the studio, I found out, on the home front, that I’d have a full house move at the beginning of January. But we settled into work in our new space, and all was well as the holidays approached.
Then we all took turns with sickness of various sorts, and that was fun!
Then we got back to work just in time for Christmas, right after which, I started packing and sorting at home.
And last week, with the help of my trusty sidekick Anna and two nephews who were furloughed from work for a week, we managed a whole house move. We finished by 7:30 pm on Friday. Dad and I are settled for at least the next 2.5 months in the same duplex where I operated Needle ‘n Thread for about four or five years. It’s comfortable and cozy. Change, they say, is as good as a vacation, and there is something very adventurous and relaxing about our new situation. I even actually kicked back and started reading a real printed book this weekend!
But man, oh man! Was it ever GREAT to walk into work this morning! I’m so excited to get this year underway! I feel weirdly buoyant this morning – the Looming Clouds of Massive Jobs to Tackle has dissipated, the sun is shining here in Kansas, I’m finally back in touch with all of you, and Life is Good!
So let’s celebrate! Let’s talk about Thread!
