February 13, 2023

Jacobean Sea & Jacobean Bird – Project Index

Good morning, and Happy Monday!

I would love to tell you how great things turned out last week with the eye procedure, but in fact, it hasn’t happened yet. It was delayed until today, so I’ll be heading in for that shortly. There’s nothing quite like extending the anxiety factor just a little bit longer!

I love starting a week this way. It’s get better, though! The front half of my house is being demolished this week. I admit, I’m keen to watch the progress on that.

In any case, that’s where we are. 2023 is off to such a great start. There’s nothing for it, but to laugh!

Today, I’m just doing a bit of housekeeping on the website again, by way of another project index, this time for Jacobean Sea and its bird variation.

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February 8, 2023

Computer Life: The Floral Heart Project

Wouldn’t it be great if Needle ‘n Thread were only about needle and thread? I imagine our days would be spent stitching away, creating beautiful things, experimenting, enjoying a bit of stitch fun here and there, finishing this project, starting that project – life wrapped up in Only Stitching.

It doesn’t really work that way. Even if you’re not into needlework as a business, it doesn’t work that way. You know how it is! We all have lives outside of stitching! And hopefully, they are lives that we love!

But for those of us who are pretty enthusiastic about needlework, needlework is always there. It’s our carrot. It’s The Thing that gets us through less pleasant bits because we have something creative to look forward to. It’s our relaxation, our entertainment, our creative outlet – it’s part of those aspects of life that contribute to our happiness.

Here in our little cozy studio in Kansas, there’s another aspect of Needle ‘n Thread that goes on every day. It’s what I call Computer Life, and if you’re in business these days, it’s unavoidable. Luckily, I don’t hate Computer Life. I like it! Maybe not as much as the stitching part of things, but still. I like it! Otherwise, whoa! “Work” really would be Work and it would be a Major Slog.

My Computer Life right now consists of this:

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February 6, 2023

Goldwork Altar Covers – Project Index

Time to do a little house cleaning here on the website!

Whenever I work a long term project that I blog about, or whenever we have a stitch-along of sorts, I like to create a project index. With a project index, you can easily navigate the various articles written about the project.

You’ll find this index – and many more – listed under Tips & Techniques in the main menu on Needle ‘n Thread. Project indexes are listed in the first section under “Hand Embroidery Lessons & Step-by-Step Projects.”

If you’re ever looking for some follow-along embroidery projects with loads of tips that you can apply to your own embroidery – or maybe you just want to browse for the fun of it – feel free to check out that list of the many projects and tutorials that have developed here on Needle ‘n Thread over the years. There’s lots of ’em!

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February 3, 2023

Ready-to-Stitch Sets are Back … and a book!

Now that we’ve gotten into the hang of working in our new space, we’ve been able to turn our attention to getting some ready-to-stitch goods back in stock.

For those who aren’t familiar with our ready-to-stitch towel sets, we offer flour sack towels in sets of three, with coordinating designs already printed on them so that, when you get them, they’re ready for stitching. Some of the sets have the same design on all three towels, and some have variations of the design, or of a theme, on each of the tree towels.

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February 1, 2023

Murder & Mayhem, The Emperor’s New Clothes, and Overdyed Linen

Well, I have a piece of linen that came to me from origin unknown. It’s a Mystery!

I like mysteries. I’m pretty sure this one involves murder and mayhem, based on the piece of linen.

I’m curious about the linen and what people think of it. And apparently, so is the original owner of it.

I have a feeling I’m going to be sticking my neck Way Out and ruffling some feathers here. It’s not my intention.

Let me clarify: I don’t know everything going on in the needlework world. So if this is some big project out there, social media thing, mystery stitch-along, or what-have-you, well… beats me. I don’t know all the details!

But I can give some thoughts that occurred to me about the linen, since that’s what I was asked to do.

And since the question of using overdyed linen comes up a lot in my inbox, I figure I might as well take the opportunity to write about it. I’m going to do that in a meandering way, so bear with me! There’s a point in here somewhere.

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January 30, 2023

Goldwork Inspiration

Goldwork has been much on my mind lately, as we continue to work our way through the lettering on this major goldwork project that’s been underway here at Needle ‘n Thread since last summer.

Our time is running out. April is coming. And yet, we can’t seem to find more time! So we’re a little under the proverbial gun here, and I’m starting to feel a bit sweaty-in-the-palms about it.

I’ve been on the hunt for fringe that will finish off the edge of the cloth the letters are going on. And while searching for the fringe, I took a good look at the blog of Sebastián Marchante Gambero, a goldwork embroidery workshop in Spain which features gorgeous ecclesiastical goldwork.

Sebastian Marchante-Gambero-goldwork-embroidery

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January 27, 2023

Answering Common Questions about Floche & Other Threads

Here on Needle ‘n Thread, I’ve talked a lot about cotton floche, because it’s an embroidery thread I really love.

A lot of people aren’t familiar with floche, and newcomers to our little community here may not have had the opportunity to learn about it or see what it can do as a unique embroidery thread.

I’d like to highlight some details about floche and answer the most common questions about the thread. I’ll be linking you to previous articles that will take you into further depth, if you’d like to know more. If you’ve been around here a while, this will be a little refresher, and if you’re new, it may open up a whole new world of thread for you!

Connect with Mary

How-To
Videos

Embroidery Tips & Techniques

Connect with Mary

Jacobean Sea & Jacobean Bird – Project Index

Computer Life: The Floral Heart Project

Goldwork Altar Covers – Project Index

Ready-to-Stitch Sets are Back … and a book!

Murder & Mayhem, The Emperor’s New Clothes, and Overdyed Linen

Goldwork Inspiration

Answering Common Questions about Floche & Other Threads

Connect with Mary

How-To Videos

Embroidery Tips & Techniques

Connect with Mary

How-To
Videos