Embroidery Thread

I thought you might be interested in my method for storing embroidery thread. I don't much care for those little white thingies that are supposed to have the thread wound onto them - the thread gets all kinked up, plus it's a pain in the neck to do all the winding. 

My solution, and it works quite well, is to give each skein it's own little ziplock bag and then group the bags by color, with each color group sharing the same metal ring.

When I need a particular color, I just grab that ring of baggies and choose, Then I open the ring and slip off the baggie I want to use. 

I keep the entire collection of threads in a box that's big enough to also hold my sewing roll-up and whatever piece of cloth I'm working on at the moment.

 

This is what my sewing roll-up looks like when it is all closed up.  

Inside is a pocket where I stash a pair of collapsible embroidery scissors as well as a bobbin wound with thread. There is also a pin cushion which is stuck with pins and needles.

Below is what my sewing roll-up looks like when it is opened up and in use.  

I love how it looks when I'm using it. Sometimes I think I'll just hang it on the wall and have fun looking at it. 

Can't get it out of my mind

A while back, there was an interview with Khaled Hosseini (author of The Kite Runner) in the New York Times. He talked about his first short story:

“It was a dark little tale about a man who found a magic cup and learned that if he wept into the cup, his tears turned into pearls. But even though he had always been poor, he was a happy man and rarely shed a tear. So he found ways to make himself sad so that his tears could make him rich. As the pearls piled up, so did his greed grow. The story ended with the man sitting on a mountain of pearls, knife in hand, weeping helplessly into the cup with his beloved wife's slain body in his arms.”

Quite a story, isn't it? 

Learning Curve

This is what I've been doing lately. Lots of sterling silver and copper. And fumes, from the Lenk torch that just broke after about half a dozen uses. I actually made these sterling rings some time ago, but I wasn't happy with how they looked, so I spent some time today working on their finish with my trusty hammer.

The ball ends, below, are made with the torch ... it's very fun to do!

I've been making the curvaceous links (below) thanks to Deryn Mentock and her online class, The Art of Closure. Aren't they awesome? I love all the loopiness!

The links above are sterling silver. The links below are copper. As you can see, my expertise is not high end --- I guess it's a good thing I like the primitive look!

It's not very much to show, but it is what's been occupying me today!

Now it's time to switch gears. In other words, it's time for some sewing. Yes!

Slow Mo

A teeny bit of progress. It seems I make progress in slow motion. So be it. One of my high school friends, no longer with us, used to call me "Mo" - thus, I am Slow Mo. :-)

I Gave Thanks

Yesterday, I felt very thankful that I am able to commune with textiles, and that I am able to stitch. To make my thanks real, I started this little quilt. 

 
 

I hope your day of thanks giving was as pleasant as could be. I hope you had good food and all your favorite side dishes, and I hope someone insisted on cranberry sauce from the tin.

 
 

Roots

 

I've had my new right knee for about ten weeks and it feels great. In fact, when I do my exercises it is often the other knee which causes me pain. Soon I'll be planning the second surgery.

My core set of exercises consists of going up and down the stairs, riding the stationary bike, and walking. Yesterday, Doug and I took a little walk and I took a closer look at the tree that uprooted in the heavy rain we had a week or so ago. It may not show so well in this photo (I should have had Doug stand next to it) but this root mass is huge! I'm usually inclined to let the woods be, but this tree is so enormous that it really is a bit of an eyesore. I don't want to think about what it will cost to have it cut up and removed ... well, save the wood for the fireplace and remove the rest. 

We didn't walk far because my left knee was acting up, which would be okay except that once it starts there is a concurrent pain that hits my back and that's the one that makes walking more or less unbearable. We walked to the end of the drive and then we sat on a little bench which Doug installed about twenty years ago, for use when waiting for the school bus. When it was time to get up and head back to the house, Doug offered his hand, partly to help me up from the bench and partly to keep me steady, to ensure I wouldn't fall while walking. I suddenly had a memory of a darling, white-haired older couple I saw in Ann Arbor, Michigan, about thirty seven years ago. They were walking down the street, autumn leaves all about, and they were holding hands. I thought it was so sweet!

 
 

Yesterday, I realized that now we are the older couple. From now on, when I see an elderly pair holding hands, I'll wonder: is it because they are still sweethearts after many years together, or is it because they hold on to keep each other from falling down. Probably it's both!

After all, those roots we build during decades together run deep and support us in many different ways.