Linen.......again!

ADDED NOTE - Blogger has whacked out and showed me 5 times that this has published.  If you keep getting the same thing - sorry - don't know what's going on. 
Hi people.  Thanks for your kind words about my hand.  It's really not a big deal, but is continuing to put a damper on stitching.  Not because the healing is slow, but because the little brat mama is square dancing in and out of my legs and I tripped over her.  I didn't fall.  My right hand prevented that!  Back to the wrist brace for a few days. 

I started stitching a small and very easy project - Pennsylvania Redware from Carriage House.

Random Thoughts from Sheepish Designs was started too but I didn't like the colors and pulled others.   32 count was my choice for the project and I found that I hadn't bleached, dyed, bleached, dyed, bleached, dyed, or set on fire, that particular count in the cheaper linen.  So.  I did.  

Yes it is cheap, thick, and nubby.  For primitive pincushions and ornaments, it's great.  You can find it at Michael's craft store, and using their 40% or 50% off coupons from their website or flier, it's around $5-6 for a 20 x 27 piece.   It's not for a beautiful sampler.  You can see that this unbleached has a gray tone (also comes in ivory), and the piece beneath is after I worked on it.  It comes out of the dryer thick and soft, and 19" x 24 1/2".  Quite a bit of shrinkage.

Here's a better picture of how it is now.   A warm tan and a tighter weave compared to the original on the left.

I also did a few pieces of 26/27 count and here's an example of why I can't give a definitive answer when emailed about how long to leave fabric in the bleach water.

The 26 was dipped and squished for about 30 seconds and the 27 count was left in for 15 minutes and still didn't lighten.  Having the same selvage I thought they would be the same linen but obviously not.    I started putting the count in the edge with markers that won't fade or run.   I've only found one article on linen regarding thread thickness and such by name but I can't find it.  WHAT??  A decent article can be found here.  An article with old photos and wonderful drawings depicting  linen from seed to cloth is here.  

This was after the first bleach and dry of the 32 count, now a lighter gray.  The dryer's ball of edge threads are from 5 pieces of linen that will be saved and used to stitch edges closed or trims.   Sure some of the difference in size is because of losing a few raveling threads, but no where near even a 1/2", let alone 2" or more.     I mentioned before about using Rit's dark green liquid dye to take the pink tones out of linens, and this is the green in my sink.  All it takes is a drop or two of the green dye, and a quick dip or two and it tones the red to brown.

I wanted to mention last post about Vonna's fabulous creations that you've probably already seen, but in case you haven't check this out.  I have got to make the scissors holder for sure.  Now I remember why I have been visiting my craft store and wandering aimlessly.  The strong urge to recreate her design was pulling me there, but the brain wasn't on board.  I'll write it down.

 My hot flashes are continuing to change.  Instead of several small, a few massive, and constant mediums, I'm now having less, but it appears they have combined and are beauts.   The same thing is happening to my eyebrows, or what's left of them.    It seems the fine and medium hairs have left, banded together in a show of solidarity, and came back as one that can be seen from across a room and stab you if you get too close.  I have several of these now and could probably drill a hole in one end and use it as a needle.   Plucking these twigs is painful since I swear they are attached to the skull.

And here's the other kitty.  He (?) has damage to one of his beautiful eyes which doesn't seem to dilate at all.   I can pet him and was able to remove his filthy old flea collar.  He eats as fast as he can while turning his head constantly, looking for dad or Buddy as we call him now.  I can't tell if he still has his walnuts because of the long hair, but he is so afraid of being beat up and certainly not wanting to engage in territorial debates.  Mama shows affection, rubs my legs and hands, rolls and plays, and then draws blood.   Hub said he didn't know a young nursing mother could also be maniacal menopausal.

This wraps up the final episode of As the Linen Tweaks.  This time I really mean it.  I'm done.  There is one piece and a few scraps left to change but only if I plan to use them.   So have a great week, thanks for reading and commenting.....oh crap.  I hear him.  Woody Wood******.  We can't see him outside but hear the pecking so I think he may have somehow got into the chimney or attic.  On the bright side, I can get a lot of stitching done sitting around in a jail cell all day.  Are you allowed needles?  HEY!!  Those eyebrow twigs will come in handy. 

Winner!

Hi everyone.  First off, Patti C. from Hanging by a Thread won the offering.  My husband was responsible for picking the number and decided that since I have such a mess in the dining room right now, that drawing another number for another journal would help rid some of the clutter.  So Penny (no blog), you were the second number and will be receiving a journal as soon as I get your information.

Not much stitching going on since I've been playing.  I stopped Santa at his light post which called for gold metallic threads, all of which I gave away, but wouldn't have used anyway.  I've been playing with colors and think this 420 will be the final along with a dark gray instead of silver metallic for the lantern.  I just love this guy.  Can't wait to stitch the other two.  The colors of 561 and 989 for his clothing work so well, and I never thought they would.  Almost changed them when initially pulled, glad I didn't.

Progress on Lucy was stalled with the headache but I managed to get a few stitches in.

        




My time has been taken up with sizing, resizing, cropping, and adjusting my sampler photos for the books and also for this little box.  It wasn't easy finding stitched areas to fit the long narrow top, but here's the prototype...

On the linen saga, I got a dark green dye to rid the reddish cast of a few pieces.  You only need a drop of the dark green in the water.  I ended up playing quite a bit with the color and even added a little tan at one point.  What I didn't care for, I dipped in the beach and it came out, started over.  Amber is one tough cookie.  Nothing seems to work for that color except allowing it to darken much more than I would like.  But I had a hissy fit, a flash, some chocolate, a slice of swiss cheese, and voila - it's dark but it's a rich dark and I like it.  I'm not concerned about failure since the bleaching process is quick and effective for starting over, plus these are colors I didn't like at all and probably wouldn't have used.  Now for needles.  I wish I knew what I was using.  The one I grabbed for Lucy will not go under back threads to secure ends.  I hate it and don't know the brand.  The Santa needle is so sharp it glides with no problem at all and it's also a mystery.  I need to test all my packaged sizes, get rid of some, and buy more of what I like.

Our weather has been cold, dark, rainy, and I hate fall.  Did I ever tell you that?  There's a video I go to that makes me laugh out loud every time I see it, which I did again this gloomy morning, and thought you might like to take a look.  Many of you may have already seen it.  Try to click off the ad banner at the bottom so you can see his mouth better.   The look on this dog's face is perfect. 
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGeKSiCQkPw&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Just like walking around the grocery store without the list that's on the kitchen counter, I have a feeling there is something else ..... but ????  So rather than wasting time trying to remember, I'll close.   Trying to remember one thing, brings up many things.  Too many.  But never the right thing.  Things.  To do.  To pay.  To buy.  To find.  To find.  To find.  Then I'll start searching or doing one of those THINGS, and forget about what I wanted in the first place, along with what I was doing at the time.  Some people call that Attention Deficit Disorder.  I call it menopause.   Thanks for reading!! 

I Love Lucy

 Hello everyone.  The elusive Lucy has been found.  I decided to stick with the samplers I had chosen and put her aside, but she disappeared again - in the same day!  That's it.  She's staying with me since the floozy can't be trusted. 





She's a big girl and I may have to learn to use a frame, but so far, this is my start....

And yes, I switched a few shades of floss because of not being able to see the first alphabet line.  I tried, but can't get a better scan of the chart.  The sawtooth side borders and first line aren't visible, which is the 422, now changed to 420.

I originally chose Catherine Metcalf, until finding this piece of linen threw me off course.   I planned on a lighter tea-dyed but to me, this scene may look spectacular with a light steel blue ground.  Of course, my mind will revert to the original choice as is its habit, but I didn't want to take the chance.  You just never know.  Some days I am actually focused.  What?  I just can't remember when the hell it was.  In an effort toward that goal, I bought a 1/2 gallon of soy milk and it seems to have made the flashes more intense, the opposite reaction I was expecting.  It's chocolate and very good so I'm drinking it anyway.

I kitted Sally Fiske's sampler - which is something I should have done long ago with all the larger ones - and included her in the running.  Sally or Elizabeth Clayton may make an appearance alongside Lucy.   I am anxious to have these beauties on my wall, but I have to admit, I'm still not feeling the ambition to get them there.  Maybe the variety of having two going at once, a first for me, would help.  WHAT?  Giving an indecisive procrastinator a choice? 
 Insane.
This demands more thought.

And guess who's still playing with linen?  Here's the latest attempts at the subtle shading I am trying to achieve, compared to the last sampler done on the linen color I like.  The very top is the dark saffron color, now a tan with a dark mustard tinge.  The others were amber, sand (very apricot to start), and unbleached.  I love them! 

How did I do this?  Here's a hint.  Check out the persimmon from my sampler bag, to the persimmon now.  All I did was add a little black Rit to my kitchen sink, wet the fabric, and dip until I liked the hue.  Some only needed one dip.  Rinse, dry, dip again if needed.  My cream colors are now varying shades of gorgeous grays, my bleached saffron was toned down from a yellow, the bright apricot colored sand is now gorgeous, and I have drawers more to go.  I also tried the tan and taupe Rit which are too red toned and I wasn't happy at all.  Surprisingly, if I dipped too long and was unhappy with the gray hue, it immediately came out when dipped once in a diluted bleach bath.  Quickly.  I've been spending way too much time on this, but being able to use linens that would otherwise be unused is worth it.  Why don't I sell them?  Because many of them were not marked and I can't guarantee their count, or their color name.  The yardage I have left won't be bleached and dyed until cut - too unwieldy to manage without folds.

Fancy the cat had her kittens somewhere and is still here to eat, along with her boyfriend who is still crying, and a new gorgeous long haired with huge eyes and a tight flea collar.   We're making houses for all of them from the large styrofoam boxes (coolers) that the hospital receives medications in.  Cutting an opening on one side of the front with a hot knife (cuts styrofoam like butter and seals it), adding something comfy inside on the other side, and securing the lid with a heavy stone, voila!  They love it, they're warm, and less foam in the landfill.  We'll probably get a piece of plywood to lay over them creating an overhang to keep rain/snow from the entrance.  

 Stuffed shells, meatballs, and sausage today with family.  Mom and Dad's anniversary is this weekend.  They were married 64 years when my dad was taken.  

Time is flying!   I almost bought a little fig tree for the garden the other day, until I realized that by the time it grows and produces, I'll probably be in a retirement village!   That thought stopped me in my tracks.  The next thing I remember is ripping open a bag of Dove chocolates at the checkout in Walgreens.

I haven't been able to find large good quality pears in months, and have wasted lots of cloves in the last week.   I was going to wait for 100 followers and offer one as a giveaway, but I may never get there.  And maybe you don't want an item completely unrelated to stitching.  I'm certainly not going to mention the fabric projects that I originally planned.  But it was a calm day, perfect for a fire.  Let me think (without soy milk) and I'll yak about it next post. Have a great weekend everyone, thanks for stopping by.  
.............
Holy rotini this is a long post!
 

Linen ramblings part II

Hiya.  First off, in answer to some emails, I use Staples' see through envelopes which go on sale for $2 (reg 2.99) and $1 (reg 1.99) every once in a while.  It's expandable and holds it all, including the smaller envelope filled with floss, and your fabric.   Load 'em up and stack 'em high.  Ready to go.  Unless you mess around with linen experimentation because you're never happy.  And look at the coin purse I found at JoAnn's!  It's black canvas and lined in black.  Patti's purse is still on my mind and I would love to try making one.  I'm thinking of slipping the stitched piece over the purse after tracing and sewing, hand sewing the edge around the frame, with chenille or piping if needed.  Things never go as planned so maybe starting from scratch would be easier. 

On to the linens I wanted to play with for the large samplers. 

This is the antique white linen, showing the coffee being sprayed on, and the finished colors after rinsing and drying compared to the original.  I some times prefer putting the staining liquid, even dye, in a spray bottle with a fine mist.   Beautiful soft beige, still too light for me, but I can age it more when it's complete.  If I didn't do this first, the aging itself would not be enough color.  The dark unbleached that I showed in my prior post was lighter after bleaching, but still very drab.  So I tried using the coffee and it worked, as long as I didn't rinse it out.  I didn't like the feel of the linen, almost sticky, with the coffee left in, but there is another reason to rinse....keep reading.

 Next, the walnut stain.  I used a double dose of walnut powder stain and soaked the light fabric - beautiful!  I read to be careful using the walnut dye because it will stain anything and forever.  Not so.  I don't know if I got a bad batch or what, but it didn't stain the towel, carpeting, t-shirt, pants, tub, mat, counter, ironing board cover, wall, curtain, or sneakers that somehow ended up with the stain.  Everything cleaned up and it rinsed completely out so I soaked it again and didn't rinse.  Beautiful.  But as it hung to dry, it developed streaks from dripping.  Did it again, and wrung it, hung it, only had one blotch.  Great!  Then I discovered why it is risky to not rinse out a stain before stitching...  When I used a damp rag on the blotch to remove the excess color, it became a bigger problem.  The same happened with coffee that wasn't rinsed out.  If a drop of water drips from your ice cold glass, a tear from a sad movie,  sweat from a hot flash, or any moisture, it will create a noticeable problem.  The color is removed from that damp spot and spreads outward creating a dark ring that cannot be corrected except by rinsing the stain/color from the entire piece.   A disaster that may never happen but I'm not always careful when stitching and would never take that chance on a large project.  Aging after completion is a great method but it wasn't what I was trying to accomplish.  I wanted to see if it was possible to get the shade/color I wanted before starting a particular project, without permanent commercial dye.  The final note to the experiment.....the count did change somewhat with shrinkage, but only on the raw/unbleached pieces.

The left started as 26 count unbleached.  After starting a project on it I checked the stitches, and found 14 to the inch instead of 13.  The second is the 30 count that shrunk 2 inches both ways, and I now have 16 instead of 15 stitches to the inch.  It may work out to 15 1/2 which would give me enough fabric to fit the large design, but I haven't decided if I should take the chance.  I may end up using the golden streak after all, and hope it's not too much color.  The other small pieces that I bleached will be aged with the coffee or walnut stain after stitching is complete.   

Here's the majority of my inventory without scrap pieces - light tan is the lighter of the unbleached and the color I am happy with.

I'm glad I did this little experiment so I know what will work and what I should just put aside.  I certainly have enough linen for smaller primitive projects, and any new samplers will have new linen ordered.  I'll probably bleach some even lighter and use Rit. I'm also ordering walnut dye from a different supplier because I've picked black walnuts and believe me they DO stain forever!  

My mind hasn't been on stitching these last days anyway.  I have one dear friend who was on the phone with her cousin and BFF, when she heard the entire horrifics of the abusive ex breaking down the door and killing her at the other end.  My other dear friend is going through life support being removed from a loved one.  Husband is on vacation this week so we've been busy - mostly trying to figure out which projects can be done in the all week rain!  Hint - NONE!

I'll leave you with Fancy the cat's new mouthy friend who eats more than she does, and my next post will not be a lesson in linen.  That my friends, is for sure.

Thank you for visiting, inspiring, commenting, waiting for a project to appear, and bearing with me while I move from the stitching of 25 years ago to what's happening today.

Linen ramblings

Hello all.  First off, several emails requested information on how I braided the candlewick threads to use for little ornaments.  I apologize for not making it clear.  I purchase candle WICKS, not candlewicking thread.  It comes in a package where they sell fragrance oils and wax, usually craft stores, is 100% cotton, and braided.  I also had requests for where to purchase the basket that is displaying France F.  They only sell in shows, but I have her number and will pass along any info I receive.  On to the linen weekend.

I found this unframed old piece that looks like the 25 count I used to purchase from Scarlet Letter, and this warm tone is what I'm looking for.  My higher count linens are not as light as this, even though as I've mentioned before, they are all "unbleached-raw-natural"- but all vary in tone and shade. 

                 

I don't know if I would like the recommended linen for a design since I have no resources, and my preferences do not lean toward the very light shades.   The natural/unbleached cuts that I ordered long ago came in darker and grayer than I expected.  This is the 30 count that's cut (YES!) in the drab grayish tone, so I prepared a bleach bath for it, in the tub.  I thought it would be the easiest way to submerge it evenly with the least amount of folds.  

The darkest is the original, beneath it the current shade, and the right is the same fabric soaked longer.  It's still too drab, so I may try to warm it with a coffee bath.   Am I wasting my time?  Sure seems like.  I have several yards of this and really want to use it for these big projects instead of purchasing more.  I have no idea what the multitude of color choices are like so even if I would receive new linens, would I like them?  Surprisingly, the amber color was in the bath longest and didn't flinch.  No change whatsoever.  I kept a swatch of wet fabric on hand to compare to the submerged pieces, checking on color change.  It became very mottled and uneven, but dried more evenly.   Months ago I had another brainstorm that if I washed and dried the 25 count linen on hot, it would shrink to a 28 or 30 count.  Well it didn't.  At all.  So I assumed this wouldn't either but it did - an inch in length and width.  The difference?  The first time I tried dyed/processed linen and this is unbleached/raw which obviously is more susceptible to shrinkage.  Which begs the question - would a 30 count cut become a 32 count if it shrinks?   Since the number of threads are the same, but smaller or tighter, wouldn't the design still fit since the stitches would also be smaller?   It will take some time but I'm running a line of stitches to make sure.  Logan's count is 474 x 412 and Metcalf's is 355 x 463.  WHAT?????  

Even though I have a ton of floss in all colors, I bought more.  I wanted everything ready, separate, starting from scratch in their floss and chart files.  Aren't they neat?

 

These are floss colors on the two linens, one too gold, and one too drab.  I'm spilling my coffee on it tomorrow and will decide then, but Logan will be on one of these.  

It took me quite a while, but I inventoried all my linens, even scrap pieces, and now have every piece tagged with size and recorded which is a huge improvement.  I don't know how much is considered a lot, but I think I have way too much of the same boring fabric.  For future projects, I'm going to order a few small cuts and hope the new colors are what I'm looking for.   WHAT?   Future projects?  These designs will keep me busy for a very long time.  a number of years. an eternity.  OK.... I'm done boring you with my linen troubles.  Frankly, I'm bored with it too but starting projects of this size and then deciding it's not the right background does not a happy stitcher make.  

So I'll say so long, have a great new day, be kind and generous to the homeless....

even if they're brats, wanting to eat ten times a day.

Thanks for stopping by, sorry I'm rambling about linen again.

Stitching begins today.

The color of linen

These are my unbleached linens, 28 to 32 count, obviously from various sources, and the latest Golden Streak (Scarlet Letter) on the right.  They were purchased as yardage for future projects, wrapped and stored, and I never really compared them.   I didn't realize the variances in tone between manufacturers, thinking that "unbleached" would be about the same.  I feel like starting over with a new "as needed" policy!

When I started stitching, all of my samplers were kits from The Scarlet Letter on natural unbleached linen and I liked that look so I continued using what I'd started with for other samplers.  Many called for that same linen, others didn't so I changed to stronger thread colors.   I'm somewhere in between now and liking a softer golden brown that displays thread colors.  I still don't care for the very light shades...too modern and bright for me.  Sure there are colors out there I would use, but I don't trust the thumbnails online and my monitor.  Most of my drawer pieces are unmarked and some are kind of taupe or pinkish beige and I hate them along with Amber.  Time for some Clorox and Rit!   I didn't mess around with tea/coffee staining 25 years ago - no reason to, but it's a option for a warmer tint on light backgrounds.  Walnut stain is a little scarier because it stains immediately but I have some to try.  I've been playing around with old projects to gauge results.  These little hearts were puffy (no longer a fan of that) and bright until I worked on them today.  I used the coffee left in the filter to press on to the fabric and kept adding more water.  Yes it can break open! 

I've tried strong coffee in a little spray bottle too.  It dried a lot lighter than it looks here.

After I stained, I did the steam 'n smash.  You can see how they are still filled but much less puffy.

It's toned down, still pretty light and enough for now.

This flat cat is steamed and stained but when he was first completed, he was bright and plump.

I love this design but this unbleached linen is grayish and so drab, behind glass it's worse.  I still have a stash of this and will definitely have to change it. 

Also unbleached, but a warm brown - I like this shade and the colors stand out better. 

Unbleached again, this is my absolute favorite from 
Scarlet Letter. 







Wasn't this boring?  It is.  Boring.  I'm noting some changes and discoveries of being away from stitching for 20 years so it must be a yawn and I apologize for that.  I'll end with this tiny antique coin purse that I recently purchased.  I just love it.  My husband asked me "why?"!