Wonderful Wools

When you say wool fiber most people think "crewel embroidery" or "tapestry/needlepoint" work. The fact is, wool is a wonderful fiber to use on Aida cloth too. And yes, the 14 count variety. On my quest for the just right wool fiber (or fibers if I found more than one, which I did), I ran across DMC's Medici wool fiber during my search and was disappointed that the company had discontinued the line. That didn't mean that there wasn't supplies left with vendors, but I didn't want to get started on something that I wouldn't be able to order more of in the future, when supplies dwindled to nothing. Now here's the thing, the fiber is still being produced by the mill that originally produced it for DMC, but I guess it is going by a different name.....who knows at this point. but a site called Threadneedle Street, https://www.threadneedlestreet.com/Medicis.html claims to carry this. If you are reordering a color, then this would be a viable option, but if you are ordering for the first time and do not have a clue what the color looks like in relation to the number for it, you are out of luck because they do not supply a color chart for it. You could go to the internet and try to find a picture of a color chart I guess but this seems to be a lot of work for the customer that the vendor should be doing. So I chucked the idea of using Medici and this is what I found instead.

A great wool fiber that you can use on anything (I sew on buttons with it too) is Madeira Lana #12 Wool Embroidery Thread. Now this is 50% wool and 50% acrylic finely spun embroidery thread, that comes on a regular spool, so you can use it to machine stitch as well. It comes in a large variety of colors and stitches on Aida beautifully. Since it is 50% acrylic, maybe the moths won't be too anxious to use it for a buffet.

I purchased mine at Sewing Machines Plus https://www.sewingmachinesplus.com/madeira-wool.php#/?Category0=Thread&Category1=Brands&Category2=Madeira&Category3=Wool+No.+12&Category4=220yds&search_return=all&page=2

Beautiful Madeira Lana Thread in some of their beautiful colors!

Here you can see the coverage of this beautiful fiber with
just one strand. Also, you can see the fuzziness on the left
after it was brushed with a Lana brush.

The Lana brushes came two to a package when
I purchased them. One is a little coarser than the
other for I guess when you really want to fuzz something up!

This is such a versatile fiber which is one of the reasons I love it. You can also brush it, with the Madeira Lana Brush, so you can get a wonderful fuzzy effect. I am also using it to stitch up a Christmas stocking kit that requires a ton of applique. It is a fine enough thread to work well on it too. I haven't used it in my machine, but from what I've seen it should probably work well in that too. Since it is on a spool, you get a lot of thread for the money, since you only need one strand of it in the Aida cloth. This would work in regular embroidery too. Versatility Plus!

Eye Surgery Update
Yesterday was my appointment to see the eye surgeon and I spent all afternoon there getting tested. The surgery is scheduled for next Monday (so quick because they had a cancellation on that day). Then the next day I have to go to the optometrist. The second eye will be done around the middle of July. Since I had all the testing done, including an ultrasound of my eyes (they can really do that?!) they are even worse today for the wear and tear. I am so glad to be getting this over with next week, so fair warning to all my wonderful creatives out there, I may have to skip that week's blog, but maybe not. If you do not see one you will know the reason why.

Book After Thought
I finished reading the book "Blessed Are the Weird" by Jacob Nordby, and all in all I have to say it was a satisfying read. You may not nod your head in agreement with all of it, but that's okay, I certainly didn't, but there was a lot of good information that was provided too. I worked in offices my whole life (when I wasn't working temp jobs at giving out sausage samples at a supermarket and selling Kodak Instamatic Cameras when they came out) and it was extremely unsatisfactory to my spirit. No matter what it was, I always wished I was somewhere else doing something else. The problem is I just didn't know what that was. I took courses and searched and just when I thought I had the answer, it scurried away in the midst of a lot of tedium that resulted in boredom and unfounded expectations. Now that I FINALLY have a handle on what I know to be my true vocation, I am all in and there is no more doubt. Even though it took me my whole life, I am still satisfied that I ultimately found it despite all the detours along the way. So I am here to tell you, DO NOT get discouraged by any of your own detours during your journey. They are there for a reason, so don't resent them. Just know that if you are uncertain of what your soul needs, the answer will be provided. Sometimes you have to finally be ready for it before it is revealed.

Stitch Sampler
I will try to get in more stitching on the sample I am working on and have an entry by the end of the week, so stay tuned!

Thought Nugget:
"Have no fear of perfection, you will never reach it."
~Salvador Dali