I was thrilled to show off my new sampler, even though it is still framed. I refuse to take it out of the frame until I am ready to chart, and even then I may leave it in and work from behind glass. I asked my husband if he would take photos of each section so I can blow them up on screen and have an easier time seeing the pattern. I know the piece is done on silk, and it is hard to count threads to get an accurate thread count so I can stitch on the correct size silk. Plus, counting the threads for stitch placement is challenging, too. The conservators lined the mounting board with a piece of raw linen, then mounted the silk on to that to help hide the few areas of damage, so I will be counting the threads on a similar colored background, not fun.
I browsed the thread supplies for a few minutes while my husband and step-daughter went to look at patterns. (If you read my last post, you know he loves for me to stitch LOL). There was an entire wall of Weeks Dye Works and other specialty threads, but I wasn't seeing any Au Ver a Soie. The owner was sitting at a table working on filling a catalogue order for the little sleds that are so popular right now. She is the only producer of the sleds, so if you buy one, you know where it came from originally!) I asked about the silk threads, and unfortunately, she doesn't have a large enough market for silk threads to carry them. So that was a disappointment.
As I browsed the shop, I did find that she had some back issues of Samplers & Antique Needlework Quarterly. Browsing through I found some issue I had missed. My subscription lapsed around 2013 and I had not yet made an effort to find them. She had all four issues from that year! So the trip was not a total waste. I am so sad, though, the magazine will no longer be published. It is one of the nicest magazines I have ever read, and I have almost every issue. I felt the same way about Fine Lines magazine. I had only just discovered it when it went out of publication. I was browsing through a used book store one day, looking for embroidery books and magazines, and found issue S&ANQ, in great condition, for only $1! That is one of the special finds in my thrift store shopping.
Back to my threads...On the way to the Harley Davidson shop (if I get my stitching fix, my husband gets to have is HD or comic book fix. He is such a geek), I was googling on my smart phone conversion charts for DMC to Au Ver a Soie. I was able to find one, so I can match the colors with DMC, then use the chart to make a list of what I need in the silk threads. The Stitching Post in Catonsville, MD always keeps silk threads in stock, so I will just email the list to Melinda and she will get me what I need.
We left Pigeon Forge and headed north to Dandridge. We had spent our anniversary on the road last year, as I had a doctor's appointment in Knoxville at the time. On our way home, we found a quaint little restaurant called the Hitching Post and stopped for dinner. It was an old general store which had been remodeled. We sat near thee back, next to a wall sized stone fireplace which was absolutely amazing. We had enjoyed it so much, we decided to revisit it for dinner yesterday, but unfortunately, it was closed. The economy has been really hard on this area of TN, and many businesses have closed their doors. In fact, when we first moved here to Greeneville, I was thrilled to find online a stitching shop right in town, but when we went looking for it, the storefront was still there, but the building was empty.
We popped into a Goodwill before leaving Dandridge. I have been looking for storage options for the threads I will be receiving from the Thistle Threads class. They supply all the materials needed for the different projects to be done throughout the year, so I will need storage for these threads, as well as their "Frostings" Club. The designer of the program has worked with thread making manufacturers to reproduce silk and metal threads used in the 17th century. Members of the club will receive spools of each of these threads in each color available (for a fee) and I am excited to be a member. The first shipment of threads should arrive some time in December, then the package with the materials for the first class project should be arriving in January. That will be a lot of threads to keep out of the reach of our new kitten, who seems to get into everything.
I have already found this to store some threads, but these are not closed drawers, each area is open.
I have my eye on a few apothecary cabinets, which would be perfect for storing a variety of threads, as well as other craft supplies. Ebay has a few right now that I have on my watch list, but I am waiting for my husband's input before committing to a purchase. He always sees things that I miss in my excitement of finding treasures.
We ended up heading back into Greeneville, and we tried a new Mexican restaurant, Casa Guerrero. It was good, but not as good as Monterrey's in my opinion. The chicken fajitas didn't have quite as good a flavor, and their sangria in "non-alcoholic." I decided to try it, and was not happy with it. The first ingredient was carbonated water, the second was sugar. It was all downhill from there. I prefer my sangria not fizz when I pour it. At the end of the meal, the waitress asked us if it was our first time there, and we said yes. She then pointed out there was a free salsa bar we could have taken advantage of, with soups and different kind of salsas for your chips. We may try it again some day, we did see a few dishes being served up that looked interesting, but it wont be on my first choice for dinner list.
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