OT word of the day

I started with collecting a yard of real velvet in the deep tones when I
worked at the Fabric Store. Then it just grew. I have some black with gold
beaded butterflies, some that look like flowers, some that is multi-colored
velvet....and ....... some that is still a yard or two uncut.
Oh dear, it's been a long time since I touched it. I _ DO_ know exactly
where it is.

BEG/Trade/swap?
if any of you have velvet scraps must be no smaller than 6" square ...I
wouldn't mind your sending a bit my way.
This year I hope to finish a few tops that are cut out and ready to be sewn
now that I can sit a bit longer. Not a resolution..just a hope

Butterfly (Have been having a blast watching the Looney Tunes Cartoon
marathon whilst KNITTING a bit.and doing catch-up laundry from a 3 day
business trip )



"Pat in Virginia" wrote in message
...
You are using SEQUINED velvets in a quilt? Only real velvet, or are you
including velveteen? Colors, goal, purpose?? Details woman, details!
PAT in VA/USA

"Butterflywings" wrote in message
...
I have a tailor's ham and HAD a velvet board. Haven't seen that in years.
Wonder where it went.....

Butterfly (have a stack of 5" squares of velvet and sequined velvets cut
and ready for a someday quilt. Just need more velvet to cut. )

What would you like in trade? e me
Butterfly - Wings at cox dot net

Butterfly (Might just get it done by next Christmas)

"NightMist" wrote in message
...
A-Ha!
I knew somebody would latch onto this and ask questions!
I wanna know too!
I do have some velvet scraps. Which you can have if rayon pile-silk
backing would go with what you are doing. Since I dye the garment
finished or in pieces rather than the yardage, I bet they would match
your color scheme. (G)

One of these days I am going to make one myself.
There is one down at the historical society that is scalloped fans
scattered across a crazy quilt. Embroidered seams, and the fans are
light colors while the crazy pieces are darks. All silk velvet, and
backed with what appears to be bombazine. It dates from about 1880.
Very drool worthy.

NightMist

On Thu, 1 Jan 2009 13:34:40 -0500, "Pat in Virginia"
wrote:

You are using SEQUINED velvets in a quilt? Only real velvet, or are you
including velveteen? Colors, goal, purpose?? Details woman, details!
PAT in VA/USA

"Butterflywings" wrote in message
...
I have a tailor's ham and HAD a velvet board. Haven't seen that in years.
Wonder where it went.....

Butterfly (have a stack of 5" squares of velvet and sequined velvets cut
and ready for a someday quilt. Just need more velvet to cut. )



--

Nothing has been the same since that house fell on my sister.

A firmly stuffed ham shaped cushion, used for pressing seams
and darts in garments so that they retain their shape well.
My mother had a tailor's ham. Think my little sister got it,
along with her darning egg. I got the rest of her sewing box.

Three of them in this house. Marion uses them quite often.
All from charity shops or car boot sales, and I don't think
any of the people selling them knew what they were for.

==== j a c k at c a m p i n . m e . u k === http://www.campin.me.uk ====
Jack Campin, 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland == mob 07800 739 557
CD-ROMs and free stuff: Scottish music, food intolerance, and Mac logic fonts

Since it got some mention, and I know that some people don't know what
it is...

Darning Egg

An egg, ball, or similarly shaped tool used to keep the tension and
weave or knit of already worked fabric even while further working on
it.

By its name it is obvious that it is commonly used for darning.
It is also used to keep the knitting stitches even when finishing
certain knitting projects, like the toes of socks or the ends of
mittens. It is useful when embellishing finished or premade portions
of clothing items. For example, when adding embroidery to the little
puffed sleeves so frequently found on infantwear it is invaluable.

Darning eggs can be found, both modern and antique, made of a wide
range of materials. They may or may not have handles. While the
stone or porcelain ones can be very pretty, the wooden ones are
generally easiest to use. The wooden ones are not so heavy, and have
enough texture to not be slippery against the fabric.
Alternatives to the egg are the darning mushroom, which always has a
handle in imitation of the stalk, and any number of smooth gourds.

One occasionally finds the false eggs placed under hens to try and
encourage them to sit sold as darning eggs. These eggs come in a
variety of sizes according to the breed of chicken they are intended
for, all of which are usually smaller than the average darning egg.
The materials are often much the same, though sometimes colored to try
and imitate real eggs. The size differences can make them useful for
working on children's and baby clothes.

In a pinch almost any smooth, hard object of suitable size and shape
will do the job.
--

Nothing has been the same since that house fell on my sister.

I have 2 eggs and one mushroom, and I actually use them to darn socks!
Roberta in D

On Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:15:26 GMT, (NightMist)
wrote:


Since it got some mention, and I know that some people don't know what
it is...

Darning Egg

An egg, ball, or similarly shaped tool used to keep the tension and
weave or knit of already worked fabric even while further working on
it.

By its name it is obvious that it is commonly used for darning.
It is also used to keep the knitting stitches even when finishing
certain knitting projects, like the toes of socks or the ends of
mittens. It is useful when embellishing finished or premade portions
of clothing items. For example, when adding embroidery to the little
puffed sleeves so frequently found on infantwear it is invaluable.

Darning eggs can be found, both modern and antique, made of a wide
range of materials. They may or may not have handles. While the
stone or porcelain ones can be very pretty, the wooden ones are
generally easiest to use. The wooden ones are not so heavy, and have
enough texture to not be slippery against the fabric.
Alternatives to the egg are the darning mushroom, which always has a
handle in imitation of the stalk, and any number of smooth gourds.

One occasionally finds the false eggs placed under hens to try and
encourage them to sit sold as darning eggs. These eggs come in a
variety of sizes according to the breed of chicken they are intended
for, all of which are usually smaller than the average darning egg.
The materials are often much the same, though sometimes colored to try
and imitate real eggs. The size differences can make them useful for
working on children's and baby clothes.

In a pinch almost any smooth, hard object of suitable size and shape
will do the job.

My mother often used a dried gourd for darning socks, though sometimes
she used a burned out light bulb. She never had a real darning egg.

Julia in MN

NightMist wrote:
Since it got some mention, and I know that some people don't know what
it is...

Darning Egg

An egg, ball, or similarly shaped tool used to keep the tension and
weave or knit of already worked fabric even while further working on
it.

By its name it is obvious that it is commonly used for darning.
It is also used to keep the knitting stitches even when finishing
certain knitting projects, like the toes of socks or the ends of
mittens. It is useful when embellishing finished or premade portions
of clothing items. For example, when adding embroidery to the little
puffed sleeves so frequently found on infantwear it is invaluable.

Darning eggs can be found, both modern and antique, made of a wide
range of materials. They may or may not have handles. While the
stone or porcelain ones can be very pretty, the wooden ones are
generally easiest to use. The wooden ones are not so heavy, and have
enough texture to not be slippery against the fabric.
Alternatives to the egg are the darning mushroom, which always has a
handle in imitation of the stalk, and any number of smooth gourds.

One occasionally finds the false eggs placed under hens to try and
encourage them to sit sold as darning eggs. These eggs come in a
variety of sizes according to the breed of chicken they are intended
for, all of which are usually smaller than the average darning egg.
The materials are often much the same, though sometimes colored to try
and imitate real eggs. The size differences can make them useful for
working on children's and baby clothes.

In a pinch almost any smooth, hard object of suitable size and shape
will do the job.


--
-----------
This message has been scanned for viruses by Norton Anti-Virus
http://webpages.charter.net/jaccola/
-----------

Oh dear, I'm not hungry, but I sure expected you to say and I make them into
omelets.

Butterfly (Thanks for the LOL)
"Roberta" Roberta@Home wrote in message
...
I have 2 eggs and one mushroom, and I actually use them to darn socks!
Roberta in D

On Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:15:26 GMT, (NightMist)
wrote:


Since it got some mention, and I know that some people don't know what
it is...

Darning Egg

An egg, ball, or similarly shaped tool used to keep the tension and
weave or knit of already worked fabric even while further working on
it.

By its name it is obvious that it is commonly used for darning.
It is also used to keep the knitting stitches even when finishing
certain knitting projects, like the toes of socks or the ends of
mittens. It is useful when embellishing finished or premade portions
of clothing items. For example, when adding embroidery to the little
puffed sleeves so frequently found on infantwear it is invaluable.

Darning eggs can be found, both modern and antique, made of a wide
range of materials. They may or may not have handles. While the
stone or porcelain ones can be very pretty, the wooden ones are
generally easiest to use. The wooden ones are not so heavy, and have
enough texture to not be slippery against the fabric.
Alternatives to the egg are the darning mushroom, which always has a
handle in imitation of the stalk, and any number of smooth gourds.

One occasionally finds the false eggs placed under hens to try and
encourage them to sit sold as darning eggs. These eggs come in a
variety of sizes according to the breed of chicken they are intended
for, all of which are usually smaller than the average darning egg.
The materials are often much the same, though sometimes colored to try
and imitate real eggs. The size differences can make them useful for
working on children's and baby clothes.

In a pinch almost any smooth, hard object of suitable size and shape
will do the job.

Oh, that one sounds very drool worthy! I am trying to picture this ....So,
are the blocks basically light colored crazy blocks with dark fans appliquéd
over. or are the crazy blocks alternate to the fan blocks?

I've got a big container of fancy fabric ... I really should sort it and
start a crazy quilt of some sort. I'd like to do one with lots of
embroidery.

A really fantastic CQ is the one in the Palace in Honolulu. IT was made by
the Queen of Hawaii when she was imprisoned. I saw it about 12 years ago. It
was displayed carefully in a Plexiglas box. I have a set of slides I got at
the museum shop ... wonder where those are.
Later,
PAT in VA/USA

"NightMist" wrote in message
...
A-Ha!
I knew somebody would latch onto this and ask questions!
I wanna know too!
I do have some velvet scraps. Which you can have if rayon pile-silk
backing would go with what you are doing. Since I dye the garment
finished or in pieces rather than the yardage, I bet they would match
your color scheme. (G)

One of these days I am going to make one myself.
There is one down at the historical society that is scalloped fans
scattered across a crazy quilt. Embroidered seams, and the fans are
light colors while the crazy pieces are darks. All silk velvet, and
backed with what appears to be bombazine. It dates from about 1880.
Very drool worthy.

Pat,
I just checked my basket of darners. I have a darning mushroom, and an egg
on a handle. I have two eggs without handles. The latter three darners are
quite old ... vintage I guess. One wooded egg is made of both light and dark
wood and is very intricate in appearance. I do not know the name of this
technique, but I think the egg is from Wales. From the small end, it has a
checkerboard appearance. The curved sides are very pretty. Maybe John will
know. By the way, the handles on darners are convenient for darning fingers
of gloves! Yes, a fun topic.

PAT in VA/USA

"Patti" wrote in message
...
Ooh! that reminds me, too. I have a darning mushroom g
This is a fun thread g
.
In message
,
Ginger in CA writes
My mother had a tailor's ham. Think my little sister got it, along
with her darning egg. I got the rest of her sewing box.

I don't believe it was done in blocks.
I have at least seen no sign of it. There are a few longish seams,
6-7 inches maybe, but I've not seen a right angle ever. Believe me
I've looked! Either the whole of it was done as a single crazy
block, or the maker was very clever with her seaming. I believe the
fans are appliqued on. At first glance they are pretty random, but
when you can look at the whole they are tumbling in concentric
oblongs. The fans are light colors, with a couple of colors that may
have originally been midtones. Now the fans appear to be white, very
pale pink, various beiges, and an odd grey-green The crazy pieces are
darks, all you see now are browns, very dark maroons, and blacks.
Whatever they dyed the velvet with has not stood the test of time
especially well. The beiges in the fans make me suspect anilines,
they often fade to assorted shades of beige, or turn brown in darks.
However it is possible that madder was used extensively also, or
instead. Madder also turns brown with time. The colors in the
embroidery have held up better than in the fabric, the embroidery is
mostly golden yellow with touches of red and white here and there.
Mostly simple stitches over the seams, cross stitch, herringbone, etc.
except for the occasional worked flower. Also around the fans the
seamstress allowed herself to get a bit fancier. You see some bouillan
patterns, french knots, and lace style buttonholing around the fans.
From what I can tell from what I have seen of the back, she used the
flowers and perhaps some of the stiches near the fans to tack the
quilt, instead of disrupting her patterns with ties.

For all that the colors have not worn well it is still lovely.

NightMist

On Fri, 2 Jan 2009 22:57:15 -0500, "Pat in Virginia"
wrote:

Oh, that one sounds very drool worthy! I am trying to picture this ....So,
are the blocks basically light colored crazy blocks with dark fans appliquéd
over. or are the crazy blocks alternate to the fan blocks?

I've got a big container of fancy fabric ... I really should sort it and
start a crazy quilt of some sort. I'd like to do one with lots of
embroidery.

A really fantastic CQ is the one in the Palace in Honolulu. IT was made by
the Queen of Hawaii when she was imprisoned. I saw it about 12 years ago. It
was displayed carefully in a Plexiglas box. I have a set of slides I got at
the museum shop ... wonder where those are.
Later,
PAT in VA/USA

"NightMist" wrote in message
...
A-Ha!
I knew somebody would latch onto this and ask questions!
I wanna know too!
I do have some velvet scraps. Which you can have if rayon pile-silk
backing would go with what you are doing. Since I dye the garment
finished or in pieces rather than the yardage, I bet they would match
your color scheme. (G)

One of these days I am going to make one myself.
There is one down at the historical society that is scalloped fans
scattered across a crazy quilt. Embroidered seams, and the fans are
light colors while the crazy pieces are darks. All silk velvet, and
backed with what appears to be bombazine. It dates from about 1880.
Very drool worthy.



--

Nothing has been the same since that house fell on my sister.