Linen tie back: detail of rose embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
The sitting room in the Vicarage has a very wide set of patio doors, recently replaced but nevertheless still of the patio door variety rather than the latest multi-folding, disappearing out of sight and move at the whisper of a fingertip, state of the art version. Our cat has not mastered her distrust of the cat flap in the utility room so we often leave the patio door open for her to come and go at will. Each time she comes in she brushes against the cream cotton curtains and being a cat who frequents the field beyond the garden she regularly leaves a muddy smear and wisps of black fur. I thought, “enough of this, I need tiebacks”.
Linen tie back: detail of honeysuckle embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
I immediately cut out the tie backs, along with wadding and backing and tacked all the layers together. I could have bound the edges there and then and had them up and functioning in no time but, no, I had in mind that I wanted to do a bit of chunky wool embroidery. That was three years ago. Since then they have languished in a chest of drawers purposeless.
Linen tie back: detail of rose embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
It can be very elemental here on the edge of the Chilterns and this summer it has been particularly blustery in our back garden – wind channels unpredictably up the dips in the bosomy chalk and sometimes it can be so noisy you can’t make yourself heard outside to someone standing next to you (at other times it’s still to the point of unreality, no rustle of leaves from the sentinel beeches, no billowing waves in the feathery barley, and even no helicopters on exercise from RAF Benson – quite perfect and paradisical). But when the wind blows through the even slightly open door it sets the curtains ballooning and on a mission to wrap themselves round anything nearby – often the cat. It has been particularly blowy this summer. I can bear it no longer.
Linen tie back: detail of honeysuckle embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
A small job I thought.
Linen tie back: detail of rose embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
My first mistake was that the wadding + two layers of linen proved to be almost impenetrable to the needle – albeit the longest, strongest with the biggest eye that I could find. I think it was the fault of the 2 layers of rather slubby linen as I’ve quilted whole quilts with this wadding with no problems. I persevered and managed to finish embroidering one tie back – at the cost of a bruised thumb, incipient tendonitis in the same thumb, craters and callouses on the index and middle finger of my sewing hand, not to mention general arthritic aches and pains beyond what I normally experience. (I just can’t get on with a thimble although I do often used some of those little sticky finger pads which are brilliant- if only I had remembered these before being nearly finished.)
Linen tie back: detail of rose embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
I had, however, successfully completed one tie back and was in some danger of getting slightly pleased with myself, especially as I had used up in the process various old hanks of tapestry wool, some of which it is true had no label – and there the sharp witted reader might have noted the advance of problem number 2. The tie back looked fine indoors, both in day light and in artificial light, but when I took it outside to photograph I was thoroughly irritated (actually a bit more than irritated) to discover some embroidery was a very different colour (see picture immediately below this paragraph – I almost can’t bear to include it on this post as it so offends me but in the interest of getting you to share my amazement I feel I must).
Linen tie back: detail of embroidery showing the wrong shade tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
Having no more of the main wool I’d used left, I set to searching for its match online. And wouldn’t you know it, the wool I was using, Anchor Tapisserie Wool 0402, had undergone a renaissance, ditching the french to become Tapestry wool and in the process getting a completely different set of shade numbers?
Linen tie back: detail of honeysuckle embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
In fact – from here on – it wasn’t too dreadful. I found an online conversion chart showing 0402 was now 8004 and I promptly put in an order; two days later a packet of 10 new skeins of perfect match arrived. Phew. Relief. Undoing the wrong wool took very little time and as the gargantuan needle holes were still clearly visible and offered an unimpeded passage through the fabric restitching was done in half an hour. My fingers have healed but I have yet to summon up the energy to embroider the second tie back which notwithstanding its unfinished state (bound edges but not embroidered) is nevertheless doing the job it was intended for and holds back the second curtain.
Linen tie back: embroidered in tapestry wool (hand embroidered by Mary Addison)
Enough of wrestling with incalcitrant materials, I’m about to settle down to a couple of gentle monograms for a double christening of cousins in early July – fine linen, skeined cotton, maybe one in delicate colours and the other black on white. Happy undamaged fingers will be nice too.
15 Comments
I would have embroidered the fabric before making up the tie-back, I think, rather than making life difficult and painful! I do hope your sore hand recovers soon..
The thing is I was trying to get the embroidery chunky and quilty without having to spend all that additional time quilting the design afterwards as well. Hand fully operational now, thank you.
Mary, we’ve just returned from Aldeburgh where we marvelled over a modest collection of John Craske’s haunting beautiful embroidered pictures, their textural sumptuousness highlighted by his use of muted earthy tones. Occasionally, just one chalky tone was used, and he suggested the energy of the sea by stitching in lines going off in different directions. His work echoes in my mind as I look at your small piece of embroidered, cushioned delicacy. You must never, ever draw the curtains. Put on an extra sweater, perhaps a woollen hat, too, and admire this small piece of perfection whilst your poor fingers heal.
How interesting. It makes you wonder whether Craske was limited by the colours available or just chose to use a mutes palette. (I have yet to read the book, which still sits on the table next to me.) The use of the chalky white suggests an instinctive feel for painterly effects.
As yet the light is so wonderful until long past 10pm that we have no need for drawing the curtains! In winter, it’s not so much the cold that bothers me but the great expanse of blackness looming on the other side of the window that I hate. I find it difficult to imagine living in those stunning modern houses appearing on Grand Designs where so much wall is glass alone. I would feel very uncomfortable with no curtains or blinds of some sort (even with only an arable field beyond).
Love the tie backs and the wool on linen embroidery. have you tried the clover thimbles? I love them as the sides are a soft rubber and the tip metal.
Thank you Rachel for your kind comment and even more for telling me about clover thimbles. I’ve never heard of them before and they look just the thing – the only problem is that they seem to come in so many different styles that I don’t know how to choose. I suppose I shall just have to buy several! Information like this is one of the reasons I love blogging.
I think they are beautiful but can see how hard it must have been to embroider through all those layers, I have enough issues with one piece of fabric.
Helen, thank you for your lovely comment. I was interested to see your blog with lots of gardening and some embroidery.
Reading your post this morning I am hoping that your so sore hands have now recovered. Time to give them a gorgeous treat of some sort… perhaps a soak in a warm hand bath with relaxing lavender drops or/and epsom salts?? Does that not sound rather tempting?
How frustrating about the yarn match – I think one tieback is enough quite honestly, plenty of room for the cat to pass safely without furring the swirling curtains. My cat, now no more, actually liked to brush against curtains regardless of gaps – impossible to remove these fine fibres and I still have wisps of her fur floating past now and again trailing a quiet reminder of her furry presence.
Lydia, the hands have healed quickly and are fully recovered. 10 hanks of perfectly matched wool have also arrived. The embroidery of the second tie back has, however been put to the back of the pile – it functions perfectly well without embellishment and only the eagle eyed will ever notice they are an unmatched pair. Meanwhile, I’m fired by other ideas…
I imagine you live in fear of arthritis etc in your hands Mary. I hate all beauty treatments , massages etc, and can’t imagine anything more excruciatingly awful than a ‘Spa Day’ but I did once have something called a wax treatment for hands! From memory it involved either dipping the hands into, or having them anointed with, warm wax, then left for a while, then having the wax peeled off. It was hugely soothing. Perhaps your overworked fingers would benefit from a similar treat now and then X
I try not to think about arthritis too much and hope that I’d find some way to wield a needle. I do have arthritic tendencies and my mother was very bad – especially in her hands. In fact she had regular wax treatments of the kind you talk about – when I was quite little I used to go with her to a weekly clinic. I think the important thing is to keep the hands working and I should look into exercises.Actually, I’m glad you brought this up now as it has made me think. I have a physiotherapist appointment coming up (arthritic knee! though much improved by recent cortisone injection) and it would be a good idea to ask for hand exercises then. How I love blogging dialogue when you find answers to questions you hadn’t even realised you should be asking!! Thank you, Penny.
When I was working as a nurse in orthopaedics, many of my patients swore by Glucosamine, which they took as a non- prescribed, over the counter supplement. Very good for joint mobility; would not per se ward off arthritis but may help in keeping the joints supple X
Interesting you should say so, Penny. I used to take Glucosamine but then there was some doubt as to its efficacy. Recently, my doctor said exactly what you have – that many people found it helpful (which is subtly different from directly recommending it) and I thought I’d give it another try – which I have been doing. As yet the cortisone is still working beautifully.
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