There are two things I want to tell you about today .....
Firstly, I totally forgot this was the start of a new year! Duh!
Eeek! What am I like?!!
Hence you will see last year's TUSAL jar in the photo below along with my mini thread catcher and my almost finished butterfly.
(If you haven't heard of TUSAL or ORTs before do pop over to Daffycat to find out all about them, and maybe even join in?!?!)
Still, at least I left the current ORTs in a pile on their own for this photo, so I can now see how it needs to be sorted, and in a minute I will go look for a new jar.
I know my ORTs pile looks teeny, but I do use the cotton as close to the end of the thread as I can and that's why there isn't a big pile!
That said, a lot of the ends came from tidying up "Stitch by Stitch" ..... and were just the knots from starting the new threads. I've only worked on this light coloured part lately, others were from tidying "Butterfly".
Another view, just to show you how it's growing:
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| "Stitch by Stitch" by Anchor |
And, Secondly ..... I knew I'd seen a way to use ORTs!
This week a lady from the Embroiderers Guild gave a talk at my handicraft group ..... and during her presentation she showed a few items she had made using tiny pieces of cotton! They weren't actually ORTs but they were as tiny as some of my little ends shown above.
I know some of you were wondering whatever you could do with all your ORTs so I thought I'd just mention ..... this lady used sheets of double sided fusible web ..... and I think it was *Steam-A-Seam (other brands are available) by arranging the coloured threads pleasingly, then covering with Organza, iron as directed on the packet, then you will have a "fabric" you can use as you want. The lady had made butterflies with hers and attached them to pictures and a vase cover she had designed.
So there's something to try out sometime!
*Re: Steam-A-Seam, this is just something I use and I am not being paid to say this!!!
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Now I'm off to visit some of you and see what you have been up to!
Happy stitching everyone! And keep warm/cool out there ..... depending where you are!
Hugs,
Barbara xxx
20 comments:
Stitch By Stitch looks great!
I love your flutter-bye! It will be fun to watch your Stitch By Stitch grow - so far it looks great. Not taking part in TUSAL this year - decided I simply don't have enough room in my little sewing space to hold any more containers.
Well, now I have been educated and know what an ORT is (knew it from playing WWF with my brother, but not as a sewing term ha!) and a TUSAL. I will be joining in I do believe! Love your current stitching!
Your butterfly is so pretty! Stitch by Stitch looks like a fun project - will enjoy watching it grow.
Some people actually *do* things with their orts other than stuffing ornaments or fobs? Cool. Mine just sit in their jar, but I once saw that someone was filling up one of those clear glass lamp bases with hers.
Beautiful butterfly!
There are so many things you can do with small thread ends, as the lady from the Guild said, make fabric, you can fill pin cushions or keep them in the jar just as colourful decoration...
Whatevery you do, enjoy it!
Do have fun with those ORTS Barbara. xx
Looks like a bigger collection of ORTS than mine, Like you I try to get as far down the thread as my needle will allow me.
I remember many years ago I saw a textile artist make fabric with her orts...that was before they were called ORTS, lol. But I admit I don't keep mine. Fabrics I have seen made with them are beautiful.
Your stitching is lovely.
xx, Carol
What a lovely project to be working on :)
This is an interesting idea. I save ridiculously small bits of wool but, as yet not threads...your cross stitch looks great :)
I'm a thread miser so much so that I haven't filled a small jar in 3 years.
Wow what great use of the ORTs . Do you have a picture?
I filled a biscornu with some of my ORT's in the past.I do not keep them these days,they are so small most of the time.I like the idea you mentioned though,nothing going to waste.
I love Stitch by Stitch.
Happy New Year - I too use my thread as close to the end as possible. Each year on Christmas Day or the day after I kit up a small Chrismasy ornament and stitch it over the holidays. I use my orts from that year as stuffing and the ornament is then added to the collection for next year's tree.
No, sorry! Good idea, but most talkers don’t like us taking photos. Unfortunately, I took a couple of photos on a talk many years ago and the lady was really mad with me, so now I don’t even take the camera along. I guess they think people won’t hire them if they’ve already seen all they have to show.
Hugs,
Barbara xx
Happy stitching!!!
First off...your ORTs are awesome! Secondly, I once watched a sewing show on TV (Sewing with Nancy?) and the guest put stuff like our ORTs between two sheets of stabilizer that washes away. Then she would sew ALL OVER the entire this, over and over and over. Then cut it out, like into a scarf shape and soak the stabilizer away. The sewing held the ORT stuff together and made a really cute scarf. I thought it would be really cool to do but I've been saving these ORTs for ten years and I don't know that I could use them!
This isn't the show I watched but similar:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8aVVgDkwwM
A great idea, Lesley! I once filled a pincushion with ORTs from my crochet when I made a granny blanket ..... there were so many ends I just had to do something with them!
If your ends are so tiny a Mini Thread Catcher would be ideal for collecting them if you did want to “play along” and I’m sure you will have lots of ends with “Moreton Hall”. Tutorial is here: http://theflashingscissors.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/a-mini-finish-few-quilting-wips.html#comment-form
xx
I just watched the link Daffycat posted, what a clever idea. My ORTs are a bit small for that technique!
Yes, I thought Daffycat’s link looked good, with a lovely soft scarf or shawl to use eventually, but maybe for our ORTs the fusible web idea is still the best option, or fillings for pin cushions!
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