Thursday, December 12, 2013

A Finish and a Potential Disaster

Heart Collector is finished as of this morning.

Heart Collector
Jeannette Douglas


Back in 2008 I completed Dimension's A Treasured Time.  Having done a few Dimensions kits before, I knew there is always a danger of the red threads running when washed, so I had been very hesitant to wash the piece to get it framed.  So, I finally bit the bullet, held my breath and threw it in the sink.  All seemed well.  I blocked it out to dry and the next day ran the iron over it and didn't notice any problems.  Then the sun finally came out and I went to admire it and noticed several areas where the red and brown threads had run!  Grrrrrrr....  It wasn't horrible and considered throwing it back in the sink to soak to see if it would improve the situation, but was too chicken because I was worried it would go from bad to worse.  I've just decided I can't live with it after all and it's now soaking in the sink with a dye catcher.  I'll keep you updated on the result.  I guess if I make it worse, I'll be stitching it again one day...in DMC.

Happy Stitching!
Tamara

3 comments:

  1. Heart Collector is gorgeous--you do very lovely work! So why do you wash your piece? You don't have pets. You don't smoke. I am pretty sure you wash your hands... It is not necessary... Save yourself the anxiety... Just frame! Great to see you! Hugs!

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    1. I've always washed my projects before framing after one piece discolored horribly several years after being framed. I'm not a fan of the "aged" look and that piece ended up looking pretty nasty. I tend to do large pieces that take months (and now years with the HAED pieces) and after all that work, I don't want it to look grungy when it's hanging on the wall. I have never had a problem with DMC thread, but I believe Dimensions uses Anchor thread and a couple of pieces have run. Now I'm branching out to more specialized threads and am experimenting with which ones can be washed safely. Have you noticed Weeks Dye Works is going colorfast? Apparently more people are demanding threads and fabrics that don't bleed. I've also had trouble with stitching with a light thread on a dyed non-colorfast fabric and the dye from the fabric comes off on the thread. So annoying!

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  2. Oh no I hope it works out, it looks so beautiful as it is. Such a stunning finish.
    Alicia xo

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