Winter Morn Kit

The very first project of my return to embroidery was not the ribbon embroidery present for my grandmother. It was a Bucilla Creative Needlecraft kit No. 1958 called “Winter Morn.”

I chose this specifically because it reminded me of something my mother did. It was crewel (this used cotton floss) and there was a wagon wheel (this is sans wheel). But the perspective and general placement of the barn and the fence brought back strong memories of seeing her framed embroidery in the hallway.

Here are pictures of the instructions:

Detailed huh?  If sewing patterns are anything to go by I don’t know if we’d see this much information if this were a modern kit. This kit only required 4 stitches though: loop, back, couching, straight and satin.

It was a learning experience though. Here are some pictures of the work in progress:

I was working with a hoop then. It was easier for me to use a small hoop, since I was working really slowly and got very little done in one sitting.

Unfortunately, all that repositioning meant my hands came in contact with the fabric a lot and the pristine winter snow was quite dirty by the time I’d finished. I washed it and almost ruined the project. The red from the barn – but not the fence – bled like crazy. Nothing worked: salt, vinegar, gallons of cold water. This prompted a late-night run to the grocery store and I picked up something called Carbona Color Run Remover and Shout Color Catcher sheets.

I tested the color run remover and it did stop the bleeding but it also changed the colors. Reds became light orange, browns became green–it was almost worse. Maybe it would have worked differently with modern dye.

So then I moved on to the Color Catcher sheets and about ten sheets and several buckets of water later the color was stable. They really worked and I wholeheartedly recommend them if you’re at your wit’s end.

I don’t have a picture of the completed kit because I haven’t mounted it yet. It’s a behemoth – it requires a 22″ x 28″ frame!