The Good News
Progress on the Snowflake Napkin by Renulek.
: )
The Not-So-Good News
I do not know what to do about buying more thread...
I have been ranting on and off about the quality of Lizbeth. I thought jettisoning the #20 and using mainly #40 had solved my problems with uneven thickness, knots and fuzziness. But no.
Now, I have reduced my thread stash to a minimum and have mostly Lizbeth #40, in a very few colours.
There is coming a time when I am going to be bored with the lack of colour choice and there is not too much HDT either.
But, and it is a big 'but,' I am not going to buy more until I have exhausted all alternatives. I am sick of the inferior quality - unless my expectations are wildly out of line.
I remember working with a wonderful Japanese thread - I think it was Olympus, and it was delightfully smooth and consistent in texture, but few colours were available.
Then there is Altin Basak - lots of colours, but a bit soft for my taste. So, what's a girl to do? I might just have to start dying my own.
I suppose I could then use Lizbeth, as I find it to be excellent, once it has been transformed into Hand Dyed Thread.
Or, I could suffer diminishing eyesight by beginning a tatting career using mainly 'Oliver Twist.' Woe is me...
Fox - you are SuperExpres!!! :D
ReplyDeleteyou napkin is different but beautiful!!!!
hugs!
Hey! Renulek!
DeleteThank you!
I am so glad you saw what I have been up to with this marvellous tat-a-long project. I am having so much fun with it. Thank you for doing this online challenge.
Eagerly awaiting the next surprise,
Fox : )
Warning, Oliver Twists has fuzzy bits, too. My all out favourite thread is DMC special dentelles. Followed by Anchor size 80. I don't like Altin Basak and the Finca, too is somewhat too soft and fluffy. If you are going for a finer thread King Tut quilting thread is good quality, and lovely colours...however they are very fine, and so progress is very slow. DMC make a cordonnet sizes 20 and 30 but only in white and ecru. I wondered about dying my own, too, because I can't get students to learn on 80, they find it too difficult. I still love your napkin!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Snowy, for the warning.
DeleteI will hold off - they are very expensive threads and I do not want to buy fuzzy ones!
King Tut is too fine for my taste. I really do not enjoy the #80 threads except for the DMC Special, which I quite like, after having used it a lot for hanky edgings.
Thanks for having a look at the progress of the napkin. It is really something different, isn't it?
Fox : )
I still love your doily Fox! Those two colours together really cheer me up. Well done on your progress, it's looking excellent. Sorry to hear about your problems with Lizbeth. I do use size 20 a lot myself and only have an occasional problem with it (I figure the odd burr in a natural fibre thread is normal?) - it's still the main thread I use all the time.
ReplyDeleteI also love your little Stawasz motif - lovely in those bright colours!
Thanks, Frivole,
DeleteI am surprised that your #20 gives you no problems. Barb at HH replaced a lot of my #20 that I found to be defective. Her response to all my thread woes was absolutely first-rate.
Thinking perhaps the problem was with #20, I switched to #40, which I prefer, so there was a very positive outcome in the misadventure.
It would be lovely to stumble upon a new thread that I just cannot live without (as i did a while ago with shuttles!)
Thanks for posting the Stawasz motif. I realized I had that pattern and tatted it immediately, as I loved yours!
Fox : )
Are the uneven widths towards the end of the ball? - where the thread begins to look crinkly? - Thread Heaven will fix that, and most of the blips and blobs can be removed with one's fingernail - but on the whole I do tend to agree with you. The very best thread of all is the horrendously expensive Coats Mercer Anchor Artiste, if you can find it locally.
ReplyDeleteFortunately I tat very well with the softer threads, and I've always loved Cebelia. The Artiste is 6-cord.
Hi Maureen,
DeleteThe pic here is the end of the ball - you can see the crinkle quite clearly.
But, no, the unevenness has been throughout this ball of pink/red. I notice that I have complained on tat-ology a few times about this particular colour. Maybe it is the dye that is problematic, however I find most of the Lizbeth inconsistent, except for the yellow ( my LEAST fave!) and the variegated Lizbeth, which are smoother as well.
Too bad Cebelia doesn't have a better colour selection. I quite like it as well. Never have tried the Artisie.
Fox : )
Your doily is fantastic!
ReplyDeleteI know this "yarn misery" very well. I have found a very good quality yarn 2 years ago, and now there's no more in the shop.
It was On line Hakelgarn 20.
I found something similar, but no colors. That's why I handdye my own. And good fun as well. So carry on dyeing Fox! XD
Hi, Orsi!
DeleteA lot of tatters seem to have liked the Hakelgarn.
Yes, of course multi-talented YOU dye your own! I am not confident that my creative skills repertoire extends to the realm of thread-dying! I am a bit nervous about beginning.... We'll see!
Fox : O
Hakelgarn Online 20 was my favourite too at one time. But I was quite disappointed that there aren't many colours to choose from. Lately, I have found even the thread has lost the quality that I am used to; the size 20 thread that I purchased felt like a 10.
DeleteI have up to now liked Lizbeth thread as I have not had any problems but I was sewing thread yesterday and what did I find some of the thread seems a bit thicker, I like the Turkish thread but like you said it can be a bit soft, although the perle is not as soft as Altin Basak.
ReplyDeleteYou are way ahead of me on the tat along I have not yet started round three but I have been busy doing fluff's I like your little motif the colours are a wow.
Have a good day,
Love to Gian
Margaret
Hi Margaret,
DeleteI thought the thread you always use IS Altin Basak! What is the name of the Turkish thread you mention here? Is it also a 3 ply? I think the turquoise you sent me was AB, was it not?
Fox : )
I love to use Lizbeth thread 20 and 40. I also have come across these faults plus BIG knots with tails right when I'm in the middle of CTM. It's most frustrating.
ReplyDeleteHi, Geraldine,
DeleteYou said it!
Fox : )
It must be the luck of the draw... I have had a few problems with Lizbeth, but not enough to throw me into a tizzy. I did have one ball that had about a yard long section full of knots, fuzz, and unevenness, but I cut it out and moved on with no more problems. My favorite thread, aside from HDT, is Hakelgarn. I sure wish I could still find it! It was fabulous!
ReplyDeleteIt might be the dye-pots pour moi... Great... Another obsession in the making. perhaps?
DeleteFox : ))
Phew! I hate that! I have only had problems with those issues a few times, this is really stinky!. But wow, that doily is something outstanding!
ReplyDeleteHi, Michelle,
DeleteThis is such an ongoing issue with me, but being at at 'stash-end,' I will solve the thing by finding a new thread I can be pleased with or will learn to dye my own.
Fox : O
Very pretty, sure hope you find the color. Lizbeth threads are promised to be the best, have you let them know? Best of luck.
ReplyDeleteHi, Cheryl,
DeleteYes, I have been in touch with the owner of Handy Hands, who has been understanding and more than generous with her response to my woes in the past. me. It isn't her fault - so I cannot keep complaining to her.
The problem is in the manufacturing, so all I can do is find another thread I like!
Fox
Your snowflake napkin looks amazing!!! :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I love the start of the new doily!!! :)
Thanks, GK!,
ReplyDeleteCan you believe I have begun two of these things at the same time? Me - the one-by-one-serially-monogamous-tatter! It makes me dizzy!
Fox : )
The thing about dyeing your own is that you still have to find a good quality thread to begin with. Not that I want to be discouraging, you understand! I love dyeing thread, and I'm happy to see everyone doing it. One thing, as you work with the thread to dye it, you can better detect faults.I love the little motif, as well as the tat-along. I'm glad to see more about Jan Stawacz on blogs. I came across his web site by accident and found it amazing and inspiring.
ReplyDeleteHi there, Jane,
DeleteI figured someone would address the issue of the faults being there before one dyes the thread, and there you are!
Because the dye seems to sort out a lot of issues with thread, it might improve the quality just because of the way it is absorbed into the shaft of the thread. Won't help with the knots - but these would be found beforehand and eliminated.
Do you like the process? Obviously, you like the thread as you hand dye your own.
From all I have read online about HDT's this is what I understand to be common when thread is put through the dying process.
Whether I try it is debatable - time and expense are the barriers I am hitting square on!
Fox : )
I love your Jan Stawacz motif, very pretty.
ReplyDeleteI like the progress on your Napkin as well.
as for thread, my all time favorites are/were Harkelgarn and Manuela. with DMC Cebelia as third. As for current available threads, I like Lizbeth for color and tight twist, except for the slubs and knots. I realize that is a manufacturing defect that can't always be eliminated, and I expect it has something to do with the length and/or strength of the cotton fibers. Also having your manufacturing somewhere you are not can lead to poor over site. Not faulting Barb at Handy Hands, there simply are no thread factories here in the US or Canada, so you need to rely on others whose focus may not be the same as yours. (Something I know about through work grrrr)
Good point, Ladytats.
DeleteFox
Your napkin is turning out awesome! It is going to look so great when it's done. The Stawacz motif looks pretty cool, I can see why you wanted to do it. Love the color choice on it.
ReplyDeleteYou seem to have he worst luck with your threads! I use Lizbeth almost exclusively now and rarely have any trouble. I picked up a ball of size 20 Flora not long ago and have had the most awful time with it splitting. I have to say that I thought of you as I fought with it! :-0
Hi, Tattrldy!
DeleteYes, it is an awesome design. Love his stuff but often forget about it, for it usually requires some thought at the beginning or there is a lot of gnashing...
Oh dear. Not a flattering image you carry!!! : ))
Fox
Ahh, Fox, I was just wondering if it's the occasional problems (knots, fluff, blobs, and even splitting) with threads. I've definitely encountered these with Lisbeth, Flora and even Olympus. Just occasionally, but I really hate the knots (top of the list!). I've not seen these flaws with Manuela though. I have many balls of M variegated (purple and white). I can send you some to try it out. Email me.
ReplyDeleteOkay!
DeleteFox : )
OOh, very nice! Love the doilies!
ReplyDeleteI'm still finding my way with thread, and trying different brands. I've been pretty happy with most, so perhaps I've been lucky, or maybe I'm not as discerning.......
Thanks, Suz!
DeleteYup - I am very picky. Bit of a Type A... : ))
Interesting that hand dyeing affects the nature of the thread differently to commercial dyeing. I've dyed Cebelia very successfully, but I used another brand that looked good, but didn't slide well. I used to spend a lot of time dyeing handspun cotton for knitting, I'm a dye fanatic! My daughter sends me a lot of Milford thread. There's the occasional knot and some of it seems a little overspun, but in general it's fine. Haven't seen anyone else mention the brand?
ReplyDeleteTypstatting sent me some Milford a while back from Australia and I received some from my pal Suneeti when she was also in that neck of the woods. So I have gone through several balls of it. It is a lovely thread - quite smooth and I found no flaws in it.
DeleteFox
p.s. I do not think I will get into dying... too time consuming and I really am not that interested in the process - just the results, I never do well in that kind of situation. I need to be hooked on process! : )
Ah well, there are lots of people you can get HDT from, so leave it to them!
DeleteIsn't that the truth!
DeleteFox : ))
I don't think I've yet found a thread that doesn't have some of those issues.......except for HDT. Wish I was rich enough to tat exclusively with those gorgeous HDTs.........
ReplyDeleteSulky Blendables are great. Terrific in fact. But so fine - little bigger than a DMC #80.
Delete