I cannot count my day complete
'Til needle, thread and fabric meet.
~Author Unknown

Sharing a common thread with those who love the art of hand embroidery

Thursday, February 9, 2017

I only had a glimpse of two things hanging from a box ......at an estate sale

and knew instantly that this piece had to go home with me...........
I first saw a glimpse of this incredible pink embroidered flower,

and the hand crocheted lace edging hanging over the edge of the box...........
with a sign........that read
50 cents each.  

As I pulled the piece out of the box, I was saddened to see this large hole

and other holes worn in one area

and the leaves...........beautiful, but the embroidery decayed off.
As I held the piece up, another lady, who was behind me, commented
"that  cannot be used.......it is ruined"
but you all know me well...........I was thrilled to put it in my pile,
and away it went home with me.

The piece is made of linen........and I was able to find , in my stash,
the same weave and color of linen for the hole repair.

I spent a few days, hemming, trimming and sewing in place the pieces
of linen to cover the holes

Looking closely, one can see that there is some kind of difference in the surface,
but all of the holes are covered and the whole section is sturdy and complete

The pink embroidered flowers by the way...........had no wear.........it was only the green embroidery on the leaves for some reason.
I tried to match the green floss closely and spent the rest of the week embroidering over the 
worn leaves

and now they all look crisp and new

The design on this piece is lovely...........

now it is a beautiful 25" X 25" square table piece..........ready to be enjoyed again.

To think that it could have easily been thrown away after the sale........or used for a rag...........
it now has been 
repaired, restored, and re-loved!


15 comments:

Linda said...

Wow, I love this! How beautiful! It is sad to see beautiful things tattered.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

Oh my goodness! You did an amazing job on this! I know pieces like this can be cut and used for decorating a bag of pillow but you restored it! How wonderful! I love old embroidery and crocheted items. Great job my friend. Hugs, Diane

Sherri Farley said...

It turned out beautiful!

The Tea Lady's Journal said...

You did an amazing job on the restoration. It looks beautiful. So happy you took the time to repair and make it useful once again.

lil red hen said...

Kathleen, I think it is so wonderful that you have the talent and patience to restore these beautiful old pieces. Don't you wish you knew who did the original work and how the piece was used?

mamasmercantile said...

You have done an amazing job, I do so wish that I had your skill and patience to restore it back to its former glory.

Debra said...

It's just lovely-you have saved this piece!

Sheryl said...

Beautiful piece of embroidery restored to be admired for many more years. Wouldn´t the person who made it be surprised?

Laurie said...

You amaze me! What a beautiful restoration!

Gina E. said...

You have done an exquisite job of restoring a lovely piece. Like Sheryl S. here, I often think of the person who originally stitched something when I find ill treated linens and how sad they would be that all their work was not kept in good condition.

Karen said...

I love that design, it is beautiful, and you did a wonderful job of fixing it up!

Stacy said...

You're my idol.....:)

Montrue said...

Beautiful job restoring this piece. Amazing!

Cheryl said...

You are amazing! It is like you rescued that embroidery piece from the grips of death lol

Bits of Stitching! said...

How wonderful you were able to rescue this lovely linen!
You did a beautiful work repairing it!