In Flosstube 91 I show my finish of "Autumn Dream" and my FFO of Barbara Ana's "The Key." I talk about the projects I've stitched on and my upcoming Facebook Live Summer Drink Cozy event with Just CrossStitch. You can view this episode episode here. 

I talk about some cool stuff to check out. If you are into knitting and yarn, Magpie Fiber yarn store in Frederick Maryland has a beautiful selection of hand dyed fibers. If you like historical and period clothing, check out Cheyney McKnight and her channel Not Your Mommas History on Youtube.  She is also a contributor in the American Duchess, "Guide to 18th Century Beauty." ​

It's now officially summer and things are heating up here on the east coast. The humidity has set in and the insulated drink tumblers have come out. I decided to draft and develop a drink cozy pattern for my 30 ounce Yeti tumbler. 

I am so excited that I created this pattern! I made a few different versions, but my favorite incorporates the "Star Bowler" pattern by Kathleen Berlew featured in  Just CrossStitch Magazine's June 2020 issue. Loving all things bright and mid century, I was immediately drawn to this chart. I only stitched the top part of the pattern. I stitched it up on a 14 count Aida black fabric using Sulky 12 weight cotton thread. I am so happy with the results. 

​I highly recommend stitching with Sulky 12wt cotton thread. Here are the Sulky colors I used in for the "Star Bowler" thread conversion: 1188, 1834, 1024, 1095, 1071, 1039, 1226, 1328, and 0568. 

Want to see this pattern and talk to me live as I make another drink cozy? Then set your calendars for Friday June 26th at 2 pm eastern time. I will be hosting a Facebook Live event over on the Just CrossStitch Facebook page. I will be going live to talk about how you can add cross stitch pieces to your summer accessories. Want to sew this pattern? It is available here. 

This post contains affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. It does not cost you any additional money. Thank you for your support of my blog. Happy stitching, Amanda Mae

Shortly after Sulky of America debuted the "Intro to Cross-Stitch" video series, I saw that a new "fluffy" and "fuzzy" 12 weight thread featured on the front page of the Sulky website. I immediately wanted to learn about this thread. Full disclosure, I have been a huge fan of the 12 weight cotton petites since the 2019 Nashville Needlework Market. Thanks to Flosstube video makers and Hands on Design, I learned about the fantastic possibilities of stitching with 12 weight thread rather than traditional skeins of DMC. If the 12 weight cotton thread is a winner, I had to know if the 12 weight acrylic thread stood up to the hand stitching test. I scoured Pinterest to learn more about the Filaine thread. I saw several photos in regards to machine embroidery and free-motion machine embroidery, but there was a distinct lack of hand stitching examples of Filaine thread. That got me thinking, would this thread work for counted cross stitch, punch needle, and other types of hand stitching?

The first thing I did was to stitch a sample of stitches with my Gentle Art Simply Wool Cranberry red thread and then with the Sulky Filaine Carmine Red. 

​After stitching both lines on a scrap of linen, I truly could not tell a difference between the two types of threads in terms of appearance. I denoted the wool with a "W" and the Filaine with an "F." 

I grabbed a piece of 18 count Aida cloth and started cross stitching an American flag motif. I then tested out different stitches: long stitch, Rhodes heart stitch, eyelets, colonial knots, and backstitching. My cross stitches were very bulky on an 18 count fabric. My suggestion is to use a 14 count Aida or a 28 count linen. I will also say that doing knots is very difficult with the acrylic thread. Leave your french knots and colonial knots for your cotton thread. 

I think I am the most excited about the faux wool stitching I did with the Filaine thread. I took one of my historic wool samplers I am going to reproduce and I chose two of the motifs to replicate with the acrylic thread. I am just blown away with the acrylic's mimicry of wool thread. This has significant implications for me as a needleworker with a sensitivity to wool. Yes, I have a wool sensitivity. I was lamenting how I could thoughtfully reproduce wool samplers when I have a hard time stitching with wool. Now I can model stitch them my adaptations of historic wool samplers with Filaine thread! 

I integrated the acrylic thread in my personal stitching of Birds of a Feather "Remember Me" halloween pattern. I am so happy with the coverage of the acrylic thread on 14 count aida. 

I grabbed an teeny tiny piece of scrap linen and started free hand stitching a bearded face. Next I used a brand new toothbrush to brush the white thread to have it mimic the look of hair. I think it turned out well. You can see me doing this on camera on my Flosstube video review of Filaine thread. 

My final test of the acrylic thread was punch needle. I am so pleased with the results. I created the pattern and I have it available if you are interested in doing punch needle with Filaine thread.

I am super happy with this new thread and I look forward to integrating it into future designs. I hope other designers, artists, and stitchers consider using this thread for their hand stitching. It is a viable replacement for wool thread and it adds an extra fuzzy dimension to the stitching. You can watch my YouTube video where I show these projects here.   

Here are some of the awesome Sulky threads I have stitched and designed with:

All of the opinions in this blog post are my own and I am not a representative of Sulky of America. Sulky did send me the Filaine spools to test and review after I formally requested a sample of the threads. This post does contain affiliate links. If you click on one of my links and make a purchase, I do receive a commission. 

Before the Mayflower landed in 1620, civilizations across North America created art: needlework, stitching, weaving, textiles, ceremonial costumes, needle art, jewelry... Please note that my list is not extensive. I included a few preliminary  resources to learn more about needle art and needlework in the Americas. The bottom of this post includes some book recommendations including historical non fiction, art, and textile books. You can watch my Flosstube episode here. 

• Museum of Indian Arts and Culture 
• Museum of international folk art 
• Lesson plans from the Museum of International Folk Art
• Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Museum 
• Native Vote lesson plan 
• National Congress of American Indians (NCAI)
• Hearts of Our PeopleExhibition, Smithsonian ​

• Lily Hope, traditional Alaskan Weaver and educator. 
• Spirit Uprising, traditional weaving non profit organization, upcoming 2021 Gathering of the Robes, ceremonial dancing blanket collection 
• Teri Greeves, Kiowa beadwork artist. I really love her beaded tennis shoes and her 2008 piece, “Sovereign Citizen.”

•  Teri Greeves, Beadwork and Belonging Video by Craft in America
• Teri Greeves video segment from Craft in America 
• Youtube video of Teri Greeves showing her beadwork techniques with the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture 

As an Amazon affiliate, I do receive a small commission if you purchase one of the books I have listed. It  does not cost you any extra money and it helps me to pay for my website and research. Thank you.