Go Ahead – Break up the Set!

What I wanted the focus of this post to be is not even more burp cloths, as the first photo might lead you to believe, but rather a story of "What am I saving this for?" The speakers at my guild's June meeting were twin sisters Lisa W. Norton and Lora W. Zmak of Material Girlfriends Patterns. They gave a delightful talk on quilting personalities. They also spoke of personal color saturation and project saturation. As a quilter you may be familiar with the syndrome. It can be described as, "If I sew another  pinwheel or star or HST in puce and lime, I think I will hurl." Their solution is to interject a small, easily completed project in your assembly line to "cleanse your quilting palette". My short project is typically burp cloths, or a cloth book, or pillowcases.

These  pink and green complementary pairs of burp cloths were made with an adorable flannel print titled Spring Turtle from the Robert Kaufman fabric collection called The Wild Bunch. I wanted the "right" color thread for top stitching these burp cloths. I have a generous stock of threads in a variety of shades from which to choose. On the open shelving in my sewing room, are three clear, aluminum hinged, acrylic cases in which I store said thread. Those containers on the shelf adding a spark of color to my sewing room and are always visible so I do not forget I have them.

These boxes are typically called cosmetic cases or train cases and come in many colors. I have the un-tinted option to hold my thread assortment. I get mine cheapest at Walmart usually.

I opened each of those three containers checking – unsuccessfully – for the exact shade of pink to topstitch those burp cloths. I found a vibrant hot pink and several pale tints but none were what I was looking for. Then I noticed the Essential label I had included in the box. This reminded me I had bought two neatly boxed thread sets for my daughter as a Christmas gift. I'd forgotten I'd treated myself to a box, as well. Essential is a 100% cotton thread exclusive to Connecting Threads. It is relatively inexpensive and I have not had any issues with it breaking or producing excessive lint on either my Pfaff domestic or Handi-Quilter longarm.

Here was a box of threads, gifted to myself and tucked away on its side, nearly forgotten by me, an out-of sight, out-of-mind kind of gal. It has a clear window on the lid, but the edges are opaque and do not reveal the treasures that lie within when stored on its side.

I do love red and I love polka dots so how could I resist this presentation? It was just too  cute to open and use! Could it be hiding the pink for which I searched?

Bingo! All the pinks on the left were too pale or too coral or too mauve, but the one on the right, newly discovered in my unbroken set, was perfect. It was strong and jewel toned, without being a hot pink.

For topstitching it was the accent I had pictured in my mind. It shows up but does not dominate. See, there are even decisions to be made in burp cloth design!

My take away message here is to open up those sets, though they may be prettily packaged and presented, and use the components out of them. Even a small project, as small and humble as these burp cloths, empowered me to stop saving and expand myself to incorporate those rainbow hues of alternatives into my daily repertoire of threads. Next step is to build up the courage to do the same with those fabric bundles I have on display.

Linking up with Let's Bee Social #130. Hmm... like mother like daughter. I wonder if my daughter has broken into her boxes of threads yet. Hope she reads this post.