A Hedebo Heart

From one extreme to the other. Yes, that's the way things often go here at stringplay. Yesterday was thick, brightly-colored string and today is thinner, shinier, and all white.

One can only knit cotton for so long before hands and wrists complain.

There are many, MANY different kinds of string in the world. Heck, there are even many, MANY different kinds of string in my house. Still it seems whenever I want to do something, I'm at least one string short of a full line (in mind as well as inventory!).

Today I wanted to try a technique that called for #50 DMC Cordonnet. I had sizes 10, 20, 30, 70, 80 and 100. I even had some size 50 but not in white. My stitch shop doesn't carry it. The big box craft stores certainly don't carry it. And mail-ordering a $3 ball of string is hardly instant gratification. So I pulled out some other books and settled on a different project.

According to the sales receipt, I've been wanting to try this - Hedebo embroidery - since 1998. Ten years seems like a nice round number, no? Time to give it a try. It only calls for three different sizes of pearl cotton.

You can see faint signs of a hoop being used. My instructions called for using one. I've said before I don't care for hoops, so I took it off shortly after beginning. I'm working the buttonhole edge around the outline (which you can see a bit better if you click on the picture to enlarge). Later I'm to cut and withdraw threads from the center and do some needleweaving. And there may be some tiny beads involved. It's all experimental right now. To my eye the threads seem a little heavy, but perhaps later, when all elements are present, it will be more pleasing. Or tossed. We'll see.

References: "Danish Pulled Thread Embroidery" Fangel, Wincler & Madsen, "Pulled Thread Embroidery" by Moyra McNeill and "The Open Canvas" by Carolyn Ambuter.