The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1908-12-04
PROUD OF SKILL
IN EMBROIDERY
Women Nowaday.. Do More
Beautiful Work Than Their
Grandmothers Did.

There is not much danger of women
getting over masculine as long as the
craze for fine needle work keeps ny its
present record. The same girl who
GorideS herself on her drive .H1 golf is
apt to pfeen herself for her skill in
embroidery.
SHE gets outdoor exercise in plenty.
tut her indoor hours are spent i'll
creating for herself fine lingerie. e;-
N~laisite table OF bed linen.
With time, patience and good eye
s Ght Their, is no reason why any girl
r,enn0t learn TO do creditable. even eN-
,luisite embroidery such as is sold in
the stores ut great cost. SHE cen do it,
iona instruction.
There are Fundamental rules that the
woman who aspires to do good work
must observe. Without them no prog
sess i'll n fascinating art is'possible.
SHE must set herself Il high standard
OF excellence. Slap-dash methods mag
answer in sulne things; never in en-
atoiderN. 1t takes time to do beautiful
work md She who is not willing to give
IT should find some other way to &C
Glipy liar leisure hours.
There must he a knowledge of ma
~terials and an appreciation of artist.
effects 10 be had from tn" proper COM
binn1ion of colors and stitches. Thus
certain designs and working materials
which would look we'll on silks and
velvc,s would be utterly ont of place on
linen.
Even In linens. what wousa be strik-
ing on IA dstmask table cover would be
ugly on the cobwebbS linen blouse.
Don't Go Too Fast.
She must not be too ambitious. The
broider web is that they set them
selves tasks tar beyond their skill and
grow ,1iscoura ged. The swifteA4f sue
cess is gained by starting some simple
piece. OF work. doing it us we'll AS can be
done be1ore attempting anything rnore
elaborate.
She napst learn not to traw and pun
her work. This is q mistake of most
beginners. Even with a frame the ma
tcrial is SD puclered thai the most
skillful pressing cannot conceal il.
While an easy touch only comes with
practice. if, from the first, the worker
learns 10 hold her embroidery eor-
rectly. she soon can work without
drawing even on the sheerest fabrics.
Another useful accomplishment for
che embroidered is to stick TO short
threads. IL takes little effort to thread
q needle, and a long thread not only
knots, but wears thin. Most sSeins,
both of silk and cotton. should be cut
twice. at knot end and directly oppo-
site.
The only time where a thread the
length of Il skein is permissible is in
1o''As +. N~sN''f Wv tIS aiINaN IL
quickly worked up. Should Il fine mer-
ccrized cotton be used it is better TO use
the shorter length even for Il ~scallop.
Managing the Thread.
~ common mistake in ~elnbroidering
is to use 100 coarse a cotton. This is
particularly Il fault in satin stitch OF
i'rench work used in fine lingerie. No
matter how neatly one works too
coarse Il thread will make the embroid-
cry look rough. 1t is a safe rule to
buy cotton a number or two finer thar
the average salesman advises.
1t is poor economy to use a thread
in embroidering down to the last inch.
Yet how many workers laboriously
thread and thread again a tiny bit of
cotton to make it last to a given dis
lance. Not only is time lost. but the
work is apt to be drawn. Never neg
lect he foundation work. 1t seems
too much trouble to stuff carefully,
Yet the secret of most exquisite work
lies in the even undcrstitches that are
completely hidden.