Loyesaum Supplies

In my quest to recreate the traditional Setesdal embroidered cuffs and collar, I'm trying to get together all the required supplies. Here in Vancouver, a city of some 2 million, you'd think it'd be a breeze. Not so!

I can find the fabric (wool) pretty easily; I've managed to source some nice, blazer-weight 100% wool fabric in black and a nice wine red colour (no green available). And I've got some nice black cotton flannel for a lining.

But, trying to find the right embroidery "yarn", and so-called "waste canvas" is harder. Michael's craft store is useless in this regard; you need a specialty needlework supply shop. So off to the Interwebz again...and there is a bewildering supply of material...what thread count do I need for the canvas? 8.5, 14, or 18? What type of crewel wool? Or do I get Persian wool? DMC? Tapestry yarn? Can I use fingering (knitting yarn) instead? Uh-oh.

This is harder than I thought...so here's my thinking: I'd like to get 3-ply wool so I can divide it for the finer detailing. This means: persian. Hunting around, I find that this stuff means about a 13-count canvas. So, here goes, I'm just going to order from this online store. I'll pick a pretty basic pallette: red, yellow, green, blue, white, black, plus pink and purple. I figure any additional stuff I can fill in with locally-available DMC embroidery floss.

On another front, a friendly knitter on Ravelry who actually lives in the Setesdal has figured out that indeed, their local Husfliden shop does sell kits, and will ship internationally. So I just emailed them as well!! It's truly a global village that we inhabit. I love it!

...stay tuned for more progress!