#rusty needle

[luck-and-larceny]

Honesty Spell: What is the hardest thing to part with you've left for someone when you stole from them? Is there anything you regret leaving?

This question genuinely embarrasses Malika. She does her best to hide that she's embarrassed, but it's a very pointless display. She crosses her arms over her chest to guard herself from it-- and that looks just as defensive a reaction as it is-- so then she uncrosses them to put her hands on her thighs. She crosses her legs one way and then the next. Then she laughs at herself, a hint of a blush on her cheeks and the insides of her ears much darker pink than usual. "I want to say that everything is temporary and things come and go, so nothing that I part with makes me sad. But... Ha. Well. I can't say that... because it's a lie." She takes a deep breath.

"Early on before I realized how bad this...um.. you know... tendency? She adds more quietly, "Compulsion?" before trucking on, "was, I didn't think to carry a lot of trinkets with me wherever I went. So the only things on me were the things that meant the most. Not small memories-- as important as they are to me too-- but the big ones. The ones that felt... significant. The needle that I learned to sew with was not a very good one. Small and rusted, difficult to thread, it became something more than a needle to me but... a piece of myself." She blushes harder. "That's... that's the kinds of items that I like the most, you know? The ones that when I hold them I can feel like I'm holding a piece of someone's heart or dreams or soul. Some tiny part of them. And that was a tiny part of me. I had to do a job for an old boss of mine and... after that job I was able to stop working for him. But I couldn't leave without stealing from him first. I just couldn't. But I had nothing to exchange for the red moon ring he wore. Except my needle. And so I left it behind. I took a piece of him, and left a piece of myself behind too. I still have the ring. I imagine he threw the needle away. Hopefully some other down on her luck future weaver eventually came across it."

Thanks for the Ask!

[brainflossandmindfrills]

Cross stitch question

Hey folks! So a quick question for you more experienced stitchers. How do you deal with rusty needles? My current needle for the madxstitchalong is starting to lose its protective coating thanks to the extreme humidity of the past summer and (also I'm sure) my sweaty fingers. I've only noticed it because I keep my needle pierced through the edge of the fabric (away from the design) and recently tiny brown marks have shown on the aida where the needle makes contact. However, nothing is flaking from the needle, nor does it leave marks on my fingers or on the aida when I actually use it to stitch. My question is what should I do? Should I keep using the needle or change it? I'm mostly worried about the gauge of my stitches changing more than staining the work with rust by accident. I've heard that even if you use the same size needle the look of your stitches can change if you change the needle partway through a project. Any advice is welcome! Please help!