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Crescent Colours |
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| Designer's Name: Sharon Crescent | |
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Location: Tucson, AZ
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Thank you for participating in our Friday Feature Sharon! So where are you originally from and/or where did you grow up?
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What made you decide to start dyeing your own threads and at what point did you decide to go full time?
In the early 90’s, the designers started using hand dyed threads, but they weren’t available in my area yet and the internet was not the presence it is today. I wanted my stitching to have that variegated, shaded look, so I got some white floss and dyes and made my own. My stitching friends loved them too, so I would dye for them. Eventually, they caught the eye of shop owners and designers alike. When I started distributing with Hoffman in October 2003, I was still working as a hospital administrator at Tucson Heart Hospital and doing Crescent Colours part time. When we returned from our first market in Nashville in 2004, I made the decision to pursue Crescent Colours as my full time job. It was a scary decision, mostly for my mother, but it was the best decision I’ve ever made. I love what I do, it enables the creative side of me to really let go.
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You recently exhibited at the TNNA Columbus market. How did the market go for Crescent Colours and how do you feel markets benefit designers, shops, and distributors in our industry in the age of the Internet? Exhibiting at and attending a market is a fabulous experience. From my end, as a vendor, I get to meet my shop owners, show them everything new and develop that wonderful relationship that you have with them. I believe that markets are wonderful opportunities for the industry to come together and entice our stitchers with new and exciting ways to use their needles and thread.
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New From Crescent Colours... Silk Thread Color Additions Crescent Colours recently introduced 27 new silk colors at the Columbus Needlearts Market in Ohio. The silks are new this year but are receiving high compliments from designers and stitchers alike. Also released at the market were 5 cotton colors and 5 perle colors. Check them out at your local needleart shop! |
Your hand dyed cotton threads have become very popular over the years. What do you feel are some of the good qualities or advantages of stitching with your threads vs. regular threads? A lot of the feedback that we get about our threads focuses on the softness and ease of use. The cotton threads truly feel silky and soft, which is a result of the way we handle our production. They also don’t tangle and knot as frequently, which as a stitcher myself, slows you down. The stitchers also like the fact that the dye lots are pretty consistent. The shading is subtle and allows a stitcher to manipulate the threads to do the shading for them.
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What are some of your hobbies or interests outside of cross-stitch and dyed threads? As a busy mom and business owner, I wish I had more time to spend on other free time activities. Some of the things that I enjoy are reading, traveling, playing tennis and attending sporting events with my daughter. In the realm of needlework, I also do wool appliqué, needlepoint and I can also knit a dish cloth. ;)
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What are a few things you enjoy most about living in Arizona? Arizona is a beautiful state. I think a lot of people think it’s just all desert and 120 degrees, but it’s so much more than that. Within two hours and still staying in Arizona, you can be in the mountains, 8000 feet elevation and 30 degrees cooler than we are in Tucson. The desert is beautiful this time of year, the cacti are all blooming and we’re starting to get some summer rains. We have beautiful lakes, forests and mountains. It’s very scenic.
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This year, Crescent Colours introduced a new line of 25 silk threads and then released 27 more new silk colors this month. How have these silks been received overall and do you plan on continuing the expansion of this line? I named our silk line Belle Soie, which translates to beautiful silk, because the silks come from France and I wanted that little French flair added to the line. Some of our names are French or references from France. They are very popular with stitchers; they love the softness and subtle shading in our colors. The line will continue to expand as the other lines have in the past.
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Crescent Colours also has a broad selection of beautiful perle 5 cottons. For those who may not be familiar with perle cottons, could you explain how these threads are different than your regular cottons? Perle cottons are a twisted thread in three different sizes (weights) that are not stranded, meaning you use the thread as it comes off of the skein. These are very popular with needlepointers and also the punchneedle industry. They can also be used by cross stitchers over larger count fabrics such as Tula.
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Thank you for taking part in our Friday Feature, Sharon! As usual, we’ll close it up from the kitchen…is there a delectable recipe from the Crescent recipe book you could share? Well, I am actually a very good cook. However, there simply isn’t much time to really delve into a cookbook anymore, so family dinners are the basics: spaghetti, chili, grilled chicken, steaks, etc. I am very good at making dinner plans however and can highly recommend a local restaurant, Macayos, for delicious Mexican food. Try their shredded beef chimichanga, it’s excellent. Thank you for inviting me to be a part of your Friday Feature. It’s an honor to be part of such a wonderful industry.
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