literally out of the box

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and functioning as a threader holder! Why didn't I think of this solution ages ago?! Here's the full story ...

Going back a few weeks, Anita showed me a vintage edging she had picked up at a thrift store. A single shuttle trefoil/clover edging with a curious way of joining the rings. It looked so good, too. Thought I'd work a sample but somehow I let my shuttle take over and ended up with this medallion.

Now I wasn't in the mood to use a picot gauge despite having a few handmade folded picot gauges, which is why the bare thread spaces are not perfect.

Nevertheless the highlight of this medallion is the little twist at the base of each ring. 

All I am doing is attempting to make a 1st half-stitch (ie. bringing the thread from Under the previous thread) without actually transferring or flipping it. This leads to all that twisting. One has to be careful with it. As you can see, the stitch is not tensioned and snugged completely since I wanted a loose twist. 

There is ample scope to play around with the effect, adding more half-stitches, etc.

It then reminded me of something that Ninetta had done. Turns out she used a lock join to simulate a twist in this vintage motif here - https://ninettacaruso.blogspot.com/2020/08/locked-in-old-corner.html - from Emmy Liebert's 1916 book.

So coming back to the problem that was awaiting a solution. I whip stitch tail ends using tapestry needles and a threader to thread the needle. The latter is kept in a different box within the larger project box. I wanted a way to have both the needle container and the threader to be together - pick them up in one go. Didn't want to use tape; couldn't use a magnet; couldn't glue it down for obvious reasons. 

This medallion which happened to lie over the circular box struck me as the perfect solution. I glued it down with a spot of glue at 3 points, that's it! 

Being so open and airy, the threader easily slips through any space yet stays put! And no fear of the wire being bent or getting caught anywhere. A safe haven!

Anita called this the Threader Keeper!!! Now she's one to think out of the box and guess it is rubbing off on me, LOL.

Oh, and I am submitting this BTS medallion (my 5th submission) for Natalie Rogers' Picot Bingo 2026 Level 2, crossing out one box -  

• Use Bare Thread Space. 

(Details here - https://www.patreon.com/posts/happy-new-year-147124370)