How a spool of thread cost hundreds of dollars and an entire morning

This is a story that any sewer (or knitter, quilter, weaver etc) will completely understand.

I needed topstitching thread. I got this far on a denim jacket:

and ran out of topstitching thread.

So I went to my closest store, but ran out the door without the thread spool. Of course, I picked up the wrong thread.

I also picked up some stretch cotton for my kiddo (we have this exact thing in lycra and were saying how awesome it would be if we could find it in cotton for a dress)

and some stretch for me (for a wrap dress, or this great dress from Muse Patterns)

and some soft lycra that will go nicely with a brown I bought last week (oh, and 2 light bulbs and some spare denim needles).

I got home, realised the thread was wrong, and went to the next closest fabric store (about 20 minutes drive). The thread I wanted was the only colour they didn’t have, so I went to the next closest quilting store (in the same mall, so just a walk).

The thread I wanted was the only onecolour they didn’t have, but I found some organic cotton thread that will be nice for my next blouse project

and an amazing pair of scissors for my left-handed kiddo

a buttonhole chisel (which I’ve been looking for for a while)

a scissor sharpener (I just fixed my favourite 2 pairs of old scissors that have had blunt spots for years – I haven’t been able to find a sharpening service here)

and a white marking pencil that I’ve been looking for.

Then I went to the next closest sewing machine store, but they didn’t have the brand of thread I needed.

So I drove across town (normally 25 minutes, but I was writing this post in my head and missed the turn, so it was a bit longer)…

…where I finally found topstitching thread

(and some really nice silk thread for another project I have planned)

(and the store owner remembered me even though I haven’t been there for about 15 years).

And that’s how a spool of thread cost me a couple of hundred dollars and took me all morning to buy.

But now we have a new jacket, which will be the subject of another post.