Press Coverage

The "Best New Exhibitor Award" was received by Elizabeth, Miranda and Jennifer at the 2004 International Quilt Market in Pittsburgh!

Just CrossStitch Newsletter, January 1998;
exclusively for subscribers of Just CrossStitch Magazine.

Manufacturer's Corner

When Miranda Weeks McGahey received her degree in design with a concentration in fiber arts from North Carolina State University, she never dreamed that the dyeing of textiles she enjoyed so much as a student would eventually translate into a successful business in the cross-stitch industry. "My husband says that I got a degree in a hobby," Miranda quips. "I am happy to be doing what I want to do."

After graduating from college, she went to work for a fabric company and tried to sell hand-dyed muslin to the ladies at Ewe & Eye & Friends. They were not interested in the fabric but suggested that Miranda dye some six-stranded embroidery floss for them. The cotton floss became part of a kit; and the rest, as they say, is history. What "started just for fun" three years ago is now known in the needlework industry as Weeks Dye Works.

The Weeks Dye Works line of overdyed floss now consists of 121 colors available in five-yard skeins with such interesting names as Peoria Purple, Scuppernong, and Neapolitan. The ideas for color names come from nature or places but mostly reflect a Southern influence and a good dose of humor. Miranda states, "The floss is 100% cotton [Anchor] . . . and hand overdyed [by Miranda and an assistant]. We do rinse the floss very well, but it is not guaranteed to be colorfast. This has not been a problem...."

While the inspiration for the colors comes from her own preferred palette, she also relies on input from designers and stitchers. "I came out with yellows last year because I realized that I had several golds but no real yellows," Miranda shares. "The most fun is coming up with new colors!" She points out that her floss line can be divided into antique, muted colors and true colors. The top-selling shades are Blue Spruce and Brick, followed by Carrot and Charcoal.

Miranda is proud of the good range of colors available from Weeks Dye Works. She is quick to state that there is a nice variety of "brights, darks, and subtles." Although there is a definite variegation, the colors "blend naturally when stitched" to achieve "a dimensional look." Miranda recommends adjusting stitching technique to the color. For example, if a blended appearance is desired, complete each cross stitch before moving on to the next one. "It's okay to experiment," she reassures stitchers. "Stitches just come to life-each time it's new." She goes on to say, "It may seem crazy, but I still get excited when people use it for the first time and write to say how much they enjoy working with it."

The Sampler Guild of Georgia,
October/November 1998, volume five, number three

Focus on Fibers: Weeks Dye Works

It all began in a bathtub in an apartment in Denver, Colorado. Maybe you have seen these rich, variegated colors of Weeks Dye Works threads in your local shop. They are a six-stranded, cotton based thread which is space dyed. This means sections of the thread have been dyed a different color which repeat throughout the length of thread. Many designers say these are some of the most vibrant threads on the market today. Even the names are enticing such as White Chocolate, Conch, Hydrangea and Moonglow. But as alluded to, it is the story behind their creation which will endear you to them.

Once upon a time, Miranda Weeks wanted to be an architect, so she attended North Carolina State to pursue her ambition. Along the way, the school required her to take a course outside of her major. She elected to take a semester in the study of textiles. In her classes she learned to screen print, dye fabric, weave and sew. Miranda enjoyed this tremendously. She never returned to architecture.

Soon after graduation, she followed her future husband John McGahey ( who she met in college) out to Denver, Colorado. She took a job dyeing fabric for a quilt company. Meanwhile, her husband's long work hours left her with time on her hands, so she took up quilting. Boredom began to set in, so she decided to try her hand at dying fabrics for her quilting just for fun. Soon, her husband made the comment that Miranda had so much dyed fabric, she would have to sell some of it off. And so she did. She sold some to a quilt company, and then went door to door to textile oriented shops in Denver.

In one shop she visited, Ewe & Eye & Friends, a cross stitch shop, the ladies loved the colors of the fabric but didn't have a need for it. They asked if she ever considered dying thread. Miranda had never thought of it, and decided to give it a try just as a hobby. When she returned to the shop, one of the owner's loved the thread and ordered several hundred skeins to be kitted in one of their designs. Then other shops began to call Miranda. What had begun as a hobby was beginning to turn into a real venture.

Miranda came up with a name for her budding company using her maiden name Weeks and adding Dye Works since that is exactly what she does.

In 1994 the McGaheys returned to North Carolina. They live outside of Raleigh in Fuquay-Varina. Miranda decided to give up her job working in the General Assembly for the North Carolina Legislature to pursue dyeing full-time. The dyeing process has now moved from Tupperware containers in an apartment bathtub to photography sinks in a converted garage. The baths which create the thread colors has grown from a few 50 yard baths a week to a few several 4,000 yard baths a week. Miranda has 130 colors she concocts using a "recipe" book to keep colors consistent. "Of course there are no guarantees" she adds "because everything from the temperature of the water to the humidity plays factors" . She recommends that you not wash the threads as it will fade the colors. "Never wash any reds or even the burgundies as they are most likely to bleed" she warns.

She has recently added a line of #5 perle cotton in 30 colors with matching names to their six-stranded counterparts. Fibers may be added in the future and much more as time permits. Weeks Dye Works threads come in five yard lengths and can be found in many local shops here in the Atlanta area. ( Weeks Dye Works only sells wholesale.)