Chapter 348: Beautiful and Practical
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Su Binglan was also worried that her Aunt Ding Wan would be anxious, so she only went to look for her aunt after thinking of how she would set up the embroidery shop.
Ding Wan had been anxious and busy at home since hearing Su Binglan talk about the double-sided embroidery. She hoped that her niece would come over to teach her about it. Then she could elevate her embroidery skills.
After all, that would also help Su Binglan.
Otherwise, Ding Wan would feel bored and not know what to do. However, she was also very mindful of her health. She listened to Su Binglan’s words and would often go for walks. At night, Ding Wan would go to sleep and not light any candles.
Therefore, she and her family would have an early dinner. Afterward, they would sleep early and wake up at dawn.
Ding Wan was at home that morning practicing her embroidery with a needle, thread, and cloth. When Su Binglan arrived, she noticed the door was open. She looked inside and called, “Aunt Ding Wan, are you home?
Ding Wan was on the bed when she suddenly heard her niece’s voice. She became excited and muttered, “Am I mishearing things again?
Whenever Ding Wan was home these past few days, she would imagine that Su Binglan had come looking for her but saw no one whenever she looked toward the door.
However, she heard it more clearly this time but was worried she imagined things again. Even if she imagined it, she hurriedly got off the bed and went to the courtyard to reconfirm.
When she saw Su Binglan, she ran out excitedly. Ding Wan arrived at the door and held her niece’s hand, pulling her into the house. “Come in. You shouldn’t stand at the door. What if you catch a cold? The weather is only getting colder.”
Ding Wan’s body had recovered, and she could even run. In the past, she would feel weak every few steps and would even sweat. She no longer faced those problems now.
Su Binglan said smilingly, “I just arrived, Aunt Ding. I came to discuss the embroidery shop with you.”
Ding Wan’s eyes lit up with fire when she heard that. She said happily, “I’ve been waiting for you to come.”
The two entered the room, and Ding Wan asked Su Binglan to get on the bed while she went to pour some water for her niece. Ding Wan said, “Drink some water first. I put the fire on this morning, so the brick bed is still warm. Let’s sit on it while we talk.”
Su Binglan did not argue and drank a few sips of water before getting onto the brick bed. Then she removed two things from her bag. “Aunt Ding Wan, look at this.”
It was a small doll that Su Binglan had made out of cloth, but there was no stuffing inside. Ding Wan took the doll from her niece, and her eyes bloomed with joy. “Did you make this, Binglan? It’s so beautiful, and I feel happy just looking at it.
“I’ve studied embroidery and have seen many needleworks, but I’ve never seen anything like this. The doll looks perfect, and it’s even smiling.”
Su Binglan made a modern -day cartoon doll that looked adorable.
“I won’t bear to part with this,” Ding Wan said.
“Yes, I made that. Do you think it’s a good idea?” Su Binglan asked.
“Of course, it’s good. No one else knows how to make this kind of thing. I’ve never seen it before. If someone else knew how to make this kind of thing, it would’ve become popular long ago.”
Ding Wan would know.
Su Binglan explained, “Aunt Ding Wan, look, I’ll stuff cotton inside.”
She also had cotton in her bag but did not have much. If she wanted to make these cartoon dolls, she would need to buy more.
However, her cotton was expensive, so she thought of other cheap things to stuff the doll with to make it fuller. That way, she could save a lot of money. When Su Binglan stuffed the cotton into the doll, she used a needle and thread to sew the opening at the bottom. It was a real-looking doll.
“It’s so lovely and feels good in my hands. If I like it, imagine how much the children would like it too. You always have the best ideas, Binglan.” Ding Wan wondered if her niece was interested in selling dolls in her embroidery shop.
She asked, “Will you sell these dolls in your shop? If the sewing is simple, others can do it if they know a little bit of needlework. Still, it looks pretty tough to make something of this style.
“However, if someone sees this and learns how to embroider, they can imitate it,” Ding Wan said after taking a closer look.
“Then lees mark the dolls with the Su family brand,” Su Binglan said, “We’ll also continuously launch new products. Even if others imitate us, they won’t be able to keep up.
“The wealthy people who care about their reputation will buy the Su family’s products. That means our products are authentic. Besides, our embroidery shop won’t just make dolls. We can also make things like school bags.”
Su Binglan revealed a school bag she had made as she spoke. She had been busy with these things over the past few days.
“Look, you can carry it on your back like this, Aunt Ding Wan. You can also put some copper coins and small items in the bag. It’ll be more convenient for you to go out.”
In that era, people would carry baskets if they were to bring things along, which was inconvenient.
“We can make school bags, backpacks, and smaller ones like those are
handbags.”
Ding Wan had seen schoolbags before since Su Xuexuan and Su Xuehai carried such things whenever they went to the academy. She found it novel but did not expect to see such an exquisite handbag.
Ding Wan opened the handbag and looked inside. She saw interlayers with buttons where one could place essential items. One could then button it up and not worry about losing the items.
“What about this bag?” She pointed at a big cloth bag that seemed convenient for carrying vegetables.
“This bag will make it more convenient for people to use when they buy vegetables from the market. People can place their meat and vegetables in this bag and bring them home.”
Anyone who knew a little needlework could make such a big bag, but Su Binglan’s version had many patterns, making it pretty and practical.
“It’s gorgeous!” Ding Wan was dazzled by what she saw. She had never seen patterns like those before. Moreover, Su Binglan had embroidered those patterns with a technique Ding Wan was unfamiliar with.
She was intrigued and asked, “How did you embroider this, Binglan?”
“This is simply sewn, Aunt Ding Wan. You can sew it according to any pattern you want. It’s simple, so I’ll teach it to you later.”
Ding Wan’s eyes were full of joy when she heard her niece’s words. “Then I’ll have to trouble you.”
After all, she liked to learn these things.
“There’s no need to be so polite with me, Aunt Ding. I thought you could manage the embroidery shop after learning it,” Su Binglan replied, “When the time comes, I’ll hire more workers. Then you’ll help me manage them.”
Ding Wan was eager and excited when she looked at the things her niece had brought over. She wished she could immediately make these things herself.
“Over the past few days, I’ve only thought about helping at your embroidery stop.”
Su Binglan said smilingly, “Xueye is already leading his construction team to build the shop. They’ll complete it very soon, but we should learn new techniques in the meantime. I’ll find a few villagers to make these things. We can put the items on sale when they finish..”
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