The yard sale was simply an excuse to roam around the neighborhood on one of the few sunny days in May. I wasn’t searching for anything in particular, but it was my lucky day, because there among the books and bric-a-brac I found a dozen packages of medium rickrack in pink, blue and green.

When, I thought, was the last time I used rickrack? Later, at home, after a quick flip of a few photo album pages, I found indisputable proof – the last time I sewed rickrack on anything was in 1970, when I used it to embellish a maternity top I made to wear while awaiting the birth of my younger son.

Rickrack had been a staple trim that enlivened my childhood wardrobe of dresses and blouses, and it had served as a perennial, whimsical trim on the aprons the women in my family wore. But gradually, it fell out of favor as women quit wearing aprons and fashion jet-setted into the future.

Rickrack has been around since the end of the 19th century, when it served as a framework for crocheted edging, was inserted into seams, leaving only the points visible, or stitched in rows around the hem of a full skirt. Rickrack also was joined together with needle lace techniques to create doilies in rectangular shapes. Until the 1960s, rickrack was made of cotton and was not always colorfast.

Today’s rickrack comes in many colors and three sizes: Baby, medium and jumbo, and is woven of polyester. It comes in variegated colors and metallics. It is durable, colorfast and easy to work with, either by hand or by machine.

I guess it goes without saying that I bought the packages of rickrack at the yard sale. Here are some of the things I’ve thought of to do with rickrack:

. Cut three-inch lengths of medium and jumbo rickrack and gather it by hand along one edge to create little flowers to sew on a hatband or a tote bag. The posies will stand out from the fabric surface and create a jaunty mood.

. Use dark brown medium rickrack and yellow baby rickrack to create a hen and chicks design I found on the Internet at printthis.

clickability.com. I’ll transfer the design to a white flour sack dish towel and apply the rickrack by hand with running stitches. I’ll use simple embroidery stitches for the hen’s feet, wattle and comb. The result will be a charming piece that can be used to cover a small table, wrap a bottle of wine or line a picnic basket. I’ll probably smile a lot as I stitch this piece.

. Sew rows of medium rickrack to the hems of pillow cases. Then I’ll embroider a trio of lazy daisy stitches in every other dip in the rickrack for a Very Victorian look.

. Twist together medium rickrack in contrasting colors to fashion a “braid” to sew by machine to towels that otherwise have nothing showy about them.

. Buy plain-colored place mats and trim them with coordinating bands of rickrick in all three sizes.

. And the next time I wrap a bridal or baby shower gift, I’ll add a strand of rickrack to the ribbon when I tie up the package.

Ardeana Hamlin may be reached at 990-8153, or e-mail ahamlin@bangordailynews.net.