I've been studying Filet Lace for about 2 years now. I had wanted to do this laceform but didn't like making my own net. I checked with Lacis store in CA and what they had for net was the woven, canvas stuff that I felt was not the right stuff. One day someone mentioned a source for the premade net on this list and within minutes I had purchased some and was on my journey to discovering filet lace technique.
www.filetlace.net (usual disclaimor--no stock in this company) Marie-Jo Quinault Florida This was what I was looking for...a soft thread-based net that was knotted. She has two sizes of net available--3 mesh/inch and 5 mesh/inch. I also purchased a book that she had on how to work the Linen Stitch. The Linen Stitch is not hard...it's kinda like cross-stitch. The trick is learning how to work patterns of varying complexity continuously and how to finish the work. It has been a learning journey that I have enjoyed. The original book that I bought from Marie-Jo was only a temporary book, she has since then published a very nice book that is for sale...not cheap but worth the money if you are interested in learning the technique. I studied alot of styles of working Filet Lace and her technique is the best laid out and most complete guide to working this lace. She also has some patterns for sale too. As for the terminology, I too have been struggling with this same question and posed it a few weeks back on this list but didn't get the same responses. I agree that Filet Crochet is a mimicry of true Filet Lace that is done as filling on a knotted net background. I have been trying to read whatever I can about Filet Lace and haven't come upon any reference to 'Lacis' and so don't know where it came from or when. My question was about 'quipure' and I received several interesting responses about that term and have been reading some old historical books that have given me some clues (thanks to Tess Parrish and the 'Digital Archive of Books' website). I don't have my notes with me and don't want to speculate and not be correct. As for machine made vs hand made net...I think that the difference in the two will not be noticeable. Marie-Jo has her net made for her and has a picture of the machine in her new book. It is a machine that is used to produce fishing nets. She is very secretive about its whereabouts and says that there are not many of these machines left. It produces a true knotted net that is indistinquishable from hand-made net. If you have ever tried to make the net yourself, you will find Marie-Jo's netted fabric *very* cheap. I am teaching Filet Lace technique at the Stitching Festival Shows (formerly known as CATS--Creative Arts & Textiles Show) this year in 5 show cities: Dallas, TX in April; Santa Clara, CA in May; Riverside, CA in August; Des Moines, IA in September; and Hershey, PA in October. I will be using the premade net and the main component of the class will be to learn the stitch and how to do the technique to work design. The class project is snowflakes--numerous small projects that allow me to teach various degrees of difficulty and concepts to learn the working technique of Filet Lace. For more info about the shows and the class go to: www.stitchingfestival.com Look under my name under teachers: Karen Bovard then look up the class called Filet Lace. Karen Bovard (The ShuttleSmith) [EMAIL PROTECTED] Omaha, NE - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
