Welcome, Jenny! I do hope you have as much fun with bobbin lace as I did when I started.
> Should I get a round, roller or travel cushion? This, and most of the other tools, depends in part on personal preference. I expect you'll get lots of different answers. Personally, I do not recommend starting with a travel pillow. It's small and cramped for most lace, since it's meant to be easily carried. I learned on a roller pillow, which is (IMO) the best kind for doing yardage. However, cookie pillows (round, with a slight dome) can be used for yardage, and roller pillows are not good for motifs. I recommend a block pillow to start. These are usually square or octagonal, and made up of moveable, interchangeable blocks. Some block pillows have 3 blocks in a row, with padded side sections. Others have 5 blocks in a cross, or 9 blocks, arranged 3-by-3. Nine-block pillows are the most flexible. In the US, Snowgoose sells a pillow they call the "One and Only" (I think). This is a cover-it-yourself round pillow with a shallow box in the center. It comes with two blocks to fit in that box, or one block plus a cylinder so you can use it like a roller pillow. It's also inexpensive. If there's something like that available in Australia, it would be my recommendation. > Should I get more that one cushion? While this is an addicting hobby and many (most?) of us "need" more than one pillow, one is plenty to start with. As you learn more laces, you can get more pillows and more bobbins. > Is there a do not buy list? There's one kit that uses a pressed wood-fiber board instead of a pillow, and plastic bobbins with sharp edges. It's available from a number of craft stores and websites and should be avoided AT ALL COSTS! It is a most discouraging set, although some people do go on with bobbin lace despite it. > Should I get a cushion stand? This is a nicety, not a necessity IMO. Most people are comfortable enough working at a normal table, unless they're very short. If you've got plenty of money to put into the craft, by all means get a lace table, but this is something you can do without at first, if you need to economize. > What sorts of bobbins are best for a beginner? I think most people start with Torchon lace, which can be done just as easily with Midlands (narrow shaft, ring of glass beads at the bottom) or Continentals (wood with a bulge at the base). There are many styles of continentals. To start, you *won't* want very small and delicate bobbins, such as Mechlin, fancy Danish, or Honiton. You will most likely be starting with relatively thick thread, and these bobbins (a) don't hold enough thick thread to do a project and (b) aren't heavy enough to control thick thread. Swiss, "Dutch", International, Belgian, Bayeux, Swedish, and others are big and heavy enough. > How many bobbins should I buy? The simplest pattern I know takes 5 or 6 pairs (=10 or 12 bobbins). However, for your second project you will want at least twice that number. I suggest 3 dozen bobbins to start. > Will my being left handed be an advantage in learning bobbin lace? Nope. I'm left-handed and I find there is no handedness to BL. > What is a beginners lace pattern? There are quite a few books aimed at beginners. These books include information on how to do a cross and a twist (the two stitches that make up BL), how to "dress" a pillow, how to read a BL pattern, and often have information on making a pillow and bobbin carrier. Any patterns near the front of such a book should be good to start with. > Should I jump in and start with a lace pattern I like the look of and learn > the technique as I go? This is how I usually start new subjects, too, but I don't recommend it for BL. Without someone to check your choice, you could easily find yourself trying to learn from a pattern that is too complex for a first try. Some patterns don't have good instructions, the designer assuming you already know enough about lace to figure it out. Other patterns may look simple because they don't take many pairs of bobbins, but have quirks and pitfalls that will make them frustrating to a beginner. Again, starting with a beginner's book should work well. You don't have to start at the *beginning* of the book's patterns.... <BG> > What should be in my beginners kit? > Divider pins (can I use sewing pins?) Yes, you can use sewing pins, but I suggest the glass-headed kind for dividers, not all-metal. However, dividers aren't all that important. For the pins of the lace, you can use sewing pins for most beginner's projects. Eventually you'll want finer pins with small heads for the finer laces (thin thread, pinholes close together). You'll need several hundred (yes, it takes a lot of pins) and you want pins that don't corrode easily. Stainless steel, nickel-plated, anodized, or brass are the main choices. > Pricking card Yes. Or you can start by using cardstock, such as manila folders. I recommend you also get some transparent sticky film, such as Contact paper or Formex. Then you don't absolutely need cards, just sandwich the paper pattern between two layers of film. Or one layer of film over the paper pattern and cardstock underneath it. > Bobbins - how many? what type? See above > thread - can I use crochet cotton? That will depend on the pattern. Each pattern will tell you what thread to use, or at least what size thread. Many crochet cottons are rather stiff and harsh, and would not be my choice for thread, but the size is ok. Some beginner patterns use pearl cotton (coton perle'), generally size 5. > cushion Absolutely > stand As I said above, I don't consider this crucial to start > cover cloth - what colour, fabric Traditionally, dark blue, dark green, or burgundy are the most common colors for pillows. However, the cover cloth is just to protect the project when you're not working on it, so any color/pattern will do. I have one that's a flower print with beaded fringe! A reasonably tight weave is good, because that will keep dust out bettern than a loose weave (and a loose weave can get caught in the pinheads). You don't want something with a lot of lint or fuzz. Bandannas work well, or handkerchiefs. > working cloth - what is it? Two uses: Placed under the bobbins in the work area, the cloth will protect your pillow from the friction of hands and bobbins moving about, and make its surface last longer. When working a motif or a hankie edging, you will eventually find your working threads going over pins from the earlier portions of the project. Working cloths are used to cover worked areas to prevent the threads getting tangled in pins. And traditionally, working cloths (3) were draped around so only the area being worked on is exposed to dirt, bleaching light, etc. > bobbin holder - what is it? This can refer to either of two things. A cloth "bag" with pockets into which the bobbin can be placed, for carrying or storing them when not in use. Or an object for gathering bobbins that are in use on the pillow but not being used right now. There are many styles of the latter. If using spangled bobbins (they have a ring of beads on the bottom), you can use a knitting stitch holder or giant safety pin run through the spangles. There are holders made like (or even from) tongue depressors with elastic to hold the bobbins against the wood--these are good for some Continental bobbins, but not so good for spangled ones. Some people use giant pins (6-10"), again through spangles and stuck upright into the pillow with a "stack" of bobbins on them. There are also long, two-prong wood things with a pin in the bottom, so you can stick it upright in the pillow and stack the bobbins in the slot between the prongs. > fishing tackle pliers Nice, but not critical at first. This is used for controlling a thread that has broken, but which you can't do without just yet. Beginners generally use threads heavy enough that breaking is not an issue. > good how to book/s See the "Lace Fairy" web site for book reviews, and also for pictures of bobbin and pillow styles. > what will my living in semi tropical conditions (air conditioned) do to the > decision making? Straw filled cushions will mould in the humidity??? I would think so. Also, I would not recommend a wool-stuffed pillow. Between the humidity and the bugs that live in the tropics, these materials are probably poor choices. SOme people dislike it, but Ethafoam (polyethylene foam) makes a good pillow material. It comes in sheets, so it's easy to make block and cookie pillows from; it's archival (non-acid), so it won't corrode pins in humidity; it's relatively inexpensive (it's what the Snowgoose One and Only is made of); and nothing likes to eat, grow on, or live in it. I'm so excited for you! Have a wonderful time, and keep coming to Ararchne with your questions. Robin P. Los Angeles, California, USA (formerly Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
