In message <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes >4. Nenia Lovesey, "Introduction to Needlepoint Lace": For the couching down >of the design: *Betweens have a round eye and a No. 8 is about right when >using sewing cotton. *Crewels have long eyes and a No. 10 is right for single >strands of stranded sewing cotton or silks of a higher number than 100/3s.
I am somewhat surprised that such a recognised expert as Nenia Lovesey would recommend using stranded cotton or silk for the *couching* stitches! These stitches do not stay in the lace, they are removed completely, and usually a fine sewing thread is used, as it is cheap enough for its throw away purpose. One of the threads we had to experiment with for City & Guilds Part 2 was dissolvable thread (apparently, according to the person who wrote the syllabus, it seemed like a good idea at the time....!) and just about the only practical use we could think of to put it to was for the couching stitches. After all, who wants to spend time making lace only to dissolve away their work? Even so, dissolvable thread, although convenient (as long as you keep your hands dry), is probably too expensive for this purpose. Rather than splitting hairs over which needle is used, it is often down to what comes to hand and what one is comfortable working with. I prefer to use very fine tapestry needles (size 28) as the eye is not that thick or wide, it will go through seed beads, and the end has no trace of sharpness which I have found with some ball points. For larger threads, it is obvious you need to use a larger needle! The couching needle is less important, as long as it is suited to the sewing thread being used, and does not produce a hole large enough to pull the cordonnet thread through. I would tend to use a fine between or sharp - whichever was the first out of my needle case. Any author will recommend that which he/she is used to working with, hence the wide variety between the four. I am sure if you looked at more books, you would find even more possibilities. The only exception to this is Hollie Point, where working it drove me up the wall - I was convinced that not only did the 18th Century girls have finer threads, they also had finer needles than we can purchase. There were places where I had difficulty with the finest needle I could obtain (a blunted for the purpose No 12 Sharp) in terms of inserting it between the stitches of the row before. This lace is worked with the stitches very close together - the pattern is made in the holes made by missing a stitch, much the same as the effect of Assisi work in embroidery. In most pieces of needlelace, you will only use two needles - one for couching and one for filling. The only reason you would need more than that would be if you were varying the size of threads in the fillings, in experimental work most likely. -- Jane Partridge -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.322 / Virus Database: 267.3.0 - Release Date: 30/05/2005 - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
