On Dec 31, 2005, at 17:44, Jane Viking Swanson wrote:
Hi All, I got "Whitework Embroidered Lace Hankerchiefs" by Elizabeth
Kurella ISBN 0-9642871-5-3 when I was in Denver.
Well, my year is ending with a book-bang; what could be better :)
Yesterday's mail brought an unexpected pleasure: Sally Barry's Volume
IV of
Luton Lace Treasury. Unexpected, because although I did know she was
working hard on it, I didn't think it would be completed and printed so
fast on the heels of Vol III (no wonder she no longer has the time to
subscribe to Arachne <g>).
As in previous volumes, there are 50 Bucks Point patterns, all based on
the photos from the Lace Dealer's Pattern Book in the Luton Museum
(UK), bringing the total to 200. As before, they're arranged so that
the ones
needing the fewest number of basic pairs (11 and cute. But so are the
patterns
using 12prs <g>) come first, ending with a pattern (pictured on the
cover)
which requires 49 (basic) pairs. Most of the patterns are edgings,
though there are a few insertions as well. Several of the patterns make
me wonder whether I should try, again, working with the headside on the
right -- something I gave up long ago -- because they're so pretty... As
usual, the diagrams are clear, notes are brief and to the point
(highlighting ways of working an off-beat part, making comparisons to
previous patterns etc).
Also as usual, there are a few pages devoted to a particular "point of
interest". Because I no longer make Bucks Point (shifted to a "generic
Point Ground", as soon as I understood the basic principles), for me,
those pages are always "the kernel of the nut", the cream on the cake,
my personal "treasury" and the part I most look forward to, being a
"rude
mechanical", always interested in practical applications. Vol III was
fascinating with its discussion of corners -- gathered, mitered and
folded --
and I was curious to see what she'd come up with this time. I was not
disappointed, either...
This time, Sally devotes 7 pages to the idea of transforming an edging
into a bookmark. She starts and ends with general advice on how to do
it, and gives 6 practical examples, based on 6 different patterns,
discussing various options she'd considered before settling on the one
pictured. 3 of the original patterns are from previous volumes, 3 are
from the current one. Transformed patterns - short bookmarks - are
included for all 6, so if you're not interested in the whys, wherefores
and hows, you can just "go to it" directly and make the bookmarks as
shown. But, for those who like to dabble with "partial design" (what I
call "meddling", and how I myself started designing), she also provides
a couple of pages of grid in adition.
A -- possibly unintended -- bonus... :) Because Sally recognizes that,
when transforming an edging into a "double-edged" bookmark, the start
and the finish will be the hardest/most tricky parts, her diagrams
consist of just those two elements, as do the samples. As a result, at
least one sample could be used, _as is_, to make earrings, and all the
others as pendants -- just transform the leftover threads (tassels in
the bookmarks) into the hanging loop/bail which will accept hardware...
So, I'm looking forward to many happy hours of "snuffling for truffles"
in all 4 volumes, now that I'm armed with all the practical advice...
:)
And, even more exciting... Once I learn -- following Sally's
instructions -- how to "cook up" an earring or a pendant (beginning and
ending of a bookmark) from any edging, I'll have even more fun
re-scaling those patterns for wire work :)
Also... For those of you who haven't yet started on the IOLI's '06
competition project (Table Ribbon. See:
http://www.internationaloldlacers.org/
scroll down to about the middle to get the details), a Table Ribbon is
just an outsized bookmark; just _start_ as well as end it with a
tassel... :) Sally uses cotton 80/2 (50 wraps per cm) in a single
colour but, if one were to use another, thicker thread and add one more
colour
to meet the requirements...
So many possibilities locked within a single book... A very happy
ending the bad old year :)
The book is available directly from Sally:
http://www.gis.net/~scbarry/online_catalog.html
It will also be available from Holly Van Sciver (Van Sciver Bobbin
Lace) and, I think, from Susan Wenzel (Lacy Susan)
Best wishes for a better year to everyone,
--
Tamara P Duvall http://t-n-lace.net/
Lexington, Virginia, USA (Formerly of Warsaw, Poland)
-
To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line:
unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
