Janet wrote:
<I bought a kit, from House of Crafts I think, and a Dryad kit from ebay>
The House of Crafts kit is around GBP 20 new, and a Dryad kit from ebay will
be around GBP 4 to 8, plus postage. That's a total of about GBP 30. The
Dryad kit would have been improved by using different thread, glass beads, a
better pattern and looking for instructions on the web such as Jo Edkins on
line lessons.
As an example, yrom D J Hornsby, you could buy a polystyrene pillow for
around GBP10. Their plastic bobbins (described by Pamela Nottingham in her
book 'Bobbin Lace Making' (Batsford 1983): 'Recently, one skilled bobbin
maker to cope with the huge demand, has had plastic bobbins made to his own
specification. Many lace makers avoid plastic as out of keeping with the
craft, but these are quite exceptional in use and appearance' at 20 pence
each.
Most people can usually find cheap glass beads from car boot sales or
charity shops (both House of Crafts and Dryad only have plastic beads),
thread, card, pins aren't difficult to buy. Add free instructions from the
web and you should be able to get started for less than GBP20 with a decent
items.
Unfortunately when people are starting out to find out about lacemaking,
they're not aware of what's out there as separate items that are it better
than kits, and at a reasonable price.
Lori has links to free patterns on her Lacefairy web site.
Hornsby carries items not easily found eg emergy powder for pin cushions,
blue tracing cloth for needle lace and polar graph paper. They also sell a
range of English and foreign language books Web site:
http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/djhornsby/Home.htm
(No connection, just satisfied with everything I've bought from them).
Jean in Poole, Dorset, UK
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