Thanks Sally - will try it. Karen
From: Sally Schoenberg [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2009 9:36 PM To: [email protected]; [email protected] Subject: RE: [lace] mangling linen I certainly would wash and mangle old lace, and have done it. Wash gently in warm water, mild soap. Lift out without wringing, and set the lace on a cotton towel. Fold the towel over the lace. Leave it for awhile, then turn the whole bundle over to get as much water out as possible. Then I would mangle carefully on a clean hard surface, nothing underneath the lace, and let it dry flat. Sally > From: [email protected] > To: [email protected]; [email protected] > Subject: RE: [lace] mangling linen > Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2009 20:56:16 +0100 > > Would this mangling process be appropriate for old pieces of linen lace? > My first lace pieces were made with linen thread and I don't really like to > starch them so they are looking rather tired now. > Karen in Malta > > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of > Sally Schoenberg > Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2009 6:19 PM > To: [email protected] > Subject: [lace] mangling linen > > First, wet the piece of linen (lace or handwoven fabric), damp out most > of the water by rolling the item loosely in a cotton towel. Lay the lace > flat on a hard surface, roll it hard with a rolling pin, let it dry where it > is. The idea is to flatten while applying pressure. When it is dry, voila! > The linen lace has a "linen hand", the threads are shiny and supple, and the > design just pops out. My lace has never needed any ironing after mangling. > My handwovens sometimes do need a touch > of ironing. > > Most of my dishtowels are linen from Germany, they can be quite long, and I > can't mangle them flat in one go. So, I loosely roll up the top and start > the mangle from the bottom. When I've finished a section, I pull it down > and let it hang straight from the edge of the kitchen counter while I unroll > from the top. Mangle another section, pull down, unroll the top, and mangle > some more. > > I've never done a large tablecloth. My mangling place is a kitchen island, > so I could hang parts over different edges of the counter. I would > definitely mangle it but I think it would take some experimenting to figure > it out. I've seen electric mangles and the width can be small. I've heard > that large linen items are folded and mangled in that case but I haven't any > direct experience with it. > > Peggy Osterkamp has a section in her weaving book III on finishing linen. > She describes mangling in detail, and she also talks about pounding linen. > I've never > seen anyone do that so I don't know anything about pounding as a finishing > process. I also have a Vav magazine (the Swedish handweaving magazine) with > an article about pounding linen, with photos. > > I had made quite a bit of linen lace years ago but was very disappointed in > its appearance and I quit using linen thread for lace. When I first heard > about mangling in a weaving class, a big light bulb lit up inside my head, > or should I say, exploded inside my head. As soon as I walked back in my > door at home, I got that lace out, and mangled it. That finishing step was > exactly what my lace was missing. I'm really very > pleased now with my linen lace and I'm using linen thread again. > > One more story, if you can bear with me... I mangled some linen lace at the > Montreal IOLI convention, if I remember correctly. The lace had just come > off the pillow. I showed the unmangled lace to EVERYONE I could find. I > wanted witnesses! I mangled it during the teacher showcase. When it dried, > again I stopped everyone I encountered, showed them the finished lace, and > invited them to feel it. So, if any of you need a testimonial, surely > someone on the list remembers that lace! > > Sally > New Mexico > > - > To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: > unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to > [email protected] > > - > To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: > unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to > [email protected] - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]
