Yes, you can use wire in bobbin lace - when I've made flowers I've used
a pair with a fine beading wire (the one I've used is sold on small
reels and made by Impex) - starting at a petal, you hang all of the
pairs 'open' (also called 'rainbow fashion') and use the wire as if it
was thread. I tend to place the wire so that it is the third passive
'thread' from either side. To finish the wire off, don't cut it too
short, but use it to wrap round the stem when you are putting the petals
together to form a flower.
I think you can also use cake wire, and the enamel coated wires that the
beading shops are now selling, but some of those seem a little thick -
it depends on the thickness and colour of the thread you are using as to
whether you want to use coloured wire or not.
Using stiffener (which is basically water soluble PVA, diluted), you can
at some future date wash the stiffener out, and it won't rust if it gets
wet through rain or you decide the flowers need cleaning. Wire can
tarnish - for this reason I ended up replacing the fuse wire my mother
had used to stiffen the tiara she tatted for me to wear on my wedding
day (which was 31 years and two days ago!) - I used a silver coloured
craft wire which hasn't tarnished - but in this case the wire had been
stitched to the tatting, not incorporated into it, so was easily
replaced.
Basically, any stiffener you use should be able to be removed by
washing, and shouldn't be attractive to insects (eg sugar or starch
based). If you use wire, remember it is a permanent part of bobbin lace
construction so if it does corrode you won't be able to replace it.
In needlelace, you would cover the wire with close buttonhole stitches,
so it wouldn't be seen even if it did tarnish.
In message <F07B9ED549E1413FA162E2FD37F6A767@Cecily>, Lyn Bailey
<[email protected]> writes
1. Can you make bobbin lace with a wire frame for stiffening?
and
2. Assuming stiffening lace with wire is possible, is this a better
method than painting a stiffener onto the lace while on the pillow?
--
Jane Partridge
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