Dear All Sue (Babbs) has kindly posted a picture of the demonstration piece I described earlier, as a few people had asked about it; it seems you have to be in the US to post to Flickr for some security reason... However, even in the UK http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/11692789313/ gets me to it.
I've tended to give up making new year resolutions which are unlikely to last into February, but do take the opportunity to get something started. I've been occupied for some time on a reworking of Mrs Millar's handkerchief, a floral Beds design, but having completed a side, corner and half the next side, it became clear that the corner really didn't work (looked awful) so last week got it off the pillow and prepared to redraft it yet again, and have started a Bucks edging I have meant to do for some considerable time. I used to attend Mrs Carter's weekends at the Springetts'. She "suggested" I would like to make the lace for a jabot - a yard/metre of narrow edging to be mounted zig-zag up a square of cloth, covering it, for a man's cravat-style jabot. It needed a neat beginning, designed under her guidance, but part way through, I dared to suggest that if I did use it as intended, it might be worn once or twice at lace events, but that is all, while two half yard lengths could be used as frills down the front of a dress shirt, and would get more use. The first half was completed, it must be before 2006, and I have just got round to starting the second side, finishing the top width while listening to the New Year's concert from Vienna. The pattern draft is on p 91 of Pamela Nottingham's Technique of Bucks Point Lace, bottom right hand corner. Despite being headed "for black" I'm using white cotton. I've decided to try working without using the odd diagrams worked out under Mrs Carter's guidance (mainly for gimp paths), but use just the pricking and the first length. In that, I tried out different things on different repeats, so this time I can aim for the ones that looked best. I suspect this is closer to how the original worker would have proceeded, possibly having a sample of a pattern new to him or her, but in general, learning from experience. I may resort to pencil and paper, but hope not! Even at this stage, I've realised that a very small enclosed area of ground between leaves or whatever, of just 2 or 3 pins, will always look messy if you use point ground, and honeycomb comes out much better, and the inconsistency noices less than the mess! It's good that experience over the years in other patterns can be used here. And it's nice getting back to the unspangled S Bucks bobbins for Bucks - I find they work much better for me; I use a lighter tension than when working Beds using spangled bobbins, which helps. Has anyone else set up a 2014 project? With best wishes for a happy New Year [email protected] - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
