[lace] Re: Bedfordshire lace
On 1/27/2019 3:23 PM, Susan wrote: In the meantime, now that I realize that I have a two- or three-lifetime supply of Cordonnet, I will find a solution. I use Cordonnet as sewing thread -- #100/6 for general work, #80/6 for heavy duty. None of the three-ply cotton sewing threads are strong enough. But I haven't tried King Tut yet. -- Joy Beeson http://wlweather.net/PAGEJOY/ west of Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.A. - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
[lace] Re: Bedfordshire lace
Thx Jane—When I checked the Archives, I didn’t find the discussion of Cotona green you mentioned but I did find other interesting tidbits so I annotated Brenda’s book. The project I referenced did involve pale green Cotona 618 seafoam (!!), but I’ve had similar issues with 668 goldenrod so I’m inclined to think it is the lightly twisted properties of this thread. You really hit a nerve when you asked about my bobbins! 😬 I typically use continentals but made a conscious decision to use spangled Midlands for the Beds. Oy—they don’t roll but they sure do land askew on top of their spangles! It didn’t seem to matter whether they were vintage bobbins, commercially made ones, or bobbins that I had spangled myself. They got all jacked up & I kid you not, I spent more time disentangling them than it was worth. Beautiful but evil so I am taking a break from Midlands! I must pay more attention to my winding, shortening & lengthening habits. I can’t imagine what I�! ��ve done but this is why golfer’s have swing coaches & baseball has pitching coaches—it’s to discover subtle things about technique or mechanics that throw off the results! This is the one thing I should have added to Devon’s query/discussion about how to learn to make lace. There is a certain value to taking lessons or being in the presence of others who are more experienced. It’s easy to unintentionally develop bad habits when working independently. In the meantime, now that I realize that I have a two- or three-lifetime supply of Cordonnet, I will find a solution. Many thanks again. Sincerely, Susan Hottle FL, USA Sent from my iPad > On Jan 27, 2019, at 8:25 AM, Jane Partridge wrote: > > Susan, > > There's absolutely nothing wrong in wanting to work in white (or any other > colour) :-). > > I remember some years ago there was a problem with a particular, pale green, > Madeira Tanne (they changed the name to Cotona when they started selling it > on smaller reels) that used to unravel during work and was discussed on > Arachne - so a search of the archives might bring up the solutions we came up > with then. It was strange that it was only that one colour, and a number of > us on both sides of the pond had the same problem. - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
[lace] Re: Bedfordshire lace
Susan, There's absolutely nothing wrong in wanting to work in white (or any other colour) :-). I remember some years ago there was a problem with a particular, pale green, Madeira Tanne (they changed the name to Cotona when they started selling it on smaller reels) that used to unravel during work and was discussed on Arachne - so a search of the archives might bring up the solutions we came up with then. It was strange that it was only that one colour, and a number of us on both sides of the pond had the same problem. I have always wound my bobbins clockwise, and mostly find if a thread is going to unspin it is when I'm using Honiton bobbins, my spangled Midlands tend to behave, these days. Are you using Continental bobbins that roll? However, in the past, I used to find that Madeira thread unravelled in the course of working Bucks (where you have more of an imbalance of cross to twist movements) and this was down to the way I turned the bobbin when I was lengthening or shortening the leash, so it might be worth looking at how you do that. If you hold the bobbin straight (in relation to the thread) and turn it one way or t'other, to release or tighten, you will untwist or over-twist the thread as well as lengthening or shortening it. The same goes for any angle up to holding it at 90 degrees to the thread being wound/unwound, at which point you are only winding/unwinding the thread, not affecting the twist. Where the Cordonnet is concerned, knowing you are a needlewoman, do you do any needlelace? We used Cordonnet when we made our samples of Venetian Gros Point (which is a heavyweight lace, used in the past for cravats, etc) both for the stitching and for padding out the raised cordonettes. If you do needlelace or stumpwork you might be able to use it? So, chunky embroidery as another possibility? Although crochet cottons are frequently included in beginner kits, they tend to be difficult to tension properly, I think because they have more "give", so give an uneven finish when used as the main thread in bobbin lace. However, you could use them as gimp threads. I also used Cordonnet 100 when I was tambouring the two-inch edging for the wedding veil project I did for my City & Guilds - that needed 11 balls, (one per chain), and of course only a relatively small amount of each was used - the remains are still sitting in my thread box, some 23 years later, and I can see my daughter! s inheriting them at this rate :-). Jane Partridge Susan wrote:- This was particularly painful because I wanted to—wash my mouth out with soap—work in white. Madeira Cotona 30—I own too many spools—none white—but it seems to un-ply itself while working. It made my lace (a different pattern) look scraggly & it’s too fiddly to keep spinning all the bobbins because it comes un-plied every other stitch. And of course my big question—what to do with so many balls of Cordonnet Special, in multiple sizes? Egad, I don’t tat & I rarely crochet! Is cordonnet suitable for any bobbin lace? - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
[lace] Re: Bedfordshire Lace
"is that all my right hand picots split, the left ones are great what is causing this please?" Sounds like that, in part at least, is about the twist of the thread and you will have to practice compensating for it. Best, Susan Reishus - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003
[lace] Re: Bedfordshire lace corners
I have tried to find information in the books I have, but have not been able to find anything that gave a date for the appearance of corners in lace. I did find a statement by Geraldine Stott that "in the old days, lace was always made straight and then gathered round the corners". (The Bobbin Lace Manual) I assume that she is talking about the English laces. I looked in Santina Levy's book and found an old piece with corners, but it was hard to tell if the corner was part of the design, or if the lace was sewn together to make a smooth turn around the corner (I never can remember what the term is for that). In any event, it was made of gold (?) and made in Europe. Remember the East Midland lace industry was a cottage industry where time was everything, so the extra work involved in making lace the exact size needed so that a corner could be part of the finished piece (or 4 corners...) would have taken more time and most likely been a special order. I read in "Romance of the Lace Pillow" that the Bedfordshire laces became the favorite lace of the lacemakers (nearly putting an end to Bucks PointI cannot imagine!!) because it could be made in less time (more yards equaled more money), and was easier to hide mistakes. How wonderful to be able to make lace in these times when we can choose from many different styles and take our time to finish...even taking the leisure to store lace in progress on our pillows for months(?)!! It's easy to forget the conditions people had to make lace in before us! The beautiful laces by Thomas Lester were designed and made at the beginning of the 1900's, a date that matches the lace in the Ebay group. Debbie in Florida [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
