More on Needle Laces

Any quest requires an enormous amount of concentration and imagination…such was the case in creating the “Needle Lace I” files. I have to admit that even I am surprised at the delicate feel and workmanship that has finally taken shape. They do have a definite hand created look which was my ultimate goal along with low stitch count.

The handkerchief on the top side is one I created for a friend using voile as the material. The Needle Lace designs are created in such a manner that they can be stitched out on water soluble stabilizers by themselves or attached to the fabric in the hoop using a buttonhole stitch. The freestanding laces however can also be attached to fabric by themselves using a fine 2.5mm zigzag stitch. I did find that as the laces are so delicate they tend to curl up especially when there is some wss left in them. The best results that I found were when all the wss was washed out of them, repeated soaking and changing of the water is essential. The monograms are from the Vintage Monogram I collection (the smallest size) which really set off this vintage looking handkerchief. Ofcourse, I can see the raised brows…who used  handkerchiefs nowadays…..LOL. Well, they are excellent for gifts, whether it be a birthday, wedding, birth etc. I can remember well the number of vintage handkerchiefs that I had to pay huge amounts for just so I could make a quilt out of them. Well, there’s another idea!

While on handkerchiefs, I decided to create another using a template of a vintage one that I have in my various antique stashes. It did take some planning but in the end the handkerchief is extremely delicate (I again used voile) more so than the one above. Btw, voile is a superb fabric….I simply love it. Not only does it hold its shape well but as it does have a bit of poly mix to it, the shrinkage is not so much as regular cotton. It is also a great fabric for summer weight blouses, baby heirloom items etc. I purchase mine from http://www.dharmatrading.com and the price is quite good.

As the laces are so delicate, I had to remind myself to trim off the long tie off threads before washing out the wss. That is just about the only item that I have not as yet figured out how to master. I hate jumps therefore do not have them in my designs but how does one go about eliminating long tie off threads? Well….I could have shorter tie off threads (most home embroidery machines will have an adjustment for this) but then they are even more difficult to trim…oh well.

Another item I discovered was that with the delicate laces, it is imperative that one blocks just like hand crochet items or hand created laces. I did this until one of my testers pointed out that a good steam will do the same trick as long as all the wss is washed out of them. Well, after trying it out once, I realised that was more easier than setting up areas to block or shape the laces.

To try out something fun I decided to create home made linen towels. For any linen I normally scour AllAboutBlanks website but the inspiration had hit me so strong that I couldn’t wait. The fun thing about these laces is that since they are one color, any decor can be enhanced by them. The apartment that I rent during the week (yes I live away from home during the week and return home on the weekends) has a lovely master bath with toile wall paper in black. The laces along with the Marrakesh designs were perfect for the towels!

My table topper and jacket and blouse that I started about two weeks ago using the laces are still in the works but hopefully I will have them finished sometime this week. In the meantime, I plan on releasing the designs definitely witin a day or so…if not sooner…with a huge sigh of satisfaction of yet once again mastering something that I had long wished for.