Crafter's Corner

Following on from the previous post.....

Torchon lace with a gimp thread running through in white. All thread used in lacemaking is either 100% cotton or silk, stretching thread distorts. Below is a handkerchief edging.




Bedfordshire lace....straight edged and used for trimming edges such as hems on dresses etc.




Buckinghamshire Lace....one of the finer laces.




Torchon lace doilley with gimp thread running through.




Bedfordshire lace again.


There are other types of lace which I haven't learned to make. I had to leave my classes as I moved away from the area. Apart from the full pieces I continued to make in the above kinds of lace I didn't bother to teach myself the others at the time. Some were heavier, some were fine and produced in silk.

 

OMG @Sheal I am sitting here with my jaw agog. They may be *practice* pieces to you, but they're stunning, hand crafted pieces of art to me.

What a truly fabulous skill to possess. The skill involved in creating laceworks is much to be admired. Right from the bobbins and beads, down to the lace, each step requires a particular skill. Getting the bobbins turned and smooth, the weight of the beads to keep the threads taught to the beautiful work of the lacemaker. Just in awe, totally and utterly in awe. Thank you so much for sharing those fabulous pictures.

 

I know you may not have a picture to show me, but roughly what is the biggest piece you've made? How long did it take you? Still agog here. xx

 

That's not simple work in my eyes @Sheal How long did it take to learn to create something like this?

 

Thank you @miraflores for removing your post.

 

Thank you for the compliments @Joolz. I'm very critical of my own work and if something is anything short of perfect in my eyes it doesn't see daylight, usually consigned to the bin. These as I said are practice pieces so have been kept as samples.

The turning of the bobbins wasn't down to me but produced by a crafter that works with wood. I don't know what the cost of bobbins are now but at the time I bought mine, more than thirty years ago, they would have been valued at around £100+, but of course I didn't buy them all at once.

Sorry, no pictures but my mum still has the piece I worked but I can't lay my hands on that as she lives in Essex. It was a picture of Holly Hobbit approximately six inches high. That particular type of lace was easy to work but the pattern was fairly intricate. It probably took me about eight weeks of three to four hours an evening. I remember making a seahorse for my mum too, which took roughly the same time.

The torchon lace bookmark took about two weeks of evenings. I'm saying evenings as that was the only time I had free, I was raising three under fives at the time!

If you have the patience to learn then it's something you might like to try. Although I tend to self teach with all my crafts, lace was an exception as it's difficult to grasp in the early stages and needs guidance from a tutor. I still have two files of instructions from my evening classes and I will use those for revision when or if I eventually go back to it.

 

Absolutely stunning, @Sheal!

A friend of mine has done some Brussels lace (I think!). She had to swear an oath of secrecy for the lacemaking, before she was allowed to start learning. Is it the same with these types of lace?

 

Thank you Sian. No oath of secrecy here or for the lace, I've not heard of that before.

 

Beautiful lacework Sheal

 

Thank you "M". Fancy giving it a try?

 

I'll pop over next week for a tutorial

 

You'd be more than welcome "M" but you'll need a couple of months.

 

I'll pack a bigger bag

 

I thought I'd share a few more of my ink drawings...

A jenny wren


A little owl


A curious donkey


A bear hug!

I hope it's ok to share where you can see some more of these drawings?
Sian's Ink drawings page, on Facebook

 

Beautiful absolutely Beautiful