Cross-over 1

Look what I did today! Even though there's not much to look at, I worked on this new braid for more than 2 hours. I only created 3/4" of lace, Wow! I think I may be in over my head.

This pattern is Cross-over 1, page 33 of Read & Kincaid's "Milanese Lace". Since the previous Meander in Braid went so well, I thought it was time to pick a more difficult braid. The first repeat went very slowly, partly because I am following the diagram and skipping the words this time.

Even though I am slow, I didn't have to retro-lace, and I didn't get lost in the diagram. I hope I get speedier after I complete a few more repeats. It doesn't look like it should be that hard, and I am amazed at my struggles. By the way, it looks as though my lace widens out after the corner, but I checked, and it doesn't. The pins are not pushed down, and it creates an optical illusion for the camera. We'll see for sure when the pins get pushed down.

She's Coming Around, Folks!

No, it's not time for another round of Beat the Reaper*, but I have finished another corner on my Milanese Sampler. Instead of changing my braid, I continued with Meander-in-Braid, a few rows of cloth stitch and then my corner.

There is a bit of a gap where I switched back to cloth stitch. I followed the suggestion in the instructions, and made a hs with the 7th and 8th pairs, but obviously something isn't right. I may have counted my pairs from the wrong side, or maybe I should have done a different stitch. That is one of the down sides of trying to learn from a book. If I don't understand my resouce, I don't know where to turn for clarification. I should post more on the Arachne lace list. They know everything, and are friendly, too.


I'm getting the urge to make a new pincushion. Here are two Quarter flats I picked up at the fabric store. I love my cat pincushion, but it's looking a bit tired. If my pincushion is small enough, I can eke out a worker cloth from the same Quarter flat, and be all coordinated. I might browse the store and buy two Quarter flats, then I could make a nice sized worker cloth and matching pincushion.

My current pincushion is stuffed with sawdust. My DH creates more than enough dust, and is not at all selfish. He tracks sawdust through the house all weekend. This pincushion is 2 or 3 years old now, but I have no problems with leaking or clumping. He gave me a coffee can full of clean, maple sawdust, and I sifted it to get out any large shavings or pieces with sap. I could use a different stuffing, but the sawdust is free and plentiful. What do you use in your pincushion? Have you ever had rusty pins?

*Firesign Theater, I think it was "Waiting for the Electrician, or Someone Like Him."

Simple Ipswich Lace Edging

I haven't made any progress with my sampler, I am getting ready for the demo at Kalamazoo Valley Museum, Festival of Arts. I have about 7" done of this simple edging found on page 140 of "The Laces of Ipswich" by Marta Cotterell Raffel. I am making some notes, so I can speak intelligently about Ipswich lace, 'a uniquely American lace'. I wasn't prepared to answer questions last year, and felt rather ignorant. This year I will be a bit better prepared, and even though it's the simplest edging in the book, I can explain that this edging was used on children's clothing. After all, it is a children's museum.

Lace Group Meets Tonight!

I'm getting ready for the monthly meeting of the West Michigan Lace Group. This month we are having a medallion exchange. I am putting my medallion with a card hand crafted by my friend L. I thought the medallion resembled the sunflowers, and the colors looked good together. (Since it's my blog, I'll say that I liked the October bookmark exchange much better than this medallion thing. I was outvoted, so I'll say no more.)

I'm also bringing my pillow with my Milanese Sampler, and my travel pillow with a little lace edging on it. I hope to be able to add some to that lace, I plan to bring it to the Kalamazoo Valley Museum demonstration in November.

Tatting information: Cebelia #30, color #437, 'Tatting for Today', the center of motif #4.

Meander in Braid

I've done three repeats of Meander in Braid 1, and it's going pretty well. I have at least 3" to go before I turn the next corner, so I think will try Meander in Braid 2. There is not much difference between the two, but it will add a bit of visual interest. I see there is a Meander with Ground in the next book, and if I am very brave, I may give that one a try, too. I'm sure it will bring me down to earth very quickly!

I'm including a snapshot of my pillowtop, just to give a bit of perspective as to the actual size of my sampler. All these close shots make it seem as if I am using macrame thread. Now you can see how my little project is growing.



You can also see the little cheat sheet I keep pinned to my pillow. I find it impossible to refer to the book while I am learning these braids. The book won't stay open, I keep losing my place, and I have to find a table to put next to the pillow stand. I'm sure you know what I mean.

I use my scanner, and make separate .jpgs of the graph and description of the braid I want to learn. I open my word processor, and go to Tools/Letters and Mailings/Envelopes and Labels, and select 5983 - Postcards. The postcards are 4" x 6" and I can fit both jpgs into one postcard, and print two postcards on a page. I print them onto the heavyweight paper I use for prickings, and trim them to the 4x6 size. The cards fit into a small photo album, and this way I can keep all my notes and instructions in one place. When I choose a braid I want to do, I take it from my album, pin it to my pillow, and give it a go. I can refer to the book for the picture when I want to choose which braid to do, but while I'm learning it, I mainly use the words and diagram.