Observation and progress on lace jacket

Not knowing exactly where to start, I opted for starting at the bottom and am using an approximately 1/4" running stitch.  I left the tulle pinned to the freezer paper pattern to ensure it kept the shape.   I leave it laying flat on the table as I stitch and move the table -not the piece- as I stitch... easily done working on a card table.

I was worried it would be difficult stitching the lace to the tulle without catching the paper as I stitched. BUT IT HAS NOT BEEN A PROBLEM AT ALL!!!! I have been able to run the stitches through all layers of the lace and tulle with ease.  When the needle hits the paper it glides right over it..  probably because the freezer paper has a coating on it... Anyway it is working beautifully. 

As I said in the beginning I wanted this first project to be more structured (more Victorian)  than random (BoHo) with the laces and luckily I have enough laces to do that.  I have another pattern to make another jacket and I want it to be VERY random.  But I am loving this look so far.  The laces are just so beautiful.

From the back the stitching is virtually invisible on the tulle.
Repeatedly I say thank you, thank you, thank you to Shirlee for giving this tulle... it is perfect.

Unintentionally I was keeping the laces pretty close in hue and never realized it until I added  this piece to the curve in the armhole.  Not only did it stand out as very different in color, I had to chuckle as the placement made it look like an underarm stain.

Even though I am only stitching on the back so far, I have the front sections laid out on another table and rearrange pieces every time I walk by... moving and adding and removing.  At the moment there still are too many awkward spots on the fronts so I will just keep fussing with it.. Today I will also set up a third card table and start the same process with the sleeves.

Wherever there are raw cut edges of lace that I can't conceal I use narrow pieces of lace to embellish the juncture.  I can see the stitching will be easy and mindless and will go rather quickly.  I had initially thought this project to take months but now I am thinking weeks.

By far the slowest and most time consuming part is laying out the laces...but the funnest part also.... how can playing with lace NOT be fun.

This project is also perfect because I really don't have to see the stitches at all.  I stitch instinctively following the shapes of the laces.  Very easy on the eye.