Lace, lace, lace everywhere

 Well all the lace is cut, positioned and pinned in place.  All that remains is the sewing it by hand to the bobbinette (cotton tulle) which I figure will take probably most of December....unfortunately this is not a take along project.

Sleeves to the left.  It did make a dent in my supply of laces but not enough for me not to be thinking of other lace projects when I get this done.











I found some cool lace bags that used lace scraps not big
enough for garment construction.



























It's not that this lace obsession is anything new.  My kitchen is lace free but every other room is festooned with lace everywhere and I never tire of it.....  Here are just a few examples.

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.

Lace Garment Construction

I did cut out all parts in freezer paper and how have an approximate idea of where I want to use what laces and how.  This will be the back.  I like using the square piece as I like the straight edges.  I wasn't liking  the look of too many round doilies overlapping.  So far nothing is stitched or even pinned but I hope to get started today....and where to start????

This is one section of the front with a rough layout.  I am not only trying to contrast designs but texture as well..
























On the sleeve I want to use mostly very wide lace edgings because I have so many of those and they were too heavy for CQ work.. The biggest problem is when I get an idea where I want to use a piece and it doesn't fit.. Hard to let go and change directions... No matter how hard I try....if it doesn't fit, it will never fit.









And as I am working I keep thinking about alternatives to the cotton tulle as a ground.  Poked around in the barn this morning and found two possibilities.  The top is from an old wedding dress but is sturdy enough and subtle enough that it might work.  The bottom is from a lace curtain and I have used it often as a ground when making lace journal covers and it worked beautifully.   I have a established route when hitting a thrift store..... office supplies, dishes, aprons, linens, lamps, clothing etc.  but now I'm going to add curtains to the list because I think I will be making more things from recycled lace.

I posted a thing on Facebook the other day on the benefit of walking in the woods and Morris and I are trying to do it as often as possible as long as the weather is so nice.  Even though he was just there the day before, he still has to smell every blade of grass.  I love to remember planting these trees in 1995 and they were only 6" seedlings (all 5247).  I remember how excited I was at each milestone...when they reached my knees, were taller than me, the first pine cone etc.


This year has broken all records for the amount of rain.. Ordinarily this time of year the pine needles crunch under my step but this year they are soft and spongy and mushrooms are everywhere.

My recent bone scan showed more thinning of the bone in my hips and spine so I'm amping up my walking and saw that dancing is a great weight bearing exercise... so I have been putting honky tonk radio on Pandora and dancing all over the house.  I have to put Morris outside as he finds the sight of me dancing very stressful and barks nonstop...

Cotton Tulle and laces....

I am committed and on my way.... First I knew I had to have some type of ground fabric under the lace.  I considered nylon tulle or a sheer cotton of some type.  I didn't have a clue what would work best but I knew that tambour artist, Shirlee Fassell would be able to tell me.  Sure enough she told me what I needed was cotton tulle or better known as bobbinette.  It was what is used for lace garments in the haute couture  fashion industry.  But as I searched for cotton tulle on the internet I soon discovered that there was only ONE source (Mood Designer Fabrics) and it is $39.99 a yard plus shipping.  In fact there is only one factory in Europe that even makes it.  Dharma used to carry it but does not have a current source.

Mary Corbet on Needles 'n Thread wrote a fascinating article about it and what makes it so unique - "Cotton Tulle - there's a big difference." According to Mary with cotton tulle the interlocking cotton threads that make each hexagon create  a strong (very strong) tulle suitable for all kinds of fine needlework techniques. According to Mary the inexpensive, widely-available nylon tulle on the market today does not stand up well to embroidery and other needlework techniques.    I love Mary's site and I always go there when I want reliable information on any technique.

Luckily for me Shirlee Fassell had a piece she was never going to use and sent it to me and I am so grateful.  I have not found any information on how to construct a lace garment and so I am making it up as I go along.  Do I have a plan... well yes sorta but it is subject to change at any moment...

First I picked this pattern... Butterick 5789..  It has simple lines and I like the irregular hemline.  I used this same pattern without the sleeve for my Houston vest and it comes in  large sizes.

Then I cut the pattern full size out of freezer paper and covered it with a layer of my precious cotton tulle.

I think I will just barely have enough tulle for this project and will lay it out carefully... I may have to piece some of it together.  Shirlee had a source which told her it is usually used in two layers with the grains in opposite directions but I don't have enough for that.

Now the fun part starts and I think the most time consuming as I am feeling my way here... I can see right away the large doily at the top is too large and I'll cut it in half and use it on the front.  I was just going to lay out the back first...but now I will cut all pieces and work on them simultaneously. I'll have to set up more card tables.





Some laces still will need to be antiqued.  I want to include narrower laces as well as I have a nice collection of those  and just don't want all doilies...  Stay tuned as this is going to take a while...