r/BobbinLace

A few days ago, I posted a question about joining techniques in the eye of a fish that I am making.
You were very helpful with some comments and ideas, so it is only reasonable to update you on the progress.

As it turns out, the only thing worse than my English is my ability to follow directions.
I ended up somewhere in-between the suggestions, and save for a few mistakes here and there, it seems to work. It would be possible to undo the entire thing to fix the mistakes, but I've done so twice already and I'd like to eventually finish it. No one is going to notice it once the music is playing anyway. :D

Thank you very much for your help!

I used this and the hole is small also it solves the sore finger issue! A big thank you to everyone who poured in their suggestions.

Last post: https://www.reddit.com/r/BobbinLace/s/pY20y3CB7h

I just finished this little cat from the beginner lace book by Gillian Dye.
It’s super cute and I’m going to make one for my friends birthday. Hopefully with fewer mistakes and better tension.

My only question is, how do you keep shapes place before starching?
The tail is going all over the place.

The only way I know of to starch would ruin the pattern underneath. Do you starch before or after taking the pins out?

Edited to add: this is 100% cotton quilting thread. The thinnest I’ve ever used.

A variation on roseground

(reposted, hopefully with a picture this time)

This is my third lace project, and I had a really hard time with learning the half stitch. Are the black ones wrong? Everything else seems to criss-cross and weave together differently.

Very new to bobbin lace and this project has revealed I need finer pins if I’m doing anything smaller than this for my own sanity. This is attempt 9 because my cats burnt toast and Ragu kept stealing my pins off my lace and I couldn’t get the fans to be fans 🤦🏻

2 questions how does one get a sturdier straight edge without messing up one’s tension? I’ve got 4 pairs of bobbins dedicated to that right now.
And is there a best method for connecting the pieces together? I have a round pillow but I’m out of the paper long enough to just transfer this to fit it for continuous lace but if that’s the best option for my sanity I can order the paper 😅
Face of one of the pin thief as tax Ragu and his emotions support dog Hercules. :)

I’m back with another pattern of my own! I’m still a beginner so it’s all just torchon ground, cloth stitch and tally, but I had a vision and I’m really proud of how they came out!

For stiffening, I mixed 1C water + 1T cornstarch, boiled them until thick, then applied to the lace and let it dry in position :)

Found these in a box in the basement of the shop I work at. Would these be a decent investment? If I can’t use them, I guess I could keep them for decor. How do you use these? They look different from bobbins I’ve always seen.

Edit: thought these were some kind of bobbins based on Etsy and eBay listings. I’ve always wanted to learn how to make lace so when I found these I thought I could get some beginner supplies for cheap. I’m learning a lot of super helpful info so thanks to everyone for the help! I’m gonna buy some actual bobbins and finally try it out. :)

New longer-term project. This is another wedding garter, this time in trans flag colors. The pattern is from Harlequin Lace, garter 34. Thread is Mettler 50/3 from Red Rock Threads (30 WPC), 46 pairs of bobbins. I love the pattern, and I love how the colors are working out. I'll be working on my daughter's garter for most of my demonstrations, but I will definitely have this one out when I demonstrate at a local Pride event. I don't have anyone specific in mind for this one yet. #handmadegarter #bobbinlace #bobbinlacemaking #redrockthreads

Bored to death taking out all the edge pins, so I thought I’d take a moment to show my latest. :)

My teacher's lace picture

Olga Skvortsova "Seasons. Horseman"

Last dragon, made with shiny shiny tinsel stuff, as promised. Next, either some fruit slices or a bracelet. TBD.

Hello everyone, I just picked up bobbin lace and I'm beginning with the first pattern in Bridget Cooks Torchon Lace Workbook. All going well until I finished the first round of diagonals. It now wants me to work diagonally right, but I can't understand the instructions for the life of me. As you can see from the furious holes in my picking, I have tried many combinations and can't seem to make it work. I keep ending up with a hole at the top of the work after I half stitch pairs 7 and 8 together.

If anyone can help me understand what I'm meant to do to get started diagonally right I would be very grateful. Thank you!