XX Easy Lace Stitches, Fagotting, Single Mesh, Double Mesh, Spiders, Fan, Maltese Cross, Twisted and Buttonholed Bars, Picots for Simple Edges
One of our best authorities on lace has said that there are over one hundred different stitches used in lace. Now there are various kinds of laces; there are crochetted, bobbin, as well as needle point laces. It is about two branches of needlework laces—Renaissance and point—that we will talk about in this chapter.
Renaissance lace is made by basting a flat braid on a given pattern and filling the spaces between with simple lace stitches. Point lace is made of very fine plain braid with much finer thread and more elaborate stitches.
The basting of the braid is extremely important. Sometimes only a single line is given to indicate where the braid will be, while again a double line is shown. The braid must not be wider than the double lines. It may be basted so that the side held toward you will be the right side of the lace or vice versa. Start from one corner of the design, turn over one end of the braid an eighth of an inch. For coarse work one row of basting stitches through the centre of the braid is sufficient but for fine work baste along both edges of the braid.
In basting around a loop the inner edge of the braid will have to be gathered. This may be done in two ways: the first by pulling a thread or by running a thread on the edge. At a sharp point the braid will have to be turned.
The preferred method of working the lace is to have the right side facing you. In starting to braid turn up one eighth inch of braid and start from a point so that the end may be covered later.
The braids vary from one cent to fifteen cents per yard.
A simple stitch in lace that greatly resembles the Turkish stitch in embroidery is fagotting. It is a stitch that is often used by dressmakers to connect bias bands together for yokes and sleeves. For this as well as other lace stitches the beginning of the thread should be fastened so as to be unobserved by the average eye. If the braid is neatly over-casted the end will be quite secure. Starting from the extreme left of the section to be fagotted take a stitch through the braid on the opposite side of the opening, letting the thread fall to the right. The stitches are taken from side to side. This stitch is best suited to long narrow spaces (Figure 188).
The foundation stitch of lace is the single mesh or net stitch. It is a stitch that may be used in almost any shape opening. It is a good thing when working a piece of lace to pick out one stitch for filling in the background; then the design proper can be as fancy as desired.
The mesh or net stitch is good for a filling stitch. A blunt pointed needle is the best for working lace as you are not so apt to stick yourself. Make a row of open buttonholing, not however through the background. The second row is worked slightly below the first row. Each stitch is taken into a loop of the upper row. If the spaces decrease in size drop one stitch from each end for as many rows as necessary. To finish the stitches overcast them to the braid. To many lace makers this stitch is known as single Brussels (Figure 189).
Double Brussels or the knot is worked like the single only that there is a second stitch taken in the same position as the first. The last must be short and drawn tightly (Figure 191).
Another pretty filling-in stitch is the spider. It can be as large as desired allowing the space it is to be used in to determine the size. A thread is spanned across the space and the braid whipped for a short distance, say a quarter of an inch. The space is spanned again so that the threads cross. Pick up all the threads on the needle through the centre and make a little stitch to bind them. Now begin to weave over one leg or strand and under another, so on till a good-sized body is formed to the spider. In weaving be careful not to skip one of these little legs (Figure 192).
Another way to work a spider, to make it a little stronger is to whip each leg as it is spanned.
A third and more elaborate spider is one made with the foundation thread as described for the first spider and then instead of weaving straight around make a stitch back over one leg and forward under two until the body is the desired size. This is called the spider in its web (Figure 193).
It is easier to weave on an uneven number of threads, and the number of these should depend on the space. A large space requires a large spider with lots of legs.
A fan (Figure 194) is made by spanning three or five threads so that they come to a common centre on one side and on the other they are arranged in ray effect. The weaving is started from the base under one thread and over the other on the first row if there are only three. The second row is like the first, only the threads skipped in the first row are taken up. Alternate rows agree.
A Maltese cross looks like four fans caught together. The threads are crossed lengthwise and crosswise and the stitches taken to gather the threads in the centre. The weaving is the same as the fans. In weaving the fans or crosses do not work much more than half way up (Figure 195). A twisted bar is nothing more than a thread overcasted (see illustration, Figure 124).
A buttonholed bar is made by laying two or three threads and buttonholing over them (Figure 196).
In this age of machine work there are all sorts of braids that may be procured for lace work. Little edges that were impossible to buy are now made by machinery.
A little edging makes a dainty finish to a straight braid and also enhances the beauty of the fancy braids.
To make a simple edging, work a row of picots on the edge of the braid which forms the edge of the design.
Dainty yokes, collars, baby caps, and tie ends can be made of a few yards of braid and two or three different kinds of stitches.
Another decoration I would like to tell you a little about is Limerick darning. It is often used with fine lace work on a background of fine net.
The lace thread is used for the darning. The most common of the stitches is the plain darning taken up over one hole and under the next of the net. The next row is worked close to the first.
Darning on net is a decoration that is often used by itself. Smart little turn-over collars and cuffs are most attractive darned in heavy white floss or colour if preferred. Pin cushion covers and other dainty articles that every girl loves to have in her bedroom may be darned to good effect.
One of the most simple forms of lace work is Connemara lace. It gets its name from the Irish county of that name.
The materials required are Brussels net of any size desired, lace braid of a width to correspond with the net, heavy lace rings, a ball of Renaissance thread No. 60 or linen spool thread No. 25, as well as a spool of coloured cotton.
Connemara lace is used extensively for curtains, bed spreads and in fact, on any large piece, when the effect is desired and yet not much work. A good design for Connemara lace is shown in Figure 197.
The net can be white, ecru, or black.
Draw a simple yet bold design on a piece of stiff paper or better still a piece of pink or blue paper muslin.
The rings can be bought all ready for applying, for a couple of cents per dozen but they can also be made at home. Take a pencil and wind around one end of a thread about as many times as you would judge from the illustration of the button or ring half worked (Figure 198). Slip the threads from the pencil and carefully and closely go over them with buttonhole stitches till all the loose threads are completely covered.
Baste your net over the design, then baste the braid along the design. With a fine thread secure the braid on the extreme edge to the net only with fine running stitches. Sew one side of the braid entirely around the design then sew the other side down.
The rings are buttonholed to the net.
If a very elaborate piece is wanted, lace stitches may be inserted in spaces that are bound on all sides with braid. The stitches, however, should be of the simplest, such as the twisted bar or spider.
Honiton braid which is an egg-shaped braid is much more beautiful than the plain Renaissance braid employed in Connemara.
The dearest of baby caps, handkerchief tie ends, and other dainty little articles on which a fine decoration is desired can be made from fine net and Honiton braid. Each section of braid can be cut and made to form petals for a flower or to represent a leaf. Honiton is of course more expensive than Renaissance braid but a yard of Honiton goes a good way.
There is a thread that can be bought by the yard, called picot or purling thread. It has a loop at short intervals each side of it. The needle can be threaded with it and can be used for stems, tendrils, or other parts of a design where a fine single line is desired.
The centre of a flower in Honiton appliqué may be in worked various ways. A small ring or button may be used or spiders may be woven in the centre. Again the single Brussels or mesh stitch is worked in a little circle in the centre. Use a very small ring, if you decide on rings for centre, as a large ring spoils the effect of a flower. Any child can make designs for Honiton appliqué.
The background for Honiton is the fine Brussels net. Sometimes a double thickness of net is basted over the pattern and the Honiton sewed on or appliquéd to the net. The double thickness of net gives a moire effect. Each section of the braid is sewed to the net only. Sometimes two widths of braid are used, one size for the flowers and another for the leaves.
The braids at most art shops can be had in black, cream, or white. If, however, you are not fortunate enough to get cream, the white can be dyed at home to be as light or deep as you desire. I use cold tea diluted in water for a light cream, and coffee for the deeper cream. Put the lace to soak in the tea or coffee for a couple of hours. Rinse in cold water and let dry. If it is not a deep enough shade put more tea or coffee in the water and soak the lace again. Another way to dye lace, chiffon or any delicate fabric is to get a tube of oil paint the colour you desire and dilute it in gasolene. Of course the gasolene makes the paint light, so test the solution by dipping a small piece of cloth in and see if it is the right shade. A quart of gasolene is sufficient unless the article is very large.
I know a girl who dipped her white hat all trimmed with flowers and tulle that was quite soiled into a mixture of gray paint and gasolene and the result was a pretty dove gray that everybody thought was new.
Teneriffe or Brazilian point lace is such a simple form of lace making that I am going to stop and tell you a few words about it before we proceed to the next chapter.
Little forms which look like a large spool with pins stuck in them can be bought in many art shops, but you can easily make a foundation yourself for Teneriffe lace.
Draw a circle two inches in diameter on a stiff piece of cardboard. Sometimes the circle is drawn on white muslin and fastened securely to an embroidery hoop or frame. Divide the circle into halves, then quarters, then eighths and each eighth divide into six equal parts. Make a dot at each division. Thread a needle with a piece of coarse thread. Insert the needle one quarter inch beyond the circle and bring it up on a dot. Continue in this manner all around the circle. Fasten securely.
Now thread a needle with a long thread of No. 80 linen thread. Let it be extra length. Pass the needle under each loop from side to side until each little stitch has a thread passing through it. (Figure 199). Knot the threads in the centre and weave four or five rows, over and under the strands close to the centre. Skip a quarter inch then carry a thread around and knot each thread as you pass it. Count the threads and divide the number by six; on this number weave a little pyramid. Repeat the little pyramid five times, each time letting it be woven on the same number of threads as the first. Take a thread and catch every two threads above the centre figure. An eighth of an inch above this work another row, this time dividing the two threads previously caught and taking one of them and one of the next row together. An eighth of an inch above the row make another row, catching the same threads as were taken in the first row from the central figure (Figure 200).
Sometimes a pin cushion is used to make Brazilian lace. The pins are stuck in and the threads wound over them.
Brazilian or Teneriffe lace can be used for borders on handkerchiefs or other fine articles, while again they may be used as medallions on waists or other thin clothes. The material from under them is cut out so that a lacy effect may be produced.
Other patterns may be readily made. Remember that the stitches are very similar to those used in the corners of drawn work borders.