This pattern and pattern 199 are worked in human hair (mine), as an experiment. Pattern 198 is a similar pattern to this, worked in more conventional material.
Pattern:
Bobbins: 8 pairs
Style: Plaited
Description:
Follow the links above for explanation of how to work the different parts of the lace.
After working Pattern 199, I said that I wouldn't do any more hair lace! Then I changed my mind. The problems with the first piece was that the hair is so thin, so the pattern can hardly be seen. So I thought I'd see if a pattern using plaited threads would be better.
This time, I knotted two hairs together for each thread using a slip knot. I knotted all hairs in an overhand knot at the start. (I also dropped half the bobbins on the floor at one point, and they all promptly unwound and got tangled - an hour's work with a magnifying glass followed. I do not recommend this!)
The pattern is simply plaits and lazy joins. I thought that trying picots would be a step too far! So I just put a pin between the two pairs at the points on the edge. Some of these pinholes are visible. I wonder if this was where the idea of picots came from.
The main problem with working it was that I couldn't really tighten the threads much. I managed to break one thread, and after that I was a lot more careful. That means a lot of loops left. The finished lace is more robust, but it still can't really be described as attractive. However, the main thing this experiment taught me was that if you can make bobbin lace with (poor quality) hair, then you must be able to use practically anything!
© Jo Edkins 2017 - return to lace index