#Anyways this pattern was from theedkins.co.uk

[bitchfitch]

weh.

Also notes on bobbin lace so far: way easier than I thought it was going to be, Way easier on my wrists than I thought it was going to be, and a lot more confusing than I thought it was going to be.

I'm teaching myself how to make bobbin lace, rank my set up

(the safety pins on the bottom of the straws are for weight , the ones on the top are to stop it constantly unspooling, yes I did try cutting a slit in the straws it just kept shredding my thread)

[epsilon-delta]

Hi, you don't know me but I was looking at elodieunderglass' egg tag and I LOVED your bobbin lace. If you don't mind me asking, how did you get into doing it? Did you learn it from someone in person or did you teach yourself?? Is it as hard as it looks? (I make crochet lace but that's very different!)

(No pressure to answer - just interested if you felt like sharing!)

WOO LACE AGENDA!! hem.

Yeah so not only did I teach myself from online tutorials, i did so in the last year! Someone posted a video of little old lady working at lightning speed and i went "HUH. I could probably do that!" I'm not entirely sure why, but it feels much easier to me than most fibercrafts. Maybe my brain is opposed to loops, idk. It feels like fancy braiding, and the pricking (paper pattern under the work) and using a bajillion pins make it feel very comfortably constrained. Both crochet and knitting are very difficult for me for tension reasons. I suspect needle lace would present the same problems for me. Bobbins though! absolutely easy mode for this brain.

I did a solid handful of mini-projects with whatever garbage i could scrounge up, and thus demonstrated to myself that I liked this enough to drop $200 on real supplies. There's loads of video tutorials on youtube if that's your preference, but i prefer written directions with good illustrations. I had the most luck with Alexandra Stillwell's beginner projects (alexstillwell.wordpress.com/pdf-help-files/) and Jo Edkins' whole site (theedkins.co.uk/jo/lace/index.htm)

This was my initial setup - cardboard "pillow", ballpoint pens for bobbins because my dad buys them by the literal hundred (and immediately looses the caps, unfortunately - those could have been handy), graph paper, pins i already had because i sew a little, and crochet cotton from my mom, (nice to have, but i could easily have used my own embroidery floss or probably any sort of string). The only change i really should have made sooner was to use multiple layers of cardboard to reduce stabbing myself in the thighs.

These were the projects (that didn't fall apart) from that setup - i just wound all the thread equally onto 12 pens and made stuff till it ran out. Perhaps not ideal, but y'know, done is better than perfect. especially when you're learning.

Anyway uhhh I'm happy to give beginner advice to anyone who's interested from, like, a beginner 2 kind of place? not exactly sage advice but i sure have Started.

Did that answer your questions? Do you have others? is this interesting to people?