In a message dated 1/17/07 3:01:26 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> Les Lauriers is a heavy, "furnishing" lace made in thick linen thread > (Moravia > 40 in a lovely creamy ecru - it has a gorgeous sheen), no way is it going to > > gather daintily (in any case I want it to lie flat, not least so that vases > and so forth placed on the mat don't fall over and tip their contents onto > it!) Dear Beth and Others Interested: In gift shops, it is possible to buy small mirrors with rubber feet attached to the under side to raise the glass up a little bit. These are very good to use under vases and would help with the problems you anticipate. The round mirrors I use are 6" in diameter, and have a narrow beveled edge. Very protective of your lace and of the table finish underneath - which could be important. If a table gets damp or wet, the table color might bleed into your lace. Jeri > So the lace and the fabric need to fit each other perfectly and stay that > way > - no shrinkage of either allowed after the lace is mounted. Pre-shrinking > the > fabric is easy - just put it through the washing machine and press carefully > > afterwards (Do DMC embroidery linens need shrinking anyway, or are they sold > > ready-shrunk? I would expect embroiderers to get pretty cross if their hard > work gets shrunk when washed) - but what about the lace? Does it need to be > > washed to shrink it, or will leaving it to shrink after the pins are taken > out be enough? How long would it need leaving? Dear Beth and Others: Never assume any textile is pre-shrunk. They almost always have been treated with sizing (like starch), which makes them easier to cut to size and sew - but, I have learned the hard way that it is important to pre-shrink nearly everything you intend to wash in the future, or expect a future owner will wash. And, dry clean those textiles you will clean in that way if there is any doubt. I would be especially careful of loosely-woven materials. Dyes used in colored lace and embroidery threads need to be tested for color fastness. In the U.S. we have a brand of papertowels (Bounty) which is not acidic. Wet a small length of each color of dark threads and place between folds of damp acid-free papertowels. Press with a hot iron. If there are traces of color left on the paper towels - you need to find other thread or try to make that one colorfast. As we think about this, we will realize that to be competitive some manufacturers cut corners and break our creative spirits with sub-standard materials. Embroiderers have been very vocal, but the manufacturer s often ignore. There are a number of DMC threads that are not colorfast - going back to when clean water standards for dyers changed in many countries, 30 or so years ago. I have written about this before on Arachne, and about the people who never stitched again after putting in much labor. Especially devastating to beginners of all ages. They are not taught to first and always keep their hands clean, so the finished product needs washing. Then, when dye runs, they yank it out of water and let it dry. Once that happens, the dye is set in the ground material and can never be removed. Please water test threads that are darker than what we call pastel that you anticipate will be in items that will be wet washed. Be wary of reds, browns, and blacks in particular. Jeri Ames in Maine USA Lace and Embroidery Resource Center - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
