Must admit Alex, I agree with you. I like to cover all the basic lacemaking techniques - and because I live in Australia, I use the Australian Guild's proficiency tests as a guide as to what to include.
In my early years, I remember my years of floundering around, trying to work a pattern without a complete understanding of the techniques and of how to work them. I actually found it very frustrating, because I didn't think lacemaking should be such a "hit and miss" affair. I guess that, a bit like the fellow who designed the first lacemaking machine, I eventually realised and understood how the threads moved on the pillow, and once I understood that, everything else fell into place. (I should point out that I had no physical teacher). Now, students are always amazed that I can look at a pattern I've never seen before and "see" in my mind the direction the threads will take. I'm also pretty good at finding someone's "lost" worker too!! (VBG) Ruth thelacema...@optusnet.com.au -----Original Message----- From: owner-l...@arachne.com [mailto:owner-l...@arachne.com] On Behalf Of Alex Stillwell Sent: Sunday, 5 April 2009 3:00 AM To: lace@arachne.com Subject: [lace] Lace teachers I like to hear of students who have had a good experience with teachers. I started teaching lace in the early 1970s, I knew little and had to work had to keep ahead of my students. Being a teacher by profession I started by arranging patterns, I did not have many - they were like gold dust then - into a stuctured course. I then found that the other teachers, of other crafts at the centre, would ask students what they would like to make and find suitable patterns for them to work. As I had had not experience of adult education, only school teaching, I thought this was what I should do and changed. The following year I was taken to task, very politely, by two maths teachers who had experienced the different systems and they agreed that the structured course was by far the better, as second to start learning didn't know what she didn't know and could not ask for it so that she could learn all the techniques. I then revised all my teaching schemes and built up a file of patterns and teaching notes covering all the major techniques in the English laces and have found my students prefer to follow them. I'm not rigid about it and I always say they are welcome to change laces or do any other patterns at any time but most work throught the schemes knowing that they will end up by being able to make almost any pattern they like and have a good chance of drafting paterns and even designing. Happy lacemaking Alex - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachnemodera...@yahoo.com - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachnemodera...@yahoo.com
