Though I would tend to stiffen lace in something washable or modifiable, despite the risk of the substance drawing 'critters' (like starch and perhaps sugar, etc.), it brings to mind a story someone well versed in lace knitting told.
I cannot share their name, as they are renowned as a major publisher in the needlework industry, but the essence of it; was that the person's mother knit a lace piece, similar to a doily/star/medallion (I cannot remember the shape, but it was a "smaller" piece in knit lace terms), After washing and dressing it and allowing it to dry, she sprayed it with clear aerosol spray paint. The sharer was mortified, but stated that the piece hung on the wall for most of their life, and never changed at all, assumedly, it could be cleansed w/o affect. Not that I encourage it, but if that is the goal, permanence sans change, then perhaps it should be considered. It would be easy to shape the piece (say if a bobbin lace flower) with objects and attention to maintenance whilst it dried. Of course there would be fumes until it was dry so ventilation (and protection when spraying such as accomplishing outside) would factor into the decision. HTH, Susan Reishus - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachnemodera...@yahoo.com
