I have a wide collection of spangled midlands(many of them painted by our CelticDreamWeaver and I cherish them!) and continentals that I have collected over the years. True that the painted and decorated bobbins(both midlands and continentals) do get a lot of my attention when lacing. But I do concentrate more on what I am lacing then stopping to "smell the roses(bobbins)". If I stop it is more to situate my posture or see what I missed on the tv or to get up and stretch or do something else. I am not one to sit for hours and lace, unless I am at a demonstration. Hence why not much lace gets done! I tend to pick bobbins according to the project. If it is a pattern that has a lot of sewings then I don't typically pick spangled midlands. I go for the more pointed continentals. 4 special bobbins always make it to my pillow. They were turned by my lace teacher's husband and are exclusive to her needs. They are continentals with a very pointed end for the purpose of sewings and making tallies, but have a good weight to them. Plus they handle well and feel good in my hands. That is another factor. Does it feel good in my hands. Working with the bobbins and how they handle with my big hands is a major factor. I have worked with all types and found that the very large bulby type just fit and toss about quite nicely with my fingers. I do have trouble with skinny spangled or skinny continentals. Even the square bobbins tend to slip my fingers and can be a frustration. The bulby Belgium style or Danish or any of the large bobbins work well with my hands and I can lace fairly fast with them. It does get frustrating to have to make sure my fingers cooperate with the bobbins, and then my lacing gets slow. Not that I am trying to race with the lace. I just want to enjoy it. But little blips in the process do hinder. I have found that working on a bolster with bobbins palms up works better for my hands. Not that it is what I always use. I enjoy using all types of pillows and bobbins.
The painted and decorated bobbins are a feast for the eyes, as is the lace that comes out from it. Working with bobbins that fit your hand is also a lacemakers delight. ;) -- Mark, aka Tatman website: http://www.tat-man.net blog: http://tat-man.net/blog Magic Thread Shop: http://www.tat-man.net/tatterville/tatshop/tatshop.html email: tat...@tat-man.net Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tatmantats - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com
