Ilse said "A very small knot is hardly noticed in larger pieces."
And therein lies the difference between the common practice on the continent and the UK. We tend to double up the thread for a SHORT distance, rather than knotting. I say short because some people forget they are working with double thread and just keep going. I have seen pillows where several threads are being replaced at the same time (try to avoid that) and they are all being worked as double threads! Yes, this will show. And contrary to most people's instinct, the most inconspicuous place to double up the new thread to replace a fan worker is in the tightest short rows at the end/start of fans, rather than in the more spread out bit in the centre. These are the ones most likely to run out. When I was in Spain, one of my Hinojosa pillows was being used as a demonstration pillow, and when three threads were broken over course of the week, the replacements were knotted in. I just shrugged and thought "When in Rome...." But when I got home and looked properly, the first of the three knots (ie furthest back!) had neatly positioned itself in the dead centre of one of the twisted bars of thread. That I could not live with so the whole lot was undone and redone without knots. Back to Sue's original question. According to Geraldine Stott in her "A Visual Introduction to Bucks Point Lace", four times the length of pricking is a good rule of thumb, so it sounds as if you are spot on. You have realised the exception of the fan workers and if there is a continous trail, for example, those workers would also need some extra thread. But as you are measuring the amount of thread you are putting on, why not measure how much thread you have left to help you better judge for your next piece. I agree with Ilse that it is often better to join threads in than to waste loads, and if you are doing a large project you need to bite the bullet and accept that you are going to have to add threads at intervals rather than overfilling your bobbins in the hopes that it will be enough. But for a smaller project, where the bobbins are big enough to hold all the thread in one go, it is really frustrating to get to within the last few inches and have to start replacing thread after thread. Jacquie in Lincolnshire - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003
