Susan, There's absolutely nothing wrong in wanting to work in white (or any other colour) :-).
I remember some years ago there was a problem with a particular, pale green, Madeira Tanne (they changed the name to Cotona when they started selling it on smaller reels) that used to unravel during work and was discussed on Arachne - so a search of the archives might bring up the solutions we came up with then. It was strange that it was only that one colour, and a number of us on both sides of the pond had the same problem. I have always wound my bobbins clockwise, and mostly find if a thread is going to unspin it is when I'm using Honiton bobbins, my spangled Midlands tend to behave, these days. Are you using Continental bobbins that roll? However, in the past, I used to find that Madeira thread unravelled in the course of working Bucks (where you have more of an imbalance of cross to twist movements) and this was down to the way I turned the bobbin when I was lengthening or shortening the leash, so it might be worth looking at how you do that. If you hold the bobbin straight (in relation to the thread) and turn it one way or t'other, to release or tighten, you will untwist or over-twist the thread as well as lengthening or shortening it. The same goes for any angle up to holding it at 90 degrees to the thread being wound/unwound, at which point you are only winding/unwinding the thread, not affecting the twist. Where the Cordonnet is concerned, knowing you are a needlewoman, do you do any needlelace? We used Cordonnet when we made our samples of Venetian Gros Point (which is a heavyweight lace, used in the past for cravats, etc) both for the stitching and for padding out the raised cordonettes. If you do needlelace or stumpwork you might be able to use it? So, chunky embroidery as another possibility? Although crochet cottons are frequently included in beginner kits, they tend to be difficult to tension properly, I think because they have more "give", so give an uneven finish when used as the main thread in bobbin lace. However, you could use them as gimp threads. I also used Cordonnet 100 when I was tambouring the two-inch edging for the wedding veil project I did for my City & Guilds - that needed 11 balls, (one per chain), and of course only a relatively small amount of each was used - the remains are still sitting in my thread box, some 23 years later, and I can see my daughter! s inheriting them at this rate :-). Jane Partridge Susan wrote:- This was particularly painful because I wanted to—wash my mouth out with soap—work in white. Madeira Cotona 30—I own too many spools—none white—but it seems to un-ply itself while working. It made my lace (a different pattern) look scraggly & it’s too fiddly to keep spinning all the bobbins because it comes un-plied every other stitch. And of course my big question—what to do with so many balls of Cordonnet Special, in multiple sizes? Egad, I don’t tat & I rarely crochet! Is cordonnet suitable for any bobbin lace? - 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://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
