Preparing Lace - & Washable Glue Trick

Preparing Heirloom Lace & Washable Glue Trick by Hope Yoder   Many of you know that I travel across the US teaching sewing workshops and that I write magazine articles. During my travels I get asked many questions about a variety of sewing techniques. I would like to use this monthly newsletter to bring you valuable information regarding your current sewing projects. Please e-mail Hope with your questions.   I don’t normally visit chat rooms or sewing forums but a friend of mine mentioned that there was a lot of discussion about me on the Martha Pullen forum. I was curious so I searched the website and found several comments regarding my embroidery designs as well as some questions from Gayle who was trying to recreate my the blue batiste blouse project that I wrote for Feb 2007 Sew News magazine. I read the comments from the forum members trying to help her. Needless to say she received many different answers so I e-mailed her directly. Below I’ll share part of our e-mails as she thought others might find this helpful as well. Gayle was having trouble getting her heirloom cotton lace attached to the batiste fabric because she had wet the lace prior to insertion. Below is a small excerpt from the article.
Excerpt from the Magazine Article  Draw a line on the left & right side 2” away from center of English Lace Ovals embroidery design.
Pin the heirloom insertion lace along each line and lightly spray with starch. Use a 110 universal needle or a 100 Wing needle, 60 weight cotton thread and select an Entredeux or a Pinstitch to attach the lace.  Place light weight tearaway underneath the fabric & attatch the lace to the base fabric.
Gayle: I think my mistake was in wetting (with water) the lace in the first place. The edges curled and I couldn't get them flat again without stretching the lace. So, after removing the lace from the blouse front, I pinned it to my lace shaping board with glass head pins, and, as you suggested, sprayed it with starch, pressed it dry, and started over. The edges weren't perfectly "uncurled" but much better. I aligned the edge of the lace with the line I had drawn with the blue wash-out pen (per the instructions), then stitched it… Hope: I normally starch my lace well and let it air dry before I use it.  But I DO NOT iron the wet starched lace.
	I place a bath towel on my ironing board and lay the lace on the towel (you can make a loose wad of lace on the board) and then heavily spray the lace with starch. By heavily starching it I mean just make it slightly wet.
	Now take the lace and drape it over the ironing board so it isn’t wrinkled at all and let it air dry. If you have too much yardage of lace you can sling it over your shower curtain.    Once it’s dry then you can use it as described in the magazine instructions.
Use glass head pins to pin the lace to the fabric, stabbing the pins into a padded surface like a lace shaping board. Then I lightly starch the lace that is pinned down & press it dry so the lace slightly sticks to the shirt front. Make sure your iron is clean and use an up and down motion with the iron.   Another good trick if you are not going to cut the base fabric behind the lace - you can glue the lace down. This is a good beginner trick which I still use. Use Elmer's blue washable glue (a thin bead). Place the glue along the center of the lace or just inside the lace headings and let air dry. I never can wait for it to air dry so I place a cheap paper towel over the glued lace and press it dry with the iron. Remember this trick will only work if you aren't going to cut the fabric from behind the lace.

Bath Towel Skirt

Making a Guest Towel Skirt  by Hope Yoder   Hi Hope,   Can I just say how wonderful your designs are! I have never tried anything to adventurous but your Hearts and Bows are so easy if you read the instructions carefully. My question is, on your website there is another of your fabulous collections Lace Shaping Vol 3 which shows a lovely crochet skirt. Can you give me some hints for making this skirt?   Many thanks and best regards Sue from UK         Dear Sue, You will need 2 crochet bath towels http://allaboutblanks.com/Guest_Towel-Crochet-Wide-Lace.htm and no pattern at all. I used the "Scallop" design from the Lace Shaping Collection.  The bath towels are completely finished on all 4 edges with a beautiful crochet deep hem so all you have to do is the pretty embroidery and then sew the two towels together at the side seams (which are already finished so all you need to do is straight stitch the seams) and then trim off any length necessary at the TOP of the skirt. Overcast the top edge and fold down to form a casing for an elastic band. I also put two darts in the front and two darts in the back to take up some of the fullness of the skirt. There is no need to do anything to the bottom as it is already finished with the pretty crochet edge. Pre-shirk English cotton netting by dipping in hot water and then liquid starch. Air dry and press. Print velum or paper templates of "Scallop" design. I have embroidered three sets of the "Scallop" designs putting them end to end and centering along the front hem. Place the embroidery about 1 1/2" above the hemstitching detail on the skirt. Follow the directions to embroider the designs on the PDF that comes when you purchase the designs. Repeat the same process on the back panel. Wash away the water-soluble stabilizer and press upside down on a terry towel after it's dry. Sew up the sides and put an elastic casing in the top and enjoy! Thank you for purchasing my Lace Shaping embroidery collection!

Christening Gown

Anna's Christening Gown Created by Anita Bangs, from Cape Cod, USA Dear Hope:  I am new to heirloom sewing and I love your Lace Shaping Embroidery CD I am attaching a photo of my first project - a Christening gown for our Granddaughter Anna. When Anna was born I started looking through Martha Pullen’s Grandmother’s Hope Chest book and picked out the pattern with the drawing on page 144 and photo on plate XXXVI.  I opted to use your cross design from “Heirloom Embellishments Lace Shaping” CD instead of the Swiss Motifs as pictured in the book. The pattern had 8 gores with 8 godets inserted between them at the hemline.  After sewing the rows of pintucks on each gore, I embroidered the beautiful cross with white rayon thread and mesh water soluble stabilizer (Wet N Gone) on each of the starched gores inside the pintucks at the point.  I left the godets plain.         After making the slip, I embroidered Anna’s name and birth date on the front of the slip and my own signature, relationship (Grammy) and date of creation on the back.  I also made a matching “hanky-bonnet”.  As a final touch I made a ribbon rosette from ribbon left over from making Anna’s Mom’s bridal veil and attached it at the point of the bodice chevron of lace. Anita’s Tip:  For marking the embroidery placement, use a blue water-soluble marker instead of a blue pencil that is supposed to erase with water (as she had a very tough time getting the pencil out). (From Hope) Anita, I only use the blue water-soluble markers in heirloom sewing. You can use this marker and spray starch and press several times with an iron safely. The trick to using the marker is to wash it away with plain water (no detergent). Please do not use a purple “air-soluble” marker when marking & pressing. When I’m teaching classes I don’t even allow them in my classrooms.

Chenille Jacket

FREE Chenille Jacket Instructions by Hope Yoder.
Embroidery Products Cathedral Lace Windows CD  Designs by Hope Yoder Lace Shaping CD  Designs by Hope Yoder   Chenille It Blooming Bias 5/8” size hot pink color Presser feet:  Chenille foot or open toe foot
Embroidery From the Cathedral Lace Windows collection, print a template of either CLEndles or CL4 design & from theLace Shaping collection print the bow template. Arrange the bow in the back & the cathedral Lace Windows in the front and embroider the designs following the directions on the PDF file that accompany each collection.
Adding Chenille To apply the chenille, use a chenille foot (Viking & Pfaff machines) or an open toe foot with a tiny lightening stitch (zigzag set on 1.0 L & W) & follow these guidelines: Do not cut ends of chenille even with edge of jacket as the chenille will draw up & shrink after washing. Instead leave ½” tail hanging off beginning & end, & trim after the first washing. When going around a corner such as a collar, simply sew up to the point, leave a tail & start a second piece going along the next line angle. Do not wrap the chenille around the corners. When finished applying chenille to the entire jacket, dip a chenille brush into some water & scrub the layers until they fray. Then wash & dry the jacket in a washing machine.
Add the following layers of chenille to each jacket part: Two layers of chenille to the under collar Two layers of chenille to the upper collar Two layers of chenille to the under sleeve hem Two layers of the upper sleeve hem Two layers around the edge of the pocket flap     Two layers over the back yoke Two layers over any felted seams
Another jacket example can be found using Hope’s Romantic Hearts & Bows

Nashville Lace Denim

Re-Embroidered Lace by Hope Yoder   If you have always wanted to embroider on denim but have never got around to it - the new Nashville Lace Embroidery Collection is the perfect type of design to embroider on denim because they are applique designs that are not too dense. Get dramatic results when you use rayon thread to match your lace and metallic silver or gold thread to give a subtle accent to the lace. These designs were created using English Cotton Netting as the base fabric (as shown on the stitch-outs).  See what you can do for the Tween in your life (or for yourself).   To achieve this hip look, substitute inexpensive lace that you can find in 45" wide in any fabric store. It is an all-over lace that comes in many different colors. Ivory lace & gold metallic threads have been used on the Capri jeans.       Pink scalloped lace with silver metallic thread was used on the Jean Jacket. This was a 3" wide trim lace purchased at a sewing market years ago. Experiment with your scraps of lace or fabric to get different looks. Get a FREE gift with purchase when you buy this new collection. All of the step by step color details of "Re-embroidered Nashville Lace Denim" is your free gift when you purchase the Nashville Lace Embroidery Collection.  Shy about using Metallic threads? Here are a few tips that might help you: Use a thread net and omit the spool cap (less stuff to get tangled on) Use a 90 Metallic needle or a 90-100 Topstitch needle Slow the speed of the machine to less than half speed Hope's personal preference is RA Metallic J thread which likes to be put horizontal on the spool cap

 

Re-Purposed Lace Camisole by Hope Yoder Re-purpose lace for an “Unforgettable” silk camisole that will turn heads. The ingredients for this blouse include the Nashville Lace embroidery designs that are re-embroidered over lace fabric. Embroidering over a lace foundation fabric, give a romantically elegant look to any project. Click here to view more details on the Secrets Blog.

Freestanding Lace

These tips were given by Daleen from Stitch Delight. What is Freestanding Lace? Freestanding lace is an embroidery design that is stitched onto a special stabilizer that dissolves in warm or cold water, leaving you with the freestanding lace.  Only designs digitized specifically for freestanding lace can be sewn in this way, other designs will fall apart when the stabilizer is dissolved. When you look closely at any fabric you will see the weave of the fabric which looks like a grid.  Freestanding Lace designs need to be digitized to support this grid system to ensure that they don’t fall apart when the water soluble stabilizer is dissolved. They generally have a higher stitch count for this purpose. Always read the instructions carefully to ensure that you are sewing out a freestanding lace design and are using the correct stabilizer, thread and needle recommended by the designer.  There are many ways to digitize freestanding lace and it’s always best to follow the directions specific to the designs you are sewing.  Each designer may be testing on different threads and stabilizers and the designs may not work on all dissolvable stabilizers. Which Water-soluble Stabilizer should you use? There are many freestanding lace stabilziers available these days.  You  can get the so-called Laundry Bags, Badge master, Vilene and many more.  Daleen has found the best results are obtained when stitching on the Water Soluble Vilene.  It’s thin non-woven, water soluble stabilizer, which does not stretch or tear while stitching.  She always recommend 2 layers be used at a time.  A small design can get away with only one layer, but when you do full 4x4” or larger size designs, you will need to use two layers of Vilene for best results.  Finding Freestanding Lace Designs You should always ensure the lace design you are purchasing is clearly marked FSL, or Freestanding Lace to ensure it will stitch correctly, and hold together when you wash the stabilzier away. At Secrets of Embroidery we have a huge range of freestanding lace designs available and you can find them all in our category.

 

Stitching your Freestanding Lace Design   Hoop the dissolvable stabilizer as reccommended with your designs, and then stitch out the design in thread colors of your choice. Daleen recomends you use two layers of Vilene for best results. Making Multi Colored Lace If the design is a bowl or doily, which has many different colors, you will want both sides of your finished lace to look fabulous.  So you will need to use matching top and bobbin thread for each color.  Simply wind a bobbin full of the same thread you use for the top and remember to change the bobbin color when you change the top color.    Creating a Heavier Lace Look Daleen recommends that you use the same thread type in the bobbin area to give your design a heavier, fuller lace look.  For example, if you use 40wt Marathon thread in the top, use the 40wt Marathon in the bobbin area as well. Creating a Daintier Lace Look  For a more dainty lace look, use embroidery thread for your top thread, and bobbin thread in the bobbin area.  If you are wanting an even finer lace look, use bobbin thread in the top area as well.   (PLEASE ask the designer first if the design would be ok to use bobbin thread both top and bottom as sometimes your design might unravel in water, if its not been digitized for this purpose.)  The Bottom Line by Superior Threads is a very good range of fine thread, suitable for use in bobbin, or top thread and is available in a great variety of colors.

Washing the Stabilizer out for the Lace. When you have finished stitching the design, cut away the excess Vilene and rinse the design under a running tap with warm water.  Feel the design as you go, as you don’t want it to feel slimy – so rinse until all the slime or Vilene has been dissolved.  Making Firmer Lace If you want a firmer design (for a design that needs shape, like the Christmas Bells) don’t rinse all the Vilene out.  Leave some in as it acts like a starch when dry and assists in keeping the shape. Making Softer Lace If you want lace to be very soft for doilies etc, you will need to rinse the design about 3 times each time in clean water.  If it’s still not soft enough, soak in warm water for about 1 hour with some fabric softener

Finishing off your Freestanding Lace Projects.   Each lace piece is finished off with a satin stitch outline.  Some designs like Christmas Ornaments are ready to be used immediately.  Just attach ribbon and then hang them.  Multiple Piece Lace Designs.  Many freestanding lace projects require a number of lace pieces, that are joined together to complete the finished project.  Follow the directions included with your freestanding lace designs, and sew out all the pieces of lace required.  Now you will need to use the zig zag stitch on your machine to join the pieces of lace together.  Have a look here for a comprehensive step by step guide on sewing the Christmas Bell Designs together. Look after your lace. Never wash your freestanding lace items in a washing machine or tumble dryer.  Hand wash only and do not rub, simply soak and press till it’s clean.  If it’s a item that needs to be hard, like the bells, add starch to the final rinse water and shape as it dries, by either placing over a mold or by using a hairdryer to dry the design and shaping with your hands as it dries.

Tips for Getting the Perfect Freestanding Lace. If your freestanding lace designs fall apart after rinsing the stabilizer, check the following. Ensure you hooped the Vilene drum tight and there there is no way the Vilene could have slipped when you stitched out your lace. Make sure you used the correct thread in both the top and bobbin area. Make sure you used the needle the digitizer recommended.  Daleen generally recommends using a 75 needle.   Problems with Larger Designs  Larger freestanding designs that have large filled areas are more likely to unravel at the edges or where the satin edge meets the filled lace area.  This is because there is a lot of stitches and the stabilizer can sometimes move and stretch in the hoop.   Many designers will digitize their lace to avoid this problem. However if you find your designs are unraveling, you can ask the designer to add some additional stitches that stitch first to stabilize the design.   Digitizing Tips for Stabilizing Freestanding Lace  When Daleen makes a round doily, she would first sew a circular, straight stitch outline around the shape.  This stitching stabilizes the design, so when it is filled with stitches, the stabilizer does not stretch as much.  The filled stitches should also be pulled right under (almost outside) the satin edge to ensure the satin edge is catching the filled stitches.  The satin edge should always have good underlay as well.  Daleen uses a double zigzag, as well as a center run underlay, under all her satin edges to ensure they are well stabilized.  All parts of the digitized freestanding lace design, should touch each other, like a chain, one piece connected to the other.  This ensures they hold together when the stabilizer is dissolved.   Freestanding Lace designs are easy to do and you can create marvelous project with this.  I promise you will be hooked on lace in future.   Warm Hugs, Daleen  Stitch Delight

Freestanding Lace

These tips were given by Daleen from Stitch Delight. What is Freestanding Lace? Freestanding lace is an embroidery design that is stitched onto a special stabilizer that dissolves in warm or cold water, leaving you with the freestanding lace.  Only designs digitized specifically for freestanding lace can be sewn in this way, other designs will fall apart when the stabilizer is dissolved. When you look closely at any fabric you will see the weave of the fabric which looks like a grid.  Freestanding Lace designs need to be digitized to support this grid system to ensure that they don’t fall apart when the water soluble stabilizer is dissolved. They generally have a higher stitch count for this purpose. Always read the instructions carefully to ensure that you are sewing out a freestanding lace design and are using the correct stabilizer, thread and needle recommended by the designer.  There are many ways to digitize freestanding lace and it’s always best to follow the directions specific to the designs you are sewing.  Each designer may be testing on different threads and stabilizers and the designs may not work on all dissolvable stabilizers. Which Water-soluble Stabilizer should you use? There are many freestanding lace stabilziers available these days.  You  can get the so-called Laundry Bags, Badge master, Vilene and many more.  Daleen has found the best results are obtained when stitching on the Water Soluble Vilene.  It’s thin non-woven, water soluble stabilizer, which does not stretch or tear while stitching.  She always recommend 2 layers be used at a time.  A small design can get away with only one layer, but when you do full 4x4” or larger size designs, you will need to use two layers of Vilene for best results.  Finding Freestanding Lace Designs You should always ensure the lace design you are purchasing is clearly marked FSL, or Freestanding Lace to ensure it will stitch correctly, and hold together when you wash the stabilzier away. At Secrets of Embroidery we have a huge range of freestanding lace designs available and you can find them all in our category.

 

Stitching your Freestanding Lace Design   Hoop the dissolvable stabilizer as reccommended with your designs, and then stitch out the design in thread colors of your choice. Daleen recomends you use two layers of Vilene for best results. Making Multi Colored Lace If the design is a bowl or doily, which has many different colors, you will want both sides of your finished lace to look fabulous.  So you will need to use matching top and bobbin thread for each color.  Simply wind a bobbin full of the same thread you use for the top and remember to change the bobbin color when you change the top color.    Creating a Heavier Lace Look Daleen recommends that you use the same thread type in the bobbin area to give your design a heavier, fuller lace look.  For example, if you use 40wt Marathon thread in the top, use the 40wt Marathon in the bobbin area as well. Creating a Daintier Lace Look  For a more dainty lace look, use embroidery thread for your top thread, and bobbin thread in the bobbin area.  If you are wanting an even finer lace look, use bobbin thread in the top area as well.   (PLEASE ask the designer first if the design would be ok to use bobbin thread both top and bottom as sometimes your design might unravel in water, if its not been digitized for this purpose.)  The Bottom Line by Superior Threads is a very good range of fine thread, suitable for use in bobbin, or top thread and is available in a great variety of colors.

Washing the Stabilizer out for the Lace. When you have finished stitching the design, cut away the excess Vilene and rinse the design under a running tap with warm water.  Feel the design as you go, as you don’t want it to feel slimy – so rinse until all the slime or Vilene has been dissolved.  Making Firmer Lace If you want a firmer design (for a design that needs shape, like the Christmas Bells) don’t rinse all the Vilene out.  Leave some in as it acts like a starch when dry and assists in keeping the shape. Making Softer Lace If you want lace to be very soft for doilies etc, you will need to rinse the design about 3 times each time in clean water.  If it’s still not soft enough, soak in warm water for about 1 hour with some fabric softener

Finishing off your Freestanding Lace Projects.   Each lace piece is finished off with a satin stitch outline.  Some designs like Christmas Ornaments are ready to be used immediately.  Just attach ribbon and then hang them.  Multiple Piece Lace Designs.  Many freestanding lace projects require a number of lace pieces, that are joined together to complete the finished project.  Follow the directions included with your freestanding lace designs, and sew out all the pieces of lace required.  Now you will need to use the zig zag stitch on your machine to join the pieces of lace together.  Have a look here for a comprehensive step by step guide on sewing the Christmas Bell Designs together. Look after your lace. Never wash your freestanding lace items in a washing machine or tumble dryer.  Hand wash only and do not rub, simply soak and press till it’s clean.  If it’s a item that needs to be hard, like the bells, add starch to the final rinse water and shape as it dries, by either placing over a mold or by using a hairdryer to dry the design and shaping with your hands as it dries.

Tips for Getting the Perfect Freestanding Lace. If your freestanding lace designs fall apart after rinsing the stabilizer, check the following. Ensure you hooped the Vilene drum tight and there there is no way the Vilene could have slipped when you stitched out your lace. Make sure you used the correct thread in both the top and bobbin area. Make sure you used the needle the digitizer recommended.  Daleen generally recommends using a 75 needle.   Problems with Larger Designs  Larger freestanding designs that have large filled areas are more likely to unravel at the edges or where the satin edge meets the filled lace area.  This is because there is a lot of stitches and the stabilizer can sometimes move and stretch in the hoop.   Many designers will digitize their lace to avoid this problem. However if you find your designs are unraveling, you can ask the designer to add some additional stitches that stitch first to stabilize the design.   Digitizing Tips for Stabilizing Freestanding Lace  When Daleen makes a round doily, she would first sew a circular, straight stitch outline around the shape.  This stitching stabilizes the design, so when it is filled with stitches, the stabilizer does not stretch as much.  The filled stitches should also be pulled right under (almost outside) the satin edge to ensure the satin edge is catching the filled stitches.  The satin edge should always have good underlay as well.  Daleen uses a double zigzag, as well as a center run underlay, under all her satin edges to ensure they are well stabilized.  All parts of the digitized freestanding lace design, should touch each other, like a chain, one piece connected to the other.  This ensures they hold together when the stabilizer is dissolved.   Freestanding Lace designs are easy to do and you can create marvelous project with this.  I promise you will be hooked on lace in future.   Warm Hugs, Daleen  Stitch Delight