Remembering Eva Schaefer

I am very sad of the loss of Eva Schaefer, whom I met through Arachne, and with whom I had lost touch a few years ago. Thanks to her, I had the opportunity to learn a lot things related to bobbinlace. She put me in touch with Mariña Regueiro, whose courses I have been attending for many years. She tought me not to put a flowery cover to my pillow (so typically Spanish). She taught me to make a crochet strip to hold the bobbins to the pillow in a safe way. She showed me bobbins of regions I had never seen before. She showed me her collection of lace books when I only had two or three: she also transmitted me the passion for buying lace books and now I also have a large collection. I learnt from her to wetten the linen threads while working, so that it did not break. To make picots differently to left and right. To make a star crossing the way they do it in Almagro (Spain). And many other things which I will possibly remember after finishing this writing.

That's why the fact that  that she could never see the magazine I have founded and edited, because she couldn't see anymore in the last years, makes me also very sad. I will always remember her. 

For those who did not know her, Eva Schaefer was a German Lacemaker who lived in Spain. That's why I could get to know her personally and meet her in several occasions.

It is time of lace meetings

Lace meetings in Spain start in spring. Because of the nice weather, lace associations take their laces out of the rooms to show them to all people interested in seeing how bobbin lace is made.

First of all, for those who don't know what a lace meeting is,  I am going to explain it briefly.  A lace meeting is a day of gathering of many lacers,  who go out to the street with their  bobbins and their pillows to show that this craft is  not lost,  that it is even more in fashion than ever  and that it is not as complicated as it may look like at first sight.  Everybody can participate in a lace meeting, no matter if she/he belongs to a lace association or not. But a previous inscription is necessary, to book a place at a table. So, what we usually see when attending a lace meeting is lots of large tables where many lacers from all over the country place their pillows and demonstrate for the public.

Table of the lacers of Gijón (at Seville 2011)

Lace meetings are interesting for many reasons. First of all, because we can see hundreds of lacers practicing their hobby. We can ask them questions about a particular stitch, where to attend lace lessons here or there, where to buy books and patterns.

Apart from this, at a meeting we will find many shops, which attract the attention of most lace lovers. Here we can buy almost everything related to lace: from the most varied types of bobbins and threads, to pillows, pillow stands, magazines with beautiful designs and even material to sew our edgings, and many more accessories which we don't find in the shops of our towns or villages.

Trabajos escuela Mi Pequeño Taller (Guadalajara 2010)

As in spring there are so many lace meetings which we can attend, we have to choose which ones we cannot miss. I usually choose two meetings a year. One beeing always the one in my own town: Guadalajara. I attend the meeting with some of my students, and beeing very interested in teaching, in class and outside the class, we place a selection of the work done along the year on our table. And each piece is accompanied by an indication of the type of lace shown. I think it is important to use these meetings to to teach our lacer makers as well as the visitors. It is nice to know how to make lace, but if we also know where the laces we make come from and learn to identify styles and techniques , we add much more interest to our hobby. Apart from this, most lacers don't work patterns designed by themselves. They are using patterns designed by someone else. It is essential to make this name known. It is something we owe the author.

So, be alert and take advantage of the most expected season for lacers.

New bobbin lace magazine: Vuelta y Cruz/Twist and Cross

I have the pleasure to announce you the release of the

new bobbin lace magazine  
Vuelta y Cruz/Twist and Cross

I hope you find it interesting and that you enjoy making the laces and reading the articles included, all of them original and from lacers from all over the world.  
The texts are both in Spanish and English.

I will be present at the following lace meetings: 

8th May, at Berga (Barcelona)

I will update the information in the magazine's own web:

                                                        http://www.vueltaycruz.es/

New bobbin lace magazine

Spanish bobbins from 1950

And lets continue with a piece of news.

I have a good reason for having been away from the blog for some time. Aproximately one year ago I bet on a project I considered to be very interesting and I hope all lacers will like: I have created a bobbin lace magazine, which will be very soon on sale.

The magazine, whose name and logo I will comment on my next post,  once they have been registered, is a magazine which includes original patterns from international bobbin lacers and a variety of techniques.  It will also include articles related to bobbin lace, which will give the magazine a didactic and educative approach. It is written in Spanish and in English.

More information soon.

New Spanish Group MI PEQUEÑO TALLER

For many years I have been very grateful to ARACHNE, a serious bobbin lace group in the Internet. I have learnt a lot from ARACHNE and I still am. And I have been trying to create a similar group in Spanish, so that all those Spanish speaking lacers that cannot participate in Arachne because they don't speak any English, can have a serious group where they can learn and find themselves comfortable.

So, after a whole year without any activity, I restart the Yahoo group Mi pequeño Taller, with changes. In previous stages of the group, we worked together, studying and analizing the works we did. And now I want it to be a place where to comment and identify laces, where ask and solve doubts and questions related to bobbin lace, comment books, magazines, lace meetings, congresses, experiences...

Mi Pequeño Taller

I hope that Mi Pequeño Taller will be, again, a place of reunion and learning of an activity many os us love. Join us and participate.

But bear in mind the following: a group works if its subscribers work. It is necessary to participate, to collaborate... so that there are new posts and new themes of interest.

NOTE: For all those who don't know me, it is important to know that the group can only be used to talk about bobbin lace, and that personal themes, birthday congratulations, publicity, chains of messages... have to be sent outside the group. This is a serious group for people really interested in bobbin lace.

I also insist in respecting copyright of authors and designers, which means that it is not permitted to upload Pictures or Archives of scanned books or magazines without permission of its authors.

Christmas ornament

Thanking you all for following my blog, this time I am not writing an article but I am giving you a Christmas pattern to decorate your Christmas tree baubles as a present.


It is a very easy design, made of spiders, appropriate also for beginners.


Before starting to work, you have to take some measurements.

First we have to measure the top circle of the bauble. Then we have to draw this circle on a cardboard (it measures normally around 8 mm diameter). To this circel we have to attach three patterns (as can be seen on picture 3).

Next, we have to measure the bauble itself: our design has to measure the length of the contour divided into 2. So, you have to adjust the pattern to this measurement enlarging or reducing it.

Materiales necesarios

Depending on this measurement, you can use a more or less coarse thread. I have used a silver thread mixed with a yellow thread to make it look golden.

To start, place a few pins all around the edge of the circle, and make a ring putting one thread several times around the circle of pins.  Knot the bobbins of this pair and let it hanging. This pair will be one of the pairs used for the tape of spiders. Hang the remaining 7 pairs to the central ring one next to the other with a hook.

Almohadilla con trabajo en progreso

Work the tape of spiders following the design.

When reaching the end point, leave all pairs pending, as you will need them to finish up the bauble. We can cut the threads at 10 cm, to have the bobbins free to use again.

Once the 3 tapes are finished and all pending pairs are cut to 10 cm, take all the pins off the pillow and remove the lace in order to "dress" your bauble.

We must introduce the top of the bauble through the ring of our lace, cover the bauble with the 3 tapes and tie the ends of the tapes at the bottom of the bauble. With one pair we can make a festoon as long as we like it.

Pattern

Finally, we have to cut all threads to the same length with a pair of scissors.

Now we can hang our bauble from our Christmas Tree or place it where we prefer.

I hope you have enjoyed making this bauble and that you have a good result. I would like you to send me the pictures of your finished laces in order to be able to show them here. I am sure each of you will give a personal touch to the lace.

I wish you all a

Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2011!

Book on Spanish Hinojosa tape lace soon to be published

Portada del libro de Mariña Regueiro

Very soon we will be able to have in our hands Mariña Regueiro's new book. Mariña is a well known bobbin lace teacher, and also an investigator of almost forgotten techniques and promoter of Spanish laces abroad.

Her last book is the result of the investigation of a tape lace made in a small part of the region of Extremadura (west of Spain), in Hinojosa del Valle, with the aim of reconstructing its history and systematize its technique.

The Spanish Hinojosa tape laces are a real jewel  in the history of Spanish lace. They constitute a new gender directly related  to the laces brought from Flanders into Cádiz in the 18th century and they reflect the European tendencies of end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th.

All this makes this book an essential guide for the new generations of lace makers. It is written in 4 languages: Spanish, French, English and German and is aimed at the international community of lace researchers.

As soon as it is on the market, I will give you more information about its price and the way to buy it. Until then... lets wait. The book will soon be here.