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The Lace Notes

13/6/2021 3 Comments

Cloth Stitch / Whole Stitch / and I'm so confused

When I learnt to make lace, in the 80s, cloth stitch and whole stitch were the same and are described that way in many of the UK published books. 

Then, in the 90s, we went international and had access to books from around the world and we discovered that, gasp, not everyone described the bobbin movements the way we did.
This is when people started to use the terms C & T so that they could talk to each other and mean the same.
It then came as a shock to many people that Belgium had anticipated this many, many years ago and infact, had established the 'Bruges colour code' for lace back before WWI.  
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Simple explanation © Lorelei Halley Laceiloi
I teach using the numbers and then when my classes get used to that I introduce terminology.
So I teach the following where you number the two pairs of bobbins from left to right; 1 - 4 and always renumber after each move:
  • Half Stitch is - CT made by 2 over 3 (Cross / C), then 2 over 4 back (Twist / T) 
  • Cloth Stitch is - CTC made by 2 over 3 (C), 2 over 4 back (T) then 2 over 3 (C)
  • Cloth Stitch and Twist is CTCT (aka whole stitch) made by 2 over 3 (C), 2 over 4 back (T), 2 over 3 (C) then 2 and 4 back (T)
So far, so good?

Not really, because when I learnt, cloth and whole stitch were interchangable as terms and Cloth Stich & Twist was described as Cloth Stitch & Twist or Whole Stitch and Twist.
And it gets worse because some books teach it the other way, in particular, Doris Southand, in her book, teaches half stitch differently as Twist and Cross - TC rather than CT.

As Doris is very popular in the USA this can cause confusion between lacemakers who have learnt using her system, either from her books or from followers of her methods, when they move to books from the UK and Europe.

But it doesn't stop there.

Although the 'International System' was developed in Bruges in the early 20th Century, it was not internationally taken up worldwide.   
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Simple explanation © Lorelei Halley Laceiloi
Now, there were a number of reasons that the International System didn't take off and the main one was limitations on printing.  

During the resurgence of lacemaking in the 70s and 80s, colour printing was exceptionally expensive.  Most designers would only have a colour cover and maybe one or two colour plates in their books.  This wasn't an issue for looking at the lace patterns and finished articles because most, if not all the lace was made in the traditional white or black and the prickings were black dots.  

Around the mid 90s, dual colour because easier to do so we started to see the addition of blue into the printing of a number of books, most noticably Pamela Nottingham's later books.  This was followed by tri colour printing and we started to see red included in Geraldine Stott's and Bridget Cook's later books.

​With the opening of the EuroTunnel in 1990, it now became easy for lacemakers in the UK to take a train to Belgium and holiday in Bruges, giving access to the Kant Centrum and attend OIDFA events in Europe.

Towards the end of the 90s, access to international books was also becoming much easier in the UK due to international lace suppliers attending events like the National Lacemaker's Fair at the NEC and teaching at summer schools.

Interest in books from outside the UK grew and UK lace suppliers found it easier to obtain books from publishers such as Barbara Vey.  

It was around this time that multicoloured printing took off and we started to see the International Colour Code being used more and more in books and people started to realise that terminology isn't global.  So, the use of C and T became the international language on many of the newsgroups such as Arachne so that lacemakers could talk to each other and understand what was being discussed.
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Colour Code Key © Jenny Brandis
The wonderful Jenny Brandis adds colour working diagrams to her patterns which show the International Colours. 

​In there she uses the common names along with the CT notation.

​I particularly love how many times whole stitch and cloth stitch appear with different variations of CT.
What now?
​
My advice has always been to check the front of any book as in most cases, the author / designer will explain what they mean by half, cloth and whole stitch.  

Knowing when and where your book was published will give you a starting point as to what to expect.  Then look at the diagrams and check that you are using the same methods as the author.

​Jenny Brandis suggests making a note in pencil at the front of your book or pattern reminding you what the terminology for that book is.

​But most of all, make lace.
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3 Comments

10/6/2021 0 Comments

Buying bobbins on eBay

Having just picked up some lovely bone bobbins on ebay, I thought it might be time to offers some advice about buying second hand modern bobbins.
So here are my top tips on buying second hand on eBay (and elsewhere)
1)    Is this bobbin still available from the original turner / painter at a reasonable price? 
​
Supporting our artisans is good karma, but obviously if it's a bargain then you are going to buy the pre-loved bobbin. Don't forget to check out 'find the maker' if you want to identify the maker is
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2)    Is the bobbin good value? 
If you have a budget, then set your limit according when bidding. It's really easy to get carried away and bid way over the top
3)    Is this a private seller or a dealer? 
Always check out the other bobbins that the seller has on sale. There are starting to be a number of sellers who are effectively dealers, but pretending to be private sellers. They buy new bobbins from current artisans and then put them straight on to eBay with a markup. I don't believe in Caveat emptor - Buyer beware.

If you then unsure about a purchase talk with one of the most experience lacemakers in the lace Facebook groups.
You are more than welcome to message me.

4)    Take a good look at the photos. 
Fuzzy photos may be someone who isn't good at taking them or it may be an attempt to cover up a less than wonderful bobbin that has a fault.

​There is nothing stopping you contacting the seller to ask for more photos, or information, if you are really interested
0 Comments

4/6/2021 2 Comments

Copyright and why I don't offer to copy the patterns in my personal library

I've spent the past 30 years collecting lacemaking books and patterns.   There are over 200 books now and about the same number of patterns.
Every so often, I get asked if I can let someone borrow one of my books or provide a copy of a pattern, either from a book or a pattern itself.
The answer is always no.
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In the past, I have had people borrow a book and not return it.  So, I now simply say no.  Many of my books are out of print and irreplaceable.  I use them as a resource for my students to look through and loosing such books would impact them as much as me.
So, what about just copying a pattern from one of my books or single patterns?

​The answer is still no.
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Where a pattern is still in print, apart from them being covered by copyright, we owe it to the author / designer to pay for that pattern.  

Buying a pattern has never been cheaper, relatively speaking.  The cost of lacemaking has not risen in line with inflation.  It is cheaper now to start than ever before.  Patterns now cost from a couple of pounds to under a tenner for pre-pricked patterns.  Most second hand lace books sell for a fraction of what they cost originally.

So, go buy the pattern, support the author.  Treat yourself to the out of print book.
What about out of print patterns and books that you can't get hold of?  Well, they are covered by copyright.
Now here is my disclaimer about what I'm going to say next.​

​NAL - I am 
Not A Lawyer.  I'm someone who respects UK copyright and am offering suggestions below as to resources that may help others.  I am specifically discussing UK law here, however, if the book or pattern was published in the UK, or you are based in the UK, then UK law takes precedent.  So, if your home country says that the law is more lax, unfortunately, the higher rules in the UK trump your home laws.  As with anything pertaining to the law, if in doubt, seek advices from a professional.
For any book or pattern published in the UK or sold in the UK, then copyright extends for the life of the author plus 75 years.
But I just want a copy of one pattern
​Doesn't matter.  If it's covered by copyright then making a copy and giving it you breaks copyright.  You are stealing the intellectual property of the person who designed it.
But you can copy up to 10% without breaking copyright
No you can't.  That is a common quote that people say that has no basis in copyright law.  If copying is permitted, it is stated in the UK and US for example as 'fair usage' which is commonly taken to mean no more than 10% but I fact this refers to quoting a book in academic work.
But you are allowed to copy the patterns from a book to make them yourself, why can't you make a copy for me?
The designer grants the book owner permission to copy the patterns for personal use, so that you can make the lace.  It would be rather difficult to buy a book of patterns and not be able to copy them and make prickings.

What the designer did not give permission for, is for you or me to copy the patterns and give them away to other people.
But you can buy the book second hand, in that case, the designer doesn't get any money for the patterns when the new owner makes lace
​You are right, that's how second hand books work.  The person who sells you the book, second hand, now passes on to you the right to copy the patterns for your personal use as they relinquish the right they had when they bought the book.  Your paying them for selling the book, to you, is the transaction where they passed on that right.

However, when a book become second hand it doesn't miraculously wipe out copyright laws, they still exist and apply to the book.  This means that any laws that apply to the new book, still apply to the second hand book in that you can't just go and photocopy the patterns and give them to your friends
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I'm not charging anyone for the copy so that's ok then?
No it's not.  Paying or not, it doesn't matter.  You are prohibited from passing on copies.  Just because you don't profit from the copy doesn't make it ok.  You are still effectively stealing someone else's intellectual property by passing on unlawful copies
I can't get the pattern I want, but I've got a great photograph of it so I'll just make my own pattern by working the photo or creating my own pricking and it will then be my pricking.
​You can and you can't.

Working from the design to learn the pattern .. That's ok, you are allowed to do that under educational purposes, however you cannot share the pattern you have created or sell the lace you have made because they are covered by the copyright of the original pattern.  The pattern and the images of that pattern are covered by copyright.  You can't just go and nick someone else's work.  It is stealing!
If I change 10% of the pattern, then I'm not breaking copyright and it's now my new pattern
That would be a nope, nope, nope.  This 10% thing is terrible and keeps being rolled out.  There is nothing that says changing a bit revokes copyright.
So, here is a quick summary of the top ten myths on copyright
  1. copyright doesn't affect me - nope, it does affect you.  It's real and it does exist
  2. Changing x% of a pattern mean it's ok - it's an old wives tale. Changing the pattern does not mean it's yours. It's still covered by copyright and intellectual property laws.
  3. Making the article from the pattern means I can sell it - nope it does not unless the designer has said that you can
  4. It's ok to copy a pattern that is out of print - no it isn't. Copyright lasts 75 years after the author dies. Just because you can't find the pattern easily doesn't mean it's ok to photocopy it
  5. The designer isn't from my country so I'm not covered by their law - you are. You are covered by both the laws of the country that the author is in and your country ... and the law which lasts the longest is the one that trumps the others
  6. It doesn't hurt anyone so I'm going to do it - yes it does hurt people. It hurts the designer. Really, when a pattern costs a couple of pounds why are you being so stingy
  7. I'm doing this to learn more about the pattern ... Actually, if you are recreating a piece of lace as a way of learning a technique, then you are ok to use a photo of a piece or draft your own pattern from a picture HOWEVER, you cannot sell the pattern you make or the item you have made and you have to give acknowledgement to the original designer.
Resources
  • UK Government site for knitting and sewing patterns copyright which most closely links to lace patterns
  • US Government site​

2 Comments
    Back to The Lace Notes
    From time to time I post on different groups and wanted to collect some of the advice that I give in one places.

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