63219 KIF76

PRESENTATION OF WORK

Whilc most tatters make their lace for plcasure to usc personally or as gifts. sonie maj- wisli ro cnicr ihcir picccs in show¹ and exhibirions. Narurafły, all wou/d likc (fieir lace ro bok its bett. The fbUowing nre suggesrions ro presenr your Ince wcII, no mat ter w hut you intend to do with i r.

•    Ałways liave efenn Itands to make your lace. and an cm iromncnr frcc of fluffand dusr. Whcn you nre 1101 working nr ir. wrap your Ince in a clenn cloth. Remem ber. picccs for compctirion musf nor be wnshcd.

•    Always work in good lighr, especially with very fine thread. Depcnding on the colonr of your thread. have a plain conrrasting background on your lap so the ttitches and joint will be casy ro sec. This relicvcs rhc eyes as well.

•    As a generał rulc, choosc rhreads rhar nre mcrccrised and have n righr rwist in rhcir ply. Thcsc produce crisp rnrting. Whilc threads with a looscr ply may be good for cut and frayed picots. rher rend ro separare around the curves of picors in norma! work. Howcyct, your choice of threads will uldmately depend on the effect you wish ro erratę wirh your piece.

•    Havc a pair of sharp embroidery scissors so you can cur threads off deanly and neady. Unlcss ir is your inrended effect, avoid frayed, fluffy ends. Try to keep thcsc scissors exclusively for cucting threads so their blades remain keen.

•    DevcJop a firm evcn tension throughout your work.

•    Rings, unlcss srated in the partem, niust bc dosed complctcly. There shoufd bc no spaces berwcen the rings of 3- and 4-fcaved c!ovcrs.

•    It you tai a patiem which consists of a numhcr of discrctc molifs, be sute that you havc them all facing to the same sidc of the finished work.

•    Oncc your piece is finished, błock or sizc it for a crisp oppea rance. Blocking rcally improvcs its presentation. (Sec Uscful tips, 4, on page 12). If your piece is large, press or błock it at intcrvals whilc tatting to maintain the correct shape. Cover the lace with a cloth bcforc pressing it on the wrong sidc. Avoid pressing the right sidc as this will flatten the work.

•    It is a useful practicc to leavc ends of 2 cm (1 inch) after finishing a row. This will ensure that any movcmcnt whilc working will not unravel or fray any threads you havc cut. As dampening the lace whilc blocking causes a slight shrinkage, this will tighten nround the ends that have bccn left. Whcn the whoic piece is finished the ends can bc cut off dcanly bcforc presentation.

•    The traditional right sidc of a piece of tatting is the ring sidc and the chain sidc is the wrong sidc. Bc aware, however, that contemporary tatting can combinc thcsc on the front of the work by reversing the order of the half-stitches whcn tatting the chain. To maintain the regular appea rance of the lark’s head knots, some picot joins may havc to bc madę downwards. All this is a pcrsonnl choicc, but it can changc the appcarance of your work slightly. Try it sometime whcn you wisli a piece to bc viewćd from one sidc only.

If you want to achicvc a front-sidc-only effect on a smali scction, try using wrong way or rcverse stitch tatting along the chain with a sccond shuttle, just as you would with a split ring. Therc is no necd to rcverse your work if you usc this tcchniquc.

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   Kcep rhc tizc of your dccorarivc picots regular. To avoid floppy work make your joining picors rcasonnbly smali.

•    No matter which mefhod you choosc, end off well and unobtrusivc!y.