Taunton's Threads - For people who love to sew
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From the pages of Threads Magazine Machine-Embroider Allover Lace Make elegant lace on your home-embroidery machine that rivals the quality of the finest lace you can buy Fine lace has a rich tradition. We don't know exactly when and where lace originated, but we do know that it was originally produced meticulously by hand and that, in the 17th and 18th centuries, its intricate designs were highly prized and available only to the aristocracy. The advent of machine production in the 19th century made lace more affordable but did little to diminish its desirability, and today lace is once again very popular, used for both casual as well as elegant, special-occasion garments. Whether created by hand or by machine, lace is a complex fabric, and the idea of producing allover lace on a home-embroidery machine may seem mind-boggling. But it can be done and, in fact, is easier than you think -- it just takes a little time. I'll walk you through the process, which was introduced to me by Carol McKinney of Pasadena, Tex., and show you how to select embroidery designs that you can combine to create your own unique lace.  Individual motifs fit together jigsaw-style to create an original pattern. These six motifs were used in countless combinations sewn on tulle and sandwiched between water-soluble stabilizers to produce the allover lace shown below.  First, choose appropriate embroidery designs You'll need an embroidery machine to make this lace and suitable embroidery designs, and there are many such designs available for most machines. If you want to download designs from the Internet , you'll also need embroidery software compatible with your machine.
Adapt your pattern and make a test garment Machine-embroidered lace is appropriate for many garments, but keep in mind when choosing a pattern that it takes time to produce. Use patterns with set-in rather than raglan or dolman sleeves, in order to avoid stitching out large pieces. Your pattern can have darts, but because they're harder to sew than princess seams, I suggest a pattern with the latter if you want a closer fit. You may want to begin by trying small amounts of lace, such as an overlay on the front of a blouse or dress. To adapt a pattern, eliminate the seam and hem allowances on the outer edges, where the lace will form a finished edge (facings are unnecessary), and keep the seam allowances on any edges where two pieces of lace will be sewn together. For a lace overlay, add an extra 3/4 in. to the length at the center front to add weight so the lace hangs nicely. It's always a good idea to make a test garment before investing time and money in the final project. To do this, cut out the major garment sections in inexpensive fabric and/or lace, eliminating seam allowances on the outer edges as described above. For a garment with a lace overlay, make the main part of the garment in muslin or fabric similar in weight to your fashion fabric, then attach the test lace sections to it at the seams. Try on the garment to see how the lace falls and if extra fabric is needed at the bottom and/or center front edges. Transfer any alterations to your pattern, trace a new pattern without the outer seam allowances, and you're ready to make lace. Prepare a base and make design templates The embroidered lace is sewn on a base of nylon tulle, which is sandwiched between layers of water-soluble stabilizer. The tulle should be similar in color to what will be worn under the lace to keep it as invisible as possible, and the stabilizer should be heavy enough to smoothly support the embroidery. I prefer two different weights of stabilizer -- one layer of heavyweight Romeo on the bottom and a layer of lighter-weight Verona on the top (both available from Pfaff dealerships or by mail from Universal Sew and Vac, 248-543-2555, www. sewonline.com). Two layers of Sulky's Super Solvy will also work, but the designs will "shrink," or pull up, a little more. The heavy stabilizer is needed to support the lace and keep it from shrinking during stitching. Be sure to check the instructions that come with your stabilizer, and only combine products that share the same method for removal, which I'll discuss in a moment.
Now for the fun part: stitching out the designs and watching the lace grow. You'll need a large quantity of embroidery thread. I used six to twelve 1,000-meter spools of rayon thread to make a short, fitted jacket, but a good-quality polyester or cotton embroidery thread works as well. (I prefer rayon for its sheen.) Use the same embroidery thread in the bobbin and needle so the lace will be attractive on both sides. To save time and prevent interruption as you stitch, wind several bobbins at once. Lay out the prepared tulle sections and determine where to place the first design. Always start at an edge, for example, at the center front or center back. Use the template and position the design on the stabilizer base. Mark the registration dots on the base with a water-erasable marker, remove the template, and draw in the crosshairs. Embroider the first design, then choose the next motif and use its template to position it so it touches or slightly overlaps the first motif. Overlapping is perfectly acceptable and gives the finished lace a more cohesive appearance. If the motifs don't quite touch at any point, you can fill in later. Complete the outer edges at one end of the pattern section, then start to fill in the rest of the section, positioning and sewing additional motifs so that they touch or overlap the previous ones. I like to work at the same time on garment sections that match, mirror-imaging the designs as I go so the outside edges are symmetrical. If you own an extra hoop, you can speed things up by positioning one design while the machine is stitching out another. I select the interior motifs at random and fit them together like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. I don't want symmetry on the interior areas because a random selection of motifs makes a lace more unique. Keep in mind that as you add designs, the section may shrink slightly as the stitching pulls up, although a heavy stabilizer helps to prevent this. Use your original pattern piece to check periodically whether you need to redraw the outside edges of the piece. Be generous at the seamed edges, extending them 1/2 in. or so beyond the normal 5/8-in. seam allowance so you'll be covered if the lace shrinks slightly when the stabilizer is removed. When the embroidery is complete, there are usually still some gaps where the motifs did not touch or overlap. Fill in the spaces with very small motifs, or use one or more of your machine's decorative stitches (any vine pattern works well). Check the stitch candidate by sewing a sample on the excess tulle/stabilizer surrounding the garment pattern outline. Follow directions to remove the stabilizer When the embroidery is complete, cut away some of the excess stabilizer and tulle, leaving about a 1-in. border. Check the instructions that came with your stabilizer for the appropriate water temperature required to remove it. This temperature can vary from product to product; if you use the wrong temperature, the stabilizer is more difficult to remove. Rinse each piece of lace, soak it for several hours, then thoroughly rinse it again in running water. If all the stabilizer doesn't come out, soak and rinse the piece a second time. Blot it gently with a large towel and lay it flat to air-dry. If the lace is sticky or stiff, you probably haven't removed all the stabilizer, so repeat the process until the lace is soft and supple. Press the lace from the wrong side on a thick towel using a wool setting, steam, and a press cloth. Finally, trim the excess tulle along the outer edges using small, sharp embroidery scissors. Construct the garment Before seaming the lace sections, use the pattern to check each piece and verify its size. If there has been shrinkage, you can increase the size of the pattern section by just placing additional tulle and stabilizer under the area that needs enlarging, hooping the area, and then embroidering more motifs.
To invisibly sew lace to lace, let the motifs extend beyond the seamlines. Hand-sew a marking line along each seamline with long straight stitches, then overlap the sections, matching the seamlines. Baste the sections together with a contrasting thread and remove the marking stitches. Thread your sewing machine and bobbin with embroidery thread, and sew along the edges of the most prominent motifs using a zigzag stitch that's 1.5mm wide and 1.5mm long. Trim the top layer close to the stitching. Turn the piece over, and stitch along the edge of the same motif from the wrong side. Then trim the underlayer close to the stitching. I think making lace is one of the more exciting things you can do with a home-embroidery machine. Whether you use the lace in a garment or an accessory for your home, it looks so great that it's hard to believe you made it yourself.
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