This is my latest lace acquisition not related to tatting. I bought the bobbins at the L.A.C.E. group's Lace Day in Downers Grove at the weekend. I wasn't going to get them but then I noticed they were squared off which means they won't roll all that much and the fact they were obviously handpainted appealed to me. Some groups use laser printing or stamping. I like the personal touch. I even know the painter's name. It's Kate Wild who is a member of L.A.C.E. I haven't met her unless she was at the table with the wood findings for bobbin lace and I only spoke with the ladies there briefly. Still, it's just a matter of not being familiar with the members. I may well have met her at some point.

Another reason I bought them is that I recently read that if you want to keep track of your workers, you should paint a pair of bobbins black and use those for your workers. Well....if I did that, I would also paint some pretty flowers or designs so why not use bobbins already painted on? Most of my decorated bobbins are spangled or need to be spangled. I haven't touched the wooden ones yet but my fingers are itching to.

On another note, I met with my friend Sally last night to lace and I had wound all my bobbins, including these, with the notion that I would make a roseground edging that was in the same book as the insertion I just made.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA!

The instructions tell you literally NOTHING. I went back to earlier chapters and I did find out that SE meant sewing edge. I have actually done that before but Southard's description of how it works was vague and confusing. In the edging, she has you putting 8 pairs over one pin but gives you no clue on how to go about using them. I know they are for the half stitch edge, but HOW? She makes a big point in a later chapter, which is titled something about ways to start without instructions (mind you I said LATER chapter) about knowing how to figure it out. I do get that and in fact, the bookmarks I've done already have been very helpful in providing some guidelines, but this book still lacks some crucial bridging.

There is one very simple edging that I think I might be able to do. I did not lace at all last night. I read the entire time. I will attempt this simple edging but then I will go to another book. I got a new one last week, the newer Torchon book that is wonderful, packed with photos and in color and STEP-BY-STEP. Once I've got all that down, I'll be happy to try to figure out how to lace something that is missing instructions, but not til then. So needless to say, I was extremely frustrated last night. Again, I wonder how they ever thought they would keep bobbin lace from dying out with the way they've "promoted" it.

I've been trained to "train", to write training plans, and put them in action so when I see poorly written instructions, it really bothers me. I should just move on to something that DOES work and stop getting all worked up about it.