‘No No No’ pattern

 

I’ve been thinking about the bobbin lace trim for the first veil in my new series of practice and have decided to go with the wording ‘no no no’ within the lace. I think that is the most definite statement and easy for an international audience to understand. The idea is that the words are hidden within the lace and discovered by the audience, so something definite and easy to read seems a good idea. I’ve also reduced the width of the ninepin edge I’m using. It will take quite a lot of lace to trim a wedding veil and so the quicker the pattern is to work the better! For the same reason I’ve also decided to have the ninepin edge only on one side of the pattern and to have a footside on the other. I’ve started winding some bobbins and will do a trial piece to see what it looks like, with a view to continuing it if it looks alright.  

 

Lace design

 

I’ve started designing some lace for my veiling project based on fiction, starting with a reluctant bride. For my first veil I’ve decided to make a lace trim incorporating lettering within a Bedfordshire style design, much in the same way as I did for some of my net curtains. I need a short phrase that can be repeated within the length of the lace and have been considering ‘no, no, no’ or ‘I won’t, I won’t’ or in response to the part in the marriage service where the woman is asked ‘will you take this man’ etc. ‘No, no, no’ would be the easiest to incorporate in the lace and for the audience to read, although ‘I won’t’ seems more appropriate to the actual marriage service. ‘I won’t’ also seems a bit petulant while ‘No’ is more definite and easy for all nationalities to understand. Also I think the apostrophe might get a bit lost in a small lace design. I might therefore go with the ‘no, no, no’ idea. As you can see I’ve started designing the ninepin edging for the lace while I’m deciding which wording to incorporate. 

Veiling on hats

 

Although I’m concentrating on wedding style veiling for my next project I’m a great fan of veiling on hats. These drawings all come from an excellent book called ‘The mode in hats and headdresses’ by R Turner Wilcox and show a variety of different designs from the early twentieth century. I particularly like the use of patterned lace or spotted veiling covering the face as the contrast with the skin hidden beneath the fabric is so flattering. That of course is the role of veiling in these fashions – both to reveal and conceal at the same time thus adding a sense of mystery and allure to the wearer. Wearing a hat with a veil is also something of an art, as vision is impaired, even if only slightly, and eating or drinking almost impossible. However there is nothing more glamorous than a veiled hat.