Lace pillows

This roller pillow is one of my favourites for demonstrating with as it shows off the lace and bobbins nicely and, because of the roller, doesn’t require any tricky moving up when you have people watching you! If I’m working on something smaller or thinner I use my travel pillow, basically because it’s portable so I can take it with me and work on my lap. It’s a block pillow so it’s also easy to move up the lace as you work, although because of it’s size the amount you can do before having to move up is limited. For bigger pieces I have a lovely block pillow, which has three large blocks running all the way down the centre. I find that one is quite versatile but it does have to be supported on a table. If I’m making something very large I use a huge piece of polystyrene covered in plastic and a cloth – I find bits come off it if it isn’t covered. I also use polystyrene if the lace I’m making is going to be stiffened and in that case I cover the pillow in plastic as well as the pattern if I’m using one. I have tried other pillows in the past, such as bolster and domed types, but my lace seems to be better suited to something flat that can be moved up easily.