Lace Stitches

Cloth Stitch

You swap the middle two bobbins (left over right), then both the outer pairs (right over left), then the new middle two (left over right). It's important which bobbins gets lifted over which. When working stitches, you lift one bobbin over its neighbour, but you need to move the underneath bobbin across to allow room. There is never much spare room on a lace pillow! When two bobbins are lifted at the same time, you can use both hands.

This is called cloth stitch because the finished effect is like woven cloth. Click on 'Show working' to repeat the stitch, or 'Step' to go through the stitch one step at a time. Note that, at the end, the pairs of bobbins have swopped over, so the pink/red pairs are on the right and the blues on the left. Other names for cloth stitch are whole stitch (in Britain) or linen stitch. (Australian whole stitch is cloth stitch and twist).

For an example of cloth stitch, see Cloth Diamond.

Half Stitch

For an example of half stitch, see Half Stitch Diamond.

Twist

If there is a twist in a pattern, you can do two or more twists to get a firmer result.

For an example of twists, see Bucks Point Ground.

Cloth Stitch and Twist

You work the four bobbins in a cloth stitch. You take the left pair of bobbins and twist them. You twist the right pair as well.

If you study the diagrams carefully, you will see that a cloth stitch and twist is the same as two half stitches on the same two pairs of bobbins.

For an example of cloth stitch and twist, see twisted footside.

Picot

For an example of picots, see crown headside.

Plait

You work the four bobbins in a half stitch continuously without pins. This forms a plait-like effect. Since there are no pins, when you tighten it (which you should do quite often), it will make a thick thread, which is called a leg or bride. This can make a stiff headside, or join other parts of the pattern, or be used like a gimp to outline patterns.

If you are careful always to work the plait in pairs of stitches, then the bobbins will stay in their original pairings. Here, two plait stitches are demonstrated. It looks the same as a cloth stitch and twist, as that is made up of two half stitches.

Crown headside has plaits.

Lazy Join or windmill

Plaits are joined with a lazy join, or windmill. Unlike a normal junction, you have two pairs of bobbins coming in from each side, making four pairs in all. You treat each pair of bobbins as if it was a single bobbin, and you work a cloth stitch with these pairs.

In the pictures, I have coloured the bobbins rather than the beads to allow more room. I've also coloured each pair of bobbins the same.

Crown headside joins its plaits with lazy joins.

Tally

A tally is a block of tightly woven threads. unlike normal lace stitches, as it is not tightened against a pin. You start with 4 bobbins (2 pairs), but these are treated individually rather than as pairs. Click here for an explantion of how to work a tally. Tallies are used in this flower pattern.

Three-way join

The lazy join joins four pairs of bobbins. However, you may need to join six pairs of bobbins, as in this flower pattern. Here is a way to do it. I have left the bobbins out of the diagram, but I've coloured the threads of each pair of bobbins the same.

There are three groups of bobbins, with each group containing two pairs, a left group (red and blue), a right group (yellow and green), and a central group (grey and pale blue). Take the central group first. Take the left pair of this central group (coloured grey in the diagram). Treat it as a single bobbin. Weave the pair through the left group of bobbins. You must weave both of the pair first over, then under the two pairs of the left group. Now for the right pair of the central group. Weave this pair fist under a pair of the left group (red) , then over the other pair (blue). Look at the diagram to check you've got it right. Now take the other pair of the central group (pale blue). Weave it under the yellow pair, over the green. Now both pairs which used to be in the centre are now at the edge. Now work the four pairs now in the middle in a lazy join. Finally finish off the join by weaving the outside pair back to the centre (the grey over yellow and under the green, the pale blue under red and over the blue).

Honeycomb Stitch

Honeycomb stitch is used in Bucks Point net. It uses a pin. See this beginner pattern for an example of honeycomb.

You work the four bobbins in a half stitch and twist both pairs. Then you put the pin in the middle. Now you do another half stitch to cover the pin (which means doing a stitch both before and after a pin), and twist both pairs again.

The bobbins end up in their original order.

This gives a visible gap in the finished lace where the pin went.

Gimp

You twist the two thinner threads, then pass the thicker thread between the two thinner threads. Finally twist the two thinner threads again. Since there is only one thicker thread, the threads do not follow the normal under/over pattern strictly.

Gimps are used in Bucks Point. See this beginner pattern for an example.

A proper gimp is a single thicker thread. But you can get a pair or even two pairs of threads, twisted, plaited or just left alone, which are treated like a gimp. See my wavy patterns or the diamond mats.

Turning stitch

Braid lace has strips of cloth stitch worked into pretty shapes made of curves. Sometimes on the inside of the curves, there is not room for the edge pins that you normally have in solid areas. If you use turning stitches here, which do not use a pin, it makes a tight stitch which keeps the pairs of bobbins on the same side. Since this is the edge of the lace, it means that the same pair of bobbins stays as the workers.

Sometimes a turning stitch has an extra twist of both pairs at the end. I call this a turning stitch and twist. The turning stitch (without the twists) would be used for cloth stitch braids while the turning stitch and twist would be more suitable for half stitch braids.

Linking two pieces of lace

You may wish to join or link two pieces of lace, such as the outer edge and middle of a mat. Both pieces of lace must be on the pillow at the same time, and the finished piece must be well pinned down, with pins pushed in to their heads (or they'll catch on the bobbins' threads).

Remove the pin where you want to join the lace. Push a crochet hook in under the threads (where the pin was), and catch one of the threads from the other piece of lace. Pull a loop in the thread. Now push the bobbin through the loop, remove the hook, and pull the bobbin tight. Twist both bobbins.

You are strongly advised to use unspangled bobbins for this (without beads). The whole process is quite tricky enough without the beads catching the threads as well! You can also hook both threads, make a double loop, and push both bobbins through the loop, but it's more work.

Cross-twist system of describing stitches

While bobbins lacemakers use the stitches on this page, they do not necessarily call them by the same names. Whole stitch might be a cloth stitch and it might be a cloth stitch and twist. The cross-twist method of describing stitches is unambiguous.

Most stitches use two pairs of bobbins or four threads. These can be described using the cross-twist system. The cross is where the middle two bobbins of the original four cross over. The twist is twisting each pair (so uses all four bobbins). So, for example, cloth stitch is cross-twist-cross, or CTC.

Click on buttons or select stitch type to produce the stitch:           - Select stitch - Bride Cloth stitch Cloth stitch and twist Linen stitch Half stitch Honeycomb stitch Leg Plait Turning stitch Turning stitch and twist Whole stitch (Australian) Whole stitch (British) Whole stitch (Downton)    Stitch:

Start position of bobbins