Blog & News

For those who like to follow the lace in the Advent Calendar from the Lace Guild, this year's version has started.  See: https://www.laceguild.org/adventcalendar .  Enjoy!

I saw this article on musical instruments and rosewood this morning (See: https://www.npr.org/2017/11/30/566927001/the-tree-that-rocked-the-music-industry) , and I wondered if the fears of those whose cellos and guitars that have rosewood in them should also be shared with bobbin lace makers with rosewood bobbins.  I knew that the availability of rosewood had diminished in recent times, but I was unaware that in some countries rosewood can be confiscated at the border.  It might be best to research the regulations on rosewood for a country you might be visiting, or, even better, bring the less expensive ones with you if you are traveling internationally.

I just received an email from Jo Firth (an English supplier) which I thought I would pass along. I know most of you will not be ordering from the UK, but the information about the DMC merger/takeover is worth sharing, as is the note about Anchor Lace thread being discontinued.

"We are having trouble with certain DMC threads. DMC in the UK at least, have been taken over by a company called Blue Gem, who have merged DMC, Sirdar Wools and Wool And The Gang into one "DMC Group" and have moved operations to  the Sirdar warehouse in Wakefield. This is about 30 mins away from me by car but parcels are taking longer than they did from France!  (Getting better as difficulties are ironed out) However in their wisdom, they have decided not to stock certain DMC products. The ones which concern lacemaking/tatting/crochet etc are the Perle 12 in colours and Special Dentelles 80 in colours. They are only stocking white, black and ecru in these. They are not stocking Broder machine 50/2 or Variations Perle 5 in hanks. Having argued the cause for lacemaking until I am blue in the face, it has been decided that we (UK suppliers) will be able to still order these items from France, WHEN they have sorted out a method by which to do so. So please be patient and do not believe certain suppliers who are telling people that DMC have stopped production! In the meantime, I keep removing colours from the web, so even if you see the colour on the photograph, it might not be in the "available" list.

To make matters more complicated Anchor have stopped making Anchor Lace thread. So only available while stocks last."

Jill 

I will be bringing some photos and other NELG memorabilia with me to the November meeting. We can have a little fun looking through the years for previous events and old friends!

I would like to thank Jamie Eves and Bev York for the tour that NELG members took on Saturday.  I, for one, learned from the presentations so it was well worth the trip.  For those who could not come today, it is a small museum with a lot of impact.

I plan to be driving down from eastern MA to the Windham Textile Museum visit in CT.  If anyone would like to join me, please let me know.  We can arrange a convenient meetup point.  It's always more fun with a few people in the car! -- Bryce

A reminder to all that Fiber Festival is coming up 4 & 5 November.  Signing up early will be helpful.  See the calendar for details

Time to pick up entries already. Thank you to all who entered and all who were there to demo. Jane and her team of volunteers make the process go so smoothly. They really appreciate us sharing our beautiful pieces and talking about it too. It's worth finishing the pieces, adding careful mounting and framing . Next year be ready. Nelgbige coordinator.

http://www.thebige.com/p/competitions/creative-arts/338

If you have not already seen the news on Arachne, Santina Levey, author of the 1983 book, Lace: A History, and many other textile-related publications, passed away in late August. 

To read her obituary in The (London) Times, use the following link: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thetimes-uk/obituary.aspx?page=lifestory&pid=186564968

Jill