Do you fancy a bit of slap and tickle? I do and regularly. I do it with/to my tatting!! What DID you think I was going to say?
OK, I'll explain. It's my latest way of stiffening small items. Remember the accident I told you about here? Well the reason I could put this right was probably (and I do say probably) due to the way I have taken to stiffening my tatting. Here's how I do it.
First of all I dampen and iron the piece/pieces (under a cloth) so that they're how they should be when finished - see a pile of bits below.
Next I take some white school glue (PVA) - notice how cheap this is for such a huge bottle.
The next step is to put a splodge of the glue into the palm of your wrinkled old hand (if you don't have a wrinkled old hand I'll come and help you - please send money for air fair if appropriate). Now add a little cold water (not sure you can see it - top left of picture).
Mix water and glue together (below) to get a really good mix. Note how it hides some of the wrinkles too!!!!!
Finally - and this is where it gets to be fun - take the piece of tatting and put it on the glue. Now you slap, tickle and squidge the glue mixture into the piece.
My hands got too sticky to take a photo at this stage but the one above was taken just before I did the final 'dry' slap and tickle to get the excess glue off. (You'll find you can slap the excess off if you wash and dry your hands when you've finished and if the rings and picots are not 'clear' of glue.) Finally place on a flat surface and leave to dry.
Well, it works very well for me but there's no guarantee it'll work for you!!!
Very similar to how I do it, I have a little plastic (free with my Chinese take away) which I have recycled, I put some hot water in it and a dollop of white PVC glue and then mix it, Then place the snowflakes or whatever in the water and switch it around and then let it dry on a piece of cloth, I used to use kitchen roll but the paper kept getting stuck to the item, so now I have an piece of cotton sheet to put them on.
ReplyDeleteMargaret
Very interesting lesson!!! :)
ReplyDeleteI do the same thing!
ReplyDeleteFox : )
I think I will try it your way. I have always just dipped it in and patted it dry with a paper towel.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Elizabeth
I use this same method to stiffen my snowflakes. And, the tatting stay upright and flat. Sturdy too! No accidents yet though... :)
ReplyDeleteInteresting, thanks. Presumably the glue dries clear, even though it's called white glue? I used starch on some snowflakes, but it dries white and is only any good for white motifs.
ReplyDeleteYes, Jane, it does dry clear. I've had very little success with starch and the sugar water only attracts bugs and has made my work turn yellow over the years!!! Good luck!!!
ReplyDeleteI also do something similar with a few minor differences. I do wet the item first. Then I pour
ReplyDeleteAleene's fabruc stiffener (white glue already mixed with water) onto a sheet of plastic wrap on a flat surface and fold it over to spread the glue around (like a pie crust). Then I put the tatting in between the plastic wrap and mash it in, without getting my hands sticky,
Then I take a damp paper towel and squeeze the excess glue off the item. My 3D items go over a styrofoam form, also covered with plastic wrap so the item doesn't stick to the form! I put flat things on plastic covered styrofoam so I can use pins or plastic toothpicks to hold it in place.
Sounds as if we're both on the same tracks!!!!!
ReplyDeleteDoes this work for bigger items such as doilies? Or would it make them too stiff?
ReplyDeleteGraceT
Yes, GraceT - it works for anything and the stiffness can be controlled by the amount of water you add to the glue. For a doily and if you want to stiffen it I'd suggest more water. It's especially useful for earrings as it stops them from 'bending' out of shape and keeps them from getting dirty too.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I will definitely try this. - GraceT
DeleteI lay out my inch by inch cardboard cutting board. Then, cover it with waxed paper. I pin out each point and picot using the inch by inch grid as a guide for sizing. I "paint" the glue/water mix onto the lace piece, allowing to dry for a few hours. Remove the pins and lift the lace from the waxed paper. End result blocked and stiffened lace. This works great for snowflakes.
ReplyDeleteTutie
Ah, Tutie, I wish I had your patience! I'm afraid I just do the slap and tickle method!!! Just occasionally (probably a couple of times a year) I do pin things out roughly but not very often.
ReplyDelete