Several friends have inquired about how to use the Battenburg lace designs. Here I have a very small project which can be created in one day.

Battenburg lace runner

Materials Needed:

• Battenburg lace  design (  I have used the small round battenburg design) - sew out 16 motifs
• Embroidery thread ( I used poly cotton by Coats) 
• Wash away stabilizer * (I used Vilene)
• monofilament thread (optional)
  

*Vilene from Stirling Embroidery

Instructions:

1.    Hoop wash away stabilizer. I used white poly cotton blend thread as my top thread and NEB bobbin thread. As my project is white color, I didn't need to wind my bobbins. However, if you are stitching in any other color, make sure that the top thread and the bobbin t hreads are the same color.	2. Sew out 16 of the Battenburg small round motifs. I placed six in my largest  hoop, making sure that I had space in between each motif. (Please note that I  used Vilene from Australia which does not tear and only one layer can be used for stitching out multiple motifs in one hoop-if using any other wss, please use several layers if stitching more than one in a hoop)
3. Sometimes, thread nests do occur, and it is pretty agravating especially when you are stitching more than one motif in your hoop. I had a thread nest which created a hole in my design.	4.  If such happens, gently take the hoop out of the machine and lay it flat on a table. Trim any loose threads in front and back. Look to see what stitch numbers are showing on  your screen. Write those numbers down and shut off your machine. Restart the machine and after selecting the same design forward to just nearly around the stitches that you  have written down.
5. Place a small piece of wash away stabilizer on top of the hole and place the hoop back in the machine. Start stitching again.	6.  Because of my thread nest, my wash away stabilizer moved a bit and one of the motifs did not stitch out right. Some portions of the design were off the motif.
7. After all the designs are finished stitching, cut away any excess wash away stabilizer from each motif. Take care not to cut too close.	8.  The one motif that had not stitched correctly, we are going to fix it before we wash away the stabilizer. Using monofilament thread ( you can also use the same embroidery thread that is used for stitching out the motifs) we are going to lightly stitch zigzag stitches over the area that needs to be fixed. The zigzag stitches will cover the loose edge of the motif and join all the threads. Place a small piece of wash away stabilizer on top if required.
9. Wash away the stabilizer. I used cotton poly thread so I will wash mine in cold water and let the motifs soak for about fifteen minutes to rinse away all the wss.	10. After soaking, place the motifs separately on a towel to let dry. You may need to block the motifs or gently shape them with your fingers.
11. Once the motifs are dried, we will join them together. Using monofilament thread (or you may use the same embroidery thread) and using the zigzag stitch, we will join the laces. Just place two motifs side by side, and the place where they meet, lightly use the zigzag stitch there to join them.	12. And our lace runner is complete.

 

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