I am asked constantly how I came up with the idea of using decorative stitches to create machine sewn lace edges...I have to attribute the original idea to Sue Hausmann...In one of her earlier books, she had done a little edge using Heat Away (a vanishing muslin) and 30 weight cotton thread.  I was fascinated by the technique but I hated the Heat Away...by the time you get it out of the delicate stitches, they are destroyed….and, it makes me sneeze.  Ah Choo!      So I did a few very basic edges and quit working with it because of the drawbacks.

Phase 2...Here is where things get interesting...in 1999, I was at work on a book about creating the antique look using modern day fabrics and machine stitches. As providence would have it, two new products came onto the market place at about the same time.  One was Romeo...it was an extremely heavy wash away stabilizer that was dry to the touch and the other was a new thread named Cotty.  Cotty was a cotton thread that was much thicker weight than what we had been used to running through our machines.  Put the two together and you have a combination that gave the look of hand crocheted lace edges.

Since then, I have been obsessed with the possibilities of recreating the beauty of the past with the technology of today.  About two years ago, Sulky of America began to market the Cotty under a different name...Sulky Cotton 12 weight.  They also marketed the same thread but in a 30 weight.  They revamped the color line and also brought out a new stabilzer called Ultra Solvy.  Very close to the original Romeo product.  Oh, I forgot to tell you...Romeo has been changed three times and the current product isn’t even close to the original.  The Ultra Solvy works much more like the one I started with the exception that you need to use two layers and it’s much more readily available.  See more information about stabilizers and threads on the upcoming pages.

When Crochet Crudites came out last year, so many Viking owners emailed and called about being able to create the lace edges using their machines…I knew I would want to write a book specifically for them.  So this is where Crocheted Laces and Edgings came about.

Be sure to look for my HOT TIPS as you go through the book.  My friend Diana Cedolia suggested that I add this...since most of us don’t read the entire book before starting a project AND that tends to get the “cart before the horse” and get us in trouble sometimes.