Working with lace

Lace is a unique material, and working with it differs from other fabrics.

Use a standard, thin needle for stitching.

## How to join two strips of lace

If you want to join narrow strips of lace, place them edge-to-edge. Then, sew a zigzag stitch. Set your machine to a stitch width of 2.5 mm and a length of 1 mm. To prevent the lace from getting caught at the start of the seam, it is best to begin 10-15 mm from the edge.

Here is another tip: to keep the strips from shifting, make a few alignment marks along the length at 7-10 cm intervals. Ensure these marks match up while sewing. This is better than pinning or basting the strips.

## How to attach lace to fabric

To neatly stitch a strip of lace to fabric:

• place the lace and fabric right sides together, with the fabric edge extending 2 mm beyond the lace;
• sew a zigzag stitch so that it catches the edge of the lace and extends just slightly beyond the fabric edge;
• set your machine to a stitch width of 4.5 mm and a length of 1 mm;

• as a result, the fabric edge will fold over and wrap around the lace strip—this is exactly the look we want;
• for a neater finish, fold the seam toward the fabric side;

- secure it by sewing a zigzag stitch on the right side, stitching through both the seam and the lace.