NETTING.
Like many other kinds of fancy work, netting is just now coming into fashion. Our grandmothers netted, as our mothers tatted, industriously, netting boxes and stirrups being as familiar a sight then as the tatting shuttle was some fifteen years ago, and as the crewel and silk cases are now. It is a work that can be applied to a great variety of purposes, from curtains down to fichus or breakfast caps. Guipure d'art which is worked on netted squares has always been in favor, but its seeming difficulty has deterred many from attempting to make it. The following directions for plain and fancy netting and for making Guipure stitches are made as plain as possible, and will be found easy to follow when the manner of forming the netting stitch has been once mastered. This can be learned from the directions, but is much more easily learned in a lesson from one who understands netting.
You will need for this work, a netting needle, a mesh, and twine, cotton, or linen thread. Formerly, the netting was fastened to a braid or ribbon loop, called a stirrup from its being held on the foot, but a more convenient and much prettier way is to have a lead cushion or sewing bird for securing the loop. Some, however, pin it to the knee, as in sewing. For beginning I would advise some twine or coarse knitting cotton, as is it very much easier to learn anything in coarse materials, where the details can be easily seen.
A wooden netting needle is generally used for coarse, and steel ones for finer work.
Fig. 38.
When a very small mesh is used, a long blunt darning needle must be employed as the filled netting needle would not pass through the loops. The meshes are made of boxwood, bone, and ivory; they can be either round or flat. Knitting needles of various sizes in these materials make good meshes, steel ones being employed for fine work. Pieces of whalebone cut to the requisite width make good meshes. The size of mesh and cotton must be adapted to each other so as to give the work just the right appearance, neither too open nor too close.
To begin work, take a piece of thread of the same size you are going to use in netting, tie it in a loop of three or four inches long and fasten it with a pin to your cushion, or knee. Then unwinding two or three lengths from your needle, tie the end securely to this loop. Take the needle in the right hand and the mesh in the left; hold the latter horizontally between the thumb and forefinger. Lay the working thread over the mesh downwards round the middle finger of the left hand (Fig. 38), and then between the mesh and the forefinger, a little towards the left, where the left thumb encloses the thread, and by that means the loop held round the mesh and finger is firmly held; then the needle is carried again towards the right, and pushed from underneath through the thread- loop lying round the left hand, forming a wide scallop with the thread; then the needle is placed under the loop, and between, the finger and mesh again through the foundation stitch ; keeping the left hand quite still, draw the needle quite through with the right hand, dropping the loop off the fingers one by one, the little one being the last to release the loop, drawing the knot to the top of the mesh with the right hand. Make as many foundation
Fig. 39.
stitches as your work requires, take the mesh carefully out, turn the work and proceed as before, putting the needle, at each stitch successively into a stitch of the preceding row. Practice will soon enable you to make your stitches of a uniform size. The stitch here described is the one ordinarily used and is called Slanting netting. To work round netting, put the needle through the loop without changing the place of the finger or loop, turn the needle round and put it into the stitch of the preceding line from above downwards, as shown by the arrow in Fig. 39.
The working thread must remain on the right hand of the needle, and the stitch is then drawn up in the usual manner.
Fig. 40.
For loop netting, work two rows of ordinary netting. In the third row work two stitches into one, twist the thread twice round- the mesh. Repeat for the required length.
4th row: Work two loops into the long stitches of the last row, twist the thread twice round. Repeat to the end of the row, and continue working only the fourth row.
Figure 41 is for working diamonds in round netting. The number of stitches for each diamond is five and one over at the end.1st row: Work your stitches as described for round netting. Work one long stitch by twisting the thread twice round the mesh. Repeat for the length required.
Fig. 41.
2nd row: Two long stitches, three round stitches, one long stitch into centre of first long stitch, one long stitch into next round stitch. Repeat from *
3rd row: One long stitch* two round stitches, one long stitch into next long stitch, one round stitch into next long stitch, one long stitch into next round stitch. Repeat from *
4th row: Two round stitches, one long stitch, one round stitch, one long stitch. Repeat from beginning of row.
5th row: One round stitch,* two long stitches, three round stitches. Repeat from *
6th row: Three round, * one long, four round. Repeat from *
7th row: One round, * two long three round. Repeat from *
9th row: One long, two round, one long, one round. Repeat from the beginning of the row.
10th row: Two long, three round. Repeat.
This completes the diamond. Repeat the ten rows until your netting is large enough.
An extremely pretty edging (Fig. 42) is worked at follows:
Work two rows of plain netting.
3rd row: Work three stitches into one of the previous row, one stitch, one stitch into each of the successive stitches. Repeat throughout the row.
4th row: Plain, working through the clusters of three stitches together as one stitch.
5th row: Plain.
6th row: Like third row, working the clusters of stitches between those of third row.
7th row: Like 4th.
Fig. 42.
8th row: Work into two stitches together below the clusters of sixth row, work one into all the other stitches.
9th row: Work over a mesh rather more than half an inch in width four stitches into one stitch of last row, pass over three stitches and repeat.
10th row: With the mesh first used, work one stitch into each of the four worked into one stitch, take the next loop, pass it through the centre of the three stitches passed over in the previous row, work one stitch into it. Repeat from the beginning of the row.
The manner of passing the long loop through the centre of the three stitches is clearly shown by the thin line in the pattern.
This pattern is very pretty for edging a scarf for the neck. It should be worked in rather fine linen thread.
CROSS NETTING.
1st row: Plain netting.
2nd row; Net alternately one long and one common stitch.
3rd row: Work entirely in short stitches which naturally draw unevenly.
4th row: Consists alternately of long and short stitches, but instead of working them in the usual way draw a stitch of the last row through the long loops of the second row and net it; continue to work a long and short stitch alternately in this way through the row. Repeat the third and fourth rows alternately.
STAR NETTING.
Cross and star netting very much resemble each other; after working the cross, little difficulty will be found in working the star netting.
1st row: One double and one plain stitch alternately, using a knitting needle mesh.
2nd row: Net plain with a mesh one third of an inch wide.
3rd row: Draw one stitch of second row through long loop of first row, net it again with a short stitch, draw the next loop through the same long loop of first and net it with a long stitch (i.e. cotton twice round the mesh). Repeat the second and third rows for length required. ROSE NETTING.
This pretty stitch seems a little complicated at first, but by following the directions exactly it can be easily worked. Two meshes are needed for this pattern, bearing to each other the same proportion that a coarse knitting needle would to a mesh one third of an inch wide.
1st row: Net plain over the wide mesh.
2nd row: Net over the small mesh thus: First draw the first long loop through the second and net it, then draw the second through the first and net it.
Fig. 43.
(Fig. 43.) shows rose netting with ribbon velvet run in at each fifth pattern and the intermediate rows are darned with colored silk.
HONEYCOMB NETTING.
An even number of stitches is needed for this pattern.
1st row: Plain netting.
2nd row: Net the second stitch, then the first, next the fourth, then the third and so on throughout the row.
3rd row: Plain.
4th row: Net a plain stitch; begin the pattern by netting first third stitch, then the second, next the fifth, then the fourth, end with a plain stitch and continue to the end of the row. Repeat from the first row.
Fig. 44.
Fig. 44 is a very pretty border combining the last two patterns with plain netting. The rows of honeycomb are alternately of fine and coarse material, or of silk and wool, in order to bring out the pattern. The scallop pattern is worked with heavy silk doubled or trebled.
1st row: Plain netting with small mesh.
2nd row: Work four plain stitches, work four loops into the fifth stitch. Repeat to the end of the row.
3rd row: Work three plain, work the clusters of two loops together. Repeat from beginning of the row.
4th and 5th rows: Plain.
6th row: Like second row, beginning with two plain stitches to alternate the position of the clusters.
7th row s Like third row, working the clusters in their proper places.
8th and 9th rows: Plain.
Five rows of honeycomb pattern are now to be worked.
Work three rows plain netting. Two patterns of rose netting; and for the edge one row a larger mesh and the two strands of the working material.
In making joins in the thread, as when refilling the needle, or if in silk netting the colors are varied, always manage to have the knot come at the outer edge. Tie a firm flat knot.
Netting is darned by passing the needle under and over the stitches of the foundation about five times, taking care to follow the lines of the pattern. The silk, cotton or thread, used in darning must be of a size proportioned to that used in the netting.
Round netting as for purses, etc, is worked by passing the needle through the first stitch, while keeping the last three or four on the mesh, moving the mesh as the work requires.
VANDYKE NETTING.
Make one loop on foundation; net two loops in this. Increase one loop in every row until there are five loops in a row. Then increase at the end of every alternate row until there are nine loops in the row, taking particular care to always increase on same side of the work.
In the next row leave four loops unworked on the side which has not been increased, work the other five loops and repeat.
FLY NETTING.
Wind on the needle a strand of wool and one of silk, so that they will unwind together. Net as with a single thread, and when the netting is done, cut the woolen thread round every knot, fluff it up so as to conceal the knot and make a little ball. Be very careful not to cut the other thread. This is very useful for neckties, head dresses, etc.
NETTED HAIR-NET.
This net may be made either of chenille, silk, or fine braid, with a mesh half an inch in width.
Net eight loops on a foundation, then net sixteen rows; these will count perpendicularly eight diamonds; cut the netting from the foundation, but do not cut off the material you are netting with; pick out the knots; tie a loop of cotton into the centre of the square, by which to pin it to the table; now net round this square eight rows or four diamonds, counted perpendicularly; the net is then complete, but more rows may be worked if preferred. An elastic is run through the last row of holes. The net is ornamented at the top by a double bow and ends of ruby satin ribbon.
DIAMOND PATTERN.
Fig. 45 is a very useful pattern for stripes for tidies, shawls, etc., and may also be used in place of drawn work in bureau and side-board scarves.
1st row: Plain.
Fig. 45.
2nd row: Work two loops into a stitch, draw the next loop rather longer, and repeat to end of row.
3rd row: One stitch into each loop of last row.
4th row: Work a stitch through two loops together of under the two loops worked into a stitch in the second row. Repeat to the end of the row. The double loops are worked across with needle and thread as shown in the upper part of the cut.
ROSE AND SHEAF PATTERN.
Fig. 46.
With a fine bone knitting needle for a mesh, work three rows in plain netting.
4th and 5th rows: Rose netting.
6th and 7th rows: Plain.
8th row: Fill a netting needle with a three-fold strand of thread, that is winding from three spools at once, and with a mesh a little more than an inch wide, work one stitch into each loop.
9th to 11th rows: With the small mesh and single cotton work one stitch into each loop.
12th row: With double cotton, work one stitch in round netting into a loop, cotton twice over the mesh, pass over a stitch and repeat.
The sheafs are caught together by crochet. Work one double over three triple loops, seven chain and repeat.
A double length of cotton is darned in a straight line above and below the two rows of rose pattern.