Freestanding lace bowl and doily tutorial

by S-Embroidery.com · Published February 9, 2009 · Updated February 9, 2018

Learn how to stitch out and assemble our freestanding lace bowl and doily machine embroidery projects.

This tutorial was created using our machine embroidery design sets:

SKU 10194 Freestanding Lace Bowl & Doilies,

SKU 10195 Free standing Lace Bowl, Doily and Heart

In order to create a fine set of freestanding lace embroidery bowl and doily you will need:

One of our Freestanding Lace Bowl and Doily Sets
Water-soluble stabilizer
Suitable machine embroidery thread

Note: We find that cotton and polyester thread are especially suitable for these designs. In order to have the stitched out embroidery look the same on both sides, we would recommend that you use the same upper thread and bobbin thread.

Step-by-step instructions

Creating the freestanding lace bowl

1. Hoop the water-soluble stabilizer. Depending on the type of stabilizer you are using, you may have to hoop up to 4 layers. When stitching out FS lace, it is very important to have sufficiently thick stabilizer, to have it hooped very tight (as one would often say “Tight as drum skin”) and make sure it stays that way during the whole process of stitching. It sometimes happens that a hoop may not hold well the stabilizer one tight enough during the stitching. In such a case one may have to wrap some suitable material (e.g. muslin stripes) along the long sides of the hoop’s frame and then hoop the stabilizer. In order to avoid possible problems, it is also recommended to use the smallest possible hoop and NOT to stitch out more than one design in a single hoop.

Stitch out the freestanding lace 2. Stitch out the design components. You will need to stitch the side panel several times (depending on the bottom you will be using) and once – the bottom. Carefully cut off the loose thread ends or any jump stitches you may get in the process of stitching (at the beginning or when changing thread).

3. Cut away the excess stabilizer

Cut away the excess stabilizer

4. Dip the side panels and the bottom in water. Follow the instructions of your stabilizer’s manufacturer. In order to get a bowl with a better shape, please do NOT leave the components in water for too long. Just wait until there are no visible traces from the stabilizer.

Place the lace on a towle to dry

5. Get the bowl components out of the water, place them carefully on a towel and let them dry. Once they are dry – iron them. Do NOT iron the lace directly. Cover the embroidery with a soft fabric instead.

Stitch the fs lace pieces together 6. Connect the side panels by zig-zagging them to each other from the inside.

If you have used cotton thread, it is best to use the same thread for connecting the elements. If you have used viscose or other threads, which are not suitable for connecting seams, then it is better to use invisible thread for assembling.

It is better to use invisible thread for connecting when you stitch out the 2-color versions of the free standing lace bowls and doilies.

Stitch lace together

Stitch all pieces together Connect all side panels, including the last seam, which connects the first and last side panel.

Attach the lace bowl bottom to the sides After you are done assembling the side walls of the bowl – attach the bottom to them by zigzag stitch.

Your bowl is now ready!

Creating the freestanding lace doily

1. The freestanding doily components are prepared using the same procedure as explained above for the bowl. You will need 5 hearts and the bigger center circle for the larger doily and 4 hearts and the smaller center circle for the smaller one.

2. In order to get a fine soft doily, it is best to leave the components in water long enough so that the stabilizer is totally dissolved.

Prepare to stitch the doily components together 3. Assemble the doilies as shown and connect the components with manual stitches from the bottom side. Please note that in some case it may be easier to assemble the doilies if you do it BEFORE you dip them in water to dissolve the stabilizer.