Sometimes I pick up my crochet hook and have a fairly good idea of what the finished piece is supposed to become.
And sometimes I look at the finished result and think: where on earth did you come from?
This time, two lace characters landed on my worktable at once. One is light, airy and dignified in the manner of a slightly old-fashioned lady. The other is red and white, decorated with pearls and absolutely convinced that it came here to be noticed.
And so Lumeliblikas and Pärlivalss were born.
Lumeliblikas, Who Wanted to Land on a Blouse
Lumeliblikas is a natural white crocheted lace neckpiece, traditionally called a jabot, made from cotton thread.
The name almost chose itself. When I laid the finished piece on the table, the pineapple motifs on either side of the centre panel looked like a pair of outstretched wings. I looked at it and thought there was really no need to call a naming committee together.
A butterfly is a butterfly.
Except this one looked a little too elegant to be an ordinary butterfly.
So Lumeliblikas, or Snow Butterfly, it became.
There is a narrow crocheted panel down the centre of the lace neckpiece with two small openings. They are not there because the crocheter got distracted halfway through the job. They allow the lace neckpiece to be fastened using the blouse’s own buttons. The upper section sits beneath the collar, so there is no need for separate ties, hooks or any other feats of engineering.
Lumeliblikas looks especially good against a dark blouse. That way the pale lace stands out properly instead of disappearing into the fabric like a white cat in a snowdrift.
Although in Bim’s case, snow probably wouldn’t help much. He would give himself away with the first demanding meow.
And Then Came Pärlivalss
If Lumeliblikas is quiet and dignified, Pärlivalss, or Pearl Waltz, comes from an entirely different opera.
Red, white, pearls and a magnetic clasp.
Modesty apparently got left at the bottom of the yarn basket this time.
Pärlivalss is made from red and white crocheted motifs with pearls at their joining points. In the centre, one motif hangs slightly lower than the others, creating the focal point of the necklace.
At the back of the neck, the necklace continues as a narrow red crocheted section and closes with a magnetic clasp. Because if I have already crocheted an entire necklace by hand, the person wearing it should not then have to spend ten minutes behind their neck wrestling with a microscopic hook.
Life should have some limits.
Pärlivalss works just as well with a simple solid-coloured dress as it does as part of a more festive outfit. And because it is handmade, there is no machine where you press a button and another identical Pärlivalss drops out at the other end.
Thankfully.
Otherwise I might as well go and work in a factory.
Two Lace Pieces, Two Completely Different Personalities
Looking at these two side by side, it is rather funny to think that they both started from essentially the same things: crochet thread and a crochet hook.
One became a natural white lace neckpiece that wants to sit quietly and elegantly beneath a blouse collar.
The other became a red-and-white pearl necklace that probably thinks everyone else should move aside now that it has arrived.
And perhaps that is what I like most about making things by hand.
You can start with a ball of thread and some sort of plan, but you never quite know what kind of character will emerge in the end.
Memm Maimu and Bim Give Their Verdict
Memm Maimu looked at Lumeliblikas, adjusted her glasses on her nose and nodded approvingly.
“That’s pretty. Proper, too. You could wear that anywhere.”
Then she looked at Pärlivalss.
She was silent for a moment.
“That one looks ready to make an entrance all by itself.”
Bim had been sitting beside her throughout the discussion, examining both pieces with a professional eye.
His verdict was brief:
Neither of them is edible.
So he turned his back on the whole matter and went off to deal with more important things.
Which, to be fair, is probably for the best. Had Bim shown too much interest in the lace, the title of the next blog post might have been:
“Lumeliblikas: Before and After the Cat.” 😼
Pärlivalss:
View Pärlivalss in the Tiina Butiik shop
Lumeliblikas:
View Lumeliblikas in the Tiina Butiik shop