My benefactress Kelly gave me this bit of vintage lace handwork. I've been hesitant to really put it throught my regular regime of laundering just because it is so delicate and so much of the piece is hand made and hand sewn. I think the tea-like stains give it a nice patina though.
One thing that really appeals to me about the piece is the appliqued daisies. They look kind of complex at fist glance but closer inspection reveals the very humble rick rack as the basis of the design.
Since the piece looks quite old it got me to thinking about the history of rick rack. How long has it been around? Doing a little Google research I can come up with a reference to it in the late 1800's. It was used in crochet projects. Rick rack as we know it really came into play around 1916.
The rick rack used in this piece is cotton. Mostly what you can find at JoAnns or other big sewing and craft centers is polyester which is stiffer and not, at least in my opinion, as desireable.
There are plenty of resources for cotton rick rack if you are in the market for it. Just Google it. Look at the crochet projects that use it too – gorgeous. Yet another reason why I wish I could crochet.
I can't crochet but I certainly can take a stab at making a daisy. It's really quite simple and here are a couple of pictures that illustrate it. Note: I'm using polyester rick rack because I had it on hand.
Use a heavy duty thread that will hold up to being pulled really tight. I used button thread (black for illustrative purposes). Figure out how many petals you want your daisy to have. The ones in the example above have 23 so that is what I went with.
Make a running stitch across the tips of the rick rack on one side (this will end up being the center of the daisy):
Then pull tight and tie off the end. You may have to pop out the "petals" so they are all facing in the right direction:
Then arrange in a circle and tack down the outer part of each petal. Once the outer part is in place stitch down the inner part of the flower to secure it to your project.
Now the inner part of the daisies above look like they have been crocheted. We already know my woeful lack of crocheting skills so I just clustered a bunch of French knots in the center. Not as refined but it is a daisy, after all, which lends itself to a more casual approach.
Kind of fun and quicker than you would think. Now I have to figure out a project to incorporate then in. I'm thinking a linen tote bag with a row of them all across the top…
Thank you very much. I’ve had an idea for a bag for quite a while now but somehow something was missing. I think I’ll try adding a daisy following your tutorial.
Thank you for the tutorial. How fun and easy that looks. I like the french knot centers that you made as well if not better than the original.
How fun and easy that looks. Let me know what you decide to do with them. I love the original daisies. I think I’d be afraid to wash it too.
Wow! This is great. My 5 year old son is making one right now! He saw me reading this and is now making one that he wants to turn into a necklace for his little friend’s birthday next week. This is his first project with a real needle, and he’s doing great!!! I wish I could send you a photo, but my camera just broke 🙁 Just picture a very serious little boy with his legs dangling off a chair, concentrating hard on sewing rickrack, and very proud of his work!
Who would have thought you could make something like that our of rick rack. The old piece is lovely…
These are so wonderful Andrea!! Thank you so much for the tutorial….now I want to make a few!! xxoo, Dawn
Very nice tutorial! Your French knots look charmingly cute (esp. since I’m a non-crocheter as well).
My inlaws have a little “picture” (wall hanging) that is a bouquet of different colored rick rack flowers. I never took the time to look at them and see how they were made. You can bet I’ll be checking it out more closely when we visit them this winter.
Thanks, I’ve never seen rick rack used like that before. I will have to try that, its interesting and intriging. I make ribbon flowers so this would make a nice addition. Love your blog, check it everyday !
Loverly! Perhaps’Karen’could send in, for all of us to see, a close up photo of her in-laws wall hanging so that we could get inspired even more about rick rack flowers! I am old enough to have clothes that were edged with rick rack when they were made for me by my Mom. Thanks ever so for the lesson.
What a great idea – super, super cute!
WOW. I love that. Daisies always make me smile. And this could be done in so many colours, for Gerber Daisies….ooh the plotting….