How to add and remove bobbin pairs mid-work

I’ve spent many years at the pillow and I still get excited explaining things like How to add and remove bobbin pairs mid-work. Here we go.

If you make a mistake, undo. Period. Don’t push on ‘to see if it sorts itself out’. It never does If you fancy, I’ll leave Intermediate dyeing your own thread.

First things first: get comfortable. Pillow at chest height, feet on the floor, shoulders down. Start tense, finish tense.

What you will need¶

You’ll need this, nothing more, nothing less:

Extra loaded bobbins.
Guide needle.
Fine tweezers.

How I do it, step by step¶

Don’t skip any. Everything links in this craft:

Hook the new pair on the pin where you want it.
Work the first row normally: the join hides.
To remove, knot threads at the back and cut cleanly.

Where it gets sticky¶

These are the stumbles I see most often:

Don’t leave the extra hanging: guaranteed tangles.
Don’t cut before knotting when removing.

Variations¶

When you have it under control, try these:

For figurative motifs, plan the addition points in the pricking.

Nearby¶

And that’s it. If it helped, I’m glad. If you fancy learning in person, Encaixe runs a workshop and the people there are kind. That’s where I send those who ask me.