Something to Brighten Your February

With the new month upon us, it's time to turn the calendar. February's calendar desktop is ready over at our Picasa Album. This month, I've tweaked the sizes offered slightly to better reflect our site statistics, but if your monitor size is missing, feel free to comment and let us know!

Instructions for applying the desktop can be found at the January post.

Just one more reason why I love my priest...

He's a great diplomat with a pious agenda to bring us ever nearer to beautiful liturgy. From today's bulletin:

On Holy Thursday we celebrate the institution of two sacraments, Holy Orders and the Eucharist. Holy Thursday is also the Liturgy in which we remember Jesus washing the feet of the Apostles. In John's Gospel, this foot-washing is connected to the Apostles being ordained. In light of this year being named the Year for Priests, this year's Holy Thursday foot-washing will be all men.

Jan. 31- Feb. 6: Catholic Schools Week

What's on my Prayer Table?

I've just added this statue of Saint Peregrine to remind me to pray often for an extraordinary Church Lady who brings beauty to the lives of hundreds of people every week. In the midst of treatment for leukemia, she is fighting serious infections and is on a ventilator to counter the excessive fluid on her lungs. If you have a spare moment, please join us in prayer.

Prayer to Saint Peregrine

O great St. Peregrine, you have been called "The Mighty," "The Wonder-Worker," because of the numerous miracles which you have obtained from God for those who have had recourse to you.

For so many years you bore in your own flesh this cancerous disease that destroys the very fibre of our being, and who had recourse to the source of all grace when the power of man could do no more. You were favoured with the vision of Jesus coming down from His Cross to heal your affliction. Ask of God and Our Lady, the cure of the sick whom we entrust to you.

(Pause here and silently recall the names of the sick for whom you are praying)

Aided in this way by your powerful intercession, we shall sing to God, now and for all eternity, a song of gratitude for His great goodness and mercy.

Amen.

(and thank you!)

A Lace Primer

I hope you're not tired of lace yet because I have one more link for you. My original intent was to begin all this lace craziness with a bit of a primer on the wide world of options. Not surprisingly, in the middle of collecting photos and descriptions I found someone had already done it.

Check out Lace Fairy's impressive collection at her site. Have you ever wondered what Tunisian lace looks like? Where to find a lace shop in Cyprus? The history of Chinese lace? She's got it. She also has over 100 types of lace sorted alphabetically with lots of photos and clear descriptions.

Giving a "soul" to the web

In his message for the 44th World Day for Social Communications, Pope Benedict calls for priests to "make astute use" of available technology in becoming a presence as community leaders on the web.

-Catholic News Agency

Reading this made me think about the interactions I have with priests through the web and how they've enriched my life. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Author, convert, school chaplain, speaker, blogger, husband and father; Father Dwight Longenecker is a busy guy! Fascinating posts on the Personal Ordinariate for Anglicans and lots of other fun. I love his alter egos, especially Caitlyn O'Rourke and Mantilla Amontillado (aka Mantilla the Hon, and it's a dream of mine to have Mantilla write a guest post of advice for our Church Ladies someday. ;-)
• Father Robert Barron may well be the poster priest for effective use of technology to reach a huge "congregation." You can find him in print, watch his Faith Clips and listen to his pod casts, and browse his 200 entries on YouTube (everything from movie reviews, to explaining the Holy Trinity). I can hardly wait for his Catholicism Project to be completed- even the trailer gives me goosebumps!
• Father Phillip Powell, OP at Domine, da mihi hanc aquam! also blogs about news and posts his great homilies. Author, outstanding teacher, UDallas grad, and current student, Father Powell's Coffee Bowl Browsing posts have led me to way too many interesting things on the 'net and I appreciate his political leanings (and his quirky sense of humor).
• Father Zuhlsdorf is a clearinghouse of all things Catholic. No one beats his blog for sheer volume of posts and for lively interaction in the comments box.

Who are your favorites?

More veil ideas

There are lots of beautiful veils available (most with copyrighted photos so I won't use them here), but you can apply the principles from my post earlier this week to create many of them at home.

The foundation fabric most commonly used for veils is tulle, a fine netting typically made of silk or nylon. Nylon tulle is very inexpensive and comes in a variety of widths, up to 108 inches. Because it will not ravel when cut, it's perfect for this use.

This one starts with 72" or 108" width tulle. Cut a rectangle the length you want for your finished veil and then generously round the bottom. Hand sew the trim onto it according to yesterday's directions. To finish it, gather the top edge with a running stitch and sew it to a plastic comb (or two).

This one is a large oval of tulle with lace sewn around the perimeter. (Probably 72" width, but measure from one elbow, over your head to the other elbow for an accurate diameter.) It's worn just draped over her head, without a comb in photo 2. To wear it like photo 1, hand sew it to a plastic comb under the lace at the center top. To reinforce the lace, you could sew a piece of satin ribbon between the comb and the underside of the veil.

Instead of a lace edge, this one has a narrow, satin ribbon machine sewn about 1/2" from the edge of the tulle. After you attach the ribbon, trim the extra tulle edge away and attach it to a comb, headband, wreath, or hair clip.

This edge is finished with a narrow, satin rattail cord. Simply lay the cord on top of your tulle, about 1/2 inch from the cut edge, and use a zig-zag stitch and clear nylon thread or matching cotton/poly or rayon thread made for lightweight fabrics. Your stitch width should be wide enough that the zig-zag goes on either side of the cord, but not through it. Carefully cut the extra tulle off the edge without cutting through the stitching, and finish the veil with some kind of comb, etc.

This helpful site gives measurement suggestions, but there are also patterns with detailed instructions available.

Making a veil can be a very satisfying project. Besides the potential to save a lot of money, even a novice seamstress can get beautiful results.

Where Were the Young Women?

According to one Newsweek reporter's blog, this year's March for Life in Washington DC was shorter and there were few young people there because "the organizers are getting older" and "a majority of the participants are in their 60s and were the original pioneers..."

What say you, marchers? Was that your experience? ;-)

Conversion of St. Paul

But the Lord said to him,

"Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name
before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel;
for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name."
[Acts 9, 15-16]

Of course I have heard the Pauline epistles at Mass, Sunday after Sunday. It wasn't until reading Anne of Green Gables and other fiction of that era that employ Scripture in the prose that I realized how little of the epistles I knew offhand; it wasn't until the year of St Paul I read the epistles through for the first time. Take some time for that reading today, and share your favorite Pauline quote (or 2!) in the combox.

My picks are:
We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose. [Rm 8, 28]

And let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart. [Gal 6, 9]

Top Image: Michelangelo, The Conversion of Saul, 1542-45
Bottom Image: Abraham Ortelius, Pilgrimage of St Paul, 1579

Working With Lace

It’s not uncommon for a Church Lady to have occasion to sew with lace. Veils are an obvious project; chapel veils, wedding veils, maybe a First Communion veil for your daughter or goddaughter. I’ve also used lace trim to lengthen a hemline or make a too-low neckline more modest, edge a prayer table cloth, trim an apron, and so on...

This chapel veil project will demonstrate some simple techniques you can use with a commonly found lace that is also inexpensive and easy to work with. Chantilly lace was originally a handmade bobbin lace from Chantilly, France. It’s typically a detailed floral design outlined by a somewhat thicker thread on an evenly knotted background. It was originally made of silk, but now you will probably only find nylon. These are two patterns of Chantilly lace you will find today at just about any fabric or craft store:

The nice thing about modern Chantilly lace is that it doesn’t ravel at all so you don’t have to finish the edges. That quality makes it really easy to work with.

For this project, you’ll need lace yard goods (sold on a bolt and somewhere between 36” and 72” wide) and lace trim.

And this is where it gets fun. Because this lace doesn’t ravel, you can cut it in all sorts of patterns. For example, I started with this piece of trim

and was able to use a small embroidery scissors (or cuticle scissors) to cut it into three different, usable designs.

I’m using the narrow border for this veil and tucking the other pieces away for a future project.

1. Design a pattern: A classic triangle-shaped veil is 36 inches across the front and 18 inches from the center front to the back point. The one I made here is more of a D shape. I started with a 22” x 18” rectangle of scrap fabric, folded it in half and rounded the corners.

At this point, try it on your head to get some idea if you like the length and shape. Now is the time to change it if you don’t like something.

2. Pin your pattern onto the lace. I purchased ½ yard of 54” wide Chantilly lace. That would be enough to make two veils in this design. (I’m only cutting one out now.) It’s a nice touch if you can consider the design in the lace when you lay out your pattern. For example, I was able to center the pattern on one of the flower motifs. (This detail is probably not a deal breaker, but does give a more professional look.)

3. Cut the lace around the pattern, unpin, and carefully tuck your pattern away for the day when some other Church Lady asks where you got your beautiful veil. ;-)

4. Pin your border lace in place. Again, consider the placement so the center front is as nice as possible. Place the ends in the most inconspicuous spot (mine are on the side, near the back) The goal for pinning is to avoid puckering when you sew! You’ll want to place your pins pretty close together so everything is held firmly in place.

You may not want to pin the entire perimeter (pins have a maddening tendency to fall out of lace), but keep at least the 6” in front of your needle pinned. When working on a fine fabric like this, I like to sit at a table so the entire piece of fabric is well supported. It helps keep the pins in place and makes things less likely to pucker as I sew. Really, it’s just a personal preference though. You could also sew with it resting on your lap.

5. Use a running stitch, following the trim design around the edges to hold all the points and flowers down. This lace is pretty narrow; If you’re using a wider one, you’d want to sew on both edges of the trim to hold the fabric down and make things look nicely on the back as well. My running stitches are small on the top (first photo below) of the veil and longer (about ¼ inch) on the back. (second photo below) knot your thread every few inches to make it all more durable.

You’ll soon get the feel for the proper tension for your stitches. The goal is a balance between slack thread and puckered stitches. If you’ve never done this before, you may want to do a few inches of practice stitches on some scrap lace.

6. When you get to the ends of the trim, overlap them slightly and stitch them in place.

In summary, make a pattern, cut out your lace, sew the trim on with a running stitch, wear your veil. Simple!

The entire veil only cost about $4

• ½ yard lace - $3.90 (Originally $12.99/yard but I used a coupon. Seriously, I don't think I ever pay full price at JoAnn Fabrics. Sign up to get their coupons if you're near one of their stores. Remember, this was enough to make 2 veils, so the cost per veil was under $2.)
• 2 1/3 yards trim (The trim I originally purchased cost $2.15. I ended up using a piece I had in my lace scrap box - the piece pictured here - because it was better for demonstration purposes.)
• All-purpose thread
• Needle
• An embroidery scissors with a sharp tip

A few more notes:

• It's easiest to use a narrow trim lace. Wider trims can be dramatic and beautiful, but it may require some creative cuts to make it stay flat around the corners.
• I was really surprised to see how few choices my fabric store has for lace trim! Just a month ago they offered three times the trim they now have. I hope this trend doesn't continue.
• Obviously, you can find lace in the bridal department, but you may also want to check the decorator department. I've seen some really pretty laces that are made for drapery or tablecloths. :-)