My wife, Greta, and I live in Durbanville, a town approximately 28 km from Cape Town in South Africa. I started making bobbins some 20 years ago - shortly after Greta took up lace making. It took me a long time to get to the stage where I, and Greta, considered my attempts to be worthy of the name "Lace Bobbins". I used Embuia in the beginning and I suppose I over did it as I became violently allergic to the wood and, even today, just the slightest contact with Embuia dust results in an almost immediate rash. Fortunately this allergy appears to be confined to Embuia only as, "touch wood", none of the woods I now use, have shown any ill effects.
What started off as a hobby has now, since my retirement in 1996, almost turned into a full time occupation. Initially the small production that came off my lathe was taken up locally (the Cape Lace Guild) but gradually I started receiving requests and orders from lace makers abroad and it has reached the point now where at least 80% of my monthly production is exported - mainly to the USA and UK. Because of the cost of postage and the fact that I don't have a credit card debit facility, but can only accept personal cheques (for which I have to pay a handling fee to my bank), individual small (less than 30) orders are not a viable proposition - to the purchasers, that is, as they have to pay for these costs. However, should you be interested in obtaining some of my bobbins, please contact any of the following for orders and further information.
 MIMI DILLMAN at ntrop@ix.netcom.com in the USA. Mimi lives in Snohomish (outside Seattle) and is an active member of the Lacemakers of Puget Sound as well as Arachne, the internet lace association. |
 DIANA GLASSPOOL at lacemaker@btinternet.com lacemaker@btinternet com who resides in Northampton in England. Diana is a lace maker and teacher of international repute and conducts regular lace tours into Europe. Her "Bobbin' Along" web page is at BOBBIN ALONG TOURS |
 KATHY POTTER at redfrogs@bigpond.net.au who resides in Mosman (near Sydney) Australia. |
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I mainly use African rare hardwoods, although I do have some attractive exotic wood such as Kingwood, Madagascan Rosewood, Chinese Rosewood, Tulipwood, etc. My main African woods are Blackwood, Wild olive, Tamboti, Ironwood, Candlewood,
Sneezewood, Red Ivory and Bubinga. My prized woods, from India, are Ebony and Red Sanders (aka Red Sandalwood and the biblical Algum/Almug), both of which, in 1988, were salvaged from the wreck of the Colebrooke, a British East Indiaman which ran aground near Cape Town on 24 August 1778.
Happy Lace making
Mike Bester
25 January 2004
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