I got started with this after buying a booklet at random from an online auction. It was title Filet och pinnspets (English title: Filet and stick lace) which is a correspondence course from 1973 made as material for a study circle. Shortly afterwards I picked up a second title, Knutet och trätt (English title: Knotted and threaded) from the same decade, also made for study circle guidance material that covered the same basic techniques with some complementary instructions and other examples of completed works using the method.

To my delight, I also snagged a 100-year old print of photographs of Swedish “stick lace” examples! It’s lovely seeing the final works in all three books as you get to explore materials and techniques.

Three books, in Swedish, on the topic of filet lace
Left: Filet och pinnspets. Center: Knutet och trätt. Right: Mönster för knutna och trädda spetsar.

Filet lace, pinnspets and “tied and threaded” differences

In Swedish works and other books referencing the technique I can find three closely related terms:

  1. Filéspets or Filetspets - Filet lace
  2. Pinnspets - Literal translation would be stick lace
  3. Knutet och trätt - Literal translation would be tied and threaded

All three terms refer to a bottom net that are tied using a method you also see for tying fishing nets, but at a smaller scale. While fishing nets are generally tied in two motions (creating the loop, securing the loop), the filet lace net loop is tied in one motion (only passing the shuttle once to create and secure the loop).

What elevates the handiwork from a mere net to a craft is the threading. You embroider on top of the netting to create shapes/patterns. This is the filet lace. There is technique/pattern for crochet called crochet lace which is reminscent of the final results.

As per usual, it seems like there are local variations of filet lace across Europe (I found a short French TV-segment on Youtube I understood little of, but appreciated the showcase of local filet lace practices) where once difference is the use of colours, size of the squares in the bottom net and how the lace is used. French example was all white, whereas Swedish examples use colour a bit more for their motifs.

Worth noting is that there are some examples in the learning material I’ve found of table cloths being tied in the round where different sizes of dowels have been used to make the loops in alternate sizes, thus creating patterns. These are also included in this tied and threaded category.

Filet lace no matter the region seem to have in common that it’s always worked on a net oriented so the netting is square. The pinnspets (stick lace) method on the other hand places the netting so the threading is done on a netting that is placed diagonally. The net itself can have any shape. Round, square, rectangle, it doesn’t matter. The motif and orientation of the loops/hoops/holes is the main differentiator.

A closeup of two books with one cover showing filet lace and the other stick lace
A closeup of the two instructional books I have of the topic. The left netting (fishes on top) is pinnspets - the netting is on the diagonal when you create patterns on top. The right shows off filet lace where the nets are square. The overal shape of the net itself does not matter, it seems to be the orientation of the bottom net. Both are tied in the same way.

Toolkit

I was sweating quite a bit trying to hunt down the filet lace making kit necessary to produce the dainty bottom netting. I had a go using ice lolly sticks cut in a way to use as a makeshift shuttle, but it was too thick to comfortably pass through and create the loop and knot. I finally found a Swedish-based webbshop that sells filet lace making kits, made by Prym.

The tools to tie filet lace together with a scissor and a ball of yarn
Prym makes a filet lace kit. There are three sizes of dowels to adjust the size of the net "holes" and three different lengths of shuttles meant to wind the yarn around. I bought this from a Swedish shop called Nordic Design.
The tools to tie filet lace together with a scissor
The shuttles and dowels taken out of the box.

Tying the net

This took a while to get the hang of. There are some wonderful instructional videos on YouTube (links shared at the end of this post) that helped me along, but I also had two books on the topic to speed me along. These were helpful for undersanding how to increase and decrease to create different shapes of the netting.

Tying a net, some loops are on the dowel
In the middle of tying a net. You start in one corner and expand it, so you need to increase/decrease as you work it across to create the final shape.

The first couple of attemps were just tiny knotted messes, and I threw them away.

After a while I did make somewhat of a square shape, and for the second attempt I fared even better.

Two tied nets using the filet lace kit
My first two complete attempts at making nets were irregular to say the least. The left side is the first attempt where I hadn't grasped the decrease pattern to form a square shape. The right net was my second attempt, looking much better, but still lots to improve.

The next attempt went even better, and I experimented with decreasing in a way to achieve a rectangular shape. Below is a video of adding a loop to the dowel and tying it. Most video instructions I’ve found are from the top view, meaning you see clearly what the dowel is doing but not totally clear how the fingers work the yarn.

Some technique insights/pointers that personally helped me figure out what is going on:

  • Move the shuttle and yarn above the dowel, swooping under to come back up
  • Catch the thread on your ring finger
  • Pinch the yarn above the dowel
  • Bring the shuttle via the back down to the ring finger loop
  • Make sure to leave a long running thread between the pinch by the dowel and coming round to the loop, as not having this will cause the knot to fail
  • Pass through the shuttle thorugh the ring finger loop and the loop from the previous row (the shuttle peaking out from passing through both loops has the long yarn from previous step on the side furthest away from you)
  • Catch the yarn on your pinkie
  • Release the ring finger loop and pull tight
  • You are using the pinkie loop to regulate where the knot will be placed
  • Release the pinkie loop and pull tight once you have positioned the knot properly
Adding a loop and knot to the net. To increase, the final loop gets two loops. To decrease, the final new loop is created by passing through two loops from the previous round. At the end, turn the piece to restart going left to right.

Before creating a pattern on top of the netting base, the instructions I’ve found calls for strengthening the yarn and stretching it out to have a more even shape. The rectangular net in the picture below for example is slightly slanted from the constant tension fron the starting point (seen in the bottom left corner). I added yarn in contrasting colour to pull it to even it out, but it is clearly not enough to even out the shape and build tension for threading.

One instruction talks about submerging the net in lukewarm water with gelatin, so it stiffens as you stretch it onto a frame for the threading. I’ll give it a try with agar agar instead (animal friendly option), and make a comparison with other starches like cornstarch slurry or simple flour in water to see which method works best for me.

A rectangular net tied using the filet lace kit
My first two complete attempts at making nets were irregular to say the least. The left side is the first attempt where I hadn't grasped the decrease pattern to form a square shape. The right net was my second attempt, looking much better, but still lots to improve.

To date I’ve yet to make the threaded/embroidery/stiching on top of a net, which will be the next foray into this craft. For now, I’m just pleased I can actually tie a decent looking net!

Video instructions on net tying

Resources well worth visiting to grasp the technique: