lace-making pillow

[Shirley Ellis <shirleye@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hello All,
We have a lace-making pillow WITH bobbins and attached lace going out on display.  The threads are currently tangled up and the bobbins splayed out in a half circle.  The curator would like this pillow to look as if it was "being worked", ie with portions of the bobbins looped over pins in various sections on the pillow.  

I am concerned about the weight of the bobbins, hanging from their threads and would like to have them supported on display.  Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of seeing lace-making pillows and bobbins on exhibit and how this was handled?  Obviously, whatever is done needs to be unobtrusive and right now I can't think of anything other than plexi tiers which really isn't that minimal. 

Any ideas would be welcome.

thanks
shirley

Shirley Ellis
Textile Conservator
Royal Ontario Museum
100 Queen's Park
Toronto, ON  M5S 2C6
ph:  416 586-5878
fax:  416 586-8036