Member-only story
Lace — So Lovely, There Was a Law Against It
Tucked in Alexander Hamilton’s papers are snippets of black silk lace
Lace is all about what’s left out, a collection of holes formed into a pattern. The word evokes wedding veils, christening gowns, negligees, and fancy words like Alencon, Valenciennes, Chantilly, and Torchon.
Most needlefolk eventually try their hand at making a piece of lace. We knit a diaphanous scarf or tat a hanky edge. Pretty as they are, though, it is the classic handmade bobbin and needle laces which take my breath away. Needle lace, created with a threaded needle and a pattern, takes the buttonhole stitch far beyond the world of buttons. On the other hand, bobbin lace shows us the endless possibilities of twisted, crossed, and braided threads. Bobbin lace also uses a pattern, usually attached to a small pillow. Straight pins peg the work as it unfolds from thread spooled on multiple dangling bobbins. The two techniques can be combined. These laces, rooted in Europe, may be floral or geometric or pictorial, silk or cotton or linen or metal. They always aim to add beauty.
I wondered if anyone still made such lace and if it were for sale. I have my oval box with bits of…
