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Venetian Bobbin Lace
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This 16th-17th century Italian
insertion represents a bridge between the braid laces and
those with all parts made simultaneously. The intriguing
design consists essentially of two ornamented scrolling
braids made
simultaneously between two borders. It is not radically different
from 16th century passementeries. Although Genoese bobbin laces
often copied the Reticella designs of
Venetian needle lace, the more rare bobbin-made laces of Venice,
like this example, did not. [L-3012]
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Non-Continuous Bobbin Lace
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Milanese Braided Lace
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Some of the earliest
non-continuous laces developed in
Milan. A tape-like strip of cloth stitch with openings along both
sides was constructed with bobbins and curved as necessary to form the
designs. Then with sewings (actually loops pulled
through tiny openings with a crochet hook or needle) threads were
attached to join the parts either with bars or a mesh
background. My example is a peasant lace which may date from the
late 18th
century, and its design required only 10 bobbins. The earliest non-continuous laces
of Milan and Flanders
were much alike: with
intricately-worked braids, the artisans formed exotic flowers and
foliated scrolls, creating some magnificent pieces of textile
art. [L-452]
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The term "continuous" may be confusing, as some
writers talk of "continuous" bobbin tapes. In a
broader sense, however, "continuous" refers to laces made all
in one -- pattern and ground together -- the antithesis of the braid
or "trail" lace techniques.
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Idria Braided Lace
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This elegant twelve-inch medallion was made with tiny bobbin-made trails of linen stitch and
intermittent half stitch, a more open weave. The background was filled
afterwards with
a bobbin-made réseau (mesh). A similar approach on a
larger and simpler scale
has been used by lacemakers throughout Eastern Europe. Similar work has sometimes been called "Idria" lace,
suggesting that it originated in Slovenia. Since many settlers
of that region were Czech or German, however, questions remain.
Hungarian and Russian lace makers have also produced several styles
of braided lace. If anyone can direct me to information on
the lace shown, I would be grateful.
Straight pre-woven tapes have sometimes been used as a shortcut -- even for
early laces. As such tapes had to be folded over or
gathered to form curves, the resulting motifs were understandably awkward.
The examples shown here are more sophisticated, because their
bobbin-made tapes were shaped to form the designs. [L-68]
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Braided Lace with Leaves
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Bobbin-made trails of cloth
stitch requiring either 12 or 16 bobbins form the main
motifs on an unusual square-necked Victorian yoke. Exquisitely
articulated leaves (point d'esprit)
fill selected areas. [L-460]
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Duchesse
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This Belgian lace style
developed in the 1850's. Parts were constructed separately with filmy linen stitch or
half stitch, and then assembled. Leaves were often veined with
raised oversewn bundles of threads. Since
flower sprigs, leaves and scrolls were joined by braided plaits,
lace like that in this collar could not be duplicated by
machine. Although generally associated with Belgium, lace in this style was made in several places, including
Mirecourt, France. The English
counterpart was Honiton, which was made with
slightly heavier thread and different fillings. [L-75]
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Brussels Point Duchesse
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This small collar features a
combination of Duchesse bobbin lace and minute needlepoint insertions. Most often
we see small oval floral inserts called Rose Point. (An example
appears on the Needlepoint Lace page.) Here,
however, a continuous needle-made border of tiny wheel motifs extends across
the collar's width below the top bobbin-made border, and still more
intricate needle-made motifs fill scallops along the bottom. L-352]
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Point d'Angleterre
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This origin of this lace has
been the subject of controversy. It was most likely made in
Flanders (later Belgium) for export to England, and merely labeled
"Angleterre" to circumvent import prohibitions.
Exotic flowers and foliated scrolls were made first with bobbins, then intricate
needlepoint fillings were added and a needle-made reséau (mesh
ground) was filled in. Often the work was divided among
specialists, so that the finished lace was the product of
several people. These Belgian laces made from the 17th century
on -- both in Flanders and elsewhere -- were copied, along with other classic laces, late in the 19th century in Burano,
Italy.
[L-1249]
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Brussels Appliqué
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Here separately made flower
sprigs and scrolls were made with bobbins and then sewed to
machine- made
net. Both Duchess motifs made in Belgium and Honiton motifs made in
England were often appliquéd,
as were needlepoint motifs. With machine net, very large
hand-ornamented pieces were practical, and even Queen Victoria's celebrated wedding lace was
bobbin lace appliqué of the Honiton variety. In some early work,
the net was trimmed away behind the motifs.
[L-705]
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Continuous Bobbin Lace
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Cluny Bobbin Lace
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In contrast to the laces
above, all parts of this wide insertion were made together: the
linen-stitch trail, center motif and braided mesh ground were worked
simultaneously. All of the necessary bobbins were hung from pins
to start the lace, and arranged across the pillow.
Inspired by 17th century Genoese bobbin lace, Cluny eventually became the most widely produced hand-made lace in the world.
It's what many current-day beginners learn right after they have
mastered basic Torchon techniques. This particular
example is a heavy, sturdy lace, and very decorative, with two
layers of flower petals in the motif centers. [L-1071]
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Binche or Valenciennes
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Made with gossamer linen
thread, these early 18th century filmy, translucent Flemish
laces are among the finest bobbin laces ever made. This
delicate lappet,
about 3 inches wide, was worked all in one piece, requiring
hundreds of bobbins. Because all parts were worked simultaneously, such laces were
the product of a single person. There is no cordonnet; instead rows of
tiny holes outline the gently curving flowers of delicate
cloth stitch. A fancy oeil de perdrix motif serves
as the ground. To call the details in this
lace subtle, is an understatement! [L-3001]
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Mechlin
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Here we see another
exquisite lappet made
in Flanders in the first half of the 18th century. This
complex example was made with fine threads equal to those in the piece
above, creating lovely transparencies. The motifs were outlined with a heavier thread,
and a distinctive mesh ground was used. The design is composed
of floral
motifs along with scrolls and cartouches enclosing small trefoils.
[L-3002]
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Chantilly
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Black silk
Chantilly lace was originally from the Ile-de-France. It was made in many
places, however, and acquired its distinctive name later. It usually has a
Lille (fond simple) ground, with motifs worked in half stitch, so there are no
solid black areas. Thus it is delicate, open and filmy. A
cordonnet of heavier thread outlines and separates the design
areas. Large pieces, such as shawls, were worked in strips and joined by a nearly invisible stitch called
point de raccroc. Chantilly lace was successfully imitated by machine
beginning in
the 1870s, and many of the copies can be difficult to separate from handmade examples.
[L-671]
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Lille
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Fashions in the late 18th
century became increasingly light and more fluid, and laces on garments
were often gathered. Soft continuous laces like this were made in
France, Scandinavia and all over Europe, with Belgium
producing especially large quantities. Though laces of the
Lille type first appeared
around 1750, the example here is most likely from the end
of the century. The ground is a fond simple réseau. [L-676]
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Cluny
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Here is another example of the
popular Cluny/Torchon bobbin laces: a child's collar that integrates the
design elements well. It has braided mesh and slim, oval leaves.
These are the point d'esprit first devised by
early Genoese bobbin lace makers. [L-831]
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Beds Maltese
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In the second half of the
19th century, English bobbin lace makers in Bedfordshire adapted the popular
Maltese style, omitting the Maltese crosses that
distinguished work from the island of Malta.
The maker of this collar added new elements: vines, leaves and flowers, as well as tiered
rosettes. Typical are the Bedfordshire square-ended tallies or point d'esprit,
trails of half-stitch or cloth
stitch, and plaited bars with picots. [L-746]
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Beds Maltese
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The scale of this bobbin
lace collar is amazing: It is tiny! Only 1½ inches
wide. Delicate raised tallies and appliquéd leaves give it a
pleasing three-dimensional character. [L-703]
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Bobbin Lace with Point de Paris Réseau
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Laces in the style of this
small round tablecloth were made in places as disparate as
Antwerp, France and Southern Italy. Like the preceding examples, this is
a continuous lace, with a small cordonnet outlining the birds,
flowers and scrollwork. The Point de Paris mesh ground has a
star-shaped configuration. [L-3010]
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Sansepolcro Bobbin Lace
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This firm, stiff lace cravat
could, at a glance, easily be mistaken for needle
lace. Indeed, the points at the bottom seem to copy Punto in
Aria forms. In technique and design, however, it most closely
approaches Venetian bobbin lace like that at the top of this
page. According to Carole Lassak, it is from the Sansepolcro
area of Italy. [L-1033]
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Silk Maltese
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Made on the island of Malta,
this lace collar includes the distinctive Maltese Cross. Along
with its boldly scalloped forms, small flat leaves were used
repetitively to display the shimmering luster of the ecru silk
to best advantage. These typical wheat ears or leaves were copied from Genoese
bobbin lace, and were present when the craft was revived in
Malta in the 1830's.
[L-339]
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One further note: Written historical records,
mainly merchants' accounts, leave the question of bobbin lace origins
in doubt. The extant laces themselves, however, are much more
informative. Nearly everyone agrees that techniques used by the
makers of elaborate passementeries were those used for the earliest
bobbin lace made with linen threads. Sixteenth century pattern books
display motifs said to be for both decorative metal/silk trims and narrow linen trims, insertions and borders. Among existing 16th
century laces, however, only examples of Venetian bobbin lace are closely related to
the passementerie designs in style, concept, and the technical
processes revealed. Unfortunately, photos of these laces have not been
widely published.
On the other hand, the early laces of Flanders, Milan and Genoa differ significantly in
character from the passementeries. They either imitate Venetian
Reticella/Punto in Aria needle laces or are of the non-continuous
type -- assembled braided sections that were later joined with mesh or bars. I
wonder if anyone can cite published examples of early Flemish bobbin
laces that are indeed related to the passementeries? |
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