Flanders lace and the expensive Point laces of Italy first became widely
popular. Then, as now, they were costly--to such an extent that many
gentlemen sold an estate to buy laces for their adornment.
It was during this reign that we first learn of a lace being made in
England, as Queen Anne of Denmark on her journey south purchased lace at
_Winchester_ and _Basing_, but history mentions not what kind of lace it
was. Apparently only a simple kind of edging was used, made on a pillow.
The enormous ruffs went out of fashion with the death of James I.
Charles I., in all his portraits, wears the falling collar edged with
Vandyke lace. It was during this reign that Venetian lace reached its
apotheosis in England. The dress of the day has never been surpassed,
though it became much more elaborate and ostentatious in the time of
Charles II. and William and Mary. Falling collars were specially adapted
to the display of the handsome laces of Venice. The cuffs of the sleeves
were likewise trimmed with the same; scarves were worn across the
breast, trimmed with the narrower Reticella.
[Illustration: SEVENTEENTH CENTURY FALLING COLLAR TRIMMED WITH FINE
RETICELLA.
(_S.K.M. Collection._)]
During the Commonwealth the laces of Venice suffered a temporary
eclipse, and the plainer laces of Flanders were freely used. Cromwell
himself, it is said, did not disdain the use of it. His effigy at
Westminster was dressed in a fine Holland lace-trimmed shirt, with bands
and cuffs of the same. This effigy, by the way, was destroyed at the
Restoration.
Charles II., who during his exile in France had become imbued with the
extravagant taste of the French Court, gave vast orders for "Points of
Venice and Flanders," on the plea of providing English lace-workers with
better patterns and ideas.
The falling collar certainly went out of fashion, but lace was liberally
used on other parts of the dress. Lace frills of costly Point edged the
knee-breeches, lace cravats were worn and deep falling cuffs. Charles
II., in the last year of his reign, spent £20 for a new cravat for his
brother's birthday.
During James II.'s reign extravagance in lace purchases are still
mentioned, but it surely reached its culmination in the joint reign of
William and Mary, when enormous sums were spent by both King and Queen.
In one year Queen Mary's lace bill amounted to £1,918. New methods of
using lace were fashioned. A huge head-dress called the "Fontange," with
upright standing ends of Venetian Point, double hanging ruffles falling
from elbow sleeves, lace-trimmed aprons, lace tuckers, characterised the
feminine dress of the day, while the "Steinkirk" cravat and falling
cuffs of William III.'s day ran up accounts not much less than that of
his Queen. In 1690 his bill was £1,603, and in 1695 it amounted to
£2,459!
The effigies of William and Mary in the Abbey, wear the very finest
Venetian Point laces. None of the other figures wear such costly lace,
nor in such profusion.
[Illustration: COLLAR IN GROS POINT DE VENISE.
Louis XIV. period.
(_S.K.M. Collection._)]
XI
ENGLISH LACES
XI
ENGLISH LACES
Queen Anne and Mechlin--Establishment of lace-making in
Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire--Buckingham lace--Wiltshire
lace--Devonshire lace--Modern Honiton revival.
It was in Queen Anne's time that the earliest really good lace
manufactured in England appeared. Driven from France by the edict of
Louis XIV., the refugees found a home in England, and encouraged by
Queen Anne's fondness for laces other than Venetian, they made and
taught the English lace-workers, among whom they settled, the art of
real lace-making, which up to this time had apparently been only half
understood. Numerous lace schools now sprang up, the counties of
Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, and Northampton specially becoming known.
Valenciennes and Mechlin were the varieties of laces principally copied;
a very pretty lace, very reminiscent of Mechlin, being the "Baby lace,"
which received its name from being so much used to trim babies' caps.
Although very much like Valenciennes and Mechlin, the laces were much
coarser both in thread and design than their prototypes. Bedfordshire
and Northamptonshire did not long retain the art of lace-making, but
Buckingham lace remained a staple manufacture, and is much esteemed even
to-day, many connoisseurs considering it far better as a lace than the
somewhat clumsy laces of Devonshire. The specimen shown is a piece of
old Buckingham lace closely copying the réseau and sprigs of Lille which
most lace-lovers consider it excels. The net of Buckinghamshire is an
exact copy of the Lille mesh, being made of two threads twisted in a
diamond pattern, the sprays being worked on the pillow at the same time.
The patterns of the old Buckingham lace are not very varied, the best
known being what is called "Spider lace," a coarse kind of open mesh
being worked in the pattern. The principal town engaged in the
eighteenth century was Newport Pagnel, which was cited as being most
noted for making Bobbin lace. Old Brussels designs were used, and some
quaint lace of early Flemish design, was made. The early English run
lace, which was even so late as fifty years ago very popular, was mostly
made here. Aylesbury, Buckingham, and High Wycombe also made lace, and
in the last-named old town cottage lace-making may be seen to this day.
Very quaint are the old lace bobbins that may be purchased in the
"antique" shops of these lace-making towns. The lace-workers apparently
indulged many a pretty fancy in shaping them in a diversity of ways,
very few bobbins being alike. Some were made of bone, really prettily
turned, with dotted and pierced patterns on them. Others were
silver-studded, and again others were banded in silver. The wooden ones
were always decorated, if possible, each one differently from the
others, so that the worker might distinguish each thread without looking
at it. Nearly every bobbin was ended with a bunch of coloured beads
strung on wire, and a collection of these bobbins, with their "gingles,"
often yields up a pretty and quaint necklace. One in my possession has a
quaint bead made of "ancient Roman glass," worth at least ten shillings.
One wonders how this bit of Roman magnificence had strayed into an
English cottage home!
[Illustration: "OLD BUCKINGHAM."
(_Author's Collection._)]
[Illustration: EARLY DEVONSHIRE LACE.
(_Author's Collection._)]
Buckinghamshire is the only one of the Midland counties which has
produced _wide_ lace; the adjoining counties confined themselves to
edgings at most some 6 inches wide. A flounce in my collection measures
21 inches, and is of very elegant design, and of fine quality. In
Wiltshire lace appears to have been made at an early date in the
eighteenth century, but little lace is left to show its quality. A
curious piece is said to belong to an old family in Dorset, who vouch
for the lace having belonged to Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III.
Like many other traditional "antiques," this is undoubtedly a fairy
story, as it claims to have been made in commemoration of the defeat of
the Spanish Armada, _at contemporary times_. It is exceedingly handsome,
showing one of Philip's ships, very suggestively surrounded by big sea
fish and apparently resting on the rocky bottom of the ocean. In the
next panel Tilbury Fort is portrayed, and another ship, one of England's
glory, proudly rules the waves. The design is undoubtedly English, and
most probably it was made in commemoration of the historic event--but
the lace is Point d'Argentan, and was most likely manufactured specially
for Queen Charlotte.
Lyme Regis at one time rivalled Honiton, the laces of both towns being
equally prized. Queen Charlotte wore a "head and lappets" made here when
she first came to England, and afterwards she ordered a splendid lace
dress to be made. When, however, Queen Victoria, in her wish to
encourage the English makers, sent an order for her marriage lace, not
sufficient workers were found to produce it.
DEVONSHIRE LACE.
As early as 1614 the lace-makers of Devonshire were known. The influx of
refugees from Flanders in the Midlands and southern counties undoubtedly
established lace-making in both parts of the kingdom. Many of the
Honiton lace-workers married these refugees, and to this day the people
are of mixed descent. Quaint names of Flemish extraction appear over the
shop doors.
In the early days both men, women, and children seem to have pursued the
art of lace-making, boys learning and working at it until the age of
sixteen, when they were either apprenticed to some trade or went to
sea.
[Illustration: OLD HONITON (NEEDLEPOINT GROUND).]
[Illustration: OLD HONITON.
(_Author's Collection._)]
Most of the old Devonshire laces bear distinct likeness to the fine
Flemish lace, only the clumsiness of the design or the coarse
workmanship differentiating them. It has, however, one special feature
which gave it the name "Trolly lace," as, unlike the perfectly flat lace
of Flanders, it has a coarse thread or "trolly" outlining its patterns,
and being made of English thread, it was coarse and not very durable.
_Honiton_
has always easily ranked first amongst our British laces, although by
many not considered equal to fine Bucks. Like the Midland lace, it has
been always made with Flanders thread, and therefore has maintained its
popularity because of its _wear_ and its _colour_. The early Honiton
workers copied "Brussels" lace, but because of their inability to
produce an artistic design it has never been anything but a _poor_ copy.
Even when the Brussels influence was most direct the flowers and sprays
were placed inartistically, while the scroll copies of the early Flemish
schools can only be termed the imitative handiwork of a child.
The most prized specimens of old Honiton are those with hand-made
ground, made of Flanders flax. Very little of this real ground Honiton
lace is left. Queen Victoria did much to make Honiton lace _the_ lace of
the land; but although a regular trade has been established, and much
good work accomplished, Honiton of the past will never be regarded on
the same plane as the laces of Venice, France, and Brussels. Even in its
best variety it lacks the exquisite filmy touch of Brussels, the dainty
grace of Alençon, and the magnificence of Point de France and Venetian
Point. The Honiton laces made since the introduction of machine-made net
is especially poor. Flower sprigs and sprays are made separately on the
pillow, and afterwards applied to the machine-made ground. These are, as
a rule, flowers and foliage treated naturalistically, and are heavy and
close in design. These are often very sparingly applied over a wide
expanse of net in order to make as much lace with as little trouble as
possible. This is very different to the work of the old Honiton
lace-worker, who made every inch of it herself--first the sprays and
scrolls, then worked the ground round it, and received, it is said, from
the middleman (who purchased it for the town market) as many shillings
as would cover the lace offered for sale.
We are glad to say, however, that very praiseworthy efforts are being
made to introduce better methods and more artistic designs in the many
lace schools which are being formed in various parts of Devon. Mrs.
Fowler, of Honiton, one of the oldest lace-makers in this centre, making
exquisite lace, the technique leaving nothing to be desired, and also
showing praiseworthy effort in shaking off the trammels of the
traditional designs.
[Illustration: MODERN HONITON, MADE BY MRS. FOWLER.]
XII
SCOTCH AND IRISH LACES
XII
SCOTCH AND IRISH LACES
Hamilton lace--Mary Queen of Scots--Modern lace-making in
Ireland--Limerick lace--Carrick-ma-cross--Irish
crotchet--Convent laces.
Scotch lace can hardly be said to exist. At one time a coarse kind of
network lace called "Hamilton lace" was made, and considerable money was
obtained by it, but it never had a fashion, and deservedly so. Since the
introduction of machinery, however, there has been considerable trade,
and a tambour lace is made for flounces, scarfs, &c. The more artistic
class of work made by Scotswomen is that of embroidering fine muslin,
and some really exquisite work is made by the common people in their
homes.
Much mention is often made of Mary Queen of Scots and her embroideries
and laces. It must be remembered that she married firstly the Dauphin of
France, and while at the French Court imbibed the taste for elegant
apparel and costly lace trimmings. There is no record that she ever wore
lace of her own country's manufacture, and, although English writers
often quote the lace made by her fair hands, really the needlework made
by Queen Mary at Fotheringay was embroidery.
_Irish Laces._
The early lace of Ireland was the usual cut and drawn work, and it was
not until the earlier part of the nineteenth century that lace-making
actually became a craft. In the eighteenth century many brave attempts
were made to commence lace schools, and the best work was done in the
convents, where really fine work was executed by the nuns, the patterns
having been sent from Italy. It was not until 1829 that the manufacture
of Limerick lace was first instituted. This really is not lace at all,
as it is merely chain-stitch worked in patterns on machine-made net.
This pretty so-called lace was first made at Limerick by an Oxford man,
who established a school there, taking with him twenty-four girls as
teachers. It quickly became very popular, in the early "fifties" every
woman of either high or low degree possessing herself of at least a lace
collar or fichu of Limerick lace.
In 1855 more than 1,500 workers were employed, but decidedly the best
lace of the manufacture belongs to the time prior to this date. The
quality of the net ground has also deteriorated, or perhaps the best net
has not been purchased.
[Illustration: LIMERICK "FILLINGS."]
Very dainty little sprays and flowers are produced in the fine chain or
tambour stitch, the hearts of the flowers or the centres of the scallops
being worked over in an endless variety of extra stitches, as will be
seen in the illustration.
Another variety of lace is Carrick-ma-cross, which was contemporary with
Limerick. This is merely embroidery again, but has more claim to the
title of lace, as the tiny little flowers and scrolls are connected with
brides made of buttonhole stitch ornamented with picots. This is really
a very handsome lace, its only drawback being that it will not _wash_.
The fine lawn of which it is made is buttonholed round and then cut
away. This, in cleaning or washing, _contracts_ and leaves the
buttonhole edging, and in a few cleanings it is a mass of unmendable
rags.
Slightly more serviceable is another variety of Carrick-ma-cross, on
which the lawn is appliquéd to a machine-made net, the pattern outlined
with buttonhole stitches, and the surplus lawn cut away, leaving the
network as a grounding, various pretty stitchings filling up the
necessary spaces.
Yet another kind of lace is made, and is really the only real lace that
Ireland can claim. This is the Irish crotchet, which in its finer
varieties is a close imitation of Venetian Point, but made with fine
thread and with a crotchet needle. Some of the best is really worth
purchasing, but it is costly, realising as much as five guineas per
yard. A very delicate "Tatting" also comes from the Emerald Isle, and in
comparing English and Irish laces one is inevitably struck with the
reflection that there is more "artistry" in the production of Irish
laces and embroidery than in England with all her advantages. The
temperamental differences of the two races are distinctly shown in this,
perhaps more than any other art.
Much really notable work is now being executed in the Irish lace
schools. At Youghal, co. Monaghan, an exact replica of old Venetian
Point is being worked. Various fine specimens from the school occupy a
place at South Kensington Museum, and the lace industry of Ireland may
be said to be in a healthy condition.
[Illustration: CARRICK-MA-CROSS LACE.
(_Author's Collection._)]
XIII
HOW TO IDENTIFY LACE
[Illustration: THE CENTRE STRIP IS OLD "RETICELLA," WITH GENOA BORDERS.
(_Author's Collection._)]
XIII
HOW TO IDENTIFY LACE
Style--Historical data--Réseaux.
The great difficulty in attempting to identify any specimen of lace is
that from time to time each country experimented in the manners and
styles of other lace-making nations. The early Reticella workers copied
what is known as the "Greek laces," which were found in the islands of
the Grecian Archipelago. Specimens of these laces found in the
excavations of the last thirty years show practically no difference in
method and style. France copied the Venetian laces, and at one period it
is impossible to say whether a given specimen was made at Alençon or
Venice. Italy, in turn, imitated the Flemish laces--to such an extent
that even the authorities at South Kensington Museum, with all their
leisure and opportunities for study and the magnificent specimens at
hand for identification, admit that certain laces are either "Italian or
Flemish." Valenciennes was once a Flemish town, and though now French,
preserves the Flemish character of lace, some specimens of Mechlin
being so like Valenciennes as to baffle certainty.
Later, Brussels borrowed the hand-made grounds of France and Venice, and
still later England copied Brussels, the guipures of Flanders, and the
ground and style of Lille! All this makes the initial stages of the
study of lace almost a hopeless quest. The various expensive volumes on
lace, although splendidly written and gorgeously illustrated, leave the
student with little more than an interesting and historical knowledge on
which to base the actual study of lace. Here I may refer my readers to
the one and only public collection of lace, I believe, in England--that
of the South Kensington Museum, where specimens of lace from all
countries and of all periods are shown, and where many magnificent
bequests, that of Mrs. Bolckow especially, make the actual study of lace
a possibility.
It is to be hoped that the governing body of the museum will, in its own
good time, make this a pleasure instead of a pain. The specimens, the
_most important to the student_, are placed in a low, dark corridor. Not
a glimmer of light can be obtained on some of the cases, which also are
upright, and placed so closely together that on attempting to see the
topmost specimen on one side the unfortunate student literally bangs her
head into the glass of the next one. A gentle complaint at the
Directors' office concerning the difficulty brought forth the
astonishing information that there was no room at their disposal, but
that in good time better light might be found. As these cases have
been in identically the same place for the past fifteen years, one hopes
that the "good time" may come before one becomes a "spectacled
pantaloon" with no desire to see the wonders of that Palace of Art.
[Illustration: POINT D'ANGLETERRE.
Style Louis XV. Eighteenth Century
(_S.K.M. Collection._)]
This little protest is made in the hope that the "Lords of the
Committee" may possibly have their attention drawn to what amongst the
lace-lovers and students in this country is a "standing grievance."
It is almost impossible, even from the best of photographic
illustrations, to learn all the intricacies of identification. The
photographs clearly show style, but it needs specimens of the actual
lace to show method of working. From the illustrations in this book,
specially selected from the South Kensington Collection, and from
specimens in my own collection, every variety of style may be easily
understood, as they have been particularly selected to show each point
of difference. Commencing with the earliest form of lacework--_i.e._,
"cutworke"--nothing will better show this than the "Sampler" specimen,
which, half way down, shows two rows entirely typical of this kind of
early lace-making--for such it is. A little lower, examples of drawn
threadwork are seen, while the upper portion illustrates satin stitch
patterns, which more properly belong to embroidery.
The ancient collar from the South Kensington Collection, page 149, shows
some of the finest developments of cutwork, when the foundation of linen
was entirely dispensed with. The work is exceedingly fine, the threads
being no coarser, indeed in many cases less so, than the fine linen it
adorns. This is known as Reticella, or "punto in aria." The last name
is applicable to all the laces of Venice which succeeded Reticella, and
means lace literally made out of nothing or without any building
foundation.
The specimen is still of the same class, but where before the design was
simple geometric square and pointed as in all the early lace, it now
takes on the lovely flowing scroll of the Renaissance that marks the
latter half of the seventeenth century.
The same grand styles may be noted all through the great period of
Italian Needlepoint lace. It will be seen in a lesser degree in the
Guipure laces of Milan and Genoa, but here the cramping influence of the
Flemish school shows itself distinctly.
[Illustration: ITALIAN ECCLESIASTICAL LACE.]
[Illustration: FLEMISH OR GENOESE ECCLESIASTICAL LACE.
(_S.K.M. Collection._)]
The same bold lines may be noted in the early Needlepoint lace of
France, which had not then become sufficiently sure of her capacity to
develop a style of her own, and all show the Renaissance spirit.
Afterwards when the superb Point de France was at its height of
manufacture along with grand outline and exquisite handicraft, the
influence of the mighty monarch Louis XIV. asserted itself and although
the lace itself commands unbounded admiration, fantastic little notions,
symbolical and naturalistic, showed itself--as an illustration page 75:
little figures representing "the Indian," "canopied crown over a sealed
lady," trees growing all manner of bizarre fruit and flowers, all
symbolical of Louis the Magnificent's unbounded power and sway. In the
South Kensington Museum there is a still finer specimen, which has
not yet been photographed, I believe--a magnificent flounce, about
eighteen inches wide (really two boot top pieces joined), of what is
known as pseudo-Oriental character, which shows amongst the usual
exquisite scrolling no less than seven different figures on each
piece--viz., an Indian, a violinist in dress of Louis XIV. period, a
lady riding on a bird, two other ladies, one with a pet dog and the
other a parrot, a lady violinist, and another lady seated before a
toilet-table. These little figures are not more than three-quarters of
an inch high, but are worked with such minuteness that even the tiny
features are shown. This fantastic adoption of the human figure was
copied in Italy and Flanders. The finest specimens of Point d'Angleterre
(Brussels) show the same designs; and it may broadly be stated that all
lace with figures is of the Louis XIV. period, and over two hundred
years old.