Coming at this from a slightly different angle (but reaching a similar conclusion). My religious order was founded in 1212. (Yes, we are celebrating our ninth centenary this year.) The Rule written by the foundress, St. Claire of Assisi, specified that our habits should be made of the cheapest cloth. This has been brought down through the years as brown or gray, but not black or white. I was taught that the reason for this is that black and white cloth was more expensive in the High Middle Ages, and therefore judged unsuitable for the Order of Poor Ladies.
Now, I realize that most of our lace traditions do not date back quite that far, but it seems very reasonable to me that, as Adele said, one would choose the best quality (the whitest) thread for a luxury, class-indicating good such as lace. Not sure if this makes sense to anyone else, as I am entirely innocent of any study of lace history or textile history. FWIW, Sr. Claire in Jerusalem where it's been three showers a day heat this week. - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003
