Interesting question. In a sense, I think you feel a little violated because it seems that a design you gave to the magazine appears as though it is being used commercially. However, as you say, the low price implies that commercial making of handmade lace is not really viable. My theory on this is that the piece passed into the hands of the ebay auctioneer via an estate. So, projecting a bit, perhaps the maker made this as a labor of love for someone important to him, who cherished it. I am sure that you intended this to be the use of your design. However, when the piece goes to auction, it is devoid of the sentimental value, and finds a buyer who is evaluating it entirely on the basis of comparable ebay items, possibly simply as wall decoration. (It may even be the case that the piece is being bought for the frame.) I had a conversation with a man who was a blacksmith at a historic village one time. He told me that he would make a nail at the village, and then sell it for $5. However, at a garage sale it would sell for only about 50 cents. The people who bought the nail were buying the experience of seeing it made, was his explanation. I think that this shows that for hand made lace to achieve any value on the market place, it has to be presented in the context of some kind of demonstration, or educational setting with loads of history thrown in, so that the buyer is buying the history, the cultural tradition, etc. Generally speaking, the public is not knowledgeable about lace, so they don't have any basis for critical evaluation of a piece of handmade lace. In fact, it is hard to perceive the difference between handmade and machine made lace, and machine made lace is quite inexpensive. Of course, without a lot of study, and understanding of technique, oil paintings are just color on canvas. Handmade lace in our era is at historically low values. In the 1920s when there was a lot being written about making and collecting lace the prices were rather high, especially for exceptional pieces. I suppose, in a way, you could consider that for the people who appreciate handmade lace, today's market place presents an incomparable "buying opportunity", totally devoid of investors running up the price. Devon
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