It is an interesting quote. Probably not useful, especially viewed with today’s more utilitarian eyes.
Back then, of course, you lived with ornament in the clothing of the moneyed classes. I recall reading somewhere (can’t give you a citation, sorry) that one of the great things about early bobbin lace was that it was an embellishment that could be quickly applied, (compared to the previous embellishment, embroidery, which took a lot longer to apply to any particular garment) plus it was portable. If you’re finished with your blue velvet jerkin, the lace, which was only tacked on anyway, could be quickly removed in its entirety with its structure intact, and moved onto your next garment. You couldn’t do that with embroidery! Also, I’m thinking lace, and other fine embellishments, probably were more necessary than they are today. People flaunted their fortunes in dress, but also I seem to recall (again, no citation) reading that there were dress requirements at court. In an era when you held your vast estate (and income) at his/her majesty’s pleasure, having the monarch get pissed off at you for not following the dress code had a lot more repercussions than it does today. Adele (also on the west coast of Canada, but with more rain than Helen) > I don’t know where my copy of Le Pompe is at the moment so I cannot check. It > is an interesting quote though I would question its accuracy. In what way > does anyone need lace? Or even find it useful? Unless you have to make a lace > trimmed dress, lace curtains, or similar? Lacemaking was useful in the areas > and times of such things and lacemakers needed to make some money though I > don’t think that is what it is trying to say. Am I missing something? Perhaps > it is because most of my ancestry consists of country peasants whose lives > would not have included any lace. > > Regards, Helen (on the west coast of mainland Canada). > >> *Lace is a work not only beautiful but useful and needful.* > > - - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
