Lace making

Lace making

In the USA, the term Honiton lace is often used to describe all types of tape (Renaissance) lace, while at the same time excluding ‘real’ Honiton (bobbin) lace.

Knotted lace is a term that covers a group of laces created by various forms of knots. This group includes the lace trimmings that are traditionally made by women living along the eastern and southern sides of the Mediterranean, as well as in parts of Armenia. The Turkish term for this type of lace is oya (a generic term for several methods of making such lace trimmings).

There are many definitions, concepts and pre-conceptions as to what exactly constitutes a piece of lace. Some people regard bobbin lace as 'true’ or ‘pure’ lace, all other types being imitations or not even lace.

Lefkara lace, also known as Lefkaritika and Lefkaritika lace, is a form of pulled thread embroidery with satin stitch details. It is often classed as a form of embroidered lace. Lefkaritika lace originally comes from the village of Lefkara, Cyprus, and is locally called tayiadha (compare Italian punto tagliato).

Lier (Lierre) lace is a form of embroidered net lace produced in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in the northern Belgian town of Lier. One story says that around 1825, a Mr. Timmermans married Miss De Keersmaeker, who ran a lace school in Lier. Together they developed a form of embroidered lace that used a tambour hook rather than a needle to decorate cotton bobbinet.

Limerick lace is a form of embroidered net lace from Ireland. The technique uses machine-made net and was introduced to Limerick in 1829 by Charles Walker (d. 1842). He brought over twenty girls from Coggeshall, Essex (England) to set up a lace-making school.

Maltese lace is a form of guipure bobbin lace that was introduced in the early nineteenth century by Genoese lace makers to the Mediterranean archipelago of Malta, and in particular to the island of Gozo. It is normally made of an ecru coloured, silk yarn, with the Maltese cross as a characteristic element in the design. Black samples are also made, and especially from the late nineteenth century Maltese lace is often made of linen.

Mezzo punto is a form of lace (and more precisely a tape lace) that dates back to the European late Middle Ages and is made using a combination of bobbin lace, woven and buttonhole stitch techniques. The technique was re-introduced in the second half of the nineteenth century under the name Renaissance lace.

Needle lace is a general term applied to various forms of lace made with a needle, including embroidered lace, embroidered net lace and needlepoint lace. See the schematic survey of lace forms. See e.g. Puncetto.

Needlepoint lace is a needle lace form of lace, whereby a ground material is no longer an essential part of the finished product or indeed it is completely absent. Needlepoint lace can be described as a single-thread technique using embroidery stitches. In general, the main stitch used for needlepoint lace is buttonhole stitch. The basic techniques of needlepoint lace, roughly following its development, can be distinguished as follows: 

Needlerun is a form of embroidered net lace that uses a hand-knotted net (filet) or machine-made net (tulle) and is decorated using a running stitch. Limerick (run) lace is a form of needlerun using machine-made net.

Net work (also written network) is an English term used for several different lace techniques worked on various forms of net. These lace techniques notably include filet, lacis, reseau, and reticella.

Opus Araneum is the medieval Latin term for darned netting. GVE

Oya is a Turkish word referring to various forms of narrow lace trimmings, made and worn throughout the eastern and southern parts of the Mediterranean region, as well as in parts of Armenia. It is particularly associated with Turkey. Oya is often used to decorate garments, especially women’s headscarves and household textiles, such as sheets, table cloths and towels. Modern oya is also used to create jewellery.

Pearling is an obsolete term from the seventeenth century for a kind of lace used for trimming the edges of garments. It was also called pearling lace.

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